Software development for embedded systems: significantly faster time-to-market

The Challenge | An international, top ten manufacturer of embedded systems complains of steadily increasing delays in the software development cycle. The ever greater time required between new product requests and market launches is impacting on the company’s competitiveness.

Our joint approach | An mm1 project manager analyzes the software development process using aspects of Lean-IT, as well as methods such as the “mm1 waste check”. The result is a list of the main causes of delays and loss of efficiency. In conjunction with the customer, the project manager creates a package of measures to be implemented. The package sets out detailed improvements, particularly in the areas of requirements management and release planning. Then, clear, standard guidelines are defined and implemented for company employees and external service providers. In addition, mm1 Consulting & Management designs the necessary adjustments to central processes, and defines new tools for requirements management, release planning, and issue tracking. Specific support is provided in phases that are critical for success during the installation of and training for the new systems. As a result, the company increases its number of releases from three to five within a year, while the length of time between requests and implementation falls by a total of 34 percent.