CSI Extenda 2009 and request for participation in a research project

Dear Centre for Software Innovation newsletter subscribers,

We have recently updated our mailing list adding a large number of new companies and individuals we have been working with. Welcome to you all. If we have inadvertently added your name in error, please note the unsubscribe information at the end of this newsletter.

We have two pressing opportunities we would like to make you aware of.

Extenda programme for 2009

We are about to launch our Extenda programme for 2009 and are looking for companies to participate. Extenda helps companies develop technology road mapping (TRM) skills so they can better match their products and services to market needs. Our approach is a novel one, as it uses teams of postgraduate students, drawn from Science, Engineering and Business departments plus an experienced mentor/facilitator to build TRM skills in the company. This is achieved by the University team facilitating the development of a TRM with the company’s senior management. How it works:

• You select a cross-organisational team from within your company and a product or service opportunity to roadmap.
• Your team receives a briefing on the TRM process.
• Your team has five brainstorming sessions with the University team, working from market needs, through product features, technology platforms and projects, capability and research needs and on to the roadmap itself.
• Your team generates both a technology roadmap and also a skill set in undertaking technology road mapping for use in subsequent strategy development
• Your team also has the opportunity to attend two lectures on product innovation by Craig Mudge, ex Xerox Parc now based in Australia, who is contributing to the programme.

The programme runs from late July through to October. Cost for participation is $6000 which may be partially subsidised by a TechNZ capability fund grant.

If you are interested please email John Hosking (john@cs.auckland.ac.nz),  CSI Director, asap. More details (and an online registration of interest form) are on our website (www.csi.ac.nz).

Request for participation in a research project

We are pleased to pass on the following request from Assoc Professor Emilia Mendes and Dr. Giles Burch in the Faculty of Science at the University of Auckland for participation in a project likely to be of interest to CSI subscribers:

Dear Software developer/project manager/team leader,

We are emailing you to invite your participation in a research project looking at the effects of personality on software development teams’ productivity and climate.

The project, funded by the University of Auckland (New Zealand) under the Faculty of Science Faculty Development Fund, aims to investigate on the effect of personality composition of software development teams on team performance and climate, and the specific objectives of the research are to examine:

• The effect of team leader’s personality on team performance and climate;
• The effect of team members’ personalities on team performance and climate;
• The effect of heterogeneity of personalities on team performance and climate.

The sources of data in this research are three questionnaires:

• The Eysenck Personality Profiler (EPP), to be used to measure personality traits;
• The Team Climate Inventory (TCI), to be used to measure team climate;
• The six performance measures questionnaire, to be used to measure team performance.

Participation will involve answering the three questionnaires, which can last from 40 minutes to 1 hour. As a token of appreciation for participating in this research each participant will enter a draw for two Amazon gift cards each worth USD 100.

Your participation in this research is voluntary (you do not have to take part) and you may withdraw from the research within a month from when you have agreed to participate, without giving a reason.

The results obtained will be made available to all participating companies, and can be used to inform software development organisations about the most effective personality combinations to achieve high performance and climate. Such information can be used by project managers to allocate resources to projects more effectively.

To access this survey, and hence consent to participate in this research, please go to the link below:

http://www.cs.auckland.ac.nz/survey/

If you have any queries or wish to know more please do not hesitate to contact Associate Professor Emilia Mendes (emilia@cs.auckland.ac.nz), or Dr. Giles Burch (g.burch@auckland.ac.nz).

Thank you very much for your time and help in making this study possible.

Associate Professor Emilia Mendes and Dr. Giles Burch