Simple Function Point and Story Point integration in Agile Contract Management

Roberto Meli

Simple Function Point (SFP) is a new IFPUG Functional Size Measurement Method. Story Point (SP) is an estimation technique largely used in Agile teams to predict the effort needed to implement User Stories along any specific sprint. The SFP gives a product oriented measurement and a process oriented estimation. They are not overlapping and may be effectively integrated in software development governance.

The ratio between them (SP/SFP) is an expected productivity indicator. SPs are not an actual effort value but an estimated effort value for an user story. The ratio between actual effort measurement and SFP is an actual productivity indicator. The ratio between SP and actual effort measurement is an indicator of accuracy of effort estimation.

Till now the Agile community has often disliked using Function Points because the available methods were considered too complex to be applied in a short term iteration process. The cost/effort model based on FP was not reliable for small FP sizes. With the availability of a light weight method like SFP it is now possible to integrate a product oriented measure in the control dashboard with great comparability advantages. The need of a contractual management of Agile projects increases the importance to do this integration to allow a higher explicit control over the classical market variables and practices.

This presentation will show the “Why” and the “How” of this integration from a contractual perspective.

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