Application of OpenSource Project Management Software in Effective Software Project Management

Abstract

Software projects are difficult to manage without the use of Software Project Management tools. Software projects tend to have reduced flexibility during the planning and monitoring stage, debugging and customization is limited resulting in loss of both productive time and cost effectiveness. Open source project management software provides an inexpensive alternative. Previous studies have shown that most project management software are equipped with a lot of the tools needed for the planning phase of project management but lack in other areas. It was found out that additional plugins are also needed for further functionality in the project management software. In this thesis, a comparative study is done through literature review between open source and closed source software, problems in available project management software are also identified and agile project management software are selected then their functionality and profitability is compared for application to an e-commerce software project using the Qualification and Selection of Open Source Software (QSOS) Method. Results show that from the selected software, OpenProject scores the highest in terms of functionality and maturity. A study on the profitability also shows that open source software provides a more profitable alternative for software project management compared to proprietary software.