Effect of knowledge management on software product experience with mediating effect of perceived software process improvement: An empirical study for Indian software industry
Restricted accessResearch articleFirst published online April, 2020
Effect of knowledge management on software product experience with mediating effect of perceived software process improvement: An empirical study for Indian software industry
The software development industry is characterised by swift innovation and competition. To survive, software engineering (SE) organisations need to develop high-quality software products in a timely fashion and at low cost. Knowledge-based approaches to software development are extremely supportive to acquiring new knowledge and leveraging existing knowledge from software projects; this enables constant improvement of software development practices. In this empirical study of Indian SE organisations, we study the impact of managing knowledge for perceived software process improvement (PSPI) and its effect on software product quality. Information technology (IT) in knowledge management (KM) is an important facilitator for any SE organisation desiring to exploit evolving technologies for management of their knowledge assets and for carrying out various KM processes of knowledge capture, storage, retrieval and sharing. Surveys collected from Indian SE organisations were analysed to propose a model using a structured equation modelling (SEM) technique. Our findings reveal that the relation between KM and quality of software product is positively mediated by PSPI. These findings reinforce an arena that is of growing importance to researchers and practitioners and which has seen only a limited number of empirical studies to date in the context of Indian SE organisations.
BergmannR.Experience management: foundations, development methodology, and internet-based applications. Berlin: Springer-Verlag, 2002.
3.
AlaviMLeidnerDE.Knowledge management and knowledge management systems: conceptual foundations and research issues. Manag Inf Syst Q2001; 25: 107–136.
4.
DavenportTHLawrenceP.Working knowledge: how organizations manage what they know. Boston, MA: Harvard Business School Press, 1998, pp. 1–15.
5.
PonelisSFairer WesselsFA.Knowledge management: a literature overview. South African J Libr Inf Sci1998; 66: 1–9.
6.
RugglesR.The state of the notion: knowledge management in practice. Calif Manage Rev1998; 40: 80–89.
7.
AurelieABechinaANdlelaMN.Success factors in implementing knowledge based systems. J Knowl Manag2007; 7: 211–218.
8.
RusILindvallMSinhaS.Knowledge management in software engineering. IEEE Softw2002; 19: 26–38.
9.
SabherwalRJeyarajAChowaC.Information system success: individual and organizational determinants. Manage Sci2006; 52: 1849–1864.
10.
LópezSPManuelJPeónM, et al. Information technology as an enabler of knowledge management: an empirical analysis. Knowl Manag Organ Learn2009; 4: 111–129.
11.
MorenoVCavazotteF.Using information systems to leverage knowledge management processes: the role of work context, job characteristics and task-technology fit. Procedia Comput Sci2015; 55: 360–369.
12.
ChopraNSinghAPathakV, et al. Knowledge management: a catalyst for the phenomenal growth in IT business processes. In: KrishnanA (ed.) Cases on quality initiatives for organizational longevity. Hershey, PA: IGI Global, 2018, pp. 170–195.
13.
De VasconcelosJBKimbleCCarreteiroP, et al. The application of knowledge management to software evolution. Int J Inf Manage2017; 37: 1499–1506.
14.
WardJAurumA. Knowledge management in software engineering – describing the process. In: Australian software engineering conference (ASWEC’04), Melbourne, VIC, Australia, 13–16 April 2004, pp. 137–146. New York: IEEE Computer Society.
15.
AshrafiN.The impact of software process improvement on quality: in theory and practice. Inf Manag2003; 40: 677–690.
16.
SernaMESernaAA.Ontology for knowledge management in software maintenance. Int J Inf Manage2014; 34: 704–710.
17.
KitchenhamBPfleegerSL.Software quality: the elusive target. IEEE Softw1996; 13: 12–21.
18.
SanchezRMahoneyJT.Modularity, flexibility, and knowledge management in product and organization. Strateg Manag J1996; 17: 63–76.
19.
KoriatNGelbardR.Knowledge sharing motivation among IT personnel: integrated model and implications of employment contracts. Int J Inf Manage2014; 34: 577–591.
20.
LinT-CShengWLuC-T.Exploring the affect factors of knowledge sharing behavior: the relations model theory perspective. Expert Syst Appl2012; 39: 751–764.
21.
MejiaJMuñozEMuñozM.Reinforcing the applicability of multi-model environments for software process improvement using knowledge management. Sci Comput Program2016; 121: 3–15.
22.
KhosraviAHussinARCNilashiM.Toward software quality enhancement by Customer Knowledge Management in software companies. Telemat Informatics2018; 35: 18–37.
23.
SernaMEBachillerSOSernaAA.Knowledge meaning and management in requirements engineering. Int J Inf Manage2017; 37: 155–161.
24.
HumphreyWS.Managing the software process. 1st ed. Reading, MA: Addison-Wesley, 1989.
25.
CugolaGGhezziC.Software processes: a retrospective and a path to the future. Softw Process Improv Pract1998; 4: 101–123.
26.
SharmaNSinghKGoyalDP.An empirical investigation of critical success factors for km implementation in software organizations through factor analysis. Int J Recent Trends Eng Technol2011; 6: 67–70.
27.
MitchellSMSeamanCB.Could removal of project-level knowledge flow obstacles contribute to software process improvement? A study of software engineer perceptions. Inf Softw Technol2016; 72: 151–170.
28.
De SouzaÉFFalboRDAVijaykumarNL. Knowledge management initiatives in software testing: a mapping study. Inf Softw Technol2015; 57: 378–391.
29.
AnquetilNde OliveiraKMde SousaKD, et al. Software maintenance seen as a knowledge management issue. Inf Softw Technol2007; 49: 515–529.
30.
WeinreichRGroherI.Software architecture knowledge management approaches and their support for knowledge management activities: a systematic literature review. Inf Softw Technol2016; 80: 265–286.
31.
AurumADaneshgarFWardJ.Investigating knowledge management practices in software development organisations – an Australian experience. Inf Softw Technol2008; 50: 511–533.
32.
García-MirelesGAMoragaMÁGarcíaF, et al. Approaches to promote product quality within software process improvement initiatives: a mapping study. J Syst Softw2015; 103: 150–166.
33.
AlmomaniMABasriSKamilA.Empirical study of software process improvement in Malaysian small and medium enterprises: the human aspects. J Softw Evol Process2018; 30: e1953.
34.
AnantatmulaVSKanungoS.Modeling enablers for successful KM implementation. J Knowl Manag2010; 14: 100–113.
35.
ZackM.What knowledge-problems can information technology help to solve? In: Americas Conference on information systems, 31 December 1998, p. 4. Baltimore, MD: Academic Press.
36.
KulkarniURRavindranSFreezeR.A knowledge management success model: theoretical development and empirical validation. J Manag Inf Syst2006; 23: 309–347.
37.
Rodríguez-EliasOMMartínez-GarcíaAIVizcaínoA, et al. A framework to analyze information systems as knowledge flow facilitators. Inf Softw Technol2008; 50: 481–498.
38.
SharmaNSinghKGoyalDP. Is technology universal panacea for knowledge and experience management? Answers from Indian IT sector. In: Communications in computer and information science, Grenoble, 28–30 March 2012, pp. 187–198. Berlin: Springer.
39.
RavindranSIyerGS.Organizational and knowledge management related antecedents of knowledge use: the moderating effect of ambiguity tolerance. Inf Technol Manag2014; 15: 271–290.
40.
SherPJLeeVC.Information technology as a facilitator for enhancing dynamic capabilities through knowledge management. Inf Manag2004; 41: 933–945.
41.
MerloTR.Factors influencing knowledge management use in technology enterprises in southern United States. Procedia Comput Sci2016; 99: 15–35.
StraubDW.Validating Instruments in MIS Research. MIS Quart1989; 13: 147–169.
44.
DybåT.Factors of software process improvement success in small and large organizations. ACM SIGSOFT Softw Eng Notes2003; 28: 148–157.
45.
JonesELISundaramSChinW.Factors leading to sales force automation use: a longitudinal analysis. J Pers Sell Sales Manag2002; 22: 145–156.
46.
CortinaJM.What is coefficient alpha? An examination of theory and applications. J Appl Psychol1993; 78: 98–104.
47.
PodsakoffPMMacKenzieSBLeeJY, et al. Common method biases in behavioral research: a critical review of the literature and recommended remedies. J Appl Psychol2003; 88: 879–903.
48.
SiemsenERothAOliveiraP.Common method bias in regression models with linear, quadratic, and interaction effects. Organ Res Methods2010; 13: 456–476.
49.
ByrneBM.Structural equation modeling with AMOS basic concepts, applications and programming. 2nd ed.New York: Taylor & Francis, 2010.
50.
NunnallyJBernsteinI.Psychometric theory. 3rd ed.New York: McGraw Hill, 1994.
51.
HairJFBlackWCBabinBJ, et al. Multivariate data analysis. 7th ed.Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall, 2010.
52.
GefenDStraubDWBoudreauM-C.Structural equation modeling and regression: guidelines for research practice. Commun Assoc Inf Syst2000; 4: 7.
53.
HuLTBentlerPM.Cutoff criteria for fit indexes in covariance structure analysis: conventional criteria versus new alternatives. Struct Equ Model1999; 6: 1–55.
54.
WheatonBMuthénBAlwinFD, et al. Assessing reliability and stability in panel models. Sociol Methodol1977; 8: 84–136.
KautzKBjerknesGHansen HansenB. A balanced theory of knowledge management in software process improvement. In: Australian conference on information systems, Hobart, TAS, Australia, 4–6 December 2017, pp. 1–12. Sydney, NSW, Australia: Australasian Conference on Information Systems.
57.
NiaziMWilsonDZowghiD.Critical success factors for software process improvement implementation: an empirical study. Softw Process Improv Pract2006; 11: 193–211.
58.
KochikarVPYegneshwarS.Using Web-basedtechnologies to and support learningneeds in a high-growth, knowledge-based industry. In: 30th ASEE/IEEE frontiers in education conference, Kansas City, MO, 18–21 October 2000, pp. 1–7. New York: IEEE.
59.
RamasubramanianSJagadeesanG.Knowledge management at Infosys. IEEE Softw2002; 19: 53–55.
60.
ChatzkelJ.Establishing a global KM initiative: the WIPRO story. J Knowl Manag2004; 8: 6–18.
61.
AlagarsamyKJustusSIyakuttiK. The knowledge based software process improvement program: a rational analysis. In: International conference on software engineering advances (ICSEA), St. Raphael, 25–31 August 2007, pp. 61–67. New York: IEEE.
TalibAMAbdullahRAtanR, et al. MASK-SM: multi-agent system based knowledge management system to support knowledge sharing of software maintenance knowledge environment. Comput Inf Sci2010; 3: 52.
64.
HansenMTNohriaNTierneyT.What’s your strategy for managing knowledge?Harv Bus Rev1999; 77: 106–116.
