Lean Thinking in Software Engineering : A Systematic Review

Abstract

The field of Software Engineering has suffered considerable transformation in the last decades due to the influence of the philosophy of Lean Thinking. The purpose of this systematic review is to identify practices and approaches proposed by researchers in this area in the last 5 years, who have worked under the influence of this thinking. The search strategy brought together 549 studies, 80 of which were classified as relevant for synthesis in this review. Seventeen tools of Lean Thinking adapted to Software Engineering were catalogued, as well as 35 practices created for the development of software that has been influenced by this philosophy. The study provides a roadmap of results with the current state of the art and the identification of gaps pointing to opportunities for further research.