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Introduction
The CHAOS Study from the Standish Group International was inspired
by the billions of pounds lost in failed software development projects.
The focus of the research was to identify:
• The scope of software project failures
• The major factors that cause software projects to fail
• The key ingredients that can reduce project failures
The study was initially conducted in 1994 and was repeated almost
every other year.
Methodology
The study was based on research surveys and personal interviews.
The respondents were IT executives from a sample of large, medium
and small organisations across all major industry segments. In 1994
the total sample size was 365 respondents representing 8380 software
projects.
The study classified projects into three categories:
• Project Impaired: The project is cancelled at some point
during the development cycle.
• Project Challenged: The project is completed and operational
but over-budget, over the time estimate, and offers fewer features
and functions than originally specified.
• Project Success: The project is completed on-time and on-budget,
with all features and functions as initially specified.
CHAOS Study Findings (1994 to 2000)
The findings show that while there has been an improvement in the
success rate of software projects over the six year period, the
majority of software projects (72%) still fail to succeed.
Success Factors
The study highlighted ten key factors for STP (successful technology
projects). Although all ten are not required, the more factors that
are present in a project the higher the likelihood of project success.
The study weighted each factor based on its influence on project
success, with a higher weighting representing a lower risk of failure.
Success Factor
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Weighting
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Executive support |
18 |
ReqSheet lets the analyst capture and clearly
communicate the vision and high level business goals in order
to secure buy-in from all stakeholders within the organisation.
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User involvement
|
16
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GUI Storyboarding is an effective method
to involve users.
Storyboarding lets the analyst build a screen flow diagram
to
which users can easily relate. Because storyboards do not use
specialised syntax or notation, users are able to provide good
quality feedback.
|
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Experienced project manager |
14 |
Although
stpsoft Consulting Services primarily specialise in software requirements mentoring, our mentors include highly experienced programme and project managers.
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Clear business
objectives |
12
|
Use
ReqSheet to clearly
define the vision, scope and business goals. Business goals
can be described using SMART criteria.
|
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Minimized scope |
10 |
With
ReqSheet prioritised business
goals are grouped into software releases to define
the scope of each release.
Business goals provide a benchmark for approving changes
and thus reduce scope creep.
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Standard
software infrastructure |
8 |
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Firm basic requirements |
6
|
Use
ReqSheet to establish the
requirements. GUI storyboards built using
Storyboarding are
very effective in helping customers to validate their
requirements under all the key scenarios.
|
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Formal methodology |
6 |
stpsoft Consulting Services
can help with the implementation of a standardised approach for
requirements and analysis.
|
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Reliable estimates |
5 |
Detailed GUI
storyboards and functional specifications produced using
Storyboarding are comprehensive and
user friendly, ensuring that users and developers have a clear
and common understanding.
Well defined requirements, clear customer expectations, greater
developer understanding and early gap analysis are conducive
to reliable estimation. In addition
stpsoft Consulting Services
can provide skills mentoring in effective estimation techniques.
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Other criteria |
5 |
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