The impact on staff of the implementation of PVCS technology with particular reference to requirements gathering

This paper sets out the experiences of the staff of Optimal Systems Ltd. in using PVCS (Tracker and Version Manager modules) to support communication flow within the organisation. The process was supported by ESSI as the SEPIE project, Number 27469. Optimal Systems Ltd is a Dublin based company that is engaged in the design, development and delivery of application software for the electrical supply industry world-wide. Positive staff reaction is critical to the successful implementation of new technologies. The experiment is an 11 month project that commenced in July 1998 and is scheduled for completion in June 1999. This paper focuses on the impact on staff on the use of the new technology and their assessment of how it contributes to improving the development process. Particular emphasis is placed on the contribution of PVCS to the requirements development process, which is of particular concern to Optimal.