Logistics support planning model in the conditions of limited resources

Introduction/purpose: The paper presents a model of logistics support planning in the conditions of limited logistic resources based on the prioritization of customer requirements and resource allocation. Decisionmakers play a crucial role in the efficient and equitable allocation of resources as they prioritize among different user requirements. Methods: Requirement prioritization techniques that use nominal scale, ordinal scale, and ratio scale, and five methods for converting ranks into weighting coefficients have been applied to determine the degree of significance of user requirements. The Requirements triage method has been used for establishing relative priorities, while the heuristic algorithm determining the Kemeny median was used to consolidate individually ranked requests into a group rank. In order to balance opposing demands of users, consensus measures of group decision making were used. For obtaining an optimal planned solution of logistic support, the methods and techniques of resource allocation were applied. Results: A model for adaptive planning of logistics support in the conditions of limited resource capacities of the logistics system has been developed. Conclusion: The proposed model can be effectively applied in other areas of resource allocation.

Analysis and Classification of Requirements Specification for Web Application Development: A Case Study Approach

In this paper, we formulated, designed, implemented and evaluated a model used for classifying stakeholders' requirements that are specified for web application development. The study employed both qualitative and quantitative research approaches in a case study. Requirements were elicited from stakeholders using the interview approach. This involved speaking with the stakeholders directly via groupware and asking them questions about their specific needs that are relevant to the development of web application. In particular, 10 customers of Procrea8 Technology Solution Limited and 9 developers were used as respondents. An interactive genetic algorithm was used to formulate the model. The design was specified using the Unified Modeling Language (UML) tool, and implemented using specified web technology tools. The model was evaluated for completeness and consistency using recall and precision as parameters. The results showed that a list of ordered requirements was produced based on the stakeholders' priorities inputted into the model. The output indicated the order of priorities finally assigned to each of the requirements. The evaluation revealed that the model is effective, efficient, userfriendly, reliable (with 96.3% accuracy), scalable (prioritized over 500 requirements), less timeconsuming (prioritizing over 500 requirements) and able to update ranks whenever changes occur automatically. Also, the model evaluation indicates 97.1% precision (consistency), and 96.0% recall (completeness). The study shows that requirements engineers could use the model to collate stakeholders’ requirements from wide geographical locations. Keywords: Requirements analysis, requirement prioritization, requirements engineering, web application, requirement specification.

Guideline for the Selection of Requirement Prioritization Techniques in Agile Software Development: An Empirical Research

Prioritization is an essential process in any software development. Moreover in Agile, Requirement Prioritization (RP) needs more formal process because it is difficult to maintain priority after requirement change. Changes in the priority list are a continuous process in Agile Software Development (ASD) hence, the ignorance of critical requirements during prioritization will result several problems like unsatisfied client and poor quality of product. Moreover, there is little empirical knowledge on the state of the practice and contemporary problems exist in choosing best prioritization technique after the requirement change in Agile. To achieve this objective a guideline for the selection of RP technique is needed. Hence, the empirical research is used as a methodology for the evaluation of the requirement prioritization techniques practiced in Agile. The aim of this study is to determine RP techniques used in software industry and identify aspect or evaluation criteria to choose the best RP technique according to the environment. This study conducts an empirical study of requirement prioritization after requirement change in Agile, based on the responses from 137 Agile software practitioner representing around 31 organizations in Pakistan. The results reveal the main decision makers in the process of RP, prioritization technique after requirement change in Agile with the evaluation criteria and aspects to perform requirement prioritization. These findings will serve as a foundation to provide a guideline for selecting suitable requirement prioritization techniques in Agile which can help software practitioners to choose appropriate prioritization techniques during the process of requirement change in Agile.