What I Did Last Summer: A Software Development Benchmarking Case Study

0 7 4 0 7 4 5 9 / 0 1 / $ 1 0 . 0 0 © 2 0 0 1 I E E E S e p t e m b e r / O c t o b e r 2 0 0 1 I E E E S O F T W A R E 33 current performance, recommendations for improvement, and a database containing the department’s historical project performance. The study concluded that the department as a whole produced applications cost effectively but more slowly than most other organizations in its industry. It further concluded that single-developer Web-based projects performed differently, in several ways, than the larger team-oriented non– Web-based projects. Using root cause analysis, the study identified several factors associated with software development performance. Based on the results, the consultants— Quantitative Software Management (QSM) Associates in Pittsfield, Massachusetts— recommended enhancing the existing project management processes with requirements management, project management, staff training, and a metrics program. The department planned to implement the recommendations using the practices described in the Software Engineering Institute’s Capability Maturity Model for Software (SWCMM).1 The department’s smaller projects were characterized by motivated but less experienced developers, short schedules, highly volatile requirements and staffing, high complexity, and few standards and tools. The large projects, on the other hand, were just the opposite. What wasn’t understood was the magnitude of the project performance characteristics and what effect they had on development productivity.