Contemporary practices such as InnerSource (adopting open source practices within an organization), continuous integration and delivery (CI/CD), and the use of microservices promote software reuse. Although the benefits of individual contemporary practices on reuse may be known, the implications of collective contemporary practices, mainly challenges and improvements to mitigate the challenges, are to a large extent unknown. In this study, we investigate the additional effort (cost factors), benefits, challenges, and potential improvements in contemporary reuse at Ericsson.

We performed the study in two phases: a) the initial data collection based on a combination of data collection methods (e.g., interviews, discussions, company portals), and b) a follow-up group discussion after a year to understand the status of the challenges and improvements identified in the first phase.

Our results indicate that developing reusable assets resulted in upfront cost factors, such as additional effort in ensuring compliance. Furthermore, development with reuse also resulted in cost factors, for example, additional effort in integrating and understanding reusable assets. Ericsson perceived the cost factors as an investment resulting in long-term benefits such as improved quality, productivity, customer experience, and way of working. The main challenge faced by Ericsson was the pressure on the producers of reusable assets. Our study shows how InnerSource can lead to an increase in contributions to reusable assets. Furthermore, Ericsson implemented measures like automating compliance checks that improved the maturity of reusable assets, resulting in an increase in their reuse.

In summary, effective use of contemporary practices such as InnerSource and CI/CD, along with the use of microservices, can facilitate large scale reuse. © The Author(s) 2024.