Technical controlling and software process improvement

Successful process improvement depends heavily on a close tracking of actual results Versus the improvement plan. For concerting different reengineering activities, process managers must implement a proactive, forward-looking oversight mechanism designed to ensure that the various ongoing projects within the company operate in a performance zone that provides the expected business value. Technical controlling of software projects is introduced as a comprehensive controlling activity consisting of analyzing and interpreting project information for strategy formulation, planning and tracking activities, decision-making, and cost accounting. For practical guidelines this article focuses on introducing and maintaining a corporate program for technical controlling in a highly distributed large organization. Experiences are shared that show how technical controlling closely relates and thus supports an ongoing software process improvement initiative. (C) 1999 Elsevier Science Inc. All rights reserved.