A theoretical framework for requirements engineering and process improvement in small and medium software companies

Abstract

Purpose – Requirements engineering (RE) and process improvement has been identified as one of the key factors for improving software quality. Despite this, little scholarly work has been done on developing ways to improve the RE process. The situation of RE and process improvement is even worse in small and medium enterprises that produce software. Consequently, the quality of software being produced by these companies has kept deteriorating. The purpose of this paper is to design a framework that will help small and medium software companies improve their RE processes in order to compete favorably with larger software companies, more especially in terms of software quality. Design/methodology/approach – A qualitative research approach was adapted. Four software companies in Uganda were purposively selected to participate in the study. Data were collected using questionnaires. The requirements for designing the framework were gathered and refined from both primary and secondary data. Findings – The key requirements for process improvement in small and medium software companies were identified as user involvement, use of evolutionary requirements engineering process improvement (REPI) strategy, change management, training and education, management support and commitment. Practical implications – The designed framework was validated to ensure that it can be applied in RE and process improvement in small and medium software companies. Validation results show that the proposed framework is applicable and can be used to improve RE and process improvement in small and medium software companies. Originality/value – The paper presents an improvement of the systematic approach to REPI by Kabaale and Nabukenya which is decomposed for easy understanding by non-technical readers and users.

Management temeljnih procesov: instrumentalni in interesni vpliv na uspešnost podjetij

“…1994;McCormack in Johnson 2001;Van der Aalst, Ter-Hofstede in Weske 2003;Kennerley in Neely 2003;Acur in Bititci 2004;Robson 2004;Allen in Helms 2006;Strnadl 2006;Škerlavaj idr. 2007;Johnston in Pongachitat 2008;Singh, Garg in Desmukh 2008;Jeston in Nelis 2008;Nandakumar, Ghobadian in O'Regan 2009; Verle in Markič 2010;Glavan-Milanović 2011;Roeser in Kern 2015;Carey 2015;Buh, Kovačič in Indihar Štemberger 2015;Kabale in Kituyi 2015;Potočan in Nedelko 2015;Trkman idr. 2015;Hernaus, Bosilj Vukšić in Indihar Štemberger 2016;Indihar Štemberger idr.…”

“…Vse več podjetij uporablja procesno orientiranost tudi zato, ker funkcijska organiziranost za organizacije predstavlja oviro, saj onemogoča učinkovito povezovanje med posameznimi funkcijskimi področji (oddelki) in odzivnostjo na trgu (Kovačič in Bosilj Vukšić 2005, 32;Škrinjar in Trkman 2013, 48). Obvladovanje poslovnih procesov je danes ključno za razvoj in obstoj podjetij glede na velikost in področje delovanja (Roeser in Kern 2015 ;Carey 2015;Kabale in Kituyi 2015;Trkman idr. 2015;Hernaus, Bosilj Vukšić in Indihar Štemberger 2016).…”

A Systematic Mapping Study on Process Improvement in Software Requirements Engineering

“…On the other side, Software Process Improvement (SPI) is used in the software industry as a way to move from current inefficient software processes towards processes that achieve the established objectives in terms of quality, time, and productivity [7]. In addition, SPI methodology is defined as a sequence of tasks, tools, and techniques that are performed to plan and implement improvement activities [8].…”

Enterprise risk arising from legacy production systems: a probabilistic perspective

“…Risk identification and aggregation is the only method of forecasting to determine the probability that unforeseen or unacceptable events will occur in a software development project [19]. These include termination, breaks, schedule delays, understatement, and overspending of project resources [20].…”