An exploratory study on software products and development organizations in New Zealand

Abstract

The types and characteristics of software products as well as the characteristics of development organizations that build those products contribute to the context in which software development professionals operate. To better understand this context in the software development sector, we explored the context of software development professionals in New Zealand, an example of a small but growing and vibrant software industry. In this paper, we present preliminary findings of a questionnaire-based survey with professionals. In contrast to other studies on software development in industry (which tend to focus on processes and practices), we explore non-technical product-related and organizational characteristics. We found that software development professionals in New Zealand mostly work on long-living (but frequently released) products for specific customers (rather than products developed for a broader market). Also, software development professionals mostly work in organizations that have existed for quite a while and that aim at a global customer base. Very small and very large organizations are uncommon. Based on these characteristics, we can compare different software industries. Also, this concrete characterization of context allows researchers and practitioners implement more focused process improvement initiatives.