A means-ends design of SCRUM+: an agile-disciplined balanced SCRUM enhanced with the ISO/IEC 29110 Standard

Abstract

Agile systems development methodologies (ASDMs) have gained high acceptance in very small entities (VSEs) of software development seeking quality at minimal effort. SCRUM and XP in industrial settings and UPEDU in academic ones are main of them. Similarly, Software Process Improvement (SPI) initiatives promote the utilization of process frameworks and standards. However, despite both worlds (i.e. ASDMs and SPI) pursue a shared end of high-quality software, both are separated by different underlying approaches. We consider that ASDMs can get benefits from SPI through controlled enhancements (i.e. an agile-discipline balance) without elimination of agility. Thus, in this research, we report the design of SCRUM+, an enhanced SCRUM with recommendations on roles, activities-tasks and artifacts from the SPI standard ISO/IEC 29110. SCRUM+ was designed by using a Means-Ends analysis. Our final aim is to provide such an enhanced SCRUM methodology via an Electronic Process Guide (EPG) to help practitioners for a better use of agile approaches with SPI added recommendations that be found theoretically robust and potentially useful regarding SCRUM from a panel of experts and SCRUM practitioners.