The increasing success and user satisfaction of agile methods’ application in their original context (eg small co-located teams), motivated large organizations to utilize agile methods to deal with the rapidly changing markets and the distributed global workforce. Several studies have reported a variety of quality requirements (QRs) challenges in large-scale distributed agile (LSDA) context, so a recent empirical study has identified 15 QRs challenges in LSDA projects. This paper proposes an approach based on the concept of goal documentation to deal with the 15 QRs challenges reported previously. Our proposal, the Agile Quality Requirements Elaboration (AQRE) approach, introduces a new organizational role and a two-step process to elaborate high-level goals (s) into epics and user stories alongside QRs. The fitness and the usefulness of AQRE are evaluated by using a focus group with eight practitioners in the IT department of a large Dutch government organization. The evaluation indicated that 12 of the 15 QRs challenges could be mitigated by the AQRE. Our main contribution is two-fold,(i) we proposed a solution approach to deal with QRs challenges in LSDA context, and (ii) our evaluation provided empirical evidence about its usefulness in realworld context.

Quality Requirements (QRs) pose challenges in many agile large-scale distributed enterprise systems. Often, enterprises counter such challenges by borrowing some heavyweight practices, e.g. adding more documentation. At the same time, agile methodologists proposed several scaled agile frameworks to specifically serve agile enterprises working on large and distributed systems. Little is known about the extent to which the proposed scaled frameworks address QRs and the specific ways in which this happens. Moreover, do these frameworks approach the QRs challenges in ways consistent with the Agile Manifesto? This paper treats these questions by analyzing one well-documented scaled framework, namely Scrum@Scale. We evaluated the alignment of Scrum@Scale with the Agile Manifesto, by means of the 4-Dimentional Analytical Tool proposed by other researchers. We then analyzed the practices of Scrum@Scale from the perspective of practitioners responsible for the QRs in a project, in order to understand how the Scrum@Scale practices mitigate those QRs challenges reported in previous work. Our analysis indicated that Scrum@Scale supports the agile values defined by the Agile Manifesto. Plus, we identified 12 Scrum@Scale practices that could (partially) mitigate one or more of the reported QRs challenges. Four of the reported QRs challenges got no remedy offered by Scrum@Scale.

Published empirical research using agile practitioners’ perceptions indicated several important Quality Requirements (QRs) challenges experienced in agile large-scale distributed projects. It also indicated that a popular solution approach to those challenges is to inject some heavyweight practices into agile, for example adding documentation or roles of authorities for QRs. At the same time, agile methodologists proposed several scaled agile frameworks to specifically serve agile organizations working on large and distributed projects. How do these frameworks address QRs? Do they put forward any heavyweight practices as a solution to QRs challenges, or do they invent new agile practices fully aligned with the values of the Agile Manifesto? Currently, very little is known about the extent to which the QRs issues are accounted for in the design of these frameworks as proposed by agile methodologists. This paper attempts to narrow this gap of knowledge. It analyses Large-Scale Scrum (LeSS), a prominent scaled framework, from the perspective of QRs engineering and the Agile Manifesto’s values. To this end, we first applied the 4-Dimensional Analytical Tool to evaluate the degree of agility of the practices of the LeSS framework. We then analysed these practices and evaluated their applicability to mitigate the QRs challenges reported in previous work.

In the last few years, agile development methods are getting increasingly popular in large-scale distributed contexts. Despite this popularity, empirical studies have reported several challenges that large-scale distributed agile projects face regarding the implementation of quality requirements. However, there is little known about the mechanisms behind those challenges and the practices currently used by agile practitioners to adequately assure the implementation of quality requirements in distributed context. To look deeper into this, we performed a qualitative multi-case study in six different organizations in the Netherlands. Our multi-case study included seventeen semi-structured open-ended in-depth interviews with agile practitioners of different background and expertise. The analysis of the collected data re-sulted in identifying eleven mechanisms that could be associated with the previously published list of challenges. Moreover, the analysis uncovered nine practices used by agile practitioners as solutions to the challenges, in order to ensure the implementation of quality requirements. Last, we have mapped the identified mechanisms and practices to the previously identified challenges to get insight into the possible cause and mitigation of those challenges.

Agile software development methods have become increasingly popular in the last years. Despite their popularity, they have been criticized for focusing on delivering functional requirements and neglecting the quality requirements. Several studies have reported this shortcoming. However, there is little known about the challenges organizations currently face when dealing with quality requirements. Based on a qualitative exploratory case study, this research investigated real life large-scale distributed Agile projects to understand the challenges Agile teams face regarding quality requirements. Eighteen semi-structured open-ended in-depth interviews were conducted with Agile practitioners representing six different organizations in the Netherlands. Based on the analysis of the collected data, we have identified nine challenges Agile practitioners face when engineering quality requirements in large-scale distributed Agile projects that could harm the implementation of the quality requirements and result in neglecting them.