How agile software development methods reduce work exhaustion: Insights on role perceptions and organizational skills

2020 | Information Systems Journal | Citations: 62

Authors: Venkatesh, Viswanath; Thong, James Y. L.; Chan, Frank K. Y.; Hoehle, Hartmut; Spohrer, Kai

Abstract: Agile methods are widely used in the software industry as a way to more rapidly ... Expand

Abstract: Agile methods are widely used in the software industry as a way to more rapidly develop and deliver new software. They define iterative work processes, advocate self-organization and openness for change, and prescribe how software developers interact with each other and external stakeholders. Despite their popularity, it is unclear how agile methods influence work exhaustion in software developers and how developer skills play into this effect. On the one hand, agile methods may reduce software developers' work exhaustion by levelling out their workload across the entire duration of a project. On the other hand, agile methods exert a high level of pressure on software developers to continuously deliver working software, create many intensive social interactions, and to frequently adapt to changes. In light of these effects, prior research could not explain why some software developers become less exhausted from using agile methods, whereas others perceive the exact opposite. Based on the job demand-control model, we develop a theoretical model connecting agile method use to individual developer skills and to two established determinants of employee exhaustion: role conflict and role ambiguity. We tested our research model in a field study among 1894 software developers in 217 project teams that used agile methods. The random coefficient modelling results show that agile method use facilitates the achievement of clear and unambiguous role perceptions and thereby reduces work exhaustion in developers, particularly if developers possess the organizational skills to effectively interact with others in their organization. We highlight implications for theory on the individual-level effects of software development methods and provide practical insights for software companies. Collapse

Topics: agile software development software developer system development method systems development project productivity

Methods: design methodology field study theory development mediation analysis instrumental variables estimation

Relationships between IT department culture and agile software development practices: An empirical investigation

2019 | International Journal of Information Management | Citations: 14

Authors: Gupta, Manjul; George, Joey F.; Xia, Weidong

Abstract: IT department culture has been widely recognized as an important factor that infl ... Expand

Abstract: IT department culture has been widely recognized as an important factor that influences the adoption of agile practices. Yet, the research pertaining to the relationship between IT department culture and agile practices usage remains underexplored. This study proposes and tests the relationships between four competing cultural forms and two types of agile practices - social and technical. The findings contribute to the extant literature by integrating the competing values model of culture into the literature on factors affecting agile development at the IT department level. Collapse

Topics: agile software development pair programming unit testing LinkedIn IT manager

Methods: design methodology psychometrics survey Q methodology data transformation

Ontology-based data mining model management for self-service knowledge discovery

2017 | Information Systems Frontiers | Citations: 0

Authors: Li, Yan; Thomas, Manoj A.; Osei-Bryson, Kweku-Muata

Abstract: Data mining (DM) models are knowledge-intensive information products that enable ... Expand

Abstract: Data mining (DM) models are knowledge-intensive information products that enable knowledge creation and discovery. As large volume of data is generated with high velocity from a variety of sources, there is a pressing need to place DM model selection and self-service knowledge discovery in the hands of the business users. However, existing knowledge discovery and data mining (KDDM) approaches do not sufficiently address key elements of data mining model management (DMMM) such as model sharing, selection and reuse. Furthermore, they are mainly from a knowledge engineer’s perspective, while the business requirements from business users are often lost. To bridge these semantic gaps, we propose an ontology-based DMMM approach for self-service model selection and knowledge discovery. We develop a DM3 ontology to translate the business requirements into model selection criteria and measurements, provide a detailed deployment architecture for its integration within an organization’s KDDM application, and use the example of a student loan company to demonstrate the utility of the DM3. Collapse

Topics: knowledge representation user requirement knowledge sharing usability evaluation criteria

Methods: ontological modelling design methodology machine learning design artifact Cross-Industry Standard Process for Data Mining

A survey on Test Suite Reduction frameworks and tools

2016 | International Journal of Information Management | Citations: 0

Authors: Khan, Saif Ur Rehman; Lee, Sai Peck; Ahmad, Raja Wasim; Akhunzada, Adnan; Chang, Victor

Abstract: a b s t r a c tSoftware testing is a widely accepted practice that ensures the ... Expand

Abstract: a b s t r a c tSoftware testing is a widely accepted practice that ensures the quality of a System under Test (SUT). However, the gradual increase of the test suite size demands high portion of testing budget and time. Test Suite Reduction (TSR) is considered a potential approach to deal with the test suite size problem. Moreover, a complete automation support is highly recommended for software testing to adequately meet the challenges of a resource constrained testing environment. Several TSR frameworks and tools have been proposed to efficiently address the test-suite size problem. The main objective of the paper is to comprehensively review the state-of-the-art TSR frameworks to highlights their strengths and weaknesses. Furthermore, the paper focuses on devising a detailed thematic taxonomy to classify existing literature that helps in understanding the underlying issues and proof of concept. Moreover, the paper investigates critical aspects and related features of TSR frameworks and tools based on a set of defined parameters. We also rigorously elaborated various testing domains and approaches followed by the extant TSR frameworks. The results reveal that majority of TSR frameworks focused on randomized unit testing, and a considerable number of frameworks lacks in supporting multi-objective optimization problems. Moreover, there is no generalized framework, effective for testing applications developed in any programming domain. Conversely, Integer Linear Programming (ILP) based TSR frameworks provide an optimal solution for multi-objective optimization problems and improve execution time by running multiple ILP in parallel. The study concludes with new insights and provides an unbiased view of the state-of-the-art TSR frameworks. Finally, we present potential research issues for further investigation to anticipate efficient TSR frameworks. Collapse

Topics: system support unit testing website source code Java

Methods: design artifact survey trade-off analysis method multi objective optimization

Ranking software components for reuse based on non-functional properties

2016 | Information Systems Frontiers | Citations: 0

Authors: Kessel, Marcus; Atkinson, Colin

Abstract: One of the biggest obstacles to software reuse is the cost involved in evaluatin ... Expand

Abstract: One of the biggest obstacles to software reuse is the cost involved in evaluating the suitability of possible reusable components. In recent years, code search engines have made significant progress in establishing the semantic suitability of components for new usage scenarios, but the problem of ranking components according to their non-functional suitability has largely been neglected. The main difficulty is that a component’s non-functional suitability for a specific reuse scenario is usually influenced by multiple, “soft” criteria, but the relative weighting of metrics for these criteria is rarely known quantitatively. What is required, therefore, is an effective and reliable strategy for ranking software components based on their non-functional properties without requiring users to provide quantitative weighting information. In this paper we present a novel approach for achieving this based on the non-dominated sorting of components driven by a specification of the relative importance of non-functional properties as a partial ordering. After describing the ranking algorithm and its implementation in a component search engine, we provide an explorative study of its properties on a sample set of components harvested from Maven Central. Collapse

Topics: Java search engine software metric source code systems development

Methods: computational algorithm design artifact optimization model literature study descriptive statistic

The Role of Social Agile Practices for Direct and Indirect Communication in Information Systems Development Teams

2015 | Communications of the Association for Information Systems | Citations: 36

Authors: Hummel, Markus; Rosenkranz, Christoph; Holten, Roland

Abstract: Methods for Agile information systems development (ISD) are widely accepted in i ... Expand

Abstract: Methods for Agile information systems development (ISD) are widely accepted in industry. One key difference in comparison to traditional, plan-driven ISD approaches is that Agile ISD teams rely heavily on direct, informal face-toface communication instead of indirect and formal documents, models, and plans. While the importance of communication in Agile ISD is generally acknowledged, empirical studies investigating this phenomenon are scarce. We empirically open up the “black box” of the Agile ISD process to enhance the knowledge about the communication mechanisms of Agile ISD teams. We conducted a case study at two medium-sized ISD companies. As our primary data collection technique, we carried out semi-structured interviews, which we complemented with observations and, in one case, a survey. Our study’s main contribution is a set of so-called social Agile practices that positively impact the direct communication of team members. Our data suggests including the Agile practices co-located office space, daily stand-up meeting, iteration planning meeting, pair programming, sprint retrospective, and sprint review in this set. Furthermore, we investigate the role of more formal, indirect communication in Agile ISD projects. We highlight areas in which formal documents remain important so that a trade-off between indirect and direct communication is necessary. Collapse

Topics: agile software development pair programming Scrum personality spreadsheet

Methods: qualitative interview survey design methodology case study survey design

Theories: media synchronicity theory

Beast methodology: An agile testing methodology for multi-agent systems based on behaviour driven development

2014 | Information Systems Frontiers | Citations: 0

Authors: Carrera, Álvaro; Iglesias, Carlos A.; Garijo, Mercedes

Abstract: This paper presents a testing methodology to apply Behaviour Driven Development ... Expand

Abstract: This paper presents a testing methodology to apply Behaviour Driven Development (BDD) techniques while developing Multi-Agent Systems (MASs), termed BEhavioural Agent Simple Testing (BEAST) Methodology. This methodology is supported by the open source framework (BEAST Tool) which automatically generates test cases skeletons from BDD scenarios specifications. The developed framework allows the testing of MASs based on JADE or JADEX platforms. In addition, this framework offers a set of configurable Mock Agents with the aim of being able to execute tests while the MAS is under development. The BEAST Methodology presents transparent traceability from user requirements to test cases. Thus, the stakeholders can be aware of the project status. The methodology and the associated tool have been validated in the development of a MAS for fault diagnosis in FTTH (Fiber To The Home) networks. The results have been measured in quantifiable way obtaining a reduction of the tests implementation time. Collapse

Topics: Java open source conversational agent system support IT project

Methods: case study simulation literature study

ADDRESSING METHODICAL ASPECTS OF INTERDEPENDENT STANDARDIZATION DECISIONS

2014 | European Conference On Information Systems | Citations: 0

Authors: Heinrich, Bernd; Klier, Mathias

Abstract: Standards and technologies (e.g. in the area of web services) will strongly chan ... Expand

Abstract: Standards and technologies (e.g. in the area of web services) will strongly change IT-based communication. However, the decision of an agent (e.g. a firm) to adopt a standard is accompanied by the risk that other agents do not adopt the standard as well. The interdependencies among the agents’ standardization decisions due to positive network effects result in a coordination problem called “standardization problem”. If each agent autonomously decides about the adoption of a standard based on incomplete information about the other agents (e.g. unknown cost structure), this problem is characterized by a decentralized decision structure and incomplete information. A well-known approach in this context is the Decentralized Standardization Model. Based on analysing methodical issues of this model, we propose a novel approach that explicitly and consistently takes into account the interdependencies among the adoption decisions by means of a system of inequalities. Game theoretical analyses reveal that this approach goes along with higher average net standardization benefits per agent as well as a lower fraction of incorrect individual agents’ decisions than the Decentralized Standardization Model. Collapse

Topics: IS economics unit testing Java

Methods: simulation theoretical contribution mathematical model

Theories: game theory

Chains of Control in Agile Software Development

2013 | Americas Conference on Information Systems | Citations: 1

Authors: Gregory, Thomas; Mathiassen, Lars; Sambhara, Chaitanya

Abstract: Although extant literature on control in software development provides interesti ... Expand

Abstract: Although extant literature on control in software development provides interesting and rich insights, it also indicates existing constructs are, in some ways, inadequate as intellectual means to support investigation of control practices. Most importantly, current theorizing distinguishes between two types of formal controls (outcome and behavior) and two types of informal controls (clan and self), making it impossible to investigate informal outcome and behavior controls and formal clan and selfcontrols. We therefore introduce a deconstructed framework for describing management controls and apply it to a holistic examination of controls in a case study of a multi-site agile software development organization. The empirical examination revealed consequent controls across a process and multiple representations of control across hierarchical levels of analysis. As a result, we offer a refined, deconstructed framework for investigating control practices, and the concept of chains of control as a useful tool for examining control practices in software development. Collapse

Topics: systems development agile software development electronic mail unit testing enterprise architecture

Methods: qualitative interview case study design methodology design artifact personal interview

Modeling dynamics in agile software development

2010 | ACM Transactions on Management Information Systems | Citations: 3

Authors: Cao, Lan; Ramesh, Balasubramaniam; Abdel-Hamid, Tarek

Abstract: Changes in the business environment such as turbulent market forces, rapidly evo ... Expand

Abstract: Changes in the business environment such as turbulent market forces, rapidly evolving system requirements, and advances in technology demand agility in the development of software systems. Though agile approaches have received wide attention, empirical research that evaluates their effectiveness and appropriateness is scarce. Further, research to-date has investigated individual practices in isolation rather than as an integrated system. Addressing these concerns, we develop a system dynamics simulation model that considers the complex interdependencies among the variety of practices used in agile development. The model is developed on the basis of an extensive review of the literature as well as quantitative and qualitative data collected from real projects in nine organizations. We present the structure of the model focusing on essential agile practices. The validity of the model is established based on extensive structural and behavioral validation tests. Insights gained from experimentation with the model answer important questions faced by development teams in implementing two unique practices used in agile development. The results suggest that due to refactoring, the cost of implementing changes to a system varies cyclically and increases during later phases of development. Delays in refactoring also increase costs and decrease development productivity. Also, the simulation shows that pair programming helps complete more tasks and at a lower cost. The systems dynamics model developed in this research can be used as a tool by IS organizations to understand and analyze the impacts of various agile development practices and project management strategies. Collapse

Topics: agile software development pair programming productivity project productivity human resource management

Methods: design methodology simulation qualitative interview experiment system dynamics