1. www.itu.dk SPI versus SPI Galina Hansen PhD Student Email: galina@itu.dk

2. www.itu.dk The Problem Assumption: Software Process Innovation (SPI) – the adoption of new tools and methods for software development (Gallivan, 1996) = Software Process Improvement (SPI) - a continuous and evolutionary approach to improve a software organization’s capability to develop quality software in response to customer requirements (McFeeley, 1996). Software Product Innovation (SPI) – a product, a service or an idea that somebody perceives as new (Kotler, 1998) Software Process Improvement requires a Discipline that can have a negative impact on Creativity as a drive for innovation. A survival of a modern organization depends on how good they are to find the balance between Discipline and Creativity.

3. www.itu.dk The Research Question Why doesn’t efficiency inhibit innovation in software organizations? If it does not - what impact does it have on an organizational strategy in a given context?

4. www.itu.dk The Research Method The method chosen for this study is Action Research. This method is widely recommended by IS researchers as an ideally appropriated method to the study of technology in a human perspective, and basically SPI is aimed at introducing process-oriented change and innovation into the human work place. Action research is an empirical research method, where a researcher’s goal is to help practitioners to solve a realistic problem as well as to give input and enrich a theory.

5. www.itu.dk The Contribution First, on knowledge on Software Process Improvement and Software Innovation by exploring the contradiction and similarity of those two paradigms. Second, it will inspire for further research in order to explore how to find the balance between SPI (software process improvement) – SPI (software product innovation).

6. www.itu.dk References McFeeley, B. "IDEAL: A User's Guide for Software Process Improvement," CMU/SEI-96-HB-001, Software Engineering Institute, Pittsburgh, PA, February 1996. Michael J. Gallivan (1996) Strategies for Implementing New Software Processes: An Evaluation of a Contingency Framework Kotler, P. (1998) Marketing Management: Analysis, Planning, Implementation and Control