SET – 1

PART – A (2 Marks Questions)

1. Define the term “artifact” and list its types.

An artifact is any tangible by-product produced during software development such as documents, models,
source code, test cases, or reports.
Artifacts represent project information and help in control, communication, and traceability.
Types of artifacts: Management artifacts, Engineering artifacts, and Programmatic artifacts.

2. Define Model-Based Software Architecture.

Model-Based Software Architecture is an approach that integrates architecture models with project
management models to support decision-making, planning, communication, and technical design using a
unified model-driven environment.
It uses UML, workflow models, and architecture diagrams to control software development.

3. Distinguish between Major Milestones and Minor Milestones.

Major Milestones Minor Milestones

Significant achievements marking completion of major Checkpoints for completion of smaller tasks within
phases phases

Involve formal review & management approval Internal team-level review

Used for Go/No-Go decisions Used to track routine progress

Example: Design phase completion Example: completion of login module

4. What is Cost Estimation?

Cost estimation is the process of predicting the total effort, time, and budget required to complete a software
project using techniques such as expert judgment, analogy, and models like COCOMO.

5. What are the Seven Core Metrics in Software Project Management?

The seven core metrics are a set of quantitative measures used for project control and quality assessment.
They include both management indicators and quality indicators.

6. List the Seven Core Metrics.

• Management Indicators:

1. Work & Progress

2. Budgeted Cost & Expenditures

3. Staffing & Team Dynamics

• Quality Indicators:

4. Change Traffic & Stability

5. Breakage & Modularity

6. Rework & Adaptability

7. Mean Time Between Failures (MTBF) & Maturity

7. Discuss the structure and benefits of Model-Based Software Architecture from both management and
technical perspectives.

Structure
Model-Based Software Architecture consists of:

• Software architecture models (system structure, components, connectors)

• Management models (tasks, schedules, resources)

• Integration between architecture and project plans

• Automated analysis, visualization, and simulation support

Management Perspective Benefits

• Improves coordination between teams

• Reduces risk through early visibility and control

• Enables automated progress tracking and change management

• Supports stakeholder involvement and real-time reporting

Technical Perspective Benefits

• Detects flaws early through visualization models

• Supports scalable architecture, reusability, and adaptability

• Enhances estimation accuracy and resource planning

• Ensures consistency across requirements, design, implementation, and testing

8. Describe the use of milestones and Work Breakdown Structures (WBS) in iterative process planning.

Milestones

• Used to track progress and validate performance throughout the lifecycle.

• Provide checkpoints to evaluate deliverables and make decisions.

• Major milestones review phase completion, minor milestones track detailed tasks.

Work Breakdown Structure (WBS)

• Hierarchical decomposition of work into manageable units.

• Basis for scheduling, estimation, and resource allocation.

• Helps in iteration planning by defining what must be accomplished in each cycle.

Role of Process Automation

• Automates workflows for Management, Requirements, Design, Implementation, Assessment,

• Supports change management, round-trip engineering, and metrics collection.

• Ensures traceability, consistency, and stakeholder access.

Role of Seven Core Metrics

• Provide quantitative control over schedule, quality, team performance, stability, and reliability.

• Help managers take corrective actions based on trends rather than assumptions.

• Improve risk management and forecasting accuracy.

10. a) Explain various process workflows and iteration workflows in software projects.

Process Workflows

Seven workflows: Management, Environment, Requirements, Design, Implementation, Assessment,

Iteration Workflows

• Iterations act as mini-projects

• Include planning, designing, coding, testing, deployment

• Deliver executable increments every cycle

b) What is a Line-of-Business (LOB) organization?

LOB organization is a hierarchical structure where employees are grouped by specialization such as
Development, Testing, Finance etc.

c) What is meant by next-generation software economics?

Next-generation software economics focuses on improving productivity, reducing cost and time through:

• Architecture-first, iterative development

• Automation

• Reusable components

• Efficient cost model separation between engineering and production phases

PART – A (2 Marks Questions)

1. What is the purpose of the Inception phase in the software life cycle?

The Inception phase establishes the project scope, business case, feasibility, and initial requirements. Its
purpose is to understand what the system must achieve and determine whether the project should proceed. It
focuses on identifying key risks, major functionalities, and initial architecture direction.

2. Define Engineering artifacts and give two examples.

Engineering artifacts are deliverables created during the software engineering process that describe technical
aspects of the system, such as requirements, architecture, design models, source code, and test cases.
Examples:

• UML design diagrams

• Source code modules

3. What is a periodic status assessment?

A Periodic Status Assessment is a regularly scheduled review to monitor project progress, cost, schedule, risks,
and quality, comparing actual performance with planned targets. It ensures corrective actions are taken when
needed.

4. Define Work Breakdown Structure (WBS).

A Work Breakdown Structure (WBS) is a hierarchical decomposition of the total project work into smaller,
manageable tasks to support planning, scheduling, tracking, and estimation.

5. What are automation building blocks?

Automation building blocks are tools and technologies used to automate software workflows such as
requirements management, design modeling tools, programming environments, testing tools, and change
management tools used across development.

6. What is meant by modern project profiles?

Modern project profiles describe the characteristics of modern iterative development that address issues with
conventional processes, including early risk resolution, continuous integration, evolutionary requirements, and
demonstration-based progress tracking.

PART – B (6 Marks Questions)

7. Explain the four phases of the software life cycle: Engineering stage, Production stage, Construction phase,
and Transition phase.

Phase Description

Engineering Focuses on developing architecture, solving high-risk technical challenges, and setting up
Stage infrastructure and processes.

Actual system development begins; code, integration, and execution environments are
Production Stage
built.
Phase Description

Construction The system is implemented, tested, and integrated with an emphasis on minimizing
Phase breakage and rework.

Focuses on deploying software to users, defect correction, performance tuning, and

This aligns with iterative workflows, where early phases emphasize architecture, and later phases emphasize
production readiness.
(Concept aligned to entire project lifecycle explanation in slides)

8. Discuss software process workflows and explain how iteration workflows support the development
process.

Software Process Workflows

There are seven top-level process workflows:

1. Management

2. Environment

3. Requirements

4. Design

5. Implementation

6. Assessment

7. Deployment

Iteration Workflows

Iteration workflows allow small increments of development, including:

• Planning

• Requirements analysis

• Design and modeling

• Implementation

• Testing & assessment

• Deployment and review

Each iteration produces a working executable system, allowing early feedback, risk reduction, and continuous
improvement.

9. Describe cost and schedule estimation, and explain how iterative process planning improves project
predictability.

Cost & Schedule Estimation

• Predicts total effort, time, and budget.

• Provides structured budget control and planning.

Iterative Process Planning

• Breaks large work into smaller iterations.

• Each iteration delivers measurable progress.

• Enables recalibration of plans using actual data rather than assumptions.

• Improves predictability by continuously assessing cost, workload, risk, and schedule deviations.

10. a) Explain management artifacts, engineering artifacts, and programmatic artifacts with examples.

Artifact Type Description Examples

Management Artifacts Related to planning and progress tracking Project plan, WBS, schedules

Engineering Artifacts Describe technical details of the product UML diagrams, source code, test cases

Programmatic Artifacts Administrative & contractual elements Proposals, contracts, budgets

b) Describe the characteristics of a Project Organization.

• Cross-functional teams

• Led by a project manager with full control

• Team members work full-time on the project

• Goal-oriented responsibility structure

c) Explain modern process transitions in software project management.

Modern process transitions represent the shift from traditional sequential models to iterative architecture-first
development with:

• Continuous integration

• Change-driven workflows

• Automated round-trip engineering

• Early risk and performance evaluation

PART – A (2 Marks Questions)

1. What is the goal of the Elaboration phase in the software life cycle?

The goal of the Elaboration phase is to establish a stable architecture foundation, resolve high-risk
requirements, validate design feasibility, and build an executable architectural prototype before full-scale
development begins.

2. Define Programmatic artifacts.

Programmatic artifacts are supporting resources related to financial, contractual, and administrative
documentation associated with project execution such as proposals, bids, contracts, compliance records, and
metrics reports.

3. What are minor milestones? Give an example.

Minor milestones are short-interval checkpoints within a project used for tracking daily or weekly progress of
smaller tasks or modules.
Example: Completion of a Login module coding before full system build.

4. What is iteration planning?

Iteration planning defines what work will be completed in an iteration, assigns responsibilities, estimates effort,
and schedules tasks to deliver an executable version of the system.

5. Define management indicators.

Management indicators are metrics used to evaluate project performance, cost, staffing, efficiency, and
schedule compliance.
Examples: Work and progress; Budgeted cost and expenditure; Staffing and team dynamics.

6. List any two quality indicators used in software project control.

• Change traffic and stability

• Breakage and modularity

• Rework and adaptability

• Mean time between failures (MTBF) and maturity

PART – B (6 Marks Questions)

7. Explain the artifact sets in software engineering and discuss their role in the development process.

Artifact Sets

1. Management Artifacts

2. Engineering Artifacts

3. Programmatic Artifacts

Role in development

• Provide structure and documentation

• Support planning, coordination, reviews, and traceability

• Enable milestone evaluation & decision making

8. Describe Model-Based Software Architecture and explain how it supports both management and technical
activities.

(Expand with explanation from SET-1 response)

• Helps visualize system and project structure

• Enhances planning, scheduling, monitoring

• Enables reusability and performance optimization

• Improves communication across stakeholders

9. Explain Work Breakdown Structures (WBS), planning guidelines, and the role of cost estimation in iterative
planning.

• WBS: Hierarchical decomposition of work

• Planning guidelines: prioritization, resource allocation, risk control

• Role of estimation: improves forecasting and reduces uncertainty

10. a) Describe automation in software project environments with suitable examples.

Automation supports workflows such as:

• Requirements tools

• Modeling tools

• Programming environments

• Test automation

• Change management systems

b) What are Line-of-Business (LOB) organizations? Explain their purpose.

LOB structure groups employees by specialization such as testing, development, HR, finance etc.
It supports consistency, specialization efficiency, and departmental management.

c) Discuss the key ideas behind next-generation software economics.

• Automating development to reduce cost

• Architecture-first approach

• Early risk resolution

• Separating engineering and production cost models

• Better productivity and scalability