Noor Azura Zakaria

The state of the art and issues in software process tailoring

This study aims to review research works on software process tailoring in order to investigate the state of the art of the domain in terms of research activities. Based on the review, a classification of the research works was performed and issues pertaining to the domain were highlighted. Three classifications were produced that classify the research works into critical success factors, experiences and practices in a tailoring reference model and supporting tool. The issues discussed in this study are related to the framework and model, value-based tailored process, experience ware and quality of tailored process. This paper provides essential information on the software process tailoring research works to novice researchers who plan to conduct further research in this domain.

Peopleware & heartware - The philosophy of knowledge management

The important of knowledgeable workers (peopleware and heartware) in order to achieve success in knowledge management implementation cannot be doubted. They are the core and backbone to the KM practices in the organization. Therefore, proper plans and strategies should be drawn carefully by the organization to winning the peopleware and heartware prior to the KM implementation. Based on the literature review, this study has highlighted the important of knowledge workers as asset in the organization. Additionally, ideas on how to please this asset to cooperate with the organization to ensure the success of KM practices are given.

Examining Value-Based Factors in Software Development: A Survey Study in Malaysian Public Sector

Software development plays a major role in the production of software products. This process must be carefully designed in order to successfully deliver the end product, and at the same time fulfill the values desired. Value-Based Software Engineering (VBSE) aims to convert the value-neutral setting in developing software to become a more value-centric approach. This study presents exploratory survey results for the purpose of examining value-based factors that are most commonly used in software development. The survey conducted at the Malaysian public sector involving a software development team as the target population. Exploratory factor analysis was used as the main data analysis strategy in this study. The results reveal that there are 28 value-based factors that are most commonly used in software development which can be classified into four classifications (success-critical stakeholders, business strategy, project characteristics and product characteristics). Our objective in further research is to develop value-based factors profile as imperative input to conduct software process tailoring.

Using Grounded Theory Approach to Identify Value-Based Factors in Software Development

Grounded theory is an approach that can be used to analyse qualitative data. It is a systematic approach for data collection, handling and analysis. The objective of this paper is to present adapted grounded theory approach as data analysis strategy to identify value-based factors in software development. The grounded theory procedure started with data extraction and initial coding, memo writing and constant comparative analysis and finally identification of core categories and writing memos. Initial data extracted were 74 which were obtained from 28 sources generally related with software development. After constant comparison and memoing, the valid data (value-based factors) were reduced to 33 with six core categories (classification of value-based factors).