Executive Brief Agile and DevOps for Embedded Systems. Engineering Trends Analysis Report

Transcription

1 2014 M2M and Embedded Software Executive Brief Agile and DevOps for Embedded Systems Engineering Trends Analysis Report Part of the Strategic Insights 2014, M2M and Embedded Technology: Track 3, Topic 1 By André Girard, Senior Analyst, with Chris Rommel, Executive Vice President

2 Inside this Report Agile is finally accelerating within embedded system engineering departments, with adoption reaching deeper on existing projects and scaling to more of the organization. This research analyzes emerging trends for Agile and DevOps software/system development and their impact on the software and system lifecycle management solutions market. What questions are addressed? How are perceptions and initial concerns about Agile evolving? What new types of tools are embedded engineers adopting in support of their Agile initiatives? What vendors (and tool classes) are best positioned to capitalize on interest in Agile and DevOps? How are OEMs integrating new collaborative methods into their existing processes? In what ways are tooling preferences shifting to facilitate Agile (or prepare for DevOps)? Which industries are most rapidly adopting Agile and cross-engineering domain integration? Who should read this report? This report is for those making critical decisions regarding product, market, channel, and competitive strategy and tactics. Roles that could benefit from reading this report include product management, marketing and strategy executives at OEMs, tools suppliers, investment firms, and associated roles and organizations. VDC Research, 2014 Page 1

3 Contents Executive Summary Key Findings Global Market Overview and Forecast Global Market at a Glance Exhibit 1: Distribution of end product/project value by domain Exhibit 2: Degree of adherence to Agile methodology, by Agile developers in embedded Global Market Ideas & Insights Agile and DevOps in Embedded Systems Recent Developments Exhibit 3: Importance of aligning engineering domains to Agile practices, by embedded Agile users Competitive Landscape Comparative Analysis by Vertical Markets Analysis at a Glance Exhibit 4: Degree of adherence to Agile methodology, by vertical market Exhibit 5: Level of cross-domain engineering integration investigated, by vertical market Ideas & Insights Additional Ideas & Insights Exhibit 6: Types of tools used on current project Exhibit 7: Budget for all tools used on current project Additional Exhibits Exhibit 8: Importance of scaling Agile within organization, by use of Agile Exhibit 9: Largest benefits of cross-engineering domain integrations Exhibit 10: Largest benefits of Agile/iterative development methodologies Exhibit 11: Largest disadvantages/challenges of Agile/iterative design methodologies About this Report VDC Research, 2014 Page 2

4 Executive Summary [Data available in full report] Agile and DevOps are at tipping points as OEMs seek new ways to improve the overall efficiency of system development. Initial perceptions and fears of Agile methods are fading and a hybrid approach, combining iterative software development with the rigor necessary for designing embedded systems, is emerging. While Agile becomes a standard element of embedded systems design, the embrace of DevOps as a framework, and a term, is uncertain. The embedded industry continues to move toward greater collaboration, but the initial promise of DevOps could fail without the needed technology and culture changes. Key Findings XX.X% of embedded engineers are now using some Agile development on their current project, and XX.X% indicate their organization has started to investigate or implement integrations across their engineering domains. Engineers at companies using Agile are designing systems that are more reliant on software value (XX.X%) than counterparts at organizations not using iterative methods (XX.X%). Furthermore, engineers using Agile were less likely to cite lack of manpower as a reason for project delay, despite employing fewer software engineers (XX.X) than organizations not using iterative methods (XX.X). Iterative development is more typically used as a strategic addition, augmenting (rather than replacing) older practices. Only X.X% of embedded engineers using Agile are fully adhering to the methodology. XX.X% of embedded engineers use Java as one of the software development languages on their current project. Engineers and management are both involved in tool purchase decisions. A two-pronged marketing approach stressing ease of use and impact on quality to engineers, while focusing on support of Agile/iterative processes and lowering overall costs to management, is recommended. Agile for the systems market is a hybrid approach, combining iterative development and increased rigor with which requirements and change are managed. Among Agile developers, XX.X% are using a requirements management tool on their current project and XX.X% are using a change management tool. VDC Research, 2014 Page 3

5 Global Market Overview and Forecast Global Market at a Glance Exhibit 1: Distribution of end product/project value by domain Global Market Ideas & Insights Agile and DevOps in Embedded Systems What once was old is new again Strategies that first emerged in manufacturing to increase productivity helped to inspire methods widely used in the IT space to accelerate the development and improve the quality of software. Practitioners have continued to advance and refine these concepts, and today methods highlighting some of the same principles are gaining traction in systems development. Several of the values outlined in the Agile Manifesto -- such as teamwork, communication, and continuous improvement -- were also shared with lean manufacturing. Both of these methods have been an effective means of increasing organizational efficiency for their practitioners. In VDC s 2014 Software and System Development Survey, a similar percentage of developers using Agile (XX.X%) and those not using Agile methods (XX.X%) were behind schedule in their current project. However, engineers at Agile organizations are designing systems more reliant on software for value (XX.X%) than counterparts at organizations not using iterative methods (XX.X%) and were less likely to cite lack of manpower as a reason for project delay despite employing fewer software engineers (XX.X) than organizations not using iterative methods (XX.X). VDC Research, 2014 Page 4

6 Realms are converging, but differences remain Embedded and enterprise/it software developers are facing many of the same challenges and, as a result, are increasingly pursuing similar strategies. Heightened security concerns and new process standard requirements are encouraging IT organizations to bring more rigor to their software development tooling and processes. In the embedded markets, engineers face a growing software creation burden and tighter time-to-market windows. Both realms are providing more differentiation through software and have a growing realization of the impact of software vulnerabilities. OEMs perception of Agile methods is evolving from that of a new and perhaps risky practice to a more standard part of the overall development process. Embedded tool suppliers will be challenged by disruptive shifts in the needs and profiles of their customers as market pressures encourage these organizations to import best practices, tooling, and expertise from the enterprise domain. Vendors should expect to face new competitors, functional encroachment from new tool categories, and changing preferences in their customer base. As embedded engineering firms implement Agile, the necessary improvements in their internal lines of communication will encourage the investigation of additional process improvements through enhanced collaboration. Tool suppliers can look to the enterprise software development market for an example of how the evolution of Agile for software development into broader collaborative approaches will likely unfold. However, the lengthy, complex development projects and numerous process-standard demands will continue to necessitate a higher level of rigor and initial project-planning than is typically required in the enterprise market. The introduction of iterative methods into systems development will more typically be used as a strategic addition; it will augment rather than replace older practices. Among embedded engineers using Agile, only X.X% report fully adhering to the methodology and, on average, 2.5 different methodologies are used in their current projects. The shift to iterative software development processes, a growing number of projects requiring more sophisticated connectivity middleware stacks, and the influx of expertise from the enterprise domain will also help further accelerate the shift to the Java programming language. Currently, XX.X% of embedded engineers indicate Java is among the languages used on their project. This figure will continue to rise in the coming years, as nearly half (XX.X%) of embedded engineers using Agile methods are using the Java programming language. VDC Research, 2014 Page 5

7 About this Report VDC Research s i2: ideas & insights reports provide clients with deep insights into product, market, channel, and competitive strategies and tactics. Using deep and rich datasets based on extensive primary research, the i2 reports provide clients with the insights they need to make strategic decisions for their business about the markets they are in and the markets they want to be in. Coverage includes a combination of market sizing, segmentation, forecasting, end-user requirements analysis, competitive analysis, and more. For more information contact us at info@vdcresearch.com and visit our website at VDC Research, 2014 Page 6