Managing globally distributed software development using virtual teams: A Middle East case study

Abstract

Software project development is increasingly becoming geographically distributed especially in today’s global business environment. In order to build quality software faster andat a lower cost, companies in industrialised countries are turning to globally distributed software development projects. Emerging countries such as India and Israel are known to have large pools of highly trained software engineers at relatively low cost. However, recent trends have shown that new locations are emerging as developmental sites. Examples of those locations in the Middle East include Oman, Dubai, Abu Dhabi and Qatar. The main attraction of those countries is that they are close to the Arab market. However, distributed development also entails a number of risks and problems, for instance in terms of communication and knowledge transfer between sites, resulting in project failures. Being the project manager of a team that includes remote members has additional challenges compared to managing co-located team members. These projects face particular challenges that need careful managerial attention.This research aims to examine how globally distributed software development projects are managed in the Middle East. The main question to be answered was “How do companies in the Middle East successfully manage and organise software development in a globally distributed environment?”. We outline the factors that were perceived as important by project managers. We also look at how culture affects the operation of virtual teams in a globally distributed software development environment in the Middle East taking religion into consideration. To understand how these factors influence the success of globally distributed software development projects in the Middle East, we conducted a qualitative case study research involving three different companies operating in Dubai, Oman, Abu Dhabi, India and Pakistan. We used semi-structured interviews as the primary sources of information as these allow highly personalised data. This research outlines the following specific project management-related areas that need to be addressed to facilitate successful virtual team operation: Cross-cultural collaboration • Tools and technology used to facilitate GSD • An infrastructure that facilitates communication between virtual teams • Effective project management