Competence requirements for project managers in agile software development

Abstract

Based on the Great Eight competence framework this article of Gruppe. Interaktion. Organisation. (GIO) analyzed competency requirements and leadership success criteria of project managers, who supervise agile software development teams. Eleven experts from an international IT company, who fulfilled various roles in agile software development, were interviewed individually. The interviews were analyzed by means of qualitative content analysis using a computer-aided category system. In terms of performance-relevant behaviors, 20 competence facets with 12 superordinate competence dimensions could be identified. One to three dimensions represented each domain of the Great Eight. The domains Leading and Deciding (motivating others; promoting others), Interacting and Presenting (target-appropriate communication; conflict management) as well as Analyzing and Interpreting (IT knowledge; software development expertise; agile working methods) comprised two or three dimensions, respectively. The remaining five domains included one dimension each (Supporting und Cooperating: team work skills; Creating and Conceptualizing: openness; Organizing and Executing: resource management; Adapting and Coping: dealing with mistakes; Enterprising and Performing: enthusiasm for software development). Analyzing and Interpreting as well as Enterprising and Performing contained competency requirements, which are specific for agile software development. Leadership success is achieved when executable software is developed in a resource-efficient manner according to customer requirements, while the development team reports high job satisfaction. In summary, the competence requirements of project managers in agile development teams may be conceptualized by means of the Great Eight framework. The portfolio consists of four context-specific and eight cross-contextual competence dimensions, each of which may be operationalized by means of specific behaviors.