C2M: a maturity model for the evaluation of communication in distributed software development

Communication is essential in any software development project, particularly those globally distributed where geographical, temporal, and cultural distance may hinder the effectiveness of communication. The challenges imposed by distance often characterize communication as still one of the main drawbacks of globally distributed projects. Therefore, establishing communication processes and practices is relevant to support a team's work. These processes and practices need to be updated and aligned with the team's needs. Thus, assessing and evaluating the maturity of such communication processes and practices is paramount. This article presents a Communication Maturity Model called C2M which aims to help organizations identify the maturity of communication-related aspects by providing an approach for revealing what practices need to be improved. The model is composed of 4 levels of maturity (causal, partially managed, managed and reflective) and 4 areas of maturity (people, project, organizational and engineering) which are organized into 15 maturity factors, each factor comprising a set of practices. The model has 58 practices and each has its specific objectives. The model was empirically developed and evaluated in three well-defined phases. In the conception phase, methodological procedures (Tertiary Study, Systematic Literature Review, and Interviews) were carried out in order to gather relevant information for designing the first version of the C2M model (alpha version). Then, in the refinement phase, two focus group meetings were held in two organizations in order to identify how effectively the model attends its purpose. The results led to a second version of the C2M model (beta version), analyzed by a survey with experts who assessed the representation of the third version of the C2M model-omega version (evaluation phase). All results achieved so far suggest that the model can assist in discovering the maturity level of the communication processes and practices in globally distributed projects. Future works will focus on developing a software tool to help with self-assessment.

Displacement Estimation Error in Laser Scanning Monitoring of Retaining Structures Considering Roughness

Point clouds were obtained after laser scanning of the concrete panel, SMW, and sheet pile which is most widely used in retaining structures. The surface condition of the point cloud affects the displacement calculation, and hence both local roughness and global curvature of each point cloud were analyzed using the different sizes of the kernel. The curvature of the three retaining structures was also analyzed by the azimuth angle. In this paper, artificial displacements are generated for the point clouds of 100%, 80%, 60%, 40%, and 20% of the retaining structures, and displacement and analysis errors were calculated using the C2C, C2M, and M3C2 methods. C2C method is affected by the resolution of the point cloud, and the C2M method underestimates the displacement by the location of the points in the curvature of the retaining structures. M3C2 method had the lowest error, and the optimized M3C2 parameters for analyzing the displacement were presented.

Customer Behavior on Purchasing Channels of Sustainable Customized Garment With Perceived Value and Product Involvement

Online shopping for customized garments has become the fastest-growing field of the Chinese eBusiness market. Most consumers not only limit themselves to buying standardized garments but also want to buy garments customized to their preferences. This phenomenon has pushed the fashion textile and apparel industry to change its supply chain operations to meet the customization demand. Besides, the fashion textile and apparel industry also want to study how different channel factors will affect consumers' perceived value and further influence consumers' purchasing decisions. We initiated this study and empirically tested more than 200 experienced consumers. This study collaborated with a fashion textile and apparel company that aims to implement customized product lines soon. Based on the perceived value theory and risk management theory, we investigated whether product involvement and channel identification on supply chain design will affects potential customized product consumers' purchasing decisions. The findings reveal that channel recognition affects consumer decisions by having a positive impact on their perceived value. The perceived risk and shopping channel involvement of consumers have a negative impact on their perceived values and channel selections. In addition, product involvement has a moderating effect on the relationship between channel's perceived risk, perceived values, and channel selections as well.