Experimental evaluation of agile practices impact on team productivity

Agile methods of software development have become more popular since the early 2000s and, in some cases, can offer better results for software development projects when compared to traditional approaches. These methods can be viewed as a reaction to more traditional methods (known as plan-driven), which emphasize the planning and prediction of solutions for each development problem. Agile methods promises to achieve high productivity and deliver high-quality software, attracting the attention of compani es, which demand ever-higher development speed and quality in their products. In spite of the current growth in adoption of agile methods, many organizations still feel uncomfortable about changing their development paradigm, either for cultural reasons o r due to the lack of more solid evidence of benefits brought by these methods. Regarding the current state of theory and research, more empirical evidence of effectiveness on practices recommended by agile methods are necessary. There are few scientific studies about the impact of agile practices on productivity, either individually or in combination. In particular, little is known about how each practice relates and influences the others and how these relationships affect productivity. From a practical point of view, organizations that adopt agile methods need information about the productivity of their teams to plan the improvement of their processes and products. Positive academic results about productivity and how to measure it can help organization s evaluate their agile projects and perform the necessary adjustments to promote better results. The main goal of this Research Visit Proposal is to perform a scientific evaluation of the impact of agile methods on productivity of agile teams working on software development by means of an experimental approach.