Paper Sample: The Role and Influence of User in Software Development

The user has a significant role and influence in software development. User involvement in information system development is often considered useful in enhancing system quality and its success. According to Geambasu et al. (2016), the user determines innovative activities that promote business success in today's competitive and ever-changing environment. The user influences the selection of software development requirements to meet customer needs and expectations. Users can give detailed information about software development, as developers recognize the changing market situation. Sun (2017) suggests that the user’s role and influence in software development has led to successful projects since developers know how to attain customer satisfaction.

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When software developers involve end-users in their projects, they allow them to cooperate with the team and identify their needs and expectations. Nguyen (2016) argues that the user is useful in controlling the workflow and helping developers with innovative technologies to ensure customer satisfaction. The user helps developers improve the customer experience as they view the software from an end-user perspective. In this way, they build up user experience with the new software. Geambasu et al. (2016) suggest that the user influences the software demand as they advocate for the software and demonstrate its effectiveness to colleagues. Users gain a lot of knowledge about the software by interacting with developers; therefore, they help potential users understand how to use it.

Large software development projects are funded by several financiers who often have an advisory board and a steering committee. The user controls the advisory board by influencing the project leader's views of the software. In essence, the user advises software developers about financial resources; thus, regulating the advisory board's activities. Sun (2017) suggests that the user allows system developers to split the team into smaller functional groups to improve performance. Thus, the user influences software developers to adopt more practical methods, like agile development, which emphasizes end-user involvement. While the user represents the stakeholders and clients, they guide developers to ensure software efficiency. Users often have the mandate to daily decision-making; thus, they understand various problems that the software would solve. In this regard, they determine potential clients' attitudes toward the new software.

The user also influences developers' support that they would gain from stakeholders. Nguyen (2016) argues that it can be beneficial to organize a stakeholder meeting when a choice has to be made from scientific methods. In this regard, the user provides several alternatives from which software developers should choose. This saves time for stakeholder meetings and minimizes software projects' completion time. The user controls the design phase since the user interface is evaluated according to the end-users. Thus, they ensure that the software meets the client's primary needs since developers understand the new technological trends. Sun (2017) suggests that users influence developers' ability to implement successful software since they understand the time and deliverables needed for a specific task.

Most importantly, the user determines quality assurance in software development. Geambasu et al. (2016) suggest that users are crucial testers of the software, as they determine its quality. Enhancing a quality deliverable is one of the user's vital roles since they work collaboratively with the functional analyst in testing the software. According to Geambasu et al. (2016), the user's role, performance quality assurance, determines whether the developers execute the software according to the scope. Thus, the user tests and determines the software's ability to meet its primary purpose.

References

Geambasu, C. V., Jianu, I., Jianu, I., & Gavrila, A. (2016). Influence factors for the choice of a software development methodology. Accounting and Management Information Systems, 10(4), 479-494. ftp://ftp.repec.org/opt/ReDIF/RePEc/ami/articles/10_4_3.pdf

Nguyen, D. S. (2016). Success factors that influence agile software development project success. American Scientific Research Journal for Engineering, Technology, and Sciences (ASRJETS), 17(1), 171-222. https://www.asrjetsjournal.org/index.php/American_Scientific_Journal/article/download/1425/713/

Sun, Z. (2017, March). User involvement in the system development process. In Proceedings of the 2nd International Conference on Computer Science and Electronics Engineering. Atlantis Press. https://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/viewdoc/download?doi=10.1.1.823.3265&rep=rep1&type=pdf