System Dynamics Simulation to Support Decision Making in Software Development Project

Almost all of the software development managers have to face such dilemma: recruitment or overwork to meet the deadline. How to place the right number of people at right place at right time to fulfill project objects is a great challenge to them. Furthermore initial estimation of project parameters base on their work experiences often lead to counter-intuitive results. In this work, we investigate a system dynamics simulation to capture the impact factors of recruitment and overwork on the degree of project completion. Through exposing dynamic behavior, simulation results can guide managers to evaluate different project policies and then make the best decision.