Walden University ScholarWorks Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies Collection 1-1-2011 Data-Driven Decision Making as a Tool to Improve Software Development Productivity Mary Erin Brown Walden University Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarworks.waldenu.edu/dissertations Part of the Business Administration, Management, and Operations Commons, Databases and Information Systems Commons, Library and Information Science Commons, and the Management Sciences and Quantitative Methods Commons This Dissertation is brought to you for free and open access by the Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies Collection at ScholarWorks. It has been accepted for inclusion in Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies by an authorized administrator of ScholarWorks. For more information, please contact [email protected]. Walden University College of Management and Technology This is to certify that the doctoral dissertation by Mary Brown has been found to be complete and satisfactory in all respects, and that any and all revisions required by the review committee have been made. Review Committee Dr. David Gould, Committee Chairperson, Management Faculty Dr. Stuart Gold, Committee Member, Management Faculty Dr. Louis Taylor, University Reviewer, Management Faculty Chief Academic Officer Eric Riedel, Ph.D. Walden University 2013 Abstract Data-Driven Decision Making as a Tool to Improve Software Development Productivity by Mary Erin Brown M.S. Arizona State University, 1998 M.A. Western Michigan University, 1976 B.A. Western Michigan University, 1970 Dissertation Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy Management Walden University August 2013 Abstract The worldwide software project failure rate, based on a survey of information technology software manager’s view of user satisfaction, product quality, and staff productivity, is estimated to be between 24% and 36% and software project success has not kept pace with the advances in hardware. The problem addressed by this study was the limited information about software managers’ experiences with data-driven decision making (DDD) in agile software organizations as a tool to improve software development productivity. The purpose of this phenomenological study was to explore how agile software managers view DDD as a tool to improve software development productivity and to understand how agile software development organizations may use DDD now and in the future to improve software development productivity. Research questions asked about software managers’, project managers’, and agile coaches’ lived experiences with DDD via a set of interview questions. The conceptual framework for the research was based on the 3 critical dimensions of software organization productivity improvement: people, process, and tools, which were defined by the Software Engineering Institute’s Capability Maturity Model Integrated published in 2010. Organizations focus on processes to align the people, procedures and methods, and tools and equipment to improve productivity. Positive social change could result from a better understanding of DDD in an agile software development environment; this increased understanding of DDD could enable organizations to create more products, offer more jobs, and better compete in a global economy. Data-Driven Decision Making as a Tool to Improve Software Development Productivity by Mary Erin Brown M.S. Arizona State University, 1998 M.A. Western Michigan University, 1976 B.A. Western Michigan University, 1970 Dissertation Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy Management Walden University August 2013 UMI Number: 3591716 All rights reserved INFORMATION TO ALL USERS The quality of this reproduction is dependent upon the quality of the copy submitted. In the unlikely event that the author did not send a complete manuscript and there are missing pages, these will be noted. Also, if material had to be removed, a note will indicate the deletion. UMI 3591716 Published by ProQuest LLC (2013). Copyright in the Dissertation held by the Author. Microform Edition © ProQuest LLC. All rights reserved. This work is protected against unauthorized copying under Title 17, United States Code ProQuest LLC. 789 East Eisenhower Parkway P.O. Box 1346 Ann Arbor, MI 48106 - 1346 Dedication This proposal is dedicated to my husband, Mike Brown, who supported my goals, to my dad, Mr. Phillip Stackpoole who taught me to love learning, to Dr. Paul Doelle who taught me the importance of moving in the direction you want to go whether the wind is at your back or in your face, and to my sisters and brothers who made all the difference in my life. Acknowledgments I would like to thank the dedicated faculty and staff of Walden University School of Management who shared their knowledge and expertise with me and who provided encouragement along the way, especially Dr. David Gould, Dr. Stuart Gold, and Dr. Louis Taylor who provided valuable guidance along the way. Table of Contents List of Tables .......................................................................................................................v List of Figures ................................................................................................................... vii Chapter 1: Introduction to the Study ....................................................................................1 Background of the Study ...............................................................................................2 Problem Statement .........................................................................................................4 Purpose of the Study ......................................................................................................5 Research Questions ........................................................................................................6 Conceptual Framework ..................................................................................................8 Nature of the Study ......................................................................................................11 Definition of Terms......................................................................................................12 Assumptions .................................................................................................................16 Scope and Delimitations ..............................................................................................17 Limitations ...................................................................................................................18 Significance of the Study .............................................................................................18 Summary and Transition ..............................................................................................19 Chapter 2: Literature Review .............................................................................................21 The Literature Search Strategy ....................................................................................22 Organization of the Review .........................................................................................24 Conceptual Foundation ................................................................................................24 Current Understanding of Data Driven Decision Making ...........................................25 Current Research in Software Methods .......................................................................34 i Current Research in Software Development and KM .................................................51 Current Research in Software Methods and Analytics ................................................61 Current Research in Software Methods, KM, and Analytics .......................................63 Research Methods in the Current Literature ................................................................64 Research Methods for Research ...................................................................................78 Research Approaches in the Current Literature ...........................................................79 Research Approach for Used for this Research ...........................................................80 Research Process Used for this Research ....................................................................81 Summary and Conclusions ..........................................................................................81 Chapter 3: Research Method ..............................................................................................84 Research Design and Rationale ...................................................................................85 Research Questions ............................................................................................... 85 Central Concept .................................................................................................... 86 Research Tradition ................................................................................................ 87 Rationale ............................................................................................................... 88 Role of the Researcher .................................................................................................90 Researcher Role ...................................................................................................