Software Process Measurement and Related Challenges in Agile Software Development: A Multiple Case Study
This addresses the gap in empirical research on metrics in Agile Software Development for practitioners, though it is incremental as it builds on existing literature with a case study approach.
The study investigated the rationale and challenges of using process metrics in Agile Software Development through a multiple case study at four companies, finding that companies prefer custom metrics for aspects like velocity and testing performance but face operationalization challenges due to data unavailability.
Existing scientific literature highlights the importance of metrics in Agile Software Development (ASD). Still, empirical investigation into metrics in ASD is scarce, particularly in identifying the rationale and the operational challenges associated with metrics. Under the Q-Rapids project (Horizon 2020), we conducted a multiple case study at four Agile companies, using the Goal Question Metric (GQM) approach, to investigate the rationale explaining the choice of process metrics in ASD, and challenges faced in operationalizing them. Results reflect that companies are interested in assessing process aspects like velocity, testing performance, and estimation accuracy, and they prefer custom metrics for these assessments. Companies use metrics as a means to access and even capitalize on the data, erstwhile inaccessible due to technical or process constraints. However, development context of a company can hinder metrics operationalization, manifesting primarily as unavailability of the data required to measure metrics...(check the paper for full Abstract)