(Pekka Forselius and Erkki Savioja, FiSMA, Finland)

Functional size of software is one of the most important cost drivers of software development projects. However, function points are very rarely used in the industry, although they are the only internationally standardized way to measure size of software. Sometimes decision makers have heard about function points, but their knowledge of them is old, or they have been misguided to believe that the methods are difficult to use, extremely time consuming, and that the counting results may vary significantly between two measurement experts.

Finnish Software Measurement Association (FiSMA) arranged a speed test for software size estimation and project effort estimation in summer 2013. The results are impressive and very promising.

Super Fast Estimation.pdf

Controlling software development – A breakthrough for business.

An article in Software Quality & Process Improvement by mr. Terry Wright (2000). 

Businesses must be able to change the way they operate quickly – and often they need to change their software to do so. With this in mind, over the last four years the Victorian Government has developed an invaluable new method for acquiring custom-built software, reports Terry Wright (pdf)

An interview with mr. Martti Karjalainen, a Senior Specialist in Ministry of Justice.

”Our ICT systems are the backbone of the Finnish judicial system and a significant part of Finnish democracy. ICT services must steadfastly follow the changes and schedules of legislation. By using the estimating methods that are part of northernSCOPE® together with Certified Scope Manager (CSM) services, we are now in control of our costs and able to manage functional outcomes, schedules and quality of software development better. ”

(pdf)

 

January/February, 2010

CrossTalk, The Journal of Defense Software Engingeering:

(Carol Dekkers, Quality Plus Technologies, and Pekka Forselius)

The information and communications technology (ICT) world is "addicted" to dysfunctional behaviour and the problem is spreading globally. The sad truth is that the parties in the ICT relationship (the customer and the supplier) are largely codependent on a pattern of dysfunction characterized by ineffective communication, fixed price contracts with changing requirements, and eroding trust. This article focuses specifically on the northernSCOPE™ 12-step process for ICT program recovery.

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September, 2009

SoftwareTech News:

(Carol Dekkers, Quality Plus Technologies)

Analogous approaches from other industries often provide illumination of key concepts to benefit software intensive systems projects. The latter are some of the most complex, monolithic, and costly of all project management challenges today, not only because of technology novelty but because of the sheer amount of focused customer and developer communication that must occur.

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January, 2009

(Pekka Forselius, and Timo Käkölä, University of Jyväskylä)

There is relatively little research on software Project Estimation and Measurement Systems (PEMS). Commercial PEMS vary in functionality and effectiveness. Their intended users thus do not know what to expect from PEMS and how to evaluate them. This paper creates an information system design product theory for the class of PEMS that prescribes the meta-requirements, the meta-design, and applicable theories for all products within the class. Meta-requirements and the meta-design are derived from the project estimation and measurement literature, experiences obtained during more than ten years of empirical work in Finnish Software Measurement Association, and a commercially available PEMS.

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November, 2008

22nd IPMA World Congress

(Carol Dekkers, Quality Plus Technologies, and Pekka Forselius)

ICT (Information and Communications Technology) projects are some of the most complex, monolithic, and costly of all project management challenges today. While project management has provided rigor and structure to such software intensive systems projects, project management alone is insufficient to bridge the gap between customers (who find it difficult to articulate their requirements to get the results that they need) and suppliers (who are the technical brains behind the project delivery). It is a weekly occurrence for industry journals to publish the latest ICT program failures that range from projects canceled after years and euros spent to projects that are years late and millions of euros over budget. Two radical approaches from different parts of the world were developed independently to take advantage of known best-practices available to the software industry – northernSCOPE™ from Finland, and southernSCOPE from Australia. Both concepts involve a multi-disciplinary approach (similar to the triathlon approach where multiple athletic skills are needed) to solving more than six out of the ten top reasons for project failure. This paper presents an analogous look at how the formal scope management concepts mirror triathlon athlete performance in training and racing – and how they can bring success to your next ICT project.

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December, 2007

IT Week:

(Carol Dekkers, Quality Plus Technologies, and Pekka Forselius)

ICT (Information and Communications Technology) projects are some of the most complex, monolithic, and costly of all project management challenges today. While project management has provided rigor and structure to such software intensive systems projects, project management alone is insufficient to bridge the gap between customers (who find it difficult to articulate their requirements to get the results that they need) and suppliers (who are the technical brains behind the project delivery). It is a weekly occurrence for industry journals to publish the latest ICT program failures that range from projects canceled after years and euros spent to projects that are years late and millions of euros over budget. Two radical approaches from different parts of the world were developed independently to take advantage of known best-practices available to the software industry – northernSCOPE™ from Finland, and southernSCOPE from Australia. Both concepts involve a multi-disciplinary approach (similar to the triathlon approach where multiple athletic skills are needed) to solving more than six out of the ten top reasons for project failure. This paper presents an analogous look at how the formal scope management concepts mirror triathlon athlete performance in training and racing – and how they can bring success to your next ICT project.

Read more