# Boundary Objects and their Use in Agile Systems Engineering

## TL;DR

This paper explores how boundary objects can facilitate artifact management in agile automotive systems engineering, offering guidelines and practices based on empirical data from industry practitioners.

## Contribution

It introduces a framework for identifying and managing boundary objects in agile automotive systems engineering, supported by empirical research and practical guidelines.

## Key findings

- Boundary objects help coordinate diverse stakeholders.
- Three practices improve artifact management in industry.
- Guidelines distinguish shared and local artifacts.

## Abstract

Agile methods are increasingly introduced in automotive companies in the attempt to become more efficient and flexible in the system development. The adoption of agile practices influences communication between stakeholders, but also makes companies rethink the management of artifacts and documentation like requirements, safety compliance documents, and architecture models. Practitioners aim to reduce irrelevant documentation, but face a lack of guidance to determine what artifacts are needed and how they should be managed. This paper presents artifacts, challenges, guidelines, and practices for the continuous management of systems engineering artifacts in automotive based on a theoretical and empirical understanding of the topic. In collaboration with 53 practitioners from six automotive companies, we conducted a design-science study involving interviews, a questionnaire, focus groups, and practical data analysis of a systems engineering tool. The guidelines suggest the distinction between artifacts that are shared among different actors in a company (boundary objects) and those that are used within a team (locally relevant artifacts). We propose an analysis approach to identify boundary objects and three practices to manage systems engineering artifacts in industry.