The Productivity Pitfalls of Process Improvement Scott Goldfarb Q/P Management Group, Inc. 10 Bow Street Stoneham, Massachusetts 02180 Email: sgoldfarb@qpmg.com Tel: (781) 438-2692 FAX (781) 438-5549 www.qpmg.com
Agenda Background Diagnosing Process Productivity Problems Avoiding Pitfalls and Finding Solutions 2
The Process Productivity Problem The quest for achieving higher levels of process maturity can result in lower levels of productivity Lack of a good productivity baseline disguises the symptoms Process improvement overhead can be high Newly implemented processes are not always effective Equilibrium between process and productivity is difficult to find The tradeoffs between quality and productivity are not always well understood 3
Three Misconceptions Quality is Free Process Improvement Leads to Productivity Improvement. If you can measure it, you can manage it! 4
Three Corrected Misconceptions Quality is Free until you hit the point of diminishing returns. Process Improvement leads to Productivity Improvement with the proper processes and focus. If you can measure, analyze and conclude the right things, you can manage it! 5
Industry Trends Impacting Productivity, Quality and Cost Were Considered Anticipated Gains + Productivity Impact - OT Tool Focus Assess/ Measure Technology Process Focus Improvement I Process Improvement II, Outsourcing, Offshore, Y2K Measure Process Overkill, Quality Focus Process Streamlining 1970 s 1980 s 1990 s 2000 s 6
Agenda Background Diagnosing Process Productivity Problems Avoiding Pitfalls and Finding Solutions 7
Diagnosing the Process Productivity Problem Compare to industry benchmarks Compare internal productivity and quality trends and needs Diagnosing Surface Metrics can help identify the symptoms Quality Defects/Function Point Productivity Function Points/Hour Schedule Duration versus standard or trend Cost Cost/Function Point Process CMM(I) Assessment Tradeoffs between Surface Metrics maybe the cause of low productivity A Deep Dive Diagnosis is often required to uncover specific process productivity problems 8
Diagnose Surface Metrics CMMI Process Profile 9 Process Change Management Technology Change Management Defect Prevention Software Quality Management Quantitative Process Management Peer Reviews Inter-group Coordination Software Product Engineering Integrated Software Management Training Program Organization Process Definition Organization Process Focus Subcontract Management Requirements Management Quality Assurance Level 2 Configuration Management Project Tracking & Monitoring Project Planning Symptom: Out of balance processes - Quality and Management Processes satisfied at higher levels Level 3 Level 4 Level 5 Legend Not satisfied Partially satisfied Fully satisfied Not applicable
Diagnose Surface Metrics - Productivity versus Quality Productivity / Quality Comparison High Goal Productivity (FP/Hour) Average Potential Symptom Poor Poor Average Best in Class Quality (Defect/FP) Symptom: Better than Best in Class quality and >Level 3 quality related processes combined with low productivity 10
Diagnose Surface Metrics - Schedule Tradeoff High Productivity versus Schedule Productivity Low Compressed Optimum Extended Make sure severely compressed or extended schedules are not the real problem 11
Diagnose Surface Metrics - Schedule Analysis Schedule Duration by Project Size Category 500 400 Expected Schedule Days 300 200 100 0 <50 51-100 101-200 201-500 501-1000 Project Size in Function Points Symptom: Small projects that have large project schedules 12
Diagnose Surface Metrics - Cost Analysis Cost per FP by Project Size Category High Expected Trend Cost/FP Low <50 51-100 101-200 201-500 501-1000 Project Size in Function Points Symptom: Small project Cost/FP is higher than larger projects (500-1000 FPs) 13
Diagnostic Results - Example Symptoms: Process Processes are very mature with a focus on management and quality processes even at higher levels of maturity Productivity Productivity is low compared to process expectations Quality Better than Best in Class quality may be impacting productivity Schedule Schedules are long for small projects, short for large projects Cost Costs are high, especially for small projects Conclusion: Current processes are most likely having a positive impact on quality but a negative impact on productivity Next Steps: Conduct a Deep Dive Diagnosis to uncover specific process productivity problems 14
Deep Dive Diagnosis Can Uncover Root Causes Project Attributes beyond the CMM(I) need to evaluated Methods and techniques need to be analyzed in terms of flexibility and efficiency Project Management Systems Development Methodologies Quality Reviews, inspections and testing Documentation Project effort should be analyzed in detail Project schedules by size category should be compared Estimating accuracy should be calculated Service level and performance goals should be evaluated Measurement and governance activities should be reviewed 15
Deep Dive Diagnosis - Project Attributes Attributes Areas I/S knowledge and experience User knowledge and experience Personnel management and support Development methods Project management methods Quality Assurance and control Testing methods Measurement Computer Resources Below Industry Norm Above Industry Norm Office Environment and Support Below Average Average Best in Practice Symptom: Management and development disciplines look too good to be true look deeper! 16
Deep Dive Diagnosis - Estimating Accuracy 30% Estimating Accuracy Estimate to Actual + - % Variance Estimate to Actual 20% 10% 0% 7% Schedule Variance 9% Effort Varince Symptom: Estimate to Actual Variances of < 10% maybe based on self-fulfilling prophecy and padding syndrome 17
Deep Dive Diagnosis - Percent Effort by Phase Percent Effort by Life Cycle Phase Potential Symptom Standard - Small Projects 0% 25% 50% 75% 100% Req. Design Construction Test Impl. % Life Cycle by Phase Symptom: Effort by phase is consistent regardless of project size, construction is a small percent of all projects 18
Deep Dive Diagnosis - Effort Analysis Symptoms: Project Management time is > 15% of the total project effort QA time (Inspections and reviews) are > 10% of total project effort Number of individual staff members per inspection is greater than 10 Staff are reporting < 70% or >90% of their available time as productive The number of individual names charging time to projects are >15 per 100 Function Points Even the smallest projects are consistently charging 500-1500 hours Unusually time accounting records (everything ends in zeros) 19
Deep Dive Diagnosis - Misc. Symptoms: Low levels of user involvement resulting in requirements churn Significant pages of documentation and numerous updates Service levels that continuously improve without regard for cost considerations High levels of measurement and/or governance overhead without the benefit 20
Agenda Background Diagnosing Process Productivity Problems Avoiding Pitfalls and Finding Solutions 21
Avoiding Pitfalls and Finding Solutions Streamline project management and systems development methodologies Reduce required tasks, deliverables and management checkpoints Establish different paths for different project sizes and types Reduce the guidelines and criteria for selecting quick path approaches Make it easy to waive unneeded activities and deliverables Reduce the time associated with quality assurance activities Establish inspection guidelines to eliminate unproductive staff and activities Reduce/eliminate Quality Standards Reviews based on project type and size Group small unproductive projects into optimum size productive projects 22
Avoiding Pitfalls and Finding Solutions Relax service level agreements where appropriate in order to better balance service performance with cost considerations Revisit measurement and governance activities and eliminate those without meaning or benefit Reduce test cycles where possible by analyzing defect removal statistics versus the cost of quality Get back to basics with user involvement in requirements definition Use measurement to estimate based on good productivity Do not promote process improvement solely for the sake of achieving Level X Create an organizational awareness that PRODUCTIVITY is also very important! 23