Software Product Management Research Articles

Who uses personas in requirements engineering: The practitioners’ perspective

Context:Personas are commonly employed in software projects to better understand end-users needs. Despite their frequent usage, there is a limited understanding of their practical application and effectiveness. Objective:This paper aims to investigate the current practices, methods, and challenges associated with using personas in software development. Methods:A two-step investigation was conducted, comprising interviews with 26 software developers, UI/UX designers, business analysts, and product managers, along with a survey of 203 practitioners. Results:The findings reveal variations in the frequency and effectiveness of personas across different software projects and IT companies. Additionally, the study highlights the challenges practitioners face when using personas and the reasons for not using them. Notably, the research shows that some human aspects (e.g., the needs of users with disabilities), often assumed to be a key feature of personas, are frequently not considered for various reasons in requirements engineering. Conclusions:The study provides actionable insights for practitioners to overcome challenges in using personas during the requirements engineering stages. Furthermore, it identifies areas for future research to enhance the effectiveness of personas in software development.

In memoriam of professor Guenther Ruhe: Contributions to the software product management research and practice

For many years, Guenther Ruhe was a fellow of the International Software Product Management Association, playing an important role in shaping the academic and practical landscapes of Software Product Management (SPM). This editorial note honors Ruhe's enduring impact on the SPM Body of Knowledge, evaluating his extensive contributions to SPM research and practice, and recognizing his legacy in shaping the future trajectory of the field. By examining Ruhe's academic publications and his role in developing the SPM Body of Knowledge, we highlight key areas of his influence, particularly in release planning and requirements engineering. His integration of empirical research into SPM has notably enhanced the discipline's rigor and relevance. Ruhe's contributions to the SPM Body of Knowledge are profound and far-reaching, establishing his work as a cornerstone for ongoing research and practice in SPM.

Innovating the Future: Unveiling the Initial Iteration of the Pragmatic Framework for Product Managers

Context: This study introduces the Pragmatic Framework for Product Managers, a tool developed to enhance the understanding and application of product management activities. Objectives: The aim is to provide a comprehensive overview of Product Manager (PM) activities that positively impact efficiency, business growth, budget control, user satisfaction, and release processes. The framework is intended to aid decision-making, training, and clarifying the PM role, ultimately contributing to product success. Methods: A systematic literature review of 134 studies was conducted to develop the PFPM. This extensive research led to identifying and classifying 122 activities into 33 categories within 6 domains, forming a robust framework for product managers. Results: The PFPM, in its initial iteration, represents a minimal viable product of the framework. The research findings highlight the framework’s potential for future refinement, particularly in the context of software startups. Conclusion: The PFPM significantly affects software companies' product decision-making, PM training, and role transparency. It is a valuable resource for researchers and practitioners in Software Product Management (SPM), Requirement Engineering (RE), New Product Development (NPD), and innovation. The framework paves the way for future studies focused on the unique dynamics of PM activities in the software startup ecosystem.

ACCOUNTING IN THE CONDITIONS OF DIGITALIZATION

The article examines the most common digital technologies and software products used in accounting that have a significant impact on the development of modern business. The changes in modern accounting practice caused by the digitalisation process are considered. It is found that digital transformation has become relevant not only at the corporate level, but also at the sectoral and even the state level. It is aimed at simplifying the processing of large data sets, automating almost all activities, and improving the interaction between customers and businesses, citizens and the state. The essence and trends of digital transformation processes are disclosed. It is determined that companies are currently offered a wide range of accounting software. In particular, accounting applications are integrated into enterprise management software products used to prepare and publish financial statements in XBRL format, organizing of electronic document management, computer information, reference materials and legal documents. The article analyses the latest advances in the evolution of information technology, including machine learning, blockchain technology and artificial intelligence. These innovations are contributing to a revolution in accounting, making it more efficient, reliable, accurate and cost-effective for business. It has been determined that the digitalization of the accounting business has caused significant changes in the work of accountants, in particular through the automation of many routine tasks. This stimulates the reform of accounting education to meet the future requirements of the accounting services market. The firms providing accounting services should try to be more proactive in implementing changes to meet the anticipated needs of consumers in the future. The challenges for the accounting profession are reflected in the need to rapidly adapt and transform business practices and business processes without abandoning the basic rules and principles of accounting.

A Prescriptive Model for Failure Analysis in Ship Machinery Monitoring Using Generative Adversarial Networks

In recent years, advanced methods and smart solutions have been investigated for the safe, secure, and environmentally friendly operation of ships. Since data acquisition capabilities have improved, data processing has become of great importance for ship operators. In this study, we introduce a novel approach to ship machinery monitoring, employing generative adversarial networks (GANs) augmented with failure mode and effect analysis (FMEA), to address a spectrum of failure modes in diesel generators. GANs are emerging unsupervised deep learning models known for their ability to generate realistic samples that are used to amplify a number of failures within training datasets. Our model specifically targets critical failure modes, such as mechanical wear and tear on turbochargers and fuel injection system failures, which can have environmental effects, providing a comprehensive framework for anomaly detection. By integrating FMEA into our GAN model, we do not stop at detecting these failures; we also enable timely interventions and improvements in operational efficiency in the maritime industry. This methodology not only boosts the reliability of diesel generators, but also sets a precedent for prescriptive maintenance approaches in the maritime industry. The model was demonstrated with real-time data, including 33 features, gathered from a diesel generator installed on a 310,000 DWT oil tanker. The developed algorithm provides high-accuracy results, achieving 83.13% accuracy. The final model demonstrates a precision score of 36.91%, a recall score of 83.47%, and an F1 score of 51.18%. The model strikes a balance between precision and recall in order to eliminate operational drift and enables potential early action in identified positive cases. This study contributes to managing operational excellence in tanker ship fleets. Furthermore, this study could be expanded to enhance the current functionalities of engine health management software products.

Impact of developed software package application for the operation and maintenance management on improving the vehicle fleet energy efficiency

In order to improve the energy efficiency of the vehicle fleets, many countries have introduced laws, regulations and politics that encourage the use of vehicles with lower fuel consumption and lower emissions of harmful gases. Also, many companies have adopted strategies for lowering emissions of harmful gases, maintenance costs and vehicle exploitation, including the use of software packages for operation management and maintenance of vehicle fleets. On the international market there are numerous of already made software packages for the operation management and maintenance of vehicle fleets. Some of the companies, having in mind the specificity of business or vehicle exploitation, have decided to develop their own software packages for operation management and maintenance of vehicle fleets. One of them is the company "SRBOLAB" LLC. This paper analyzed the impact of the developed software package on the energy efficiency of the company's vehicle fleet. Firstly, it describes the structure of the developed software package, and after that, applied measures next to the software package, in order to improve energy efficiency and obtained results in the form of an analysis of the energy efficiency of the observed vehicle fleet before and after the implementation of software and measures. Analysis has shown that, regardless of the increased business, the total fuel consumption (l) and mileage (km) are higher after the implementation of software, as well as the energy efficiency of the observed vehicle fleet per CE groups which is reduced to specific fuel consumption (l/100km). Obtained results show that the differences in the specific fuel consumption (l/100km), before and after the implementation of software per CE groups, are in the range of 0,32 l/100km to 1,26 l/100km, in other words, fuel savings are from 4,1 % to 16,8%, if you look at this in percentages. Obtained results in comparison to the size, spent fuel (l), are showing savings in the range of 89 l to 342 l. Total fuel savings (l) for the observed vehicle fleet in the period of January to April 2023 is 626 l.

BUILDING INFORMATION MODELING: FINANCIAL AND ACCOUNTING ASPECT

Introduction. The implementation of building information modeling (BIM) technology is a promising direction in the development of the construction enterprise management system. It is advisable to use BIM technology also for economic purposes, which requires the study of financial and accounting features of the construction process in the conditions of digitization of management. The purpose of the article is to research the financial and accounting aspects of the use of building information modeling technology to optimize the management of construction enterprises. Results. The possibility of positioning individual construction objects (premises, floors, spatial zones) by operational centers of responsibility under the conditions of using BIM technology, which is the basis for the formation of a cluster structure of accounting and management of construction enterprises, is substantiated. The cluster is proposed to recognize a differentiated building object, which is an operational center of responsibility, which is in close relationship with various functional centers of responsibility and other clusters. The importance of positioning centers of responsibility simultaneously as centers of investments, incomes and expenses in the conditions of using BIM technologies, which involves a positive transformation of the method of processing financial and accounting information, is proven. In order to expand the functionality of the software for BIM purposes, the perspective of its improvement has been substantiated in the direction of: predicting options for forming planned estimates of construction costs with the adjustment of normative and actual costs; expansion of non-capital construction accounting methods; developing a procedure for assessing the damage caused by military actions in order to plan the need for financial resources for the restoration of destroyed or damaged buildings. In order to organize an effective information exchange between the participants of the construction process, it is necessary to ensure information synchronization between software for BIM design, accounting and management software products, electronic systems of business communications and electronic government. Conclusions. Expanding the functional and information capabilities of BIM technologies in terms of taking into account the financial and accounting aspects of construction, as well as ensuring information synchronization with current electronic services and document management systems, contributes to the formation of the newest concept of innovative smart construction.

The Development of Data Warehouse and Data Mining System for Serious Mental Illness with High Risk to Violence (SMI-V) Psychiatric Patients: A Case Study of Thailand

This study aimed to develop the data warehouse and data mining system for serious mental illness with high risk to violence (SMI-V) psychiatric patients of Nakhon Ratchasima Rajanagarindra Psychiatric Hospital, and develop a classification model for SMI-V psychiatric patients. Star schema design and database management software package were used for development of data warehouse system. Moreover, data mining technique, i.e., feature selection by Wrapper method, along with various algorithms were applied for constructing the classification model to classify SMI-V patients from other psychiatric patients. Software programming were used to create web-based task with graphical user interface (GUI) that would allow users to work with the system via Internet. The results of data warehouse design and development showed that it consisted of one fact table surrounding with six dimensional tables. There were six classification algorithms analyzed in this study which were Random Forest, Random Tree, Decision Tree J48, ZeroR, OneR, and Multilayer Perceptron. The results of developing classification models revealed that the model using Decision Tree J48 algorithm achieved higher performance than other models in comparison. Keywords: Data Warehouse; Data Mining; Classification; Serious Mental Illness with High Risk to Violence; Psychiatric Patients

EVALUATION OF TIME OVERRUNS AND TIME MANAGEMENT TECHNIQUES IN ROAD CONSTRUCTION PROJECTS IN ERBIL CITY

Successful people utilize their time judiciously. The challenge of completing construction projects within the estimated time frame is the biggest concern among practitioners. In this research two aspects have been highlighted, first; the most significant factor of time overrun in construction projects performed by Erbil Municipality during road construction. The second aspect is the time management methods held by the project team. A random sampling technique was used to administer 126 questionnaires to professionals such as Project managers, Engineers, and contractors working on road construction projects for Erbil municipality. On the other hand, a case study has been conducted for 70 constructed projects during 2018-2022 for the evaluation of time management techniques in road construction projects by identifying the process of monitoring, software packages that are used for that, the progress of work, and investigating how progress records are kept in Erbil City municipality projects. The results revealed that the most significant factor for time overrun was the economic crisis which led to the failure to pay contractors' dues in a timely manner, followed by the unreasonable time frame for the completion of projects. Used techniques and software packages for time management were identified It is revealed that there is no specific method for managing time. Multiple methods are used depending on the situation.

Views on Augmented Reality, Virtual Reality, and 3D Printing in Modern Medicine and Education: A Qualitative Exploration of Expert Opinion.

Although an increased usage and development of 3D technologies is observed in healthcare over the last decades, full integration of these technologies remains challenging. The goal of this project is to qualitatively explore challenges, pearls, and pitfalls of AR/VR/3D printing applications usage in the medical field of a university medical center. Two rounds of face-to-face interviews were conducted using a semi-structured protocol. First an explorative round was held, interviewing medical specialists (8), PhD students (7), 3D technology specialists (5), and university teachers (3). In the second round, twenty employees in high executive functions of relevant departments were interviewed on seven statements that resulted from the first interviewing round. Data analysis was performed using direct content analyses. The first interviewing round resulted in challenges and opportunities in 3D technology usage that were grouped in 5 themes: aims of using AR/VR/3D printing (1), data acquisition (2), data management plans (3), software packages and segmentation tools (4), and output data and reaching end-user (5). The second interviewing round resulted in an overview of ideas and insights on centralization of knowledge, improving implementation of 3D technology in daily healthcare, reimbursement of 3D technologies, recommendations for further studies, and requirement of using certified software. An overview of challenges and opportunities of 3D technologies in healthcare was provided. Well-designed studies on clinical effectiveness, implementation and cost-effectiveness are warranted for further implementation into the clinical setting.

Impact of hands-on training in STATA for data management and data analysis: How much knowledge gained among health-care professionals?

Objectives: Data management and statistical analysis are integral parts of any research. But there is difficulty in cleaning, organizing, and maintaining data in a systematic and meaningful way for accurate analysis without any tool. Hence, there is a need to learn a tool such as SPSS, STATA, R, SAS and so many for understanding the data. This study focused on the impact of short-course training on STATA on healthcare eye professionals and found an improvement in their competency to use computer-based statistical software packages for data management and analysis and identify the major challenges for participants and suggestions to improve the training. Materials and Methods: We organized a 10-day short course on data management and data analysis using STATA. A pre and post-test evaluation was done every day to find the impact. The questionnaire covered several areas of research methodology from data management to statistics. Categorical data were described in frequency and percentage whereas continuous data was described in median and interquartile range (IQR). Wilcoxon signed-rank test was applied to find out the significant improvement in the knowledge. Results: The 10 days cumulative median score for pre- and post-test was 43 (IOR = 39-47.5) and 72.5 (IOR = 69-77) respectively and was statistically significant (P = 0.012). Male participants, younger age groups, experience, and prior knowledge were identified as major determinants to improve the knowledge and performance in the usage of STATA. We observed that advanced training in the usage of STATA is highly beneficial to people interested/involved in research to gain autonomy in data management and analysis. Conclusion: The evaluation of the training confirms that hands-on training in the use of STATA software does have a significant impact on the knowledge, self-efficacy, and attitude of the learner. Since Stata is very user-friendly, we recommend that researchers and medical students should be offered a comprehensive training course in STATA.

Research on Architecture Strategy and Estimation Model of Digitized and Business-oriented Smart Community System

The level of intelligence in the community has become an important indicator to reflect the level of urban development. This article starts with the architecture strategy of the system and builds a dynamic digital business smart community system. The goals of software product management for the three-dimensional digital community are clarified, which improves the effectiveness and reliability of system development. Based on the function points, data management system estimation model, geographic information system estimation model, APP system estimation model, and content management system estimation model are created separately. The interaction interfaces of the information management system, information publishing system, activity publishing system with the geographic information system, APP interaction interface, and content management system are unified into the data management system estimation model. By analyzing the technical and economic theory, the bottleneck problem of promoting the application of digital communities is solved, and the development cost of digital community software systems can be predicted clearly. This also facilitates the calculation of the direct economic and social benefits brought by the promotion and application of results.

Strategies for Dealing With Software Product Management Challenges

Strategies for Dealing With Software Product Management Challenges

Analyzing Current Approaches to Assessing the Quality of Software Products

Information technologies are the fastest developing industry today both in global economy and economy of Russia. Serious attention is paid to methodological aspects of quality management. Raising quality of software products is an objective of implementing the national project ‘Digital Economy of the Russian Federation’. Processes and stages of software development are modified with regard to new requirements to end product in accordance with adopted home standards. Thus the goal of improving the quality of software products is really topical. The quality of software product is influenced by various determinate and casual external and internal factors. Home experience of managing software quality refers to both western experience and works by Russian scientists, such as G. G. Azgal’dov, Yu. P. Adler, I. G. Venetskiy, V. V. Lipaev, S. D. Il’enkova, I. F. Shishkin, P. L. Chenyshev, V. M. Mishin. The article studies methods of managing software product quality that are used in home IT companies and carries out their comparative analysis. The author formulated proposals aiming at identification of drawbacks by using methods of cognitive modeling.

Using Large Peer-Teaching Groups to Learn Construction Management Software Packages

ABSTRACT Two large peer-teaching groups were developed in a construction management course in order to self-learn and then subsequently teach two separate construction management software packages. One half of the class was asked to learn and teach Microsoft Project and the other was asked to learn and teach Primavera P6, which are very similar scheduling packages. Milestone deliverables were due throughout the semester, with a final presentation near the end of the 16-week semester. This intervention took place a total of five times and one addition control semester in which the instructor taught both packages in a traditional manner for comparison. Within each peer-teaching group, the teams were asked to nominate a leader and co-leader, who would be responsible for assigning responsibilities to the team and to facilitate learning. This methodology allowed for two layers of peer-teaching; one within the peer-teaching group, and the other from the peer-teaching group to the remaining students. The intervention was validated through in-course questionnaires, and homework, quiz, and exam grade comparisons from the student-led lecture versus the instructor-led lecture. The surveys indicated a preference to the peer-teaching and student-led learning, over instructor-led learning. The grade comparison demonstrated an average 13.2 percentage point improvement.

DEVELOPING SOFTWARE TO SOLVE CERTAIN PROBLEMS OF INVENTORY MANAGEMENT

In modern conditions of intensifying competition in consumer markets, stable operation of enterprises is ensured by the implementation of strategies for maximum satisfaction of consumer demand for goods and related services. Planning such strategies requires improvements in various enterprise systems, in particular, the inventory management system based on the rationalization and optimization of product flows, use of appropriate models and methods for these tasks. Every company strives to satisfy the customer at the highest possible level. This task requires a significant investment in inventory. At the same time, an equally important task is to find new opportunities to reduce all types of costs and increase profits, therefore, from the point of view of finance, the ideal state is when there is no stock while the production needs of the company are met in full. But such a situation is absolutely impossible in real conditions. In order to work as efficiently as possible and reach acceptable financial indicators, it is necessary to effectively manage inventory stock at the enterprise. An essential feature of inventory modeling process is uncertainty in real conditions, which is associated with the inaccuracy or incompleteness of information about demand, supply, time delays of ordered goods, product spoilage and other parameters of the logistics system. This necessitates an effective inventory management mechanism in conditions of uncertainty. Solving this problem requires calculation of exact date and quantity of each subsequent order. Most modern software packages for inventory management are quite difficult to understand or require large financial expenses. In addition, most practical applications are designed for deterministic parameters of demand and production schedule. In fact, demand has a high level of uncertainty, which requires improved algorithms using stochastic theory of inventory management. Thus, a number of issues related to this field still remain unresolved or incompletely resolved. Most publications consider the classic toolkit with some well-known modifications. However, classic models are quite difficult to apply in in real life because the ideal conditions are difficult to achieve in practice. The models do not take into account the limitations imposed by internal and external factors. Based on this, we have created software that would perform the required task. The final product of the research is a software product that enables warehouse operators and managers to optimize drafting a schedule of production inventory deliveries in conditions of demand uncertainty, as well as controlling deliveries based on an economic-mathematical model of inventory management in conditions of demand uncertainty. The software is able to determine the optimal period of delivery of several types of resources, total costs for storage and ordering, the effect of the obtained savings, speeding up and simplifying the dispatcher's work.

The Impact of Digital Transformation in the Accounting System of Fuel and Energy Complex Enterprises (International Experience)

The global fuel and energy market occupies a significant position in international trade, which encourages companies in the industry to carry out a digital transformation in the supply chain and accounting of related transactions. Digital transformation occurs through the introduction of modern information technology, which leads to increased productivity at all stages of the supply chain in the fuel and energy sector and simplified accounting of transactions. Positive processes are characterized by the convergence of markets, and negative processes are characterized by the fragmentation of energy markets and their isolation at the national level. To solve these problems in the field of accounting, it is necessary to constantly improve ERP systems based on the creation of a unified ecosystem of the fuel and energy sector. The world practice of using Enterprise Resource Planning products in the fuel and energy sector is considered. Based on the trend and structural analysis world oil and gas imports have been investigated to determine the dynamics and geographical structure of the fuel and energy market. The forecast of the dynamics of oil imports is made. The article proposes a functional model of the supply chain in the energy sector based on blockchain technology. The article defines digital technology with a focus on blockchain and artificial intelligence. The process method is used in the formation of an invoice generation model. The advantages of ERP systems are identified and global experience in invoice generation in accounting is summarized. The OpenText Vendor Invoice Management (VIM) software product is characterized, allowing its integration with the SAP ERP invoice accounting and payment system. The main issues of digital transformation in the accounting system, stimulating the improvement of specialists' competencies when working with digital platforms, are identified.

TECHNOLOGY OF CHOOSING AN EFFECTIVE METHODOLOGY OF IT PROJECT MANAGEMENT

The dependence of the choice of the optimal IT project management methodology on its successful completion is shown. Choosing a management methodology is one of the first decisions a project manager makes. Each of the existing management methodologies for different types of projects has its own pros and cons. Some are designed for speed of software development, others for full compliance, and still others for creativity and continuous improvement. Choosing the best methodology requires a clear understanding of the positive or negative impact on a particular project. There is no universal methodology, so its choice is made individually for each project, focusing on its goals, scale, complexity, deadlines, professionalism and discipline of the team. This is necessary because some methodologies allow you to speed up development, while others make it more thorough, eliminate the risk of significant problems, errors or product flaws. That is, each management methodology is focused on different aspects and features of projects, therefore, a combination of several methodologies at once is possible. The main objective of the article was to find out to what extent a specific approach meets the goals and characteristics of an IT project. The process of analyzing, evaluating and selecting the appropriate methodology was based on the Organizational Project Management Maturity Model (OPM3), an Organizational Project Management Maturity Model. With this in mind, the analysis of the essence and principles of IT project management methodologies and software product creation has been carried out. The most popular of the existing approaches are considered, their content, history of formation, advantages and disadvantages, as well as areas of application for different types of IT projects are determined. Comparison of these approaches was performed according to the selected criteria. A vision of the formation of an integral assessment of the choice of the optimal methodology for a specific IT project has been formed. To automate the adoption of design decisions on the basis of the proposed integral assessment, a technology was proposed for choosing the optimal methodology for the selected design indicators.

Research of current requirements for the developments of telecommunications network monitoring and control systems

The modern telecommunications market dictates the need to modernize the existing requirements for monitoring and management systems of data transmission networks. The infrastructure of existing telecommunications networks is continuously becoming more complex and expanding, therefore, modern troubleshooting and network performance monitoring products must be equipped with the appropriate functionality. This paper determines the current requirements for modern systems, which must be taken into account when developing future monitoring and management software products. This article examines the functional features of software systems used on the networks of telecom operators, namely: TEOCO Netrac 7, SATEL SOVA, EMC Smarts, HP Network Node Manager, Zabbix, Cacti, NOC Project. Comparison and analysis are the tools used in this research. The research topic meets the criteria of the Ministry of Digital Development, Communications and Mass Communications of the Russian Federation (Federal Law No. 204-FL of June 23, 2016 "On Amendments to Articles 2 and 24 of the Federal Law "On Communications").

The Effects of Evidence based Decision-Making and Marketing in Software Product Management

Abstract: Past investigations on software product management (SPM) have given a broad image of crafted by a software product manager. In any case, little evidence exists about what standards ought to direct their decisions. A product manager's decision making has a specific degree of subjectivity based on managerial instinct. Be that as it may, supportable software product advancement requires powerful long haul decision making practices. Prerequisites designing, as well as delivery planning and road mapping, are SPM areas with the most significant level of evidence based decision making. In any case, the unmistakable comprehension of evidence based decision making practices is absent. The paper gives an analysis of decision making connected with SPM, uncovers a range of perspectives and approaches and reports assumptions on whether SPM is based on instinct or on the other hand in the event that it is evidence based.