Progress, obstacles, and opportunities in software engineering economics

Nearly a decade of Workshops on Information Systems and Economics (WISE) have examined a wide range of research topics. These include a number of what could be termed “demand-side” topics, which focus on the effective use of information technology, such as IT-induced changes to markets, and “supplyside” topics, which focus on the efficient provision of IT resources. Software engineering economics (SEE) spans both groups, but it has generally been the most dominant topic within the supply area. While the economics of hardware have been relatively ignored in the management research literature, given industry’s ability to continually provide faster, smaller hardware at ever-decreasing prices, software has been an entirely different matter. Software costs continue to be significant, and industry’s understanding of how to reduce them has improved only very slowly in contrast to hardware. This dilemma has merited a significant amount of research attention, and the consequent research findings tend to have important practical applications. Chris F. Kemerer Progress, Obstacles, and Opportunities in Software Engineering Economics