Final Summary and Future Work

Abstract

The history of situational method engineering as a subdiscipline of software engineering is around 20 years old. Increasing recognition that a one-size-fits-all methodology has led to increased interest in other options—specifically, the construction of a methodology from smaller method parts, those parts being chosen with the specific context or situation in mind. That situation may include the style of software being developed (e.g. real-time, information system), the resources and personal skills available in the team and the organisational culture. It may be organisation-specific or project-specific and may change over time. Changes are easily accommodation by the selection of new method parts (e.g. as team maturity increases—perhaps measured by CMMI or ISO/IEC 15504) or by the replacement of method parts (e.g. as individuals’ skills mature or as a result of technology changes). SME is highly flexible both in terms of its ability to construct various styles of method (from bureaucratic plan-based to highly agile) and in terms of it being able to provide a basic method that can morph in time.