Software Project Life Cycle Methods

Emerging trends and organizational demands have shaped methodologies designed to meet each company's unique design and development objectives. For example, an application may require a set of activities to ensure success, or an organization may need specific standards or processes to meet industry or government requirements. In such cases, it can be effective to combine several models, enabling the organization to develop the necessary requirements in the most costeffective and efficient way.

However, in all models, security must be incorporated from the outset and maintained through not only of the entire software development process but also the full life cycle of the system.

Different organizations in various industries have often shifted their priorities regarding which software development needs were most urgent to address. At times, this has meant delivering new functionality to end users, sometimes multiple times per day. At other times, the emphasis has been on security, system safety, or ensuring the ability to successfully audit the system's use and results.

The choice of one methodology over another may ultimately be driven by management's perception of a limited window of competitive advantage or heightened risk and liability, rather than by other principles. Security professionals and systems developers alike must remain attentive to this continual shift.