Building a requirements process improvement model

Abstract

This technical report gives a step-by-step guide to developing a requirements process improvement model. The model is goal driven, and practitioners are directed towards key processes that define and prioritise requirements activities. The requirements model is a specialisation of the established Software Engineering Institute’s (SEI) Capability Maturity Model (SW CMM). Best practices from the requirements literature as well as the SW CMM are used to inform the requirements process improvement model. All processes listed address requirements problems raised by practitioners in our empirical study (Hall et al., 2002b; Beecham et al., 2003b). Detailing the approach to model development will help the research community and practitioners in their own Software Process Improvement (SPI) efforts. Understanding more about the underlying structure will enable the reader to learn from previous experiences, replicate and adapt the model to meet their own improvement goals. Much of the research on process improvement provides guidelines and new models but omit the many steps involved in their generation. Learning more about how the model evolved should help practitioners to interpret key practices, take more control over their processes and create their own tailored improvement models.