Orchestrating End-User Perspectives in the Software Release Process: An Integrated Release Management Framework

Abstract

Software bugs discovered by end-users are inevitable consequences of a vendor’s lack of testing. While they frequently result in costly system failures, one way to detect and prevent them is to engage the customer in acceptance testing during the release process. Yet, there is a considerable lack of empirical studies examining release management from end-users’ perspective. To address this gap, we propose and empirically test a release framework that positions the customer release manager in the center of the release process. Using a participatory action research strategy, a twenty-seven-month study was conducted to evaluate and improve the effectiveness of the framework through seven major and 39 minor releases.