Meridium and Virginia Tech Receive NSF Grant for Agile Software Usability Project
2/7/2008

BLACKSBURG, VA – Scott McCrickard, associate professor at the Computer Science (CS) department at Virginia Tech, and Todd Stevens, development team lead  from Meridium, Inc., the leader in asset performance management software and consulting solutions, have recently been awarded a National Science Foundation Small Business Technology Transfer grant of $150,000 for the first phase of a software research and development project “Integrating scenario-based usability engineering and agile software development practices.” A kickoff reception for the partnership was held at Virginia Tech’s Corporate Research Center on Thursday, January 31.

“Usability engineering” is focused on how to design interfaces that meet end user needs in terms of utility, efficiency and ease of use.  “Agile software development” is an approach to software engineering that utilizes highly collaborative teams working in an iterative development process to deliver software that meets the changing needs of customers.  Often, agile teams develop software without considering usability, resulting in software systems that meet functional, budgetary and scheduling requirements but which can be difficult or frustrating for end users.

This research project will identify key interactions, communication mechanisms and design representations that can enable the successful integration of usability into agile processes. This work will allow Meridium to deliver more usable, value-added software to customers and will foster a closer, more effective collaboration, thus helping to reduce the need for excessive customer support calls and improve customer satisfaction and retention.  Jason Chong Lee, a Virginia Tech Ph.D. candidate who is working part-time at Meridium, will help plan and coordinate this joint effort as a component of his dissertation work.

“We see this as a unique opportunity to apply and further our goal of developing ways to integrate usability engineering models and techniques into an agile software development environment,” said McCrickard.  “We look forward to continuing collaborations with Meridium as we work to strengthen ties between research and industry to foster the mutually beneficial transfer of knowledge and experience.”

To better support the research project and to leverage Virginia Tech’s expertise in software development and risk management, Meridium has opened an office in Blacksburg at Virginia Tech’s Corporate Research Center, a growing research park for high-technology companies. The new Meridium office in Blacksburg will host both VT interns as well as full time Meridium employees engaged in a variety of software development projects.

“I'm happy to be working with the Virginia Tech faculty on an important aspect of software engineering. It is my hope that, in securing this grant and opening a Meridium office in Blacksburg, we will have more opportunities for collaboration with the Virginia Tech Computer Science as well as other departments' faculty. I am currently engaging some other faculty members in discussions about potential research areas and topics, as well as other collaboration mechanisms," said Stevens, a Virginia Tech Ph.D. alumnus.

According to Bonz Hart, President/CEO of Meridium, “We’re pleased to be working with a top-tier university like Virginia Tech on this important research. We have been moving toward this type of relationship with Virginia Tech’s  Computer Science Department for years. We’re looking forward to generating new ideas, sharing knowledge, building experience and connecting academics with industry to find creative and innovative ways of working with our software to solve problems for the clients and industries we serve.”

About the CS department at Virginia Tech

The Department of Computer Science at Virginia Tech (www.cs.vt.edu) was established in 1971 and is part of the College of Engineering (www.eng.vt.edu), the premier engineering school in the Commonwealth of Virginia. The college has a history of innovation, including cost-effective supercomputing (System X) and entrepreneurial research innovation, leading to 3 new buildings for research in critical technologies and applied science.

The Department of Computer Science is distinguished by interdisciplinary research in
high-end computing systems, computational biology and bioinformatics, and human-computer interaction as well as core areas in computing. The graduate program, offering M.S. and Ph.D. degrees in Blacksburg and at the Northern Virginia Center, was ranked among the top 30 programs as measured by the most recent study of Ph.D.s awarded. The graduates of the accredited undergraduate program are highly sought by industry and well prepared for further study.