APPLIED COMPUTER SCIENCES,inc
Since 1987

Critical Issues for Software Development Management

DID YOU KNOW almost 70% of all software is developed with no real planning process and few controls? In this increasingly competitive world, software development efforts must refocus on the critical business issues of product reliability, profitability, and quality.

Maximum gains in these essential areas can only be seen via use of effective process controls throughout the cycle of planning, specification, programming, testing, documentation, release, and upgrading. The discipline, planning, and structured procedures to be implemented make sense from a business and productivity standpoint. Increased profits from cost and time-to-market savings and enhanced product quality and reputation are significant benefits to be gained.

SOFTWARE CONFIGURATION MANAGEMENT tools provide an automated way for developers and managers to track and control project components. The basic tasks performed are revision control and product build management.

All phases of product growth can be managed with planned use of a flexible, broad-based Configuration Management tool. Specification and design documents, source and object code, test data, problem reports, etc can all be tracked within the framework of a CM tool. Code can be shared between projects, team development in a distributed environment is practical, and product build can be defined, controlled, and reproduced. Software code can progress in an orderly way from development, thru QA, to production.

Developers benefit from easy access to the history of product growth, as well as on-demand reconstruction of previous versions. Independent developer workspaces combined with regular integration of work-in-progress brings efficiency and productivity to the team development effort.

Problem Reports and Change Requests can be tracked, and related to the revision history of product components.

The Software Development group that implements Configuraton Management will take a giant step toward controlling the myriad processes involved in completion of a product. They will gain future benefits from establishment of good system development policies and processes.

Contact Applied Computer Sciences for an Introductory Seminar covering these critical issues.