Evaluating software development objectively

Abstract

Software development organizations face the constant challenge of providing customers with the required functionality in a timely fashion at an acceptable quality. Metrics, methodologies, and processes targeting these challenges abound, but their applicability varies greatly depending on an organization's maturity and expectations. Even within a single organization, variations exist among groups, and the dynamic nature of the workforce only compounds the situation. In the midst of such chaos, executives, project managers, and technical teams must anticipate exposures quickly, efficiently, and accurately. They must identify and execute optimal actions to mitigate risk, evaluate results, and retain the relevant knowledge for future use. High resource demands dictate accomplishing this activity in a minimally invasive manner, preferably one integrated with the organization's normal activities. We discuss here Orthogonal Defect Classification and the Butterfly Model, which fill this need.