The impact of national culture on software engineering practices

Abstract

Trends that have contributed to the globalisation of the software engineering industry include virtual collaborative teams, off-shore outsourcing, and international migration of IT professionals. These three trends and the international spread of software engineering standards and methodologies are explored with specific examples from the Australian software engineering industry. Results from a Europe/Australia study about adoption of software best practice conducted in 16 countries are then summarised and analysed using Hofstede’s cultural dimensions. The discussion considers the efficacy of the concept ‘national culture’ in light of the analysis and concludes that software engineering researchers need to reconsider the concept and measurement of national culture. Implications of the globalisation of software engineering standards and methodologies on various stakeholders are discussed.