Rapid Development: Taming Wild Software Schedules

The Bottom Line on JAD

JAD's effectiveness varies. In early use, companies such as American Airlines, Texas Instruments, and IBM reported that JAD cut the time to do requirements specification by 15 to 35 percent (Rush 1985). CNA Insurance Company reported that it cut requirements effort by almost 70 percent. More recently, Judy August reported that JAD cuts the elapsed time of requirements specification anywhere from 20 to 60 percent compared with traditional methods, and it cuts total effort by 20 to 60 percent at the same time (August 1991). Requirements gathering takes between 10 percent and 30 percent of the elapsed time on a typical project, ...