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Integrating Dynamic Models for CMM-Based Software Process Improvement

Abstract

During the last decade software process simulation has been used to address a wide diversity of management problems. Some of these problems are related to strategic management, technology adoption, understanding, training and learning, and risk management, among others. In this work a dynamic integrated framework for software process improvement is presented. This framework combines traditional estimation static models with an intensive utilization of dynamic simulation models of the software process. The aim of this framework is to support a qualitative and quantitative assessment for software process improvement and decision making to achieve a higher software development process capability according to the Capability Maturity Model. The paper describes the concepts underlying this framework, its implementation, the dynamic approach followed to systematically develop the dynamic modules, and an example of its potential use and benefits.

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Integrating Dynamic Models for CMM-Based Software Process Improvement

Author: Ruiz Carreira, Mercedes; Ramos Román, Isabel; Toro Bonilla, Miguel
Publisher: Springer
Year: 2002
DOI: 10.1007/3-540-36209-6_8
Source: https://idus.us.es/bitstreams/41ea9eb5-294e-4d3a-8a62-8b6aa5bc78e6/download
In eg a ing Dynamic Models o CMM-Based So wa e
P ocess Imp o emen
Me cedes Ruiz1, Isabel Ramos2, and Miguel To o2
1 Depa men o Compu e Languages and Sys ems
Escuela Supe io de Ingenie ía. Uni e si y o Cádiz
C/ Chile, nº1. 11003 – Cádiz, Spain
[email p o ec ed]
2 Depa men o Compu e Languages and Sys ems
Escuela Técnica Supe io de Ingenie ía In o má ica. Uni e si y o Se ille
A da. Reina Me cedes, s/n. 41012 – Se ille. Spain
{isabel. amos,m o o}@lsi.us.es
Abs ac . Du ing he las decade so wa e p ocess simula ion has been
used o add ess a wide di e si y o managemen p oblems. Some o
hese p oblems a e ela ed o s a egic managemen , echnology
adop ion, unde s anding, aining and lea ning, and isk managemen ,
among o he s. In his wo k a dynamic in eg a ed amewo k o
so wa e p ocess imp o emen is p esen ed. This amewo k combines
adi ional es ima ion s a ic models wi h an in ensi e u iliza ion o
dynamic simula ion models o he so wa e p ocess. The aim o his
amewo k is o suppo a quali a i e and quan i a i e assessmen o
so wa e p ocess imp o emen and decision making o achie e a highe
so wa e de elopmen p ocess capabili y acco ding o he Capabili y
Ma u i y Model. The pape desc ibes he concep s unde lying his
amewo k, i s implemen a ion, he dynamic app oach ollowed o
sys ema ically de elop he dynamic modules, and an example o i s
po en ial use and bene i s.
1 In oduc ion
Wo ld-wide he demand o high complex so wa e has signi ican ly inc eased in such
a way ha so wa e has eplaced ha dwa e as ha ing he p incipal esponsibili y o
much o he unc ionali y p o ided by cu en sys ems. The apid pace in which his
so wa e is equi ed, he p oblems ela ed o cos and schedule o e uns, and he
cus ome pe cep ion o low p oduc quali y ha e changed he ocus o a en ion
owa ds he ma u i y o so wa e de elopmen p ac ices. O e he las ew decades,
he so wa e indus y has ecei ed a signi ican help by means o CASE ools, new
p og amming languages and app oaches, and mo e ad anced and complex machines.
Howe e , i is widely accep ed ha he po en ial bene i o a be e echnology canno
be ansla ed in o a mo e success ul p ojec i he p ocesses used o execu e i a e no
well de ined, es ablished, and execu ed. P ope p ocesses a e essen ial o an
o ganiza ion o consis en ly deli e high quali y p oduc s wi h a high p oduc i i y.
Cu en ly, many amewo ks a e a ailable o so wa e p ocesses, being CMM [1]
and ISO 9001[2] he mos in luen ial and widely used. Al hough ISO 9001 is a
s anda d, and has been in e p e ed o a so wa e o ganiza ion in ISO 9000-3 [3], i
has been w i en om he cus ome and ex e nal audi o ’s pe spec i e. On he o he
hand, CMM is no a bina y ce i ica ion p ocess, bu a amewo k ha ca ego izes
so wa e p ocess in i e le els o ma u i y and p o ides oadmaps o e alua e he
so wa e p ocess o an o ganiza ion as well as planning so wa e p ocess
imp o emen s.
Dynamic modeling and simula ion as p ocess imp o emen ools ha e been
in ensi ely used in he manu ac u ing a ea. Cu en ly, so wa e p ocess modeling and
simula ion a e gaining an inc easing in e es among esea che s and p ac i ione s as
an app oach o analyze complex business and sol e policy ques ions. Howe e ,
simula ion is only e ec i e i bo h he model and he da a used o d i e i , accu a ely
e lec he eal wo ld. As a consequence, i is possible o say ha he cons uc ion o a
dynamic model o so wa e p ocess i sel poin s o wha me ic da a mus be equi ed
and, hence, collec ed, p o iding clea guidelines on wha o collec .
A e ha ing applied he sys em dynamics app oach o model and assess so wa e
p ocess imp o emen in a local o ganiza ion [4], lessons lea n om his expe ience
mo ed us owa ds he de elopmen o , ini ially, a amewo k and, hen, a wo king
en i onmen which combines he adi ional and s a ic echniques used in p ojec
managemen wi h he p ocess dynamic modeling and simula ion.
The aim o his pape is o p esen his combina ion o build a amewo k o
suppo a quali a i e and quan i a i e assessmen o so wa e p ocess imp o emen
and decision making. The pu pose o his dynamic amewo k is o help o ganiza ions
o achie e a highe so wa e de elopmen p ocess capabili y acco ding o he
Capabili y Ma u i y Model [1]. The dynamic models buil inside his amewo k
p o ide he capabili y o gaining insigh o e he whole li e cycle a di e en le els o
abs ac ion. The le el o abs ac ion used in a ce ain o ganiza ion will depend on i s
ma u i y le el. Fo ins ance, in a le el 1 o ganiza ion he simula o can es ablish a
baseline acco ding o adi ional es ima ion models om an ini ial es ima e o he size
o he p ojec . Wi h his baseline, he so wa e manage can analyze he esul s
ob ained wi h he simula ion o di e en p ocess imp o emen s and s udy he
ou comes o o e o unde es ima e o cos o schedule. Du ing he simula ion me ic
da a a e sa ed. These da a con o m o he SEI co e measu es [5] ecommenda ion and
a e mainly ela ed o cos , schedule and quali y.
The s uc u e o he pape is as ollows. Sec ion 2 desc ibes in de ail he dynamic
amewo k p oposed. I includes he mo i a ion we ound o design and de elop i , he
concep ual app oach ollowed, he po en ial uses o he amewo k, i s a chi ec u e, a
b ie desc ip ion o he di e en echniques which ha e been in eg a ed in he
amewo k, and how i has been implemen ed o de elop a ully unc ional wo king
ool. In Sec ion 3 an example o how he amewo k may be used o design and
e alua e he e ec o a ce ain p ocess imp o emen is p esen ed. The example shows
he use o he in eg a ed echniques oge he wi h he dynamic modules inside he
amewo k. Finally, Sec ion 4 summa izes he pape and d aws he conclusions and
lessons lea n .
2 Desc ip ion o he F amewo k
2.1 Mo i a ion
The Dynamic In eg a ed F amewo k o So wa e P ocess Imp o emen (DIFSPI) has
been designed wi h he aim o c ea ing bo h a concep ual amewo k and a wo king
en i onmen o help in he achie emen o highe ma u i y le els acco ding o CMM.
T adi ionally, sys em dynamics and simula ion ha e been conside ed as help ul ools
o design and e alua e so wa e p ocess imp o emen s. In ac , some eal applica ions
can be ound in he li e a u e ega ding he applica ion o his app oach inside
so wa e de elopmen o ganiza ions [6]. All hese applica ions sha e a common
cha ac e is ic: hey conclude ha o a success ul sys em dynamics applica ion, i is a
equi emen o he o ganiza ion o ha e hei p ocesses well de ined and s uc u ed,
as well as de ined me ic p og ams o p o ide he models wi h accu a e da a. I is
absolu ely ue ha dynamic models a e only use ul i he da a used o d i e hei
nume ical pa ame e s a e a ailable in he o ganiza ion, and ha he a ailabili y o
hese da a is only possible i a me ic p ocess is applied o he so wa e p ocess
execu ed a he o ganiza ion. As a consequence, many o he applica ions o sys em
dynamics in he ield o p ocess imp o emen ha e equi ed om o ganiza ions a
ce ain le el o ma u i y in hei p ocesses, ypically le el 3 o abo e acco ding o
CMM.
In o de o design a so wa e p ocess dynamic model is necessa y o know he
ea u es o he p ocess which is going o be modeled. I becomes appa en ha he
highe he ma u i y le el, he be e he p ocess is de ined and es ablished, he easie
o ob ain in o ma ion o de elop he dynamic model, and, he e o e, he be e esul s
a e ob ained when using he model as a ool o e alua ing so wa e p ocess
imp o emen s. Bea ing his s a emen in mind, ou in e es is o help o ganiza ions
wi h less ma u e p ocesses o design and execu e he p ocess imp o emen s which
could help hem o achie e uppe le els o ma u i y.
Thus, we p opose an app oach which is mainly ocussed on he de elopmen o
dynamic models, using hem o igge a p ocess inside he o ganiza ion aimed o
inc ease he le el o knowledge i has abou i s so wa e p ocess, and o design a
so wa e me ics collec ion p og am which can be applied o ob ain he equi ed da a
o d i e he pa ame e s o he dynamic model. This me ic collec ion is no only
use ul o he dynamic models; i also se es as an in aluable oppo uni y o ob ain a
eal knowledge o he s a e o he so wa e p ocesses inside an o ganiza ion. This
knowledge is essen ial be o e ackling any p ocess imp o emen . The u iliza ion o
dynamic models is he main echnique in he amewo k, bu i is no he only. S a ic
o adi ional algo i hmic models a e in eg a ed wi h he dynamic models in o de o
supply impo an in o ma ion du ing he ea ly s ages o he li e cycle simula ed. O he
ecommenda ions and echniques a e also used inside he amewo k o p o ide use ul
ools o analysis and e alua ion o he esul s ob ained h ough simula ion.
2.2 Concep ual App oach o he F amewo k
S a ic models use empi ically ob ained o mulas o compu e some p ojec es ima es as
a unc ion o some p ojec ini ial es ima ion, ypically he size. The empi ical da a ha
suppo hese models come om a limi ed sample o p ojec s, and his equi es a
ca e ul u iliza ion o hese models, as only i he ea u es o he p ojec unde
es ima ion a e simila o hose o he p ojec s used o calib a e he s a ic models, he
esul s ob ained will be eliable. Al hough s a ic me hods o so wa e p ojec
managemen ha e e ealed du ing he las decades hei weaknesses, he e is common
ag eemen ha hey a e s ill use ul. A leas , in lowe ma u i y o ganiza ions hey a e
use ul o es ablish an ini ial baseline o he p ojec wi h which e alua e he esul s o
he p ojec and he p ocess imp o emen en a i e. S a ic and dynamic models ha e
simila objec i es, ye he pe spec i e unde which hey wo k is comple ely di e en .
S a ic models a e no mally based on a op-down decomposi ion o he so wa e
p ojec , while he dynamic models can be cha ac e ized by he agg ega ion p ocess
hey a e ocussed on, acco ding o which some ea u es o a p ojec a e joined
oge he unde a simula ion model. In acco dance wi h wha has been said, i can be
deduced ha dynamic models a e sui able o deal wi h p oblems placed a he
s a egic le el, while adi ional me hods a e use ul a he ope a ional le el o
so wa e p ojec s. By combining bo h app oaches in a common amewo k, a use ul
me hodology and e en a wo king ool can be de eloped o p o ide insigh in o he
so wa e p ocess and o help in he achie emen o uppe ma u i y le els.
Ne e heless, he achie emen o highe ma u i y le els can only be possible i he
da a ha enable he e alua ion o he esul s o he p ocess imp o emen p ac ices a e
a ailable. The e o e, he design o a p ope me ics collec ion p og am o he
o ganiza ion is manda o y. The me ics collec ed a e use ul in many di e en aspec s:
1. The me ics collec ed mus be used o calib a e and ini ialize he dynamic
models. Lowe ma u i y o ganiza ions a e cha ac e ized by he absence o me ic
p og ams and his o ical da abases. In his case, i is comple ely necessa y o
begin iden i ying he gene al p ocesses and he in o ma ion ha has o be
collec ed abou hem. The ques ions o wha o collec , a wha equency and
wi h wha accu acy ha e o be answe ed a his momen . The design p ocess o
dynamic models helps o come o a solu ion o hese ques ions. When de eloping
a dynamic model i is equi ed o know: a) wha is in ended o be modeled, b) he
scope o he model, and c) wha beha io s need o be analyzed. Once he model
is de eloped, i needs o be ini ialized wi h a se o ini ial condi ions in o de o
execu e he uns and ob ain he simula ed beha io s. These ini ial condi ions
cus omize he model o he p ojec and o he o ganiza ion o be simula ed, and
a e e ec i ely implemen ed by a se o ini ial pa ame e s. These pa ame e s ha
ule he e olu ion o he model uns answe p ecisely he o me ques ion o wha
da a collec : hose da a equi ed o ini ialize and alida e he model will be he
main componen s o he me ics collec ion p og am.
2. Once he componen s o he me ics collec ion p og am ha e been de ined i can
be implemen ed inside he o ganiza ion. This p ocess will lead o he
achie emen o a his o ical da abase. The da a ga he ed can hen be used o
simula e and empi ically alida e he dynamic model. When he dynamic model
has been alida ed, he esul s o i s uns can be used o gene a e a simula ed
da abase; wi h his da abase i is possible o pe o m p ocess imp o emen
analyses.
An inc ease in he complexi y o he ac ions in ended o be analyzed will di ec ly
lead o an inc ease in he complexi y o he dynamic model equi ed and, he e o e, o
a new me ics collec ion p og am o he new simula ion modules. Thinking om a
pe spec i e o causal loops, wha has been desc ibed is no mo e han he ansla ion o
a posi i e ein o ce causal loop which is shown in Figu e 1.
The bene i s o using dynamic models ha e been widely discussed in he li e a u e
[7]. I can be concluded ha he use o hese models leads o be e p edic ion
ac i i ies, mo e accu a e cos p edic ions, and mo e e ec i e p ocess imp o emen
ini ia i es. Th ee ac o s which a e known o d i e o ganiza ions owa ds uppe
ma u i y le els acco ding o CMM.
2.3 Po en ial Use o he F amewo k
Dynamic models help o unde s and he in eg a ed na u e o p ojec managemen as
hey desc ibe i h ough di e en p ocesses, s uc u es and main in e ela ionships. In
he amewo k p oposed he e, p ojec managemen is conside ed as a se o dynamic
in e ela ed p ocesses. P ojec s a e composed o p ocesses. Each p ocess is composed
o a se ies o ac i i ies designed o he achie emen o an objec i e [1]. F om a
gene al poin o iew, i could be said ha p ojec s a e composed o p ocesses which
all in one o he ollowing ca ego ies:
Managemen p ocess. This ca ego y collec s all hose p ocesses ela ed o he
desc ip ion, o ganiza ion and con ol o he p ojec .
Enginee ing p ocess. All hose p ocesses ela ed o he speci ica ion and de elopmen
ac i i ies o he so wa e p oduc a e collec ed in his ca ego y.
Bo h ca ego ies in e ac du ing he li ecycle o he p ojec . F om an ini ial plan
pe o med by he p ojec managemen p ocesses, enginee ing p ocesses begin o be
execu ed. Using he in o ma ion ga he ed abou he p og ess o his second g oup o
p ocesses, p ojec managemen p ocesses de e mine he modi ica ions ha need o be
made o he plan in o de o achie e he p ojec objec i es. The DIFSPI p oposed
ollows his same classi ica ion and i is s uc u ed a ending o p ojec managemen
and enginee ing p ocesses. In bo h le els, he u iliza ion o dynamic models o
simula e he eal p ocesses and o de ine and de elop a his o ical da abase will be he
main ea u e.
Fig. 1. Causal diag am
(+)
Da aDynamic model
P ocess complexi y
+
+
+

2.3.1 Enginee ing P ocesses in he F amewo k
On his le el he dynamic models simula e he li e cycle o he so wa e p oduc .
Figu e 2 shows a schema ic ep esen a ion o how DIFSPI may be used inside an
o ganiza ion. In low ma u i y o ganiza ions, he amoun o in o ma ion equi ed o
begin unning simula ions is ela i ely small and mainly ocussed on he ini ial
es ima ions, ha is he es ima ed size o he p ojec , and he ini ial size o he wo king
eam. Depending on he pa adigm ollowed o de elop he so wa e p oduc and he
ma u i y le el o he o ganiza ion, he sui able dynamic model is simula ed. The main
pa adigms ha can be simula ed inside he amewo k a e he adi ional wa e all and
COTS pa adigms. Depending on he pa adigm chosen, di e en dynamic modules
will be joined in o de o c ea e a inal and ully ope a ional dynamic model. Once he
simula ion has been un, i p o ides da a ha a e sa ed in a simula ed da abase. These
ini ial da a con ain he esul s o he simula ion oge he wi h a se o ini ial
es ima ions esul ing om he compu a ion o he s a ic models. These ini ial
es ima ions es ablish he base line o he p ojec , and he simula ed da a ob ained
ep esen he dynamic e olu ion o he p ojec a iables along he whole li e cycle. As
well as he ini ial baseline and he simula ed da a, he so-called simula ed da abase
con ains a hi d componen . This hi d componen con ains he esul s o applying
some o he echniques du ing he simula ion o he p ojec , which a e o ien ed
owa ds he gaining o insigh in o he p ocess unde simula ion. These echniques,
which ha e been in eg a ed wi h he dynamic modules, a e desc ibed in Sec ion 2.5.
As i was men ioned be o e, he p ocess o modeling he so wa e p ocess equi es
a good knowledge o he so wa e p ocess i sel , and igge s a me ics collec ion
p og am which can hen be used o ini ialize he pa ame e s o he model and
inc emen he le el o isibili y he model has abou he p ocess. All ha has been
simula ed so a , mus be aken in o p ac ice. A e ha ing de e mined he ini ial
es ima es and un he simula ions o es ablish he ini ial base line, i is possible o un
di e en scena ios in o de o ind ou he ou comes o di e en ini ial alues o he
p ojec es ima es. This e lec s, o cou se, he le el o unce ain y low ma u i y
o ganiza ions ha e a he ini ial s ages o a p ojec . When he eal p ojec begins, he
me ics collec ion p og am may be applied o ga he eal in o ma ion abou he
p og ess. These eal da a a e also sa ed in he da abase, enabling he de elopmen o
a his o ical da abase. As hese da a become a ailable, i is possible o pe o m
analysis and calib a e he unc ions and pa ame e s o he dynamic modules so ha
hei accu acy may be imp o ed. Imp o ing he accu acy o he dynamic modules
may equi e an imp o emen in he knowledge we ha e abou he so wa e p ocess
and, his way, he loop is closed.
The dynamic models o his le el a DIFSPI should ollow he le els o isibili y
and knowledge o he enginee ing p ocesses ha o ganiza ions ha e a each ma u i y
le el. I is ob ious ha he complexi y o he dynamic model used in le el 1
o ganiza ions canno be he same as ha one o he models capable o simula ing he
enginee ing p ocesses o , o ins ance, le el 4 o ganiza ions.
Fig. 2. Enginee ing p ocesses in DIFSPI Fig. 3. Managemen p ocesses in DIFSPI
2.3.2 P ojec Managemen P ocesses in he F amewo k
Inside he amewo k, managemen p ocesses a e di ided in o wo main ca ego ies:
Plan. I g oups he p ocesses de o ed o he design o he ini ial plan and he
equi ed modi ica ions when he p og ess epo s indica e he appea ance o p oblems.
The models o his g oup in eg a e adi ional es ima ion and planning echniques
oge he wi h dynamic ones.
Con ol. In his g oup all he models designed o he moni o ing and acking
ac i i ies a e ga he ed. These models will also ha e he esponsibili y o de e mining
he co ec i e ac ions o he p ojec plan. The e o e, he simula ion o p ocess
imp o emen s will be o an eno mous impo ance.
Figu e 3 shows he u iliza ion o DIFSPI a his le el. As i was men ioned be o e,
he ini ial baseline o he p ojec is es ablished using he s a ic models buil inside he
amewo k. The dynamic modules ha model he planning ac i i ies pe o med in he
o ganiza ion ha e no only he di e en ial equa ions o model hese ac i i ies, bu he
equa ions o he adi ional s a ic es ima ion models. In o de o gain a use ul
in o ma ion om hese s a ic models, he same knowledge abou he so wa e p ocess
which is equi ed o use hese models is necessa y a his momen .
The con ol modules model and simula e all he ac i i ies which de e mine he
p og ess o he p ojec , and make he co ec i e decisions which a e equi ed o mee
he p ojec objec i es. These modules ha e a g ea impo ance in he design o he
p ocess imp o emen s.
2.4 Dynamic Modules A chi ec u e
The app oach ollowed in he cons uc ion o he dynamic models is based on wo
undamen al p inciples:
1. The p inciple o ex ensibili y o dynamic models. Acco ding o his p inciple,
di e en dynamic modules a e joined o an ini ial and basic dynamic model. This
ini ial model models he undamen al beha io o a so wa e p ojec . Each one o
he dynamic modules models each one o he key p ocess a eas which con o m
he s ep o e ol e o he nex le el o ma u i y. These modules can be ei he
„enabled“ o „disabled“ acco ding o he objec i es o he p ojec manage o he
membe s o he SEIG.
2. The p inciple o agg ega ion/decomposi ion o asks acco ding o he le el o
abs ac ion equi ed o he model. Two le els o agg ega ion/decomposi ion a e
used:
Ho izon al agg ega ion/decomposi ion acco ding o which di e en sequen ial
asks a e agg ega ed in o a unique ask wi h a unique schedule.
Ve ical agg ega ion/decomposi ion acco ding o which di e en and indi idual,
bu in e ela ed and pa allel asks a e conside ed as a unique ask wi h a unique
scheduled oo.
The de ini ion o he igh le el o agg ega ion and/o decomposi ion o he asks
mainly a ec s he modeling o he enginee ing ac i i ies and p incipally depends on
he ma u i y le el o he p ocess in ended o be simula ed.
To de ine he ini ial dynamic model he common eedback loops among he
so wa e p ojec s we e aken in o accoun . The objec i e o his app oach was o
achie e a gene ic model and a oided modeling speci ic beha io s o conc e e
o ganiza ions which migh limi he lexibili y o DIFSPI. To ini ialize he unc ions
and pa ame e s o he ini ial model, da a o igina ing o his o ical da abases collec ed
in he a ailable li e a u e we e used [8]. Figu e 4 shows he main s uc u e o he
ini ial model. Fou dynamic modules a e joined oge he o de elop an ope a ional
model ha p o ides he se o inal di e en ial equa ions o gene ically simula e he
so wa e p ocess in low ma u i y o ganiza ions.
Fig. 4. Submodules a chi ec u e o he ini ial model
Remaining ime
Requi ed de elopmen a e
Accomplished p ojec ac ion
Pending asks
P ojec inished
Quali y
P oduc i i y Pe sonnel
Con ol
Module
Human Resou ce
Module
De elopmen
Module
Requi ed de elopmen a e
Plan
Module
Accomplished asks
Requi ed pe sonnel
By eplica ing some o he equa ions o he ini ial model i is possible o model he
p og ess o highe ma u i y le els. The ini ial model can be used o simula e so wa e
p ojec s de eloped in o ganiza ions p og essing o le el 2. Gene ally speaking, he
so wa e p oduc de elopmen p ocess can be conside ed as ollows. The numbe o
asks o be de eloped is de e mined om an ini ial es ima e o he size o he p ojec .
These pending asks become accomplished asks acco ding o he de elopmen a e.
Du ing his p ocess, e o s can be commi ed. Thus, in acco dance o he desi ed
quali y objec i e o he p ojec , he quali y a e and he e ision a e a e de e mined.
These wo a es go e n he numbe o asks ha a e e ised. To model he p og ess o
le el 3, he model will make use o a ho izon al decomposi ion, c ea ing as many
subs uc u es as phases o ac i i ies a e p esen in he ask b eakdown s uc u e o he
p ojec (analysis, design, code and es , in he wa e all pa adigm). Acco ding o his
app oach, each ime a comple e model o some pa o i is eplica ed, i will be
necessa y o de ine he new ixing mechanisms (dynamic modules) o he new
s uc u es. These mechanisms e ec i ely implemen he p inciple o
agg ega ion/decomposi ion p e iously men ioned. The eplica ion o s uc u es also
p o ides he possibili y o eplica ing he modules ela ed o he p ojec managemen
p ocesses. This eplica ion is especially use ul o high ma u i y le el o ganiza ions,
which will be able o es ablish p ocess imp o emen p ac ices o each ce ain ac i i y
o he li e cycle.
2.5 In eg a ed Techniques
As i was men ioned be o e, ou aim is o de elop a wo king en i onmen whe e he
simula ion o di e en scena ios can be used o gene a e he simula ed da abase whe e
manage s can expe imen di e en p ocess imp o emen s and ac i i ies ocussed on
he implemen a ion o me ics p og ams and alue analysis. The ollowing echniques
and me hods a e cu en ly success ully implemen ed in DIFSPI:
T adi ional Es ima ion Techniques. T adi ional algo i hmic es ima ion models ha e
been implemen ed inside his amewo k wi h he aim o p o iding an ini ial baseline
o so wa e p ojec s ca ied ou in low ma u i y le el o ganiza ions [9] and [10].
SEI Co e Measu es. Recen s udies and expe iences highligh he bene i s o he
applica ion o hese ou co e measu es o he so wa e li e cycle. The main aspec s o
he p oduc and p ocess (quali y, ime, size and cos ) a e moni o ed and acked o
acili a e p ojec success and highe ma u i y achie emen . Inside his amewo k
heses ou measu es cons i u e he basics o bo h, he dynamic models and he
g aphical ep esen a ion o he p ocess pe o mance [5].
Me el Rules. Gi en he dynamical na u e o he DIFSPI p oposed, we conside i
could be use ul o in eg a e a axonomy o so wa e me ics which is de i ed om he
needs o use s, de elope s, and managemen . Among all he ad an ages ha can be
ob ained wi h he use o his sys em o me ics, we would like o poin ou he
dynamic pe o mance o hese me ics, ha is, how hei accu acy, p ecision, and
u ili y changes o e he du a ion o a p ojec , he li e o a p oduc o he s a egic plan
o an o ganiza ion. In DIFPSPI Me el ules ha e been used as an e icien me hod o