Browsing by Author "Ribeiro, Pedro"
Now showing 1 - 10 of 13
Results Per Page
Sort Options
- An empirical study on the estimation of size and complexity of software applications with function points analysisPublication . Alves, Luís M.; Oliveira, Sérgio; Ribeiro, Pedro; Machado, Ricardo J.Empirical studies are important in software engineering to evaluate new tools, techniques, methods and technologies in a structured way before they are introduced in the industrial (real) software process. Perform empirical studies in a real context is very difficult due to various obstacles. An interesting alternative is perform empirical studies in an educational context using students as subjects and share the results with the academia and the industry. This paper describes a case study with two teams that developed a software system (Web application) for a real customer. In this study we used a model based on Function Points Analysis (FPA) to estimate the size and complexity of software system.
- An empirical study on the estimation of software development effort with use case pointsPublication . Alves, Luís M.; Sousa, André; Ribeiro, Pedro; Machado, Ricardo J.Empirical studies are important in software engineering to evaluate new tools, techniques, methods and technologies in a structured way before they are introduced in the industrial (real) software process. Perform empirical studies in a real context is very difficult due to various obstacles, so, we intend to create a stable environment that allows us to perform reliably empirical studies with students. This paper describes a case study with 104 students grouped in seven teams that developed a software system (Web application) for a real costumer. In this study we used a model based on Use Case Points (UCP) to estimate the resources needed to develop a software system.
- Architectural element points: estimating software development effort by analysis of logical architecturesPublication . Alves, Luís M.; Ribeiro, Pedro; Machado, Ricardo J.Empirical studies are important in software engineering to evaluate new tools, techniques, methods and technologies. In object-oriented analysis, use case models describe the functional requirements of a software system, so they can be the basis for software measurement and sizing. The purpose of this study is to develop a new metric called Architectural Element Points (AEPoint) that enables to calculate the effort required to develop a software solution, using the 4-Step Rule Set (4SRS) method. This paper describes a case study with 60 undergraduate students grouped in four teams that developed a software system (Web application) for a real customer. In this study, we used the AEPoint metric to estimate the resources needed to develop a software system. The results of the AEPoint and Use Case Points (UCP) metrics and the real software development effort are compared, conclusions drawn and recommendations are proposed.
- Classifying empirical studies in an educational context through an experimentation frameworkPublication . Alves, Luís M.; Ribeiro, Pedro; Machado, RicardoWorking in a team for a limited period of time and to deliver a high quality product are some of the skills that students should gain during their studies at the university. Empirical studies in software engineering play an important and significant role in the evaluation of tools, techniques, methods, and technologies before they are dynamically validated in industrial setup. After the presentation of the projects, students have a meeting with teaching staff to discuss and analyze the strengths and weaknesses of their work. The analysis should be performed by keeping in view the documentation, the project plan and the work experience the team has gathered from the start to the end of the project completion. To learn from the experience is a key to improvement. To perform empirical studies in real contexts is very difficult due to various obstacles, so, we intend to create a stable environment that allows us to perform reliable empirical studies with students. In many studies, students are used instead of professional software developers, although the objective is to draw conclusions valid for professional software developers. The differences may be considered only minor, and it is concluded that software engineering students may be used instead of professional software developers under certain conditions. This paper presents a framework to classify empirical studies performed in an educational context. We will describe the relevance and objectives of the framework. Then, we present the schema (architecture) of the framework and explain in some detail its different components. The main objective of the framework is to provide a classification scheme for understanding and evaluating empirical studies in software engineering area in educational context. With this framework we can analyze most of the experimental work that has been performed in our software engineering courses. We involve students from BSc, MSc and PhD degrees in Computing from our university in developing a software project required by real clients. The educational approach is mainly based on (PBL) Project-Based Learning principles. Over the past four years we had five hundred and twenty students involved in the four educational syllabuses. In each academic year, we had approximately 100 students in (PMS) Software Process and Methodologies and (DAI) Development of Software Applications courses and 30 students in (ACSI) Analysis and Design of Information Systems and (GPSI) Project Management of Information Systems courses. Normally, the PMS/DAI and ACSI/GPSI courses has the same students. From the academic year 2010/2011 to 2017/2018, the 200 students enrolled in the ACSI and GPSI courses developed 150 work projects in different SWEBOK (Software Engineering Body of Knowledge) KAs (Knowledge Areas). We classify these works projects to explain the usefulness and applicability of the using the proposed framework.
- Critical success factors of University-Industry R&D collaborationsPublication . Fernandes, Gabriela; Santos, José M.R.C.A.; Ribeiro, Pedro; Ferreira, Luís Miguel D.F.; O'Sullivan, David; Barroso, Daniela; Pinto, Eduardo B.University-industry R&D collaborations (UICs) play a vital role in stimulating open innovation that leads to new products, processes, and services that creates value for customers and broader societal impact. UICs, however, commonly fail to meet these stakeholders’ benefits. This study identifies thirty-four critical success factors (CSFs) for improving UIC success. The study includes a systematic literature review and a longitudinal UIC case study between Bosch Car Multimedia in Portugal and University of Minho, a multi-million Euro R&D collaboration from 2013 to 2021. The importance of the CSFs is discussed in the context of the UIC lifecycle. A survey among researchers and industry practitioners involved in R&D collaborative projects was completed to confirm the analysis of the empirical results. This paper provides UIC managers with CSFs, which, when addressed competently, can provide a basis for successful UIC projects and sustainable university-industry collaborations
- Experimental software engineering in educational contextPublication . Alves, Luís M.; Machado, Ricardo J.; Ribeiro, PedroEmpirical studies are important in software engineering to evaluate new tools, techniques, methods and technologies in a structured way before they are introduced in the industrial (real) software process. Within this PhD thesis we will develop a framework of a consistent process for involving students as subjects of empirical studies of software engineering. In concrete, our experiences with software development teams composed of students will analyze how RUP (Rational Unified Process) processes can be compliant with the CMMI (Capability Maturity Model Integration), namely in the context of MLs (maturity levels) 2 and 3. Additionally, we will also analyze the influence of project management tools to improve the process maturity of the teams. Our final goal of carrying out empirical studies with students is to understand its validity when compared with the corresponding studies in real industrial settings.
- Fostering success of collaborative research, development, and innovation projects through project management officesPublication . Santos, José M.R.C.A.; Fernandes, Gabriela; Ribeiro, Pedro; Ferreira, Luís Miguel D.F.; Barroso, Daniela; Pinto, Eduardo B.Publicly funded collaborative research, development, and innovation (CRDI) projects are increasingly promoted to tackle key societal challenges. However, the success of these projects is difficult to appraise, and the role of project management offices (PMOs) to potentiate the project success is not well understood. This study contributes to the debate about the effectiveness of projects in research and innovation by elucidating the relationship between the existence of a PMO and the success of CRDI projects, and the role that project management practices play in this regard. Using the lens of Ika and Pinto’s project success theoretical framework it was found that PMOs contribute to the success of CRDI projects by facilitating the use of relevant project management practices. From a practical point of view, organizations involved in CRDI projects can gain insights into how a PMO can foster project benefits, stakeholder alignment and knowledge management.
- Key Project Management Practices in Collaborative R&D&I Projects Across Activity SectorsPublication . Santos, José M.R.C.A.; Fernandes, Gabriela; Ribeiro, Pedro; Ferreira, Luís Miguel D.F.; Barroso, Daniela; Pinto, Eduardo B.Collaborative Research and Development and Innovation (R&D&I) projects provide special challenges in understanding and expressing the value of project management (PM) practices to deliver stakeholders’ expected benefits. This study aimed to contribute to understanding the relevance of PM practices on collaborative R&D&I projects’ success from the perspective of firms, higher education institutions, and other research-performing organizations. It used exploratory factor analysis (EFA) to categorize the surveyed key PM practices initially grouped according to the typical project lifecycle (initiation, planning, execution, monitoring/controlling & replanning, and closure). EFA resulted in the identification of four underlying factors, designated by ‘must have’ practices that cover the whole PM lifecycle: ‘initiation’ practices; ‘planning’ practices; and ‘execution, monitoring/controlling & replanning’ practices. Significant variance in using key PM practices by respondents from different activity sectors is observed. For example, respondents from Interface Centers use more ‘must have’ practices than those from firms and use more ‘planning’ practices than those from firms and higher education institutions. This might be influenced by the reported existence of project management offices, beyond their administrative roles, in the vast majority of Interface Centers, as opposed to other activity sectors. The results suggest that this specific type of project would benefit from team capacity-building programs in PM practices tailored to the identified sector-specific needs of firms and research-performing organizations.
- Longevity of risks in software development projects: a comparative analysis with an academic environmentPublication . Alves, Luís M.; Souza, Gustavo; Ribeiro, Pedro; Machado, Ricardo J.The study presented in this paper was developed in an academic environment. All subjects involved in this research are enrolled in the Information Systems Master’s Degree of the University of Minho. The main objective of this study is to demonstrate the need for the continuity of studies about the risks presented in software development projects. For this purpose, we analyzed more than four hundred risks and about one hundred problems faced and documented by the working groups. With the collected data we defined a list of twenty risks and conducted a comparative study of these risks with others already formalized in previous industrial studies. The comparison data was analyzed and interpreted, and important conclusions were made.
- Overcoming the ‘use misfit’ of project management practices in collaborative research, development and innovationPublication . Fernandes, Gabriela; Tassari, Guilherme; Rocha, Lucas; Santos, José M.R.C.A.; Ferreira, Luís Miguel D.F.; Ribeiro, Pedro; O'Sullivan, DavidThis paper aims to enhance our understanding of project management (PM) in collaborative Research & Development & Innovation (R&D&I) projects by analysing the fit between the use and usefulness of 35 PM practices. Research results include quantitative data analysis of 465 responses to an online survey questionnaire, complemented by a qualitative data analysis of 12 semi-structured interviews. The study identifies the top-10 ‘most used’ and ‘most useful’ PM practices in collaborative R&D&I, covering the complete PM lifecycle while emphasising the importance of the project ‘Initiation' phase. Furthermore, it identifies a set of ‘must have’ PM practices that exhibit a perfect fit, suggesting that consistent implementation impacts successful project outcomes. The remaining 26 PM practices surveyed present a ‘use misfit’, meaning they are deemed useful but are not frequently used. The paper delves into the causes behind this and explores potential strategies to address it, with leadership emerging as a significant strategy to overcome practice misfits.