A STARS Case Study in Process Definition

Carol Diane Klingler
Paramax Systems Corporation
12010 Sunrise Valley Drive
Reston, Virginia 22091
klingler@stars.reston.unisysgsg.com

Abstract:

Explicit, formal definitions of software processes are needed for process understanding, communication, analysis, execution guidance, and improvement support. We conducted a case study which involved the creation of formal process definitions using Abstraction Hierarchy Diagrams, , MVP-L, and APPL/A. This paper describes the study, presents the lessons learned about process definition in general, and compares the notations used. We discovered that different notations were appropriate depending on the goals of the process definition effort.

Keywords: process definition, software process modeling, process representation, case study.

• Introduction
• Goals
  • Goal 1: Identify the benefits of process definition.
  • Goal 2 Identify costs of process definition.
  • Goal 3: Investigate suitability of the notations chosen
  • Goal 4: Recommend an approach to process definition.
• Process Definition
• Overview of Notations Used
  • Abstraction Hierarchy Diagrams
  • IDEF
  • MVP-L
  • APPL/A
• Lessons Learned
  • Benefits of Process Definition
    • Facilitate human understanding and communication
    • Support process improvement
    • Support process management
    • Provide automated guidance in performing process
    • Provide automated execution support
  • Costs of Process Definition
    • Process definition is time consuming
    • Creating process definitions is difficult
    • Process experts are useful
    • Learning curve is nontrivial
    • MVP-L and APPL/A are research prototypes
  • Suitability of the Process Notations.
  • Recommendations
    • Process definition training is necessary.
    • Conventional life cycle.
    • Process definition feedback and reuse
• Conclusions
• References
• About this document ...