Exploring issues in agile requirements engineering in the South African software industry

Abstract

Issues of the agile requirements engineering (ARE) process are abundant and pervasive throughout software projects. The aim of this study was to determine common issues experienced in agile requirements engineering in the South African software industry and identify tools and frameworks to mitigate risks emanating from such problems. This includes finding out how much value software practitioners put in the agile principles of the Agile Manifesto. This study was essentially quantitative. Self-administered questionnaires were used to collect required data which was then subjected to exploratory data analysis, a tool for statistical analysis. The results suggest that software practitioners have a strong penchant for principles of the Agile Manifesto. A detailed baseline of issues in agile requirements engineering was created along with a set of recommended tools and techniques used in the software industry. And developers are divergent on the idea of non-functional requirements integration which is vital for software quality.