SMART-SPI: a data analysis model proposal for software process improvement

Over time, software development organizations have been interested into the implementation of best practices that facilitate the improvement of its software processes with the firm purpose of improving products quality. One of the best approaches to improve software processes is to adopt a Software Process Improvement (SPI) initiative, which evaluates current practices and the way software products and services are developed. However, the rapid increase of data, an inappropriate knowledge management, a misunderstanding about information and knowledge, among other current issues and challenges, have complicated these SPI initiatives. From a data perspective, a recent study identifies the required elements to be adopted in SPI to succeed and suggests the creation of a data analysis model for SPI. The purpose of this paper is to present SMART-SPI, a data analysis model proposal for SPI, which provides a solution to the identified issues and challenges through the adoption of methodologies highly used in the academia, industry and government environments.