Creating Software Product Value in China

China has become a formidable player and continues to grow strongly in what has become a dynamic global market for software development. In this highly competitive environment it has never been more difficult or important to maximize the creation of software product value. But each key stakeholder group – purchasers, users, software managers and developers – has a different notion of value when looking at a software product. As the value of a software product is largely derived through the requirements it fulfils, we looked at the criteria used to select and prioritise requirements for a release of software, and the perspectives that motivate them. The value of a software product is largely derived through the requirements it fulfils. To help understand how value is created we looked at the criteria used to select and prioritise requirements for a release of software, and the perspectives that motivate them. We studied three groups of software development companies operating in China – Chinese companies with a domestic market, Chinese companies with an international market, and western companies operating in China. The results were similar for all three groups, except After-sales Support was a significantly greater concern for Chinese companies with an international market