Reports of Software Engineering Global Trend

Recently, the environment surrounding software development has been changing dramatically. However, in the Japanese software industry, there is still a prevalence of outdated practices, such as full-scratch development, man-month-based estimation, and document-based design, where business companies place orders with specific IT vendors. To maintain Japan’s competitiveness, it is essential to fundamentally review Japanese software engineering in line with global trends. Therefore, the IPA has established the "Software Modernization Committee" to discuss the future of software engineering in Japan, considering both domestic circumstances and the latest international trends.

We are actively seeking the latest information from overseas sources on a daily basis, and understanding the current situation through exchange of opinions and interviews. We also publish research reports to those who do not have the opportunity to have daily contact with the overseas situation.

We will continue to conduct comprehensive researches of international trends and strive to modernize software engineering in Japan.

December 2024: Global Trend Research Report on Software Engineering

Based on the results of the “FY2023 Questionnaire Survey on Software Development,” we present our findings on the following four key themes that we have identified as stagnating in Japanese software engineering.