Background. With the growing trend in using Agile development method in thesoftware industry, the importance of "people" in the software development processhas risen up. As much as the technical aspects contribute to a better software processand products, it is ultimately people that make the software. Hence, studying thehuman factors in the perspective of software development can be considered significant especially in studying the effect of these factors on performance of the teams intoday’s Agile based development scenario. Objectives. The objective of this thesis is to identify the individual based humanfactors that influence the software team performance.Methods. For this project, we use the methods systematic literature review(snowballingstudy) and survey to identify and understand the influence of the human aspects onteam performance and possibly arrive at an understanding of these factors tendingtowards high-performing Agile teams. Results. The results of the thesis indicate that there are 19 factors that impactthe team performance. The results show that personality, professional knowledge,formal education, leadership style, work experience etc., are all impacting factorsof the performance of a team. Though, personality was the most mentioned factorfollowed by communication and professional knowledge. These results when weretried to verify through a survey showed similarities as well as some aberrations tothe results obtained from SLR. According to survey, professional knowledge has thehighest importance while personality scored lower than expected in the practitioner’sperspective. Although, many factors had similar degree of importance as for the results from both methods. Conclusions. It is essential to study the impact of the individual based factors onteam performance and several factors can be indicated that show their effect on theperformance of a team. Essentially, the study of the factors can be used to buildprocesses and teams focused to better their performance which can ultimately leadto better softwares. Individuals contribute to the team and studying the factors thatrely on their characteristics helps understand the team as a whole in a better waywhich can in-turn aid in improvement.

Nowadays, the hybrid working model has prevailed as the new working model for many organizations, which combines working remotely and onsite. Although the hybrid working model is not new, the Covid-19 pandemic has accelerated the transition from traditional working model to hybrid one, which results in greater use of technology, especially for the employees’ collaboration. Collaboration is at the core of agile development team members’ daily hybrid work, and it is achieved through the support of technology tools, such as Microsoft Teams. The hybrid working model, due to its complexity, creates opportunities and challenges to the way agile development team members’ work and collaborate. Therefore, it is important to examine the collaboration of agile development team members that follow the hybrid working model, as well as benefits and challenges that may arise. Thus, this master thesis examines, the technology-supported collaboration of agile development team members, that follow the hybrid working model, taking as an example Microsoft Teams (MS Teams). For this, an interpretive qualitative ethnographic research was conducted. The data was collected through participant observations, focus groups discussions, and semi-structured interviews from purposively selected team members of three agile development teams. The collected data was analyzed thematically and generated six themes. These six themes represent the findings of the master’s thesis research and are interpreted and discussed with the help of the theoretical framework, which includes the concepts of agile project management, computer-supported cooperative work, collaboration, cooperation, coordination, information sharing, communication and hybrid working model.   The research findings show that it is vital for the members of the agile development teams to use a collaboration tool in their daily hybrid work to assure close and frequent collaboration, which in the traditional working model was mainly achieved face-to-face on-site. Their collaboration includes communication, information sharing, and coordination activities, which are supported and facilitated by the technological tool of MS Teams. However, the hybrid working model has given rise to challenges in the collaboration among the agile development team members, which can be overcome if the technological tool of MS Teams is used properly by everyone. This research contributes to the existing knowledge of the informatics research field and the body of research of computer-supported cooperative work by providing a better understanding of how technological tools are used to support collaborating team members that follow the hybrid working model, including benefits and challenges experienced. It also contributes to agile development team members and other practitioners that use MS Teams through improved understanding of aspects that can be taken into consideration for the use of a collaboration technological tool, and the generation of guidelines for such technology in order to make the use of it most efficient.

While agile development is becoming ever more popular, studies have shown that few organisations successfully transition from traditional to agile practices. One such study showed that large organisations can benefit greatly from agile methods, but evaluating agile maturity and tailoring the method to the organisation’s needs is crucial. An agile maturity model is a tool with which an organisation’s practices and their conformance to agile development is evaluated. The purpose of this study is to discover the best suited agile maturity model for large organisations and to minimise costs, resources and the subjectivity of the model’s evaluation. In this study we take a closer look at four agile maturity models, the Scaled Agile Framework Maturity Model (SAFeMM) by Turetken, Stojanov and Trienekens (2017), the Scaled Agile Maturity Model (SAMM) by Chandrasekaran (2016), the Agile Adoption Framework (AAF) by Sidky, Arthur and Bohner (2007) and the Scaled Agile Framework Business Agility Assessment (SAFeBAA) by the Scaled Agile Incorporation. By evaluating each model on their scalability, completeness, generality, precision, simplicity, usability and meaningfulness, consistency, minimum overlapping, balance and proportion of automatable measurements, the best model is chosen. Based on the evaluation criteria for the maturity models, the SAFeMM is deemed the most suitable model. It proves to be a comprehensive, well-rounded tool with persistent high scores in all criteria. In order to improve the model’s objectivity and resource needs, it is also applied in a case study at the Swedish Tax Agency, where the possibilities to automate the model are investigated. The results show that the SAFeMM can be automated to roughly 50%, with the use of process mining and software system querying. Process mining uses event logs to extract and analyse information, while software querying extracts information directly from the software systems used in an organisation. The study suggests primary sources for querying and process mining techniques and perspectives to enable and encourage future research in the area of process mining within agile development. / Agil utveckling är en mycket populär utvecklingsmetod, samtidigt visar studier att få stora organisationer lyckas med övergången från traditionella metoder direkt. Som hjälpmedel kan dessa organisationer använda så kallade agila mognadsmodeller. En agil mognadsmodell är ett verktyg som mäter hur väl en organisation och dess processer överensstämmer med agila principer. Syftet med denna studie är att undersöka vilken agil mognadsmodell som är bäst lämpad för stora organisationer och kan samtidigt minimera kostnader, resurser och subjektiviteten i mätningarna. Därför tittar denna studie på fyra agila mognadsmodeller, Scaled Agile Framework Maturity Model (SAFeMM) av Turetken, Stojanov och Trienekens (2017), Scaled Agile Maturity Model (SAMM) av Chandrasekaran (2016), Agile Adoption Framework (AAF) av Sidky, Arthur och Bohner (2007) och Scaled Agile Framework Business Agility Assessment (SAFeBAA) av Scaled Agile Incorporation. Genom att utvärdera varje modell baserat på dess skalbarhet, helhetsbild, generaliserbarhet, precision, enkelhet, användbar-het och meningfullhet, kontinuitet, minimal överlappning, balans och andel automatiserbara mätvärden, bestäms vilken modell som är bäst. Resultaten visar, att baserat på de ovannämnda kriterierna, är SAFeMM modellen den bäst lämpade för stora organisationer. Den visade sig vara särsilkt helhetstäckande, enkel att förstå och använda, med höga poäng på de flesta kriterierna. För att förbättra modellens objektivitet och resurskrav, gjordes även en fallstudie där modellen applicerades på Skatteverkets IT avdelning. Där undersöktes möjligheterna för att automatisera modellen. Resultaten visar att knappt 50% av modellen är automatiserbar genom metoder såsom process mining och software querying. Process mining, använder event loggar från mjukvarusystem för att analysera och utvinna information, medan software querying utvinnar information direkt från mjukvarusystemen. Studien presenterar förslag på utvinningskällor och process mining tekniker och metoder för sammanhanget.

Digitala spel har blivit ett allt vanligare sätt för underhållning, där industrin har sett en stor ökning av användare, vilket har stor sannolikhet att fortsätta även i framtiden. Dessa spel har ökat i komplexitet i takt med den teknologiska utvecklingen från 90-talet tills idag, där Internet har haft stor påverkan och introducerat nya möjligheter. En utav dessa möjligheter är insamlingen av olika datatyper med olika syften och olika användningsområden inom ett spelutvecklingsföretag. Industrin har lockat mycket forskning angående processer och metoder som berör skapandet av dessa komplexa produkter, där förarbetet och själva skapandet av digitala spel tar upp majoriteten av forskning i jämförelse med vidareutvecklingen av dessa digitala spel efter lansering. Syftet med denna rapport är därmed att bidra med kunskap till det mindre utforskade området kring utvecklingsprocessen efter lansering av online multiplayerspel, samt undersökning och insamling av data och dess integrering i vidareutvecklingsprocessen. Första viktiga delen av rapporten är ett teoriavsnitt, skapad genom en litteraturstudie där denna bestod av att identifiera och hitta vetenskapliga artiklar med kunskap kring ämnet, där dessa var viktiga för att skapa en teoretisk grund för denna studie. Detta gjordes huvudsakligen genom vetenskapliga databaser och söktjänster, med hjälp av nyckelord relaterade till viktiga teorier. Den andra viktiga delen är empiriska studier i form av semistrukturerade intervjuer utifrån en intervjuguide med respondenter från olika spelutvecklingsföretag. Företagen som respondenterna jobbade för var Ghost Ship Games, Jagex, samt Bohemia Interactive. Dessa intervjuer har sedan analyserats och viktiga teman har identifierats utifrån respondenternas svar. Respondenterna har nämnt olika datatyper som kan täcka olika delar av företaget, men när det gäller vidareutveckling av spel har tre typer nämnts att ha störst påverkan. Dessa typer var datapunkter över hur spelet används av individer, kvalitetsdata av spelets prestanda samt feedback från användare. Metoderna för att samla in de förenämnda datatyperna består framförallt av enkäter som alla respondenter har nämnt att respektive företag använder för att samla in feedback, rapportering av bugs eller förslag på förbättringsområden. Utöver detta samlas även mer övergripande information genom digitala verktyg eller spelklienten för respektive spel. Där dessa verktyg är skapade inom företaget eller hanteras genom ett separat företag. Ghost Ship Games har nämnt en egen idealbild över hur spelet ska vara balanserat som företaget strävar efter, vilket tas i åtanke vid beslut som tas av utvecklarna som täcker respektive problem. Inom Jagex är det hela team som bestämmer tillsammans angående förändringar eller tillägg i spelet. En intressant aspekt var att för Jagex så är användarna en del av beslutsfattandet genom opinionsundersökningar. Beslutsfattandet inom Bohemia Interactive nämndes att ske huvudsakligen genom avdelningen för kvalitetssäkring, där dessa filtrerar insamlad information och sedan delegerar identifierade problem till rätt utvecklare inom företaget. Vidareutvecklingen inom företagen gjordes framförallt genom balansering med hjälp av spelmotorn för respektive spel. Ghost Ship Games fokuserar även på vidareutveckling av befintliga funktioner, system och verktyg, genom att omarbeta några av föregående delar. Inom Bohemia Interactive angående Arma 3 användes till exempel hotfixes eller helt nytt spelinnehåll genom DLC, liknande sker även inom Jagex i form av hotpatches. Övergripande så är vidareutvecklingsprocessen lik mellan företagen, genom de olika steg som har identifierats i denna rapport. Dessa kan beskrivas som en iterativ process där företag identifierar problem eller förslag för vidareutveckling, samlar in eller undersöker befintlig data för att bekräfta problem eller stödja förslag, implementerar lösning eller förslag, samt samlar in feedback och agerar utifrån feedback. / Digital games have become an increasingly common means of entertainment where the industry has seen a huge increase in users, something that is likely to continue in the future. These games have increased in complexity in line with technological developments from the 1990s to the present day, where the Internet has had a major impact and introduced new possibilities. One of these opportunities is the collection of different types of data with different purposes and different uses within a game development company. The industry has thus attracted a lot of research regarding processes and methods involved in the creation of these complex products, where the pre-processing and actual creation of digital games is in the vast majority of studies compared to the further development of these digital games after launch. The aim of this paper is therefore to contribute knowledge to the less explored area of the post-launch development process of online multiplayer games, as well as the investigation of data collection and its integration into the further development process. The first important part of the report is a theory section, created through literature review where this consisted of identifying and finding scientific articles with knowledge on the topic, where these were important to create a theoretical basis for this study. This was mainly done through scientific databases and search services, using keywords related to important theories. The second important part is empirical studies in the form of semi-structured interviews based on an interview guide with respondents from different game development companies. The companies the respondents worked for were Ghost Ship Games, Jagex, and Bohemia Interactive. These interviews were then analysed and important themes were identified based on the respondents’ answers. Respondents mentioned different types of data that could cover different parts of the company, but when it comes to further game development, three types were mentioned to have the most impact. These types were data points on how the game is used by individuals, quality data of the game's performance, and feedback from users. The methods for collecting the aforementioned data types consist mainly of surveys, which all respondents mentioned that the respective companies use to collect feedback, report bugs or suggest areas for improvement. In addition, more general information is also collected through digital tools or the game client for the respective game. Where these tools are created within the company or managed by a separate company. Ghost Ship Games has an ideal image of how the game should be balanced that the company strives for, which is taken into account when decisions are made by the developers themselves that cover the respective issues. Within Jagex, the whole team decides together on changes or additions to the game. An interesting aspect is that within Jagex, users are a part of the decision making process through opinion polls. Decision-making within Bohemia Interactive is mainly done through the Quality Assurance department, where they filter collected information and then delegate identified problems to the appropriate developers within the company. Further development within the companies is mainly done through balancing using the game engine for each game. Ghost Ship Games may also focus on further development of existing features, systems and tools, by reworking some of the previously mentioned elements. In Bohemia Interactive regarding Arma 3, are hotfixes or completely new game content through DLC used for example. Similar is also done in Jagex in the form of hotpatches. Overall, the further development process is similar between the companies, through the different steps identified in this report. These can be described as an iterative process in which companies identify problems or proposals for further development, collect data or investigate existing data, implement the solution or proposal, collect feedback and act on the feedback.

This thesis explores the design and implementation of an API using the Design Science Research (DSR) methodology, aimed at bridging proprietary systems for sustainable lighting solutions. The project addresses the urgent need to replace mercury-based lamps in Sweden with environmentally friendly alternatives due to upcoming EU regulations. The developed API facilitates integration and automation between two distinct systems controlling lighting and power supply. Key research questions include identifying factors critical for a successful API and assessing its impact on client-specific problems and consequences of web automation. The research begins with identifying core problems through stakeholder engagement, followed by iterative design and development of the API. The solution's objectives were derived from practical constraints and stakeholder feedback, ensuring a focused and relevant artifact. The API was partially demonstrated and evaluated through simulations, theorizing its ability to meet the intended goals and providing insights into good practices for web automation. This work contributes to the field of information systems by providing a practical example of API development through DSR, highlighting the challenges and solutions in web automation and system integration. The findings suggest that a well-designed API relies on understanding end-use cases, good communication with minimal assumption and good adaptability. Relying on web automation can also result in post-release complications or pose ethical dilemmas.

A crescente demanda por sistemas e a alta velocidade com que seus requisitos evoluem têm evidenciado que desenvolvimento de software exige flexibilidade, pois muitas decisões precisam ser tomadas durante o projeto. Além disso, as dificuldades para a produção de sistemas vão muito além das questões técnicas. Fatores estratégicos, comerciais e humanos são responsáveis por algumas das variáveis que contribuem para tornar o desenvolvimento de sistemas de software uma atividade altamente complexa. Modelos tradicionais de desenvolvimento de software propõem processos prescritivos que não consideram toda essa complexidade. Por outro lado, Métodos Ágeis de desenvolvimento de software sugerem uma abordagem mais humanística com foco na entrega rápida e constante de software com valor de negócios. Porém, para conseguir isto, é preciso escolher um conjunto de práticas de desenvolvimento adequado às características do projeto e da equipe. Desta forma, a natureza única de cada projeto e a necessidade de alta qualidade e produtividade tornam importante a busca por práticas de desenvolvimento. A partir de projetos que conduzimos usando métodos ágeis na academia e na indústria, identificamos e descrevemos 22 práticas para desenvolvimento de software que podem ser adotadas por equipes para aumentar o seu desempenho e/ou a qualidade do software. / The growing demand for systems and the high speed with which their requirements evolve has shown that software development requires flexibility because many decisions need to be taken during the project. Also, the difficulties for the production of software systems go far beyond the technical issues. Strategic, commercial and human factors are responsible for some variables that contribute to make the software development a highly complex activity. Traditional models of software development propose prescritive processes that do not consider all this complexity. On the other hand, Agile Methods of software development suggest an humanistic approach focused on fast and often business valuable software deliveries. But, in order to get it, one needs to choose an appropriated group of development practices accordingly to the project and team features. In this way, the individuality of each project and the need for better quality and productivity motivate the search for software development practices. Based on projects that we conducted by using agile methods in academic and industry environments we identified and described 22 software development practices that can be used by teams to increase their performance and/or the software quality.

全球化使得軟體開發活動轉移至新興或開發中國家，快速變動的商業環境則趨使軟體開發朝向敏捷開發演進，然而軟體境外開發產生工作分離現象，負面影響軟體開發績效，此外敏捷開發法與境外開發環境存在衝突，本研究將軟體開發方法視為一連續漸變的光譜，包含規劃導向、風險導向及敏捷開發等三階段，探討在境外開發的環境下，哪一類型的開發方法能夠擁有較好的績效表現，並能減緩工作分離的負面影響，其中軟體開發方法光譜與績效表現呈現曲線關係，工作分離負面影響敏捷開發端之績效表現，需求變動則負面影響規劃導向端績效表現，結論將從工作分離與需求變動程度觀點，分別探討不同情況下所應採取的專案執行方式。 / Affected by globalization, software development activities have transferred to developing country. On the other hand, driven by turbulent business environments, software development methods have become more flexible like agile method. However, work dispersion derived from offshore software development has negative impact on performance. Besides, offshore environments have conflict with agile method in some aspect. There is a need to know the fit of between development methods and offshore modes. This research view development methods as a continuous spectrum, consisting of plan-driven, risk-driven and agile methods, and will probe which part of the spectrum perform better in offshore context and can alleviate the negative work dispersion effect on performance. The result shows that software development spectrum and offshore software development performance have curvilinear relationship. Work dispersion has negative impact on agile method, while requirements change has negative impact on plan-driven part. We’ll conclude from work dispersion and requirements change perspective, discussing how should practitioners conduct offshore project in different situations respectively.

In den 80er und 90er Jahren hatten große Anwendungssysteme in Unternehmen einige hundert bis tausend Anwender. Der Software-Entwicklungsprozess für diese Anwendungen war innerhalb der Unternehmen relativ klar geregelt. Fachinformatiker und Fachabteilungen standen einander dabei gegenüber. Oft wurden auch externe Fachleute und Komponentenlieferanten integriert. Entwicklungsmethoden und Werkzeuge waren auf diese Situation ausgelegt. Seit dieser Zeit haben wesentliche Veränderungen stattgefunden. Internettechnologien haben neue Klassen von Applikationen ermöglicht, die wie folgt charakterisiert werden können: - Die Applikationen sind kooperativ (unternehmensübergreifend). Nicht selten sind 20-50 oder mehr Unternehmen z. B. bei Zulieferketten beteiligt. - Eine eigene Klasse bilden mandantenfähige Systeme sowie Business-to-Consumer Systeme (B2C) bei denen sehr große Nutzerzahlen konnektiert werden. - Die Entwicklungszeiten liegen im Bereich von Monaten statt Jahren für eine erste Bereitstellung einer Basislösung. - Die Systeme werden inkrementell unter starker Anwenderbeteiligung bis hin zur Endbenutzerbeteiligung weiterentwickelt. (...)

The emergence of cloud computing is influencing how businesses develop, re-engineer, and implement critical software applications. The cloud requires developers to elevate the importance of compliance with security policies, regulations and internal engineering standards in their software development life cycles. Cloud computing and agile development methodologies are new technologies associated with new approaches in the way computing services are provisioned and development of quality software enhanced. However adoption and use of agile and cloud computing by SMMEs in South Africa is seemingly constrained by a number of technical and non-technical challenges. Using Grounded Theory and case study method this study was aimed at exploring the development of a framework for agile methodologies to promote the adoption and use of cloud computing services by SMMEs in South Africa. Data was collected through survey and in-depth interviews. Open, Axial and Selective coding was used to analyse the data. In tandem with its main objective the study, besides exploring the development of the envisaged framework, also generated and made available valuable propositions and knowledge that SMMEs in South Africa using agile development methodologies can use to work better with cloud computing services in the country without compromising on software quality. The findings of this study and the emerging insights around the development of the framework, which in itself also constitutes an important decision making tool for supporting adoption and use of cloud computing services, are a substantial contribution to knowledge and practice in the ICT field of information systems in South Africa / Information Science / D. Phil. (Information Systems)

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