Software product lines adoption in small organizations

Abstract Context An increasing number of studies has demonstrated improvements in product quality, and time-to-market reductions when Software Product Line (SPL) engineering is introduced. However, despite the amount of successful stories about the use of SPL engineering, there is a lack of guidelines to support its adoption, especially to small-sized software organizations. Objective The aim of this study is to investigate SPL adoption in small organizations and to improve the generalization of evidence through the use of a multi-method approach. Method This paper reports on a multi-method study, where results from a mapping study, industrial case study and also expert opinion survey were considered to identify a set of findings. Results The study provides a better understanding of SPL adoption in the context of small to medium-sized organizations, by documenting evidence observed during the transition from single-system development to an SPL approach. This evidence is strengthened by the use of different research methods, which results in 22 findings regarding to the SPL adoption. Conclusion This research has synthesized the available evidence in SPL adoption and identifies gaps between required strategies, organizational structures, maturity level and existing adoption barriers. These findings are an important step to establish guidelines for SPL adoption.