Author
Nils Brede Moe
Other affiliations: Uppsala University, Blekinge Institute of Technology
Bio: Nils Brede Moe is an academic researcher from SINTEF. The author has contributed to research in topics: Agile software development & Empirical process (process control model). The author has an hindex of 32, co-authored 128 publications receiving 4287 citations. Previous affiliations of Nils Brede Moe include Uppsala University & Blekinge Institute of Technology.
Papers published on a yearly basis
Papers
More filters
TL;DR: The conceptual structure underlying agile scholarship is delineated by performing an analysis of authors who have made notable contributions to the field and urging agile researchers to embrace a theory-based approach in their scholarship.
944 citations
TL;DR: Transitioning from individual work to self-managing teams requires a reorientation not only by developers but also by management, and trust and shared mental models are found to be of fundamental importance.
Abstract: Context: Software development depends significantly on team performance, as does any process that involves human interaction. Objective: Most current development methods argue that teams should self-manage. Our objective is thus to provide a better understanding of the nature of self-managing agile teams, and the teamwork challenges that arise when introducing such teams. Method: We conducted extensive fieldwork for 9months in a software development company that introduced Scrum. We focused on the human sensemaking, on how mechanisms of teamwork were understood by the people involved. Results: We describe a project through Dickinson and McIntyre's teamwork model, focusing on the interrelations between essential teamwork components. Problems with team orientation, team leadership and coordination in addition to highly specialized skills and corresponding division of work were important barriers for achieving team effectiveness. Conclusion: Transitioning from individual work to self-managing teams requires a reorientation not only by developers but also by management. This transition takes time and resources, but should not be neglected. In addition to Dickinson and McIntyre's teamwork components, we found trust and shared mental models to be of fundamental importance.
441 citations
TL;DR: A multiple case study consisting of four projects in two software product companies that recently adopted Scrum identified three main challenges to shared decision-making in agile software development: alignment of strategic product plans with iteration plans, allocation of development resources, and performing development and maintenance tasks in teams.
Abstract: Context: Agile software development changes the nature of collaboration, coordination, and communication in software projects. Objective: Our objective was to understand the challenges of shared decision-making in agile software development teams. Method: We designed a multiple case study consisting of four projects in two software product companies that recently adopted Scrum. We collected data in semi-structured interviews, through participant observations, and from process artifacts. Results: We identified three main challenges to shared decision-making in agile software development: alignment of strategic product plans with iteration plans, allocation of development resources, and performing development and maintenance tasks in teams. Conclusion: Agile software development requires alignment of decisions on the strategic, tactical, and operational levels in order to overcome these challenges. Agile development also requires a transition from specialized skills to redundancy of functions and from rational to naturalistic decision-making. This takes time; the case companies needed from one to two years to change from traditional, hierarchical decision-making to shared decision-making in software development projects.
178 citations
TL;DR: An interpretative revelatory case study on one of the largest software development programmes in Norway shows how agile methods were adapted and complemented with practices from traditional methods to handle the scale.
Abstract: Agile development methods were believed to best suit small, co-located teams, but the success in small teams has inspired use in large and very large-scale software development However, fundamental assumptions of agile development are challenged when applying the methods at a very large scale An interpretative revelatory case study on one of the largest software development programmes in Norway shows how agile methods were adapted and complemented with practices from traditional methods to handle the scale The programme ran over four years with 12 co-located development teams and a total of 175 people involved The case study was conducted retrospectively using group interviews with 24 participants and documents Findings on key challenging areas are reported: customer involvement, software architecture, and inter-team coordination The revelatory study also suggests refinements of a research agenda for very large-scale agile development
167 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the key factors that cause a lack of trust and the effect of lacking trust and present data from four projects in which problems with trust were experienced were investigated and found that trust is a fundamental factor in determining the success or failure of globally distributed software development.
Abstract: Many organizations have turned towards globally distributed software development (GSD) in their quest for cheap, higher-quality software that has a short development cycle. However, this kind of development has often been reported as being problematic and complex to manage. There are indications that trust is a fundamental factor in determining the success or failure of GSD projects. This article studies the key factors that cause a lack of trust and the effect of lacking trust and present data from four projects in which problems with trust were experienced. We found the key factors to be poor socialization and socio-cultural fit, increased monitoring, inconsistency and disparities in work practices, reduction of and unpredictability in communication; and a lack of face-to-face meetings, language skills, conflict handling, and cognitive-based trust. The effect of lacking trust was a decrease in productivity, quality, information exchange and feedback, morale among the employees, and an increase in relationship conflicts. In addition, the employees tended to self-protect, to prioritize individual goals over group goals, and to doubt negative feedback from the manager. Further, the managers increased monitoring, which reduced the level of trust even more. These findings have implications for software development managers and practitioners involved in GSD. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
164 citations
Cited by
More filters
Posted Content•
[...]
TL;DR: Deming's theory of management based on the 14 Points for Management is described in Out of the Crisis, originally published in 1982 as mentioned in this paper, where he explains the principles of management transformation and how to apply them.
Abstract: According to W. Edwards Deming, American companies require nothing less than a transformation of management style and of governmental relations with industry. In Out of the Crisis, originally published in 1982, Deming offers a theory of management based on his famous 14 Points for Management. Management's failure to plan for the future, he claims, brings about loss of market, which brings about loss of jobs. Management must be judged not only by the quarterly dividend, but by innovative plans to stay in business, protect investment, ensure future dividends, and provide more jobs through improved product and service. In simple, direct language, he explains the principles of management transformation and how to apply them.
9,241 citations
Book•
01 Jan 1995
TL;DR: In this article, Nonaka and Takeuchi argue that Japanese firms are successful precisely because they are innovative, because they create new knowledge and use it to produce successful products and technologies, and they reveal how Japanese companies translate tacit to explicit knowledge.
Abstract: How has Japan become a major economic power, a world leader in the automotive and electronics industries? What is the secret of their success? The consensus has been that, though the Japanese are not particularly innovative, they are exceptionally skilful at imitation, at improving products that already exist. But now two leading Japanese business experts, Ikujiro Nonaka and Hiro Takeuchi, turn this conventional wisdom on its head: Japanese firms are successful, they contend, precisely because they are innovative, because they create new knowledge and use it to produce successful products and technologies. Examining case studies drawn from such firms as Honda, Canon, Matsushita, NEC, 3M, GE, and the U.S. Marines, this book reveals how Japanese companies translate tacit to explicit knowledge and use it to produce new processes, products, and services.
7,448 citations
TL;DR: Polanyi is at pains to expunge what he believes to be the false notion contained in the contemporary view of science which treats it as an object and basically impersonal discipline.
Abstract: The Study of Man. By Michael Polanyi. Price, $1.75. Pp. 102. University of Chicago Press, 5750 Ellis Ave., Chicago 37, 1959. One subtitle to Polanyi's challenging and fascinating book might be The Evolution and Natural History of Error , for Polanyi is at pains to expunge what he believes to be the false notion contained in the contemporary view of science which treats it as an object and basically impersonal discipline. According to Polanyi not only is this a radical and important error, but it is harmful to the objectives of science itself. Another subtitle could be Farewell to Detachment , for in place of cold objectivity he develops the idea that science is necessarily intensely personal. It is a human endeavor and human point of view which cannot be divorced from nor uprooted out of the human matrix from which it arises and in which it works. For a good while
2,248 citations