Software (Product) Development Example Model

Small model on product development (in this case Consideo's improvement of the iMODELER's data import functionality) and how to use same basic features of the iMODELER that come with version 6 - like change of perspectives, use of categories and filters and some of the analysis functionality as the new bar charts and the benefit from the new weighting.

The overall model from the perspective of the central factor "successful enterprise". One of the new buttons on the bottom left of the iMODELER allows to switch between a compressed view - as shown here - and and uncompressed view as the slide before showed.

Another of the new buttons on the bottom left of the iMODELER allows to switch between a vertical that you see here and a horizontal alignment.

Another of the new buttons on the bottom left of the iMODELER allows reduce the levels of connections that are shown - as in this case just two levels. Once you have used this button you get two additional buttons that allow to increase, decrease or show all levels of connections.

Finally two of the new buttons on the bottom left just moved there from the top left. The allow to navigate through the different perspectives you have chosen through clicking on a factor and then on the button to its right.

With iMODELER 6 you get a more powerful way of qualitatively weighting connections. Although it is still simply saying that something has a comparable weak, medium or strong impact, you can now not just indicate whether the impact develops with a delay over time. Now you can indicate whether it is increasing, decreasing or even going up and down or down and up by explicitly setting weightings for all three time steps, the short, the medium and the long term. This development of an impact over time is then shown with the arrows through a small symbol.

Without saying something to the content of the model so far here you can see that one of the three resources that a allocated to the task of developing a more powerful import functionality can be put into the center of perspective to see what he or she has to do.

For each factor it is possible to assign quantitative attribute, e.g. the current state. Thus you can show with its position how import a factor is, and with its size its current state.

Here it is just the long term development of impacts

The bar chart shows the most lucrative/important functions and indicates that some functionality seems to be even negative. Clicking on the "Show why" button it becomes clear that they cost more time than that they provide benefits

This model uses categories for the factors. Therefore it is possible to use filters e.g. to show just the needed functionality. You can choose just to see functionality, tasks, etc. as you might know from DRBFM or FMEA.