scholarly journals UX Work in Software Start-Ups: Challenges from the Current State of Practice

Author(s):  
Sofia A. M. Silveira ◽  
Joelma Choma ◽  
Roberto Pereira ◽  
Eduardo M. Guerra ◽  
Luciana A. M. Zaina

AbstractSoftware start-ups develop innovative software products working with disruptive technologies in time pressure and market-driven environment. Recently, User eXperience (UX) has become a hot topic that interests software teams of start-ups. However, software and UX professionals have struggled to match UX practices into the development activities, partially because of the lack of resources in the start-ups. This paper investigates how software start-ups handle UX activities during software development and how relevant UX is to these companies’ professionals. To achieve our aim, we surveyed 88 professionals who take part in software teams in star-ups, analyzing the responses using descriptive and statistical methods. Our results reveal that regardless of having or not a UX position in the start-up, UX practices are spread in different software development phases and not fitting into them. Results also show although professionals consider UX relevant and recognize important skills to perform UX activities, some obstacles hinder the effective use of UX in software start-ups. From the survey results, we identified a set of challenges to be overcome in consolidating the UX work in software start-ups. By diagnosing the UX state-of-practice in start-up scenarios and identifying such challenges, our work contributes to provides relevant insights to further academic and practical studies in this field.

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
◽  
Richard Vernon Bryson

<p>This thesis examines the opportunities for better asset management within the electricity distribution industry. The project partner, a supplier of distribution products, observed their customers are often purchasing incorrect equipment for maintenance operations. This observation led the project partner to believe a lack of accurate asset knowledge exists within these electricity distribution businesses (EDBs). Coupled with the information that much of the installed asset base of these EDBs is approaching end of life, it was proposed to investigate the suspected lack of asset condition and type knowledge with the intention of developing the Infrastructure Asset Diagnostic Tool (IADT). A literature review was conducted to determine the current state of asset diagnostics within the electricity distribution industry.   The principles of lean start-up business development have been used to isolate the most needed technology within the New Zealand marketplace through interviews with industry personnel. These interviews helped identify a possible Minimum Viable Product (MVP) for the IADT, and also indicated that providing the IADT as a professional service would be the most appropriate model for the MVP variant.   Condition and type knowledge of wooden poles, conductors and line hardware was found to be the most lacking. It was recommended to focus product development on the assessment of these assets. The project partner has contracted two smart tool suppliers for the analysis of poles and conductor clearances. These products were then integrated to enable accurate assessments of wooden poles. An additional product identified as an aside during the interviews, was for a simple pole designing application which could be used in the field. An existing product from one of the smart tool suppliers contracted can fulfil this requirement.   Possible benefits from IADT use were calculated for a sample EDB. These calculations indicated accurate condition assessment of wooden poles could lead to a saving of up to $5.4 million per year. This saving would equate to a possible reduction in time for securing pole integrity on this network from 30.8 years to just 5.9 years through more effective use of available funding. This reduction would lead to enhanced network reliability and improved public safety in a much shorter time frame than present, therefore this study recommends implementing the MVP form of the IADT at an initial EDB.</p>


2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (4) ◽  
pp. 1689
Author(s):  
Konrad Szczukiewicz ◽  
Marek Makowiec

Accelerators are one of the most recent and prominent institutions that support start-up development. The phenomenon of accelerators impacts academia as well as policy makers and practitioners. However, the research on accelerators is still very scant and the majority of research concerns the most prestigious and successful American accelerators. The purpose of this paper is to outline the characteristics of Polish accelerators and their specificities, with the focus on the differences between public and private accelerators. The collateral aim of the authors was to describe characteristics and components of an innovation accelerator and its placement in the ecosystem of institutional support for start-ups. The first part of the study focuses on the definition of an accelerator, the review of relevant literature and the differences between other well established institutions such as incubators and business angels. The second part of the study presents the current state of accelerators in Poland. It is observed that the majority of the accelerators in Poland are publicly funded and accelerators avoid taking equity in accelerated start-ups. This is an effect of the competition from public accelerators, which offer a sizable equity-free grant of 200,000 PLN. This study enriches the research on different models of local accelerators and their acceleration programs.


Author(s):  
Pavel Petrov ◽  
Svetoslav Ivanov ◽  
Petar Dimitrov ◽  
Georgi Dimitrov ◽  
Oleksii Bychkov

The management of the technology start-up company for development of software for mobile devices includes various activities such as creation of specification, development, implementation, sale, and maintenance of software for mobile devices, as well as services for it. Usually the main activity is the production and maintenance of software for mobile devices, but there may be different options and sub-options in the business model of the technology start-up, which are divided into two main categories - products and services. In recent years, there has been a trend to move into a business with service providers. The objective of our study is to outline some specifics about the operation of technology start-up companies for mobile software development in areas such as the management of human and financial resources, choosing the suitable methodology for software development and business model to follow.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
◽  
Richard Vernon Bryson

<p>This thesis examines the opportunities for better asset management within the electricity distribution industry. The project partner, a supplier of distribution products, observed their customers are often purchasing incorrect equipment for maintenance operations. This observation led the project partner to believe a lack of accurate asset knowledge exists within these electricity distribution businesses (EDBs). Coupled with the information that much of the installed asset base of these EDBs is approaching end of life, it was proposed to investigate the suspected lack of asset condition and type knowledge with the intention of developing the Infrastructure Asset Diagnostic Tool (IADT). A literature review was conducted to determine the current state of asset diagnostics within the electricity distribution industry.   The principles of lean start-up business development have been used to isolate the most needed technology within the New Zealand marketplace through interviews with industry personnel. These interviews helped identify a possible Minimum Viable Product (MVP) for the IADT, and also indicated that providing the IADT as a professional service would be the most appropriate model for the MVP variant.   Condition and type knowledge of wooden poles, conductors and line hardware was found to be the most lacking. It was recommended to focus product development on the assessment of these assets. The project partner has contracted two smart tool suppliers for the analysis of poles and conductor clearances. These products were then integrated to enable accurate assessments of wooden poles. An additional product identified as an aside during the interviews, was for a simple pole designing application which could be used in the field. An existing product from one of the smart tool suppliers contracted can fulfil this requirement.   Possible benefits from IADT use were calculated for a sample EDB. These calculations indicated accurate condition assessment of wooden poles could lead to a saving of up to $5.4 million per year. This saving would equate to a possible reduction in time for securing pole integrity on this network from 30.8 years to just 5.9 years through more effective use of available funding. This reduction would lead to enhanced network reliability and improved public safety in a much shorter time frame than present, therefore this study recommends implementing the MVP form of the IADT at an initial EDB.</p>


2021 ◽  
Vol 273 ◽  
pp. 12143
Author(s):  
Elena Fisunova

The article discusses the possibility of effective use of various software in the study of graphic disciplines in English in order to compare the quality of classical teaching and learning using various graphic packages in the study of geometric-graphic disciplines in English and its convergence with science. The ways of using graphic editors for training specialists in various industries are described. The teaching methodology is considered, which allows a creative approach to the implementation of two-dimensional and three-dimensional objects. The article describes the use of various software products in the modernized laboratories of “Computer prototyping and reverse engineering of high complexity.” In this regard, the study of digitalization of graphic education in English and its social consequences seems to be a very relevant area of research.


2019 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
pp. 83-88
Author(s):  
Ysmael Jesús Ayala Colqui
Keyword(s):  
A Priori ◽  
El Paso ◽  
Start Up ◽  

Una start-up es definida como una empresa destinada solucionar problemas de maneras no obvias, donde el éxito no está garantizado de antemano y, solo en los casos de éxito efectivo, se adquiere un crecimiento rápido y significativo (Robehmed, 2013). Ejemplos clásicos de start-ups serían Facebook, Uber o AirBnB que, con comienzos modestos, pero con ideas innovadoras, se convirtieron con el paso del tiempo en empresas de ingresos millonarios. Una de las tantas preguntas al respecto sería la siguiente: ¿cómo lograr una start-up de éxito a sabiendas que el éxito no está garantizado a priori y, aún más, que la gran mayoría de estas fracasan?


2015 ◽  
Vol 12 (4) ◽  
pp. 24-31 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rabea Laugemann ◽  
Christopher Buschow ◽  
Beate Schneider

Im ‚War for Talent‘ konkurrieren heutzutage große Konzerne mit innovativen Start-ups um vielversprechenden Nachwuchs. Was bestimmt die Attraktivität von Arbeitgebern bei Medien- und Kommunikationsstudierenden? Diese Frage wird im Rahmen einer quantitativen Online-Befragung untersucht, vor allem im Hinblick darauf, ob Start-ups oder Konzerne als erste Arbeitgeber präferiert werden. Befragte, denen Prestige wichtig ist, bevorzugen eher Konzerne als Arbeitgeber. Wer Wert auf ein innovatives Arbeitsumfeld und soziale Beziehungen legt, entscheidet sich vermehrt für ein Start-up. Im Wettbewerb um die besten Köpfe sind damit junge Unternehmensgründungen inzwischen eine ernst zu nehmende Konkurrenz für Konzerne.


2019 ◽  
Vol 22 (6) ◽  
pp. 51-60
Author(s):  
S. A. Akhremenko ◽  
M. S. Pytskaya

Currently, the issue of preservation and effective use of cultural heritage is relevant. Bryansk region has a significant number of valuable historical and cultural monuments. Almost every district is rich in unique places of interest, a special place among which is occupied by the estate. Within the framework of the concept of landscaping of the estate of Alexei Konstantinovich Tolstoy in the village of Krasny Rog, Pochepsky district, Bryansk region, together with the company "Bryanskpromburvod" were carried out field surveys, engineering-geological, hydrological surveys and other necessary activities in order to compile a pre-project proposal for the reconstruction of the source of artesian water, taking into account archival and bibliographic materials, with minor changes in view of the current state of the territory of the object of cultural heritage. Taking into account engineering-geological and hydrological researches, results of full-scale inspection of the territory, the technology of drilling of a well, necessary materials and the equipment for its arrangement is picked up. The article considers the issue of attracting tourists and vacationers to the source of artesian water in the estate of Alexei Konstantinovich Tolstoy. Above the source it is recommended to install a pump room for the release of water, in order to protect it from pollution, and perform it in the architectural style corresponding to the period of life of Alexei Konstantinovich Tolstoy in the estate. Historical and cultural heritage can act not only as a factor in the development of spiritual life, but also as one of the promising areas of economic development in the Bryansk region. The attractiveness of the Museum-estate increases the tourist attendance, and part of the funds can be used for the maintenance of cultural heritage.


2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (11) ◽  
pp. 6009
Author(s):  
Se-Kyoung Choi ◽  
Sangyun Han ◽  
Kyu-Tae Kwak

What kind of capacity is needed to improve the performance of start-ups? How effective are government support policies in improving start-up performance? Start-ups are critical firm group for ensuring the prospective and sustainable growth of an economy, and thus many countries’ governments have established support policies and they are likely to engage more widely in forward-looking political support activities to ensure further growth and expansion. In this paper, the effect of innovation capabilities and government support policies on start-up performance is examined. We used an unbalanced panel data analysis with a random effect generalized least squares. We investigated the effect of government support policies on 4368 Korean start-ups. The findings indicated that technology and knowledge capabilities had positive effects on the sales performance of start-ups, and government financial support positively affected the relationship between knowledge capability and firm performance. However, when government financial support increased, marketing capability was negatively associated with firm performance. These results demonstrate the significant role of government financial support, including its crowding in but also its crowding out effect. Practical implications: To be more effective, governments should employ innovation-driven entrepreneurship policy approaches to support start-ups. To improve their performance, start-ups need to increase their technology and knowledge capabilities. This study extends recent efforts to understand more fully the effect of government support policies on start-ups differing in their technology, knowledge, and marketing capabilities.


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