Showing papers presented at "International Conference on Global Software Engineering in 2011"

Signs of Agile Trends in Global Software Engineering Research: A Tertiary Study

Abstract: In this paper we present preliminary findings from a tertiary study on global software engineering In particular, we observe current trends in the software engineering research and perform an investigation of the role of agile topics in the GSE research literature Our findings indicate that agility is one of the topics attracting attention in the research agenda for global software companies In contrast to recent beliefs that agile and distributed are two incompatibilities Global Agile development becomes more and more accepted, a trend which we also see from the growing amount of research on GSE and agile Finally we conclude that there are indications that both globalization and "agilization" of software companies are stable trends for the future but that there is a strong need for further studies on the particular challenges that distribution of work imposes on the principles of agile development

Risk Identification and Risk Mitigation Instruments for Global Software Development: Systematic Review and Survey Results

Abstract: In this research we conducted a systematic reviewon Global Software Development (GSD) literature andperformed a survey to gather challenges associated with GSDprojects as well as their mitigation strategies. We reviewedstudies with empirical evidence in GSD. In total there are 86papers included as the primary studies. From the systematicreview we collected 48 challenges and 42 mitigation strategies.These challenges and strategies were also identified by our survey respondents. In addition, 4 additional mitigation strategies were uncovered from the survey. The collected challenges and mitigation strategies are later compiled into checklists which can be employed as risk identification and risk mitigation instruments.

Exploring the Role of Instant Messaging in a Global Software Development Project

Abstract: Communication plays a vital role in software development projects. Globally distributed teams use a mix of different communication channels to get the work done. In this paper, we report on an empirical study of a team distributed across Denmark and India. This paper explores the integration of formal documentation, bug-tracking systems and email with informal communication on Instant Messaging (IM), screen sharing, and audio conversations. Whenever overlap times occur, informal communication can take place at the same time in different sites, and it can effectively complement formal documentation. Our analysis provides an indication that IM can play a special role in such socio-technical communication systems: IM acts as a real time glue between different channels. The communication through IM also provides a means to build trust and social relationships with co-workers.

Using the Cloud to Facilitate Global Software Development Challenges

Abstract: With the expansion of national markets beyond geographical limits, success of any business often depends on using software for competitive advantage. Furthermore, as technological boundaries are expanding, projects distributed across different geographical locations have become a norm for the software solution providers. Nevertheless, when implementing Global Software Development (GSD), organizations continue to face challenges in adhering to the development life cycle. The advent of the internet has supported GSD by bringing new concepts and opportunities resulting in benefits such as scalability, flexibility, independence, reduced cost, resource pools, and usage tracking. It has also caused the emergence of new challenges in the way software is being delivered to stakeholders. Application software and data on the cloud is accessed through services which follow SOA (Service Oriented Architecture) principles. In this paper, we present the challenges encountered in globally dispersed software projects. Based on goals mutually shared between GSD and the cloud computing paradigm, we propose to exploit cloud computing characteristics and privileges both as a product and as a process to improve GSD.

Scrum-based Methodology for Distributed Software Development

Abstract: There are many companies doing software development in a distributed way nowadays, due to the great benefits that it provides, however, this type of development also leads to multiple complications such as deteriorated communications. Among the most widespread methodologies for software development is the Rational Unified Process (RUP). However, in recent decades a series of methodologies have emerged, called "agile methodologies", which aim to develop software quickly, focusing on people and frequent delivery of software. Of the existing agile methodologies, Scrum is one of the most widely-applied, due to its ability to complement other methods and processes. For this reason, the strategies proposed by Scrum may be suitable for the distributed management and deployment of the phases and disciplines of RUP. In this paper we present a methodology based on the integration of RUP and Scrum, called scrum UP, which has been so designed as to be appropriate in a distributed environment.

GloSE-Lab: Teaching Global Software Engineering

Abstract: In practice, more and more software development projects are distributed, ranging from partly distributed teams to global projects with each stakeholder located differently. Teaching actual practice in software engineering at university needs a proper mixture of theory and practice. But setting up practical exercises for global software engineering is hard, because students have to cooperate across different locations and situations reflecting the teaching intentions have to be provoked explicitly. This paper presents the concepts behind our common teaching environment for global software engineering - the GloSELab. It describes the experiences on setting up a distributed course and reports our teaching intentions based on each universities main focus: project management, requirements engineering & quality assurance, architecture, and implementation. Furthermore, we discuss our setup - a stage-gate process, where each location takes care of a different phase - and report occurred problems and how they supported or interfered with our teaching intentions.

How Do Distribution and Time Zones Affect Software Development? A Case Study on Communication

Abstract: Software projects have crossed seas and continents looking for talented developers, moving from local developments to geographically distributed projects. This paper presents a case study analyzing the effect of distribution and time zones on communication in distributed projects. The study was performed in a university course during two semesters, where students developed projects jointly with teams located in ten different countries in South America, Europe, and Asia. The study compares the results of the projects distributed in two locations with projects distributed in three locations. It also analyzes projects in different time zone ranges. The initial results show that the amount of communication in projects distributed in two locations is bigger than the communication in projects distributed in three locations. We also found that projects in closer time zones have more communication than projects in farther time zones. Furthermore, we analyze the reply time for e-mails of projects distributed in different time zones, and discuss the challenges faced by the students during these projects.

An Understanding of the Role of Trust in Knowledge Seeking and Acceptance Practices in Distributed Development Teams

Abstract: Person-to-person knowledge sharing is considered a key aspect of any effective collaboration. Many studies have investigated what motivates team members to share knowledge, but few have explored the role trust plays in knowledge seeking and acceptance. We conducted an empirical field study to investigate trust in distributed teams and its influence on knowledge seeking and acceptance practices in a Fortune 500 organization. Our main objective in this study was to investigate what factors determine who will be sought when knowledge is needed, and what the criteria are for knowledge acceptance in person-to-person knowledge sharing. Study findings provide a substantial understanding of knowledge-seeking practices, knowledge-acceptance needs, and the role trust plays in these practices and needs. In this paper, we discuss these findings and their implications on future tool support.

Architectural Knowledge Management Practices in Agile Global Software Development

Abstract: The management of knowledge, in particular knowledge about the architecture, plays a pivotal role in global software development (GSD). In earlier research, we have defined what architectural knowledge is, and elaborated several practices for sound architectural knowledge management in a distributed setting. In this paper, we report on a large survey performed at an agile global software development organization in which we interviewed 38 employees spread across three development sites. Our aim was to validate our earlier research by determining what practices for architectural knowledge management in GSD are used in practice. The results show that the case study organization emphasizes architectural knowledge management practices that promote decentralization and, as a consequence, personalization (as opposed to centralization viz. codification). We identified one new useful practice: "peered sites", covering a combination of activities that support a balance in decision-making power across sites.

The Impact of Multi-site Software Governance on Knowledge Management

Abstract: Software Development Governance (SDG) is an emerging field of research, under the umbrella of information technology governance. SDG challenges increase when software development activities are distributed across multiple locations. Coordination of knowledge management processes requires specific attention in multi-site development. This paper outlines a multi-site software governance structure, based on three aspects: the business strategy that binds the relationship of the remote offices, the structure and composition of the remote teams and the way tasks are allocated across sites. Knowledge management processes (including knowledge creation, knowledge transfer and communication) are identified and the influence of different governance structures on these processes is discussed. We do so through a case study at Oce, a multi-national company in printing systems.

A Multi-criteria Model for Planning and Fine-Tuning Distributed Scrum Projects

Abstract: Distributed software development is a fact of life for many projects. It is well established that distance makes difficult to interact and to cooperate effectively. Scrum emphasizes communication, reduces coordination and control overhead; therefore it has enormous potential to help the management of distributed projects and has been increasingly used. Successfully managing the combined use of DSD and Scrum is a complex task and it requires carefully planning. Despite the importance and complexity of this type of problem, there seems to be a lack of reports, in the literature, of models that could support project managers dealing with these decision contexts. This paper presents a multi-criteria decision model for planning and finetuning such project plans. This model was developed using cognitive mapping and MACBETH (Measuring Attractiveness by a Categorical Based Evaluation Technique). The application of the model is demonstrated, followed by conclusion and remarks about future work.

A Controlled Experiment on the Effects of Machine Translation in Multilingual Requirements Meetings

Abstract: Requirements engineering is a communication-intensive activity and thus it suffers much from language difficulties in global software projects. Remote requirements meetings can benefit from machine translation as this technology is today available in the form of cross-language chat services. In this paper, we present the design of a controlled experiment to investigate the effects of automatic machine translation services in requirements meetings. Experiment participants, using either Italian or Portuguese as native language, are asked to interact with a communication tool from a distance in order to prioritize and estimate requirements. First results show that real-time machine translation is not disruptive of the conversation flow and is accepted with favor by participants. However, concrete effects are expected to emerge when language barriers are critical.

Face-to-Face, Email and Instant Messaging in Distributed Agile Software Development Project

Abstract: This paper presents our preliminary results from a single case study on face-to-face, email and instant messaging (IM) communication in a distributed agile software development (DASD) project. The project had 13 team members during the time of study, and it was distributed between three different sites: Finland, Norway and Czech Republic. The team was using Scrum process model with three week sprints.We studied face-to-face communication with sociometric badges and email and IM communication by analyzing the project-related communication logs provided by each individual team member. We were interested both in the amount of communication and the communication patterns via different communication media.We found differences in the daily variation of communication amounts across different media as well as different network structure of communication with different media. Specifically, we found some evidence that IM is used as a replacement for face-to-face discussion in DASD, and that email seems to be more suitable for team-wide, inter-site communication than face-to-face or instant messaging.

FLOW Mapping: Planning and Managing Communication in Distributed Teams

Abstract: Distributed software development is more difficult than co-located software development. One of the main reasons is that communication is more difficult in distributed settings. Defined processes and artifacts help, but cannot cover all information needs. Not communicating important project information, decisions and rationales can result in duplicate or extra work, delays or even project failure. Planning and managing a distributed project from an information flow perspective helps to facilitate available communication channels right from the start -- beyond the documents and artifacts which are defined for a given development process. In this paper we propose FLOW Mapping, a systematic approach for planning and managing information flows in distributed projects. We demonstrate the feasibility of our approach with a case study in a distributed agile class room project. FLOW Mapping is sufficient to plan communication and to measure conformance to the communication strategy. We also discuss cost and impact of our approach.

A Risk-Driven Model for Work Allocation in Global Software Development Projects

Abstract: Risks and potential benefits of distributing software development projects globally depend to a large extent on how to allocate work to different development sites and regions. Existing methods in task allocation are likely to omit the relevance of considering a multitude of criteria and the impact of task distribution on risks and potential benefits. To assess risks stemming from specific work distributions and to exploit organization-specific experience, we have developed a customizable risk-driven model. It consists of two main steps: Suggesting a set of task allocation alternatives based on project- and site-specific characteristics and analyzing it with respect to possible project risks stemming from the work distribution. To evaluate the model, we conducted a series of semi-structured interviews in a multinational IT company. The results of the evaluation show that the suggestions of the model mostly comply with the retrospective views voiced by the involved experienced managers.

Offshore Insourcing: A Case Study on Software Quality Alignment

Abstract: Background: Software quality issues are commonly reported when off shoring software development. Value-based software engineering addresses this by ensuring key stakeholders have a common understanding of quality. Aim: This work seeks to understand the levels of alignment between key stakeholders on aspects of software quality for two products developed as part of an offshore in sourcing arrangement. The study further aims to explain the levels of alignment identified. Method: Representatives of key stakeholder groups for both products ranked aspects of software quality. The results were discussed with the groups to gain a deeper understanding. Results: Low levels of alignment were found between the groups studied. This is associated with insufficiently defined quality requirements, a culture that does not question management and conflicting temporal reflections on the product's quality. Conclusion: The work emphasizes the need for greater support to align success-critical stakeholder groups in their understanding of quality when off shoring software development.

Requirements for an Infrastructure to Support Activity-Based Computing in Global Software Development

Abstract: Global Software Development (GSD) has become an established paradigm of developing software. One of the most important prerequisites of successfully supporting GSD projects is the provision of appropriate tooling support. Researchers and practitioners have developed several dozens of tools to support the GSD paradigm. However, there has been an increased realization that the most commonly used desktop metaphor underpinning existing tools has several limitations in terms of supporting communication, coordination, collaboration and awareness among distributed team members. We propose to leverage the Activity-Based Computing (ABC) paradigm that has been successfully applied to support collaboration and mobility in healthcare environments. We are exploring the viability of leveraging the ABC paradigm for addressing many of the limitations of the existing GSD tools. This paper identifies the requirements that an ABC based infrastructure needs to fulfill to support GSD practitioners. We have extensively reviewed the literature reporting requirements for designing GSD tools and have categorized them in two distinct groups: system quality requirements and system requirements for computer-mediated teamwork. We have analyzed the identified requirements with respect to the ABC principles using a scenario to demonstrate how the requirements reported in the literature and the ABC principles can provide a synergistic foundation for guiding the development of an infrastructure enabling GSD tools to take advantage of the ABC paradigm. We expect these requirements to be used not only by us to develop an infrastructure but also by others to develop or modify GSD tools.

Outsourced, Offshored Software-Testing Practice: Vendor-Side Experiences

Abstract: In the era of globally distributed software engineering, the practice of outsourced, off shored software testing (OOST) has witnessed increasing adoption. Although there have been ethnographic studies of the development aspects of global software engineering and of the in-house practice of testing, there have been fewer studies of OOST, which to succeed, can require dealing with unique challenges. To address this limitation of the existing studies, we conducted -- and, in this paper, report the findings of -- an ethnographically-informed study of three vendor testing teams involved in OOST practice. Specifically, we studied how test engineers perform their tasks under deadline pressures, the challenges that they encounter, and their strategies for coping with the challenges. Our study provides insights into the differences and similarities between in-house testing and OOST, the influence of team structures on the degree of pressure experienced by test engineers in the OOST setup, and the factors that influence quality and productivity under OOST.

Co-ordination Support for Managing Progress of Distributed Agile Projects

Abstract: Progress in agile development is determined by the amount of 'working software' produced. Source code versioning, unit testing, continuous integration and acceptance testing (AT) are technical factors that affect the maturity of the software artefects produced. Therefore, development progress is subject to change due to impact of these technical factors (e.g. modifying source code artefects may affect completed user stories). In co-located agile projects, face-to-face interaction is used to share information about changes that may affect development progress. However, in distributed projects, team members find it harder to maintain an awareness of these changes, which affects their understanding of the development progress. This causes them to rely on less accurate progress information and contributes in producing low quality code and unnecessary rework and delays. In this paper, we propose a holistic approach that supports management of the development progress in geographically distributed agile projects by identifying and co-ordinating the impact of the technical factors on progress, which will provide distributed agile teams with improved awareness of the actual progress of the software.

How Globally Distributed Software Teams Can Improve Their Collaboration Effectiveness

Abstract: While advanced collaboration tools are available in the market, feedback from organizations suggests a sub-optimal use and insufficient value leveraged from these tools. Our research focuses on identifying patterns of collaboration among distributed team members by mapping the interaction scenarios and associated goals, task contexts, success factors and constraints of collaboration with the choice of mechanisms used. Based on this analysis and utilizing a Goal Oriented Collaboration Strategy Framework, we analyze the effectiveness of collaboration mechanisms in specific scenarios involving a multi-geo, multi-cultural and multi-organization software development project. We recommend a planning based approach that identifies a basket of collaboration practices and tool features that distributed teams should use to enhance their collaboration effectiveness. We believe this research will not only help distributed software teams to improve their effectiveness but will also provide insights to tool vendors for appropriate tool design.

A Decision Support System for Global Software Development

Abstract: Global Software Development (GSD) research has reached a level ofmaturity. Paper-based solutions and guidelines are readily availableto solve many known distributed software development problems. Thelarge number of recommendations can present a confusing picture to thepractitioner. The Global Teaming Model (GTM), captures key globalsoftware processes and recommendations by drawing on the large andgrowing corpus of empirical research on GSD. This paper introducesthe Global Teaming Decision Support System (GT-DSS), that is designedto help software managers navigate through the many recommendations inthe GSD literature and the GTM. The interactive GT-DSS capturesdetails about the development organization, and tailors GTM practicesto fit specific business and organizational needs. A prototype of theGTM-DSS has been evaluated by industry experts in GSD, with favorableresults.

Integrating Early V&V Support to a GSE Tool Integration Platform

Abstract: The ever-growing market pressure and complex products demand high quality work and effectiveness from software practitioners. This relates also for the methods and tools they use for the development of software-intensive systems. Validation and verification (V&V) are the cornerstones of the overall quality of a system. By performing efficient V&V activities to detect defects during the early phases of development, the developers are able to save time and effort required for fixing them. Tool support is available for all types of V&V activities, especially testing, model checking, syntactic verification, and inspection. In distributed development the role of tools is even more relevant than in single-site development, and tool integration is often imperative for ensuring the effectiveness of work. In this paper, we discuss how a tool integration framework was extended to support early V&V activities via continuous integrations. We find that integrating early V& V supporting tools is feasible and useful, and makes a tool integration framework even more beneficial.

Governance Mechanisms in Global Development Environments

Abstract: Governance has emerged in the last few years as critical to the success of software development, a result of an increased focus on team work. Governance of software teams includes practices of defining and executing decision rights and mechanisms to empower the development process to be governed. We report on an empirical survey of team members of global development projects in six companies. Using factor analysis, we classify four governance mechanisms as follows: governance definition, governance enactment, business awareness, and goal achievement. The results reveal among others that high levels of governance definition and goal achievement in a team are related to a lower level of team conflict. These significant relationships as well as the lack of significant relationships between the other governance mechanisms and team conflict, offers important insight into enhancing the effectiveness of global teams through governance.

Keeping the Spin -- From Idea to Cash in 6 Weeks: Success Story of Agile/Lean Transformation

Abstract: Lean and Agile courses we provided to our unit in Netherlands encouraged our colleagues to start transformation of their business (IT Service provisioning). They decided to start with a distributed pilot project (including Indian delivery site) and invited us to support the change. In six weeks we managed to implement basic Agile practices. This increased motivation of people for continuous improvement and led to changes to working, staffing and contract models. This all enabled more flexible value delivery to customer. We conducted very rapid and intensive Agile Crash Course (on-job learning by doing with full-time support by skilled coaches) based on principles of Lean Software Development. We measured the progress using business driven approach (inspired by MCIF). In this presentation we would like to share the story, the approach (improving the whole value chain together with the customer, following Lean principles, respecting natural human behavior) and the challenges.

Experiences on Agile Seating, Facilities and Solutions: Multisite Environment

Abstract: Changing from a traditional functional Telecom R&D Center towards a Lean and Agile Software Development R&D Center is not only changing the way of working. It also makes the change visible through re-organization of seating and facilities. The gradual and drastic change was made in a large scale organization at two geographically separate sites. Due to a long history of own offices, the resistance was substantial. The facilities management had to adapt the new needs, too. It was not only removing walls but understanding the new concept -- eight people seated around a common team table sharing everything via whiteboards, flip charts and information radiators. Our approach is: Coordinated by business, made by facilities management. The journey towards Agile communication and collaboration is ongoing. One major challenge is collaboration between teams working on the same feature in a multisite environment. The paper also describes our current solution between the sites.

Coaching Global Software Development Projects

Abstract: This paper presents a multiple-case study on how three globally distributed software development projects from a large Scandinavia-based IT organization introduced agile practices with the help of a company internal coaching team. The data was gathered by ten semi-structured interviews: we interviewed four coaches and six persons from the coached projects. We describe how the coaches cooperated with the case projects, helping them to adopt agile practices. We present the challenges the projects faced, as well as the benefits they gained. Our results show that when coaching globally distributed projects it is especially important to gain executive support from all the sites, to involve all sites in the change process, to build a common vision in a collaborative workshop, to invite coaches as early as possible, to aim for a long-term coaching relationship, and to remember that the project team owns the change, coaches are there just to support the team.

Fostering a High-Performance Culture in Offshore Software Engineering Teams Using Balanced Scorecards and Project Scorecards

Abstract: India is a preferred location for global software development. To be successful in India over the long run, captive units of multinational corporations (MNCs) need to overcome several challenges. For example, they must be able to attract and retain talent and attain a critical mass in terms of team size. A captive unit must also continually get work that demands advanced competences, from its partners. This necessitates demonstrating excellence, which in turn requires a high-performance culture. We share our experience in fostering such a culture at a captive unit of a German MNC. We outline our concept to attract and retain talent. A performance measurement system that uses balanced scorecards and project scorecards to motivate excellence is described. In addition, we talk about a training program that equips our teams with the required knowledge and capabilities. The results of using this approach are presented.

Replicating an 'Onshore' Capstone Computing Project in a 'Farshore' Setting -- An Experience Report

Abstract: The internationalization of tertiary education is giving rise to a number of 'export education' models, but cross-cultural collaborative educational programmes pose several challenges. Most undergraduate computing degrees include a capstone project as a means of consolidating student learning within an integrative final learning experience, which aims to prepare them for further study or varying forms of professional practice. Typically these projects are coordinated and conducted in an 'onshore' setting, although notable exceptions do exist. We report our early experiences and the key decisions taken in replicating an 'onshore' capstone course from a New Zealand setting, to a full student cohort studying our Bachelor of Computer and Information Sciences in a 'farshore' context in Vietnam. We explore the myriad of issues relating to the oversight, design and structuring of the course, when tailoring an inherently open ended team based project to a radically different remote setting.

Does Distribution Make Any Difference? Quantitative Comparison of Collocated and Globally Distributed Projects

Abstract: Research on globally distributed software development (GSD) assumes the characteristics of the GSD projects to differ from collocated projects. Results of mainly qualitative studies describe communication, coordination, and issues related to team dynamics as typical problems in GSD projects. However, there is a lack of quantitative studies using real project data, and proven research instruments and methods in which collocated and distributed projects are compared systematically. The results of our quantitative analysis show significant differences between these project types concerning team dynamics, teamwork quality, individual satisfaction and project performance. The results are consistently "favoring" the collocated projects. Hypothetically, applying the key principles of Scrum and XP would help to mitigate the problems of GSD projects.

Risk Management in Global Software Development Projects: Challenges, Solutions, and Experience

Abstract: The benefits of using globally distributed sites for the development, maintenance, and operation of software-based systems and services are obvious. But global development also bears large risks. What seems at first to be economically reasonable often proves to be too expensive. Missing adjustment of communication and processes between different sites and insufficient knowledge of suitable management practices and organizational skills often lead to insufficient product quality. Global development and maintenance processes are difficult to control and often additional costs arise, especially for quality assurance and follow-up activities. Mastering global software projects requires, on the one hand, suitable tailoring of software development tasks and their distribution to different sites based on multiple criteria (not only cost!). On the other hand, appropriate process and management practices need to be established. Quantitative models can then be used to assess cost, schedule goals, and quality risks. I will introduce fundamental techniques for the establishment of well-understood and manageable distributed development processes and discuss different ways for managing risks. Based on a technique for splitting up development tasks and a multidisciplinary decision model for "smart" task distribution to different sites, I will demonstrate how distributed development processes can be organized in a productive way. This will be done by using examples from industry projects. Additionally, I will present upcoming topics such as cloud-supported global software development or the software factory, a research and development infrastructure at the University of Helsinki that supports systematic testing of novel distributed development techniques. Finally I will show how, in order to avoid global development risks, the application of fundamental software engineering principles must be emphasized.