xProcess: Agile Planning Product Released under Open Source

xProcess, for project management and process improvement, focuses particularly on agile and priority-driven approaches. The preconfigured processes, eg. Scrum, FDD, Prince2, Unified, can be tailored. Gantt/Burndowns/target status are continually updated.

One of the most innovative project management and process improvement solutions to emerge in recent years, xProcess, has today been officially released under open source license. xProcess allows users to define project management processes (for example task patterns, artifacts, gateways and workflows) and then run live projects while monitoring targets, deliveries and process compliance. Agile methods for software development such as Scrum, FDD and variants of Unified Process are particularly well supported by the technology, which provides priority-driven ordering of activities and resource balancing. The free download of the product includes pre-configured processes for Scrum and other methods.

Ivis Technologies, the Colorado-based company that developed xProcess, and xProcess Europe Ltd, their European marketing arm, also announced today the formation of a new company, OpenXprocess Ltd. OpenXprocess now owns the technology and will support, train and consult with project teams using the product.

OpenXprocess simultaneously announced the full release of version 3 which incorporates many usability enhancements over previous versions, as well as implementing a fully scalable and distributable data architecture based on the popular Subversion configuration management repository. Client access to xProcess is either through a web interface (for project participants) or the Eclipse based desktop application (RCP), which as well as supporting project participants, provides full facilities for project managers and for process engineers defining new or tailored processes.

Ivis CEO Christopher Lank said, “We believe today’s announcement is great news for project teams in the current market. xProcess is one of the most advanced agile planning tools available and its process definition facilities – including its graphical process modeling and built-in workflow – are second to none. We estimate there are currently over 10,000 users of xProcess worldwide, but making this product available to the open source community will mean many more teams can benefit from the technology at minimal cost, while OpenXprocess’s services arm can grow with the user base and continue to offer excellence in training, mentoring and support.”

Andy Carmichael, OpenXprocess’s CEO commented, “Agile methods for managing projects are crucial for business success in the current climate. We’re delighted that this move to open source will make configurable agile processes available to a much wider community – a community that this company is well placed to serve. Our training products, support packages and consultancy services help teams get the most from agile methods and from xProcess. Succeeding with agile has just got simpler with this release, and the OpenXprocess team is here to ensure teams get the best possible support along the way.”

The xProcess product has been widely praised for its simplicity and its innovation, with both SD Times and the Eclipse Foundation giving it prestigious awards in recent years. Project managers simply choose (or configure) their process, then enter tasks, targets, priorities and resource profiles. The resulting schedules (displayed in Gantt, burndown or other charts) are dynamically updated as team members execute the plans and complete or re-estimate tasks. Clients in Europe, Asia and the USA are using xProcess to improve the agility and speed of execution as well as the auditability and compliance of their processes.

xProcess can be downloaded and evaluated from www.openxprocess.com or via SourceForge at http://sourceforge.net/projects/xprocess/.

Keywords:
xProcess, open source, Eclipse, project management, planning, process improvement, process modeling, Scrum, FDD, agile, OpenXprocess, Subversion

http://www.openxprocess.com/