A LIGHTWEIGHT INDUCTIVE METHOD FOR PROCESS ASSESSMENT BASED ON FREQUENT FEEDBACK: A STUDY IN A MICRO SOFTWARE COMPANY

Software process assessment is the most important phase in process improvement projects since it enables identification of all process issues that need to be improved. Small and micro software companies suffer from several restrictions that do not allow them to apply standards and best practice guidelines for process assessment. These companies rather implement lightweight assessment methods that can be easily tailored to their needs. This article presents a lightweight inductive process assessment method that can be adapted to specific needs of small companies. The method is based on active participation of company employees and assumes frequent exchange of information during feedback oriented working sessions in the assessed company. The method is implemented in an indigenous micro software company in Serbia for assessing software maintenance process. Four potential improvements were identified, while the best ranked one was implemented. Benefits for the company, as well as implications for practitioners from industry and researchers from academia are discussed.