Practices for Managing Machine Learning Products: a Multivocal Literature Review

Abstract

<p>Machine Learning (ML) has grown in popularity in the software industry due to its ability to solve complex problems. Developing ML Systems involves more uncertainty and risk because it requires identifying a business opportunity and managing the source code, data, and trained model. Our research aims to identify the existing practices used in the industry for building ML applications. The goal is to comprehend the orga- nizational complexity of adopting ML Systems. We conducted a Multivocal Literature Review (MLR) and used Grounded Theory (GT) to build a taxonomy with the practices applied to the ML System lifecycle from the industry and academic perspectives. We selected 41 posts from grey literature and 37 papers from scientific repositories. Following a systematic GT protocol, we mapped 91 practices, grouped in 6 core categories related to designing, developing, testing, and deploying ML Systems. The results can help organizations identify the gaps in their current ML processes and practices, and provide a roadmap for improving and optimizing their ML systems. The comprehensive taxonomy of practices developed in this research serves as a valuable tool for managers, practitioners, and researchers in the ML field, providing a clear and organized understanding of the complexity of managing ML systems.</p>