The Impact of Mitigation Strategies for Socio-Cultural Distance Issues in GSD: An Empirical Study

Abstract

Global Software Development (GSD) offers several benefits to software development organizations, including reduced development costs, the availability of low-wage and highly skilled employees, and an improved marketplace. Meanwhile, it faces severe communication, coordination, and control issues. The most important of these is the communication issue which is further categorized into socio-cultural, temporal, and geographical issues. Among these issues, researchers believe the socio-cultural issue is the most critical factor and, if not mitigated properly, may lead to software project failure. Although, in the past, many studies have identified socio-cultural distance-related issues, and a few studies proposed mitigation strategies. However, studies have yet to be carried out to prioritize and empirically evaluate all mitigation strategies. Thus the main objectives of this study are: a) to identify socio-cultural distance issues and mitigation strategies through a Systematic Literature Review (SLR), b) to empirically evaluate the impact of identified mitigation strategies on identified socio-cultural distance issues through a survey, and c) to prioritize effective mitigation strategies through a recommended Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP). A total of six socio-cultural issues and twenty-eight mitigation strategies are identified from the SLR and survey. Out of which, seven mitigation strategies are most effective. This study's findings will help software organizations to overcome socio-cultural distance issues by using the highest priority mitigation strategies to reduce losses.