Manufacturing execution systems: A vision for managing software development

Software development suffers from a lack of predictability with respect to cost, time, and quality. Predictability is one of the major concerns addressed by modern manufacturing execution systems (MESs). A MES does not actually execute the manufacturing (e.g., controlling equipment and producing goods), but rather collects, analyzes, integrates, and presents the data generated in industrial production so that employees have better insights into processes and can react quickly, leading to predictable manufacturing processes. In this paper, we introduce the principles and functional areas of a MES. We then analyze the gaps between MES-vision-driven software development and current practices. These gaps include: (1) lack of a unified data collection infrastructure, (2) lack of integrated people data, (3) lack of common conceptual frameworks driving improvement loops from development data, and (4) lack of support for projection and simulation. Finally, we illustrate the feasibility of leveraging MES principles to manage software development, using a Modularity Debt Management Decision Support System prototype we developed. In this prototype we demonstrate that information integration in MES-vision-driven systems enables new types of analyses, not previously available, for software development decision support. We conclude with suggestions for moving current software development practices closer to the MES vision.