A database for publications published by researchers and students at SimulaMet.
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- Journal articles (36)
- Books (2)
- Edited books (1)
- Proceedings, refereed (30)
- Book chapters (5)
- Talks, keynote (13)
- Proceedings, non-refereed (1)
- Posters (1)
- Technical reports (2)
- Manuals (1)
- Talks, invited (25)
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- Public outreach (11)
- Master's theses (1)
- Miscellaneous (2)
Journal articles
Determining a core view of research quality in empirical software engineering
Computer Standards & Interfaces 84 (2023).Status: Published
Determining a core view of research quality in empirical software engineering
Context:
Research quality is intended to appraise the design and reporting of studies. It comprises a set of standards such as methodological rigor, practical relevance, and conformance to ethical standards. Depending on the perspective, different views of importance are given to the standards for research quality.
Objective:
To investigate the suitability of a conceptual model of research quality to Software Engineering (SE), from the perspective of researchers engaged in Empirical Software Engineering (ESE) research, in order to understand the core value of research quality.
Method:
We conducted a mixed-methods approach with two distinct group perspectives: (i) a research group; and (ii) the empirical SE research community. Our data collection approach comprised a questionnaire survey and a complementary focus group. We carried out a hierarchical voting prioritization to collect relative values for importance of standards for research quality.
Results:
In the context of this research, ‘internally valid’, ‘relevant research idea’, and ‘applicable results’ are perceived as the core standards for research quality in empirical SE. The alignment at the research group level was higher compared to that at the community level.
Conclusion:
The conceptual model was seen to express fairly the standards for research quality in the SE context. It presented limitations regarding its structure and components’ description, which resulted in an updated model.
| Afilliation | Software Engineering |
| Project(s) | EDOS: Effective Digitalization of Public Sector |
| Publication Type | Journal Article |
| Year of Publication | 2023 |
| Journal | Computer Standards & Interfaces |
| Volume | 84 |
| Publisher | Elsevier |
A longitudinal explanatory case study of coordination in a very large development programme: the impact of transitioning from a first- to a second-generation large-scale agile development method
Empirical Software Engineering 28, no. 1 (2023).Status: Published
A longitudinal explanatory case study of coordination in a very large development programme: the impact of transitioning from a first- to a second-generation large-scale agile development method
Large-scale agile development has gained widespread interest in the software industry, but it is a topic with few empirical studies of practice. Development projects at scale introduce a range of new challenges in managing a large number of people and teams, often with high uncertainty about product requirements and technical solutions. The coordination of teams has been identified as one of the main challenges. This study presents a rich longitudinal explanatory case study of a very large software development programme with 10 development teams. We focus on inter-team coordination in two phases: one that applies a first-generation agile development method and another that uses a second-generation one. We identified 27 coordination mechanisms in the first phase, and 14 coordination mechanisms in the second. Based on an analysis of coordination strategies and mechanisms, we develop five propositions on how the transition from a first- to a second-generation method impacts coordination. These propositions have implications for theory and practice.
| Afilliation | Software Engineering |
| Project(s) | EDOS: Effective Digitalization of Public Sector |
| Publication Type | Journal Article |
| Year of Publication | 2023 |
| Journal | Empirical Software Engineering |
| Volume | 28 |
| Issue | 1 |
| Date Published | Jan-01-2023 |
| Publisher | Springer Nature |
| ISSN | 1382-3256 |
| Keywords | coordination mechanisms, inter-team coordination, large-scale agile development, multiteam systems, software development process, Software Engineering |
| URL | https://rdcu.be/c3FQ4 |
| DOI | 10.1007/s10664-022-10230-6 |
Torgeir Dingsøyr is adjunct chief research scientist at the SimulaMet research laboratory. His research has focused on teamwork and learning in software development, as well as development methods for large software projects and programs. He has published in the software engineering, information systems and project management fields. His main position is professor in software engineering – agile at the Department of Computer Science, Norwegian University of Science and Technology.
Backsourcing of Information Technology - A Systematic Literature Review
Submitted to a journal (2023).Status: Submitted
Backsourcing of Information Technology - A Systematic Literature Review
Context: Backsourcing is the process of insourcing previously outsourced activities. When companies experience environmental or strategic changes, or challenges with outsourcing, backsourcing can be a viable alternative. While outsourcing and related processes have been extensively studied in information technology, few studies report experiences with backsourcing.
Objectives: We intend to summarize the results of the research literature on the backsourcing of IT, with a focus on software development. By identifying practical relevance experience, we aim to present findings that may help companies considering backsourcing. In addition, we aim to identify gaps in the current research literature and point out areas for future work.
Method: Our systematic literature review (SLR) started with a search for empirical studies on the backsourcing of IT. From each study we identified the contexts in which backsourcing occurs, the factors leading to the decision to backsource, the backsourcing process itself, and the outcomes of backsourcing. We employed inductive coding to extract textual data from the papers identified and qualitative cross-case analysis to synthesize the evidence from backsourcing experiences.
Results: We identified 17 papers that reported 26 cases of backsourcing, six of which were related to software development. The cases came from a variety of contexts. The most common reasons for backsourcing were improving quality, reducing costs, and regaining control of outsourced activities. The backsourcing process can be described as containing five sub-processes: change management, vendor relationship management, competence building, organizational build-up, and transfer of ownership. Furthermore, we identified 14 positive outcomes and nine negative outcomes of backsourcing. Finally, we aggregated the evidence and detailed three relationships of potential use to companies considering backsourcing.
Conclusion: The backsourcing of IT is a complex process; its implementation depends on the prior outsourcing relationship and other contextual factors. Our systematic literature review may contribute to a better understanding of this process by identifying its components and their relationships based on the peer-reviewed literature. Our results may also serve as a motivation and baseline for further research on backsourcing and may provide guidelines and process fragments from which practitioners can benefit when they engage in backsourcing.
| Afilliation | Software Engineering |
| Project(s) | EDOS: Effective Digitalization of Public Sector, Department of IT Management |
| Publication Type | Journal Article |
| Year of Publication | 2023 |
| Journal | Submitted to a journal |
| Publisher | x |
| Keywords | backshoring, Backsourcing, information technology, software development, Software Engineering, systematic literature review |
A logic-based event controller for means-end reasoning in simulation environments
SIMULATION 61 (2023).Status: Published
A logic-based event controller for means-end reasoning in simulation environments
Simulation games are designed to cultivate expertise and rehearse particular skill sets. To yield longitudinal effects, sequences of events must be crafted to yield intended learning outcomes, sometimes by focusing on particularly difficult situations and replaying variants. The present paper develops a logic-based approach for encoding the interrelation between action, events, and objects in a manner that allows the resulting scenario description to immediately be executed in a game development environment. This has the dual effect of decoupling the description of a scenario from the simulation platform itself, as well as supporting iterative and flexible development of learning content. To this end, we provide three interrelated components: First, we develop a scenario description language based on Answer Set Programming. The language is designed to allow an automated reasoner to deduce a schedule of the future events that are caused by an action taken in a given simulation environment. Second, we define a protocol for exchanging actions and computed futures between, respectively, the simulation environment and the external automated reasoner. Finally, as a proof of concept, we develop an Application Programming Interface (API) for the Unity Real-Time Development Platform that implements the protocol and offers a software framework for connecting the computed future events to concrete game objects. This allows the game to evolve coherently from the specification. We argue that the resulting system inherits capabilities for artificial commonsense reasoning from its declarative basis which are useful for reasoning about an evolving emergency incident or training scenario.
| Afilliation | Software Engineering |
| Project(s) | EDOS: Effective Digitalization of Public Sector |
| Publication Type | Journal Article |
| Year of Publication | 2023 |
| Journal | SIMULATION |
| Volume | 61 |
| Date Published | 03/2023 |
| Publisher | SAGE journals |
| ISSN | 0037-5497 |
| URL | http://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/00375497231157384http://journals... |
| DOI | 10.1177/00375497231157384 |
Characteristics and generative mechanisms of software development productivity distributions
Information and Software Technology (2023).Status: Published
Characteristics and generative mechanisms of software development productivity distributions
Context: There is considerable variation in the productivity of software developers. Better knowledge about this variation may provide valuable inputs for the design of skill tests and recruitment processes. Objective: This paper aims to identify properties of software development productivity distributions and gain insight into mechanisms that potentially explain these productivity differences. Method: Four data sets that contain the results of software developers solving the same programming tasks were collected. The properties of the productivity distributions were analyzed, the fits of different types of distributions to the productivity data were compared, and potential generative mechanisms that would lead to the types of distributions with the best fit to the productivity data were evaluated. Results: The coefficient of variance of the productivity of the software developers was, on average, 0.55, with the top 50% of developers having average productivity that was 2.44 times higher than the bottom 50% of developers. All productivity samples were right-skewed, with an average skew of 1.79. About 30% of the observed productivity variance was explained by non-systematic, i.e., within-developer, variance. The distributions with the best fit to the empirical productivity data were the lognormal and power-law-with-an-exponential-cutoff distributions. The analysis of the mechanisms leading to productivity differences found no support for the "rich-getting-richer" explanation proposed for other disciplines. Instead, it suggests a constant productivity difference with increasing experience. Conclusion: The substantial difference in productivity among software developers solving programming tasks indicates that a thorough evaluation of skill in the recruitment process can be rewarding. In particular, the long tail towards higher productivity values demonstrates the large gains that can be achieved by detecting and recruiting developers with very high productivity. More research is needed to understand the mechanisms leading to the large productivity differences.
| Afilliation | Software Engineering |
| Project(s) | EDOS: Effective Digitalization of Public Sector |
| Publication Type | Journal Article |
| Year of Publication | 2023 |
| Journal | Information and Software Technology |
| Publisher | Elsevier |
Enabling Autonomous Teams and Continuous Deployment at Scale
IEEE IT Professional (2023).Status: Published
Enabling Autonomous Teams and Continuous Deployment at Scale
In this article, we give advice on transitioning to a more agile delivery model for large-scale agile development projects based on experience from the Parental Benefit Project of the Norwegian Labour and Welfare Administration. The project modernized a central part of the organization’s IT portfolio and included up to ten development teams working in parallel. The project successfully changed from using a delivery model which combined traditional project management elements and agile methods to a more agile delivery model with autonomous teams and continuous deployment. This transition was completed in tandem with the project execution. We identify key lessons learned which will be useful for other organizations considering similar changes and report how the new delivery model reduced risk and opened up a range of new possibilities for delivering the benefits of digitalization.
| Afilliation | Software Engineering |
| Project(s) | EDOS: Effective Digitalization of Public Sector |
| Publication Type | Journal Article |
| Year of Publication | 2023 |
| Journal | IEEE IT Professional |
| Publisher | IEEE |
Improved Measurement of Software Development Effort Estimation Bias
Information and software technology (2023).Status: Published
Improved Measurement of Software Development Effort Estimation Bias
Context: While prior software development effort estimation research has examined the properties of estimation error measures, there has not been much research on the properties of measures of estimation bias. Objectives: Improved measurement of software development effort estimation bias. Methods: Analysis of the extent to which measures of estimation bias meet the criterion that perfect estimates should result in zero bias. Results: Recommendations for measurement of estimation bias for estimates of the mean, median, and mode software development effort. The results include the recommendation to avoid a commonly used measure of effort estimation bias. Conclusion: Proper evaluation of estimation bias requires knowledge about the type of estimates evaluated, together with the selection of a measure of estimation bias that gives zero bias for perfect estimates of that type.
| Afilliation | Software Engineering |
| Project(s) | EDOS: Effective Digitalization of Public Sector |
| Publication Type | Journal Article |
| Year of Publication | 2023 |
| Journal | Information and software technology |
| Publisher | Elsevier |
Proceedings, refereed
Projects VS Continuous Product Development - Does it Affect Benefits Realization?
In The Ninth International Conference on Advances and Trends in Software Engineering (SOFTENG). Xpert Publishing Services (XPS), 2023.Status: Published
Projects VS Continuous Product Development - Does it Affect Benefits Realization?
Software investments are traditionally implemented using project organization, which often leads project participants to focus on time, cost and scope, rather than the intended benefits of the investment. We conducted a survey to compare work organized as projects against work organized as Continuous Product Development (CPD). Our results indicate that: 1. Both project organization and CPD are commonly used in practice. 2. Agile is very popular, but DevOps and the use of linear models for organizing work are also frequent. 3. CPD is perceived to outperform projects in realization of benefits. 4. We found no difference in perceived realization of benefits between those using or not using a set of ways of organizing work (including linear models, agile, DevOps, BizDev or program organization). We conclude that organizing work using CPD is a viable alternative to project organization, especially in situations where failure must be avoided. Also, we suggest that more research should be conducted to better understand what factors of the different ways of organizing work affects the realization of benefits.
| Afilliation | Software Engineering |
| Project(s) | Department of IT Management, EDOS: Effective Digitalization of Public Sector |
| Publication Type | Proceedings, refereed |
| Year of Publication | 2023 |
| Conference Name | The Ninth International Conference on Advances and Trends in Software Engineering (SOFTENG) |
| Pagination | 20-25 |
| Date Published | 04/2023 |
| Publisher | Xpert Publishing Services (XPS) |
What can we learn from surveys on the importance of software development productivity factors?
In CiBSE. Brazilian Publishing Company, 2023.Status: Published
What can we learn from surveys on the importance of software development productivity factors?
A proper interpretation of survey results on the importance of software development productivity factors requires an understanding of what the responses reflect. To find out more about this, we conducted a survey with 79 experienced software professionals. The strongest connection found was between the high perceived importance of a productivity factor and how frequently the respondents had experienced that a low performance on that factor had caused productivity problems. We argue that it is challenging to interpret survey-based results on the importance of productivity factors. Instead of conducting more surveys on the importance of such factors, we recommend asking directly about previous experiences related to productivity factors and including contextual information that enables proper interpretation of the responses.
| Afilliation | Software Engineering |
| Project(s) | EDOS: Effective Digitalization of Public Sector |
| Publication Type | Proceedings, refereed |
| Year of Publication | 2023 |
| Conference Name | CiBSE |
| Publisher | Brazilian Publishing Company |
A Survey on the Perception of Opportunities and Limitations of Generative AI in the Public Sector
In 2nd World Conference on Information Systems for Business Management (ISBM 2023). Springer, 2023.Status: Accepted
A Survey on the Perception of Opportunities and Limitations of Generative AI in the Public Sector
Recent breakthroughs in Artificial Intelligence (AI) have increased the interest in applications of AI in general and Generative AI in particular. This interest is manifest in public debate on the promise and limitations of AI in various sectors, but also on the risks of relying upon such technology. However, little is known about the interest in and perceptions of Generative AI among Information Technology (IT) professionals likely to take responsibility for developing and implementing AI-based solutions in the public sector. We present findings from a survey we developed (with help from ChatGPT) and conducted among IT practitioners in the Norwegian public sector. Through this survey, we investigated how opportunities and limitations of the use Generative AI were perceived and understood. We found ambivalent attitudes: while the interest in Generative AI is high, the level of perceived knowledge is low; there is considerable optimism about the value of AI, but an equivalent level of concern about threats this technology represents; and although respondents suspected AI had helped generate the survey, they found the survey questions relevant and fully context-oriented. These findings provide background and context for further research into the adoption of AI and help practitioners establish a baseline for efforts to build and manage AI-based solutions in public institutions.
| Afilliation | Software Engineering |
| Project(s) | Department of IT Management, EDOS: Effective Digitalization of Public Sector |
| Publication Type | Proceedings, refereed |
| Year of Publication | 2023 |
| Conference Name | 2nd World Conference on Information Systems for Business Management (ISBM 2023) |
| Date Published | 09/2023 |
| Publisher | Springer |
| Keywords | artificial intelligence, ChatGPT, Digitalization, Generative AI, Public sector, survey |
Leif is a PhD student at SimulaMet within EDOS.
His field of research is leadership in digital transformations.
Leif has a long career as a management consultant in the public and private sectors, in Norway and the US. He has an MBA from Columbia University Graduate School of Business and a BSc from San Francisco State University in Business Administration/Computer Information Systems. He is also a part time graduate student at the Norwegian Institute of Philology working toward a MA in classical languages.
Leif grew up in Norway, Canada, and Austria, most of his professional career was in the US. He is interested in cooking, history, media criticism, photography, genealogy, and various other subjects that catch his fancy. Is a proud father of twins who suddenly grew up.
