Towards Automated Software Project Planning - Extending Palladio for the Simulation of Software Processes.
Oliver Hummel, Robert Heinrich · 2013
Abstract: In every non-trivial software project a significant amount of effort must be devoted to project planning and management. However, project managers steering such projects are often still doing this based on relatively vague heuristics and/or their experience. Various studies and numerous project outcomes have continuously been demonstrating that this is not good enough as it frequently leads to budget and schedule overruns or even completely failed projects. In other engineering disciplines it is common, to simulate complex processes in order to mitigate such risks. Since the Palladio approach already provides functionality for architecture simulations and has been successfully extended for the simulation of business processes, it seems feasible to derive, simulate, and even optimize a project plan based on the Palladio model of an architecture. In this position paper, we sketch how Palladio could be used in order to become a useful tool for project managers that may help to avoid common planning pitfalls. Furthermore, we present initial ideas how its existing modeling elements can be mapped on the software development process and which extensions are still necessary. 1