• Study Findings: A study of 600 UK and US software engineers found that projects adopting Agile Manifesto practices are 268% more likely to fail than those that don't. Using a new Impact Engineering methodology can cut software project failure rates by 6.5 times. Adopting Impact Engineering could save $115bn USD annually in the US and £7bn GBP annually for British taxpayers.
• Agile Manifesto Practices: Three of the four practices in the Agile Manifesto (Working software over comprehensive documentation, Customer collaboration over contract negotiation, Responding to change over following a plan) have been found to have limited impact. Projects with clear specifications and requirements before development started were more likely to succeed.
• Impact Engineering Practices: Projects where software engineers felt psychologically safe to discuss and address problems quickly were 87% more likely to succeed. Projects with requirements accurately based on real-world problems were 54% more likely to succeed.
• Previous Research: Dr. Ali's previous research showed that 83% of software engineers feel burnout with "high workload" as the main reason. The Horizon IT system, which used an Agile methodology, was criticized for the absence of a robust requirements engineering process.
• Research Impact: The study comes in the wake of increasing public awareness of software failures. It shows that a robust requirements engineering process and psychological safety are crucial for delivering high-quality software on time and within budget.
• Book and Media: The book Impact Engineering is available on Amazon. Media images can be found with attribution to Nicola Bald Photography. For further information, contact the Engprax Ltd press office.
• Research & Data Tables: Tables show the success rates and failure rates of different engineering methodologies and practices. For example, Agile Requirements Engineering has a 65% failure rate and a 268% increase in failure when used. Impact Engineering has a 10% failure rate and a -56% increase in failure.
• Update (17th September 2024): Links to responses by Agile Manifesto co-authors regarding the research are provided.