1^a Conferência Brasileira de Medição e Análise de Software
(1st Brazilian Conference on Software Measurement and Analysis)
São Paulo, Brazil, 12 August 2009

CHARISMATEK Software Metrics is pleased to announce that our managing director, Mr Paul Radford, is the keynote presenter at the 1st Brazilian Conference on Software Measurement and Analysis to be held in São Paulo, Brazil in August this year.

In his presentation titled, “Software Delivery - Charging by the Function Point”, Paul describes his and CHARISMATEK’s experiences over many years in working with a range of organisations where Function Point Analysis has been utilised in the negotiation and implementation of software development, delivery and support contracts. Throughout his presentation, Paul draws upon real world examples from CHARISMATEK’s experience to highlight both the benefits to be achieved and the pitfalls to be avoided when software is to be charged at and paid for based upon a ‘cost per function point’.

For further details on Paul’s presentation, please see the abstract below or visit the conference website.

Keynote Presentation: Software Delivery - Charging by the Function Point

Software development and support contracts often lead to disputes between the software service provider and the client commissioning the delivery. The chief cause of the disputes is very often the cost of the software delivery exceeding initial estimates, coupled with late delivery or non-conformance to what clients perceive as their stated requirements. Arguments and negotiations as to what constitutes change are the daily routine of software suppliers and the bane of good client/supplier partnerships.

This presentation outlines some of the difficulties involved in applying software contracts to software development and support and the imbalances in risk/responsibility that often arise. As a direct result of these issues, developments in applying function point based measures as a key part of contractual cost calculation are now being widely used around the world.

The intent of this ‘cost per function point’ approach is to build a contract which reduces the risk for both the client and the supplier. This technique was largely pioneered in Australia and has been used in a wide variety of projects in that country. In this presentation, Mr Paul Radford explains the evolution of the concept, some attempts at standardisation and how his company, CHARISMATEK Software Metrics, has been involved in a range of cost per function point situations.

Mr Radford examines several projects that have applied a form of this technique – with varying degrees of success. The benefits that the technique provided to both clients and suppliers over more traditional software contracts will be highlighted and discussed, along with the key difficulties and problems encountered in the technique’s implementation.

Presenter: Mr Paul Radford, Managing Director, CHARISMATEK Software Metrics, Australia

Mr Paul Radford is the co-founder and managing director of CHARISMATEK Software Metrics, Australia’s leading consultancy in the application of measurement to software process. CHARISMATEK is also the developer and publisher of the Function Point WORKBENCH™ the world’s foremost tool supporting Function Point Analysis and the associated application of the sizing model for stakeholder communication, scope management, estimation & business case assessment and other process improvement activities.

As a lifetime IT professional, Mr Radford brings a wide industry and business perspective to the software measurement field. He has extensive industry experience in applying the Function Point Analysis technique, both in sizing software and in the use of the technique to control and manage software requirements. More particularly, in his role with CHARISMATEK Software Metrics, he has overseen a wide range of projects and situations where clients, both in Australia and overseas, have utilised Function Point Analysis to provide insight, control and real business benefits.

As a prominent metrics consultant and senior manager over several years, past president of the Australian Software Metrics Association, frequent presenter at metrics conferences and seminars, guest speaker for academic institutions and publisher of the Function Point WORKBENCH™, Mr Radford has a unique perspective on the application of functional metrics and the role it plays within the overall information technology paradigm.