Software Workforce Dynamics and Organizational Restructuring in Higher Education: A Retrospective Scenario Analysis

Özkan Canay; Halil Arslan

doi:10.35377/saucis...1851026

Software Workforce Dynamics and Organizational Restructuring in Higher Education: A Retrospective Scenario Analysis

Abstract

Large-scale software projects in universities often fall short due to excessive workload, insufficient staffing, and low motivation. Locating project-based software teams within the same organizational structure as administrative units leads to structural misalignments and intensifies these problems. This study examines workforce- and organization-related challenges through a comparative scenario analysis of a restructuring model proposed in 2006 at the IT Department of Sakarya University. The retrospective dataset includes evaluations of eight workforce factors provided by 27 staff members from two software development units and three administrative service units, reflecting participants’ perceptions of the scenario at the time and its anticipated impacts. Quantitative data were analyzed using statistical methods, while qualitative data were examined through thematic analysis. The findings indicate that software units experienced severe bottlenecks due to workload imbalance and staff shortages, whereas administrative units exhibited relatively balanced task distribution. According to the proposed scenario, relocating software teams to a project-oriented research center would increase workload acceptability by 43.1\% and staff adequacy by 44.6\% within the remaining administrative structure. The results suggest that this restructuring would substantially alleviate chronic workforce-related problems observed in software units. By interpreting historical data within its original context, this study demonstrates that past organizational projections can inform current debates on organizational transformation in higher education.

Keywords

Ethical Statement

Ethics committee approval was obtained from the Sakarya University Ethics Committee for Science and Engineering (Decision No. 60/09, dated May 27, 2025). This study is retrospective in nature and is based on anonymized data collected in 2006. No personal or identifiable information is included, and all procedures were conducted in accordance with scientific and ethical principles.

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Details

Primary Language

English

Subjects

Empirical Software Engineering

Journal Section

Research Article

Authors

Özkan Canay ^*
0000-0001-7539-6001
Türkiye

Halil Arslan
0000-0003-3286-5159
Türkiye

Early Pub Date

June 23, 2026

Publication Date

June 30, 2026

Submission Date

December 29, 2025

Acceptance Date

March 13, 2026

Published in Issue

Year 2026 Volume: 9 Number: 3

DOI

https://doi.org/10.35377/saucis...1851026

IZ

https://izlik.org/JA29BK95NU

Cite

RIS / Bibtex

APA

Canay, Ö., & Arslan, H. (2026). Software Workforce Dynamics and Organizational Restructuring in Higher Education: A Retrospective Scenario Analysis. Sakarya University Journal of Computer and Information Sciences, 9(3), 868-882. https://doi.org/10.35377/saucis...1851026

AMA

1.Canay Ö, Arslan H. Software Workforce Dynamics and Organizational Restructuring in Higher Education: A Retrospective Scenario Analysis. SAUCIS. 2026;9(3):868-882. doi:10.35377/saucis.1851026

Chicago

Canay, Özkan, and Halil Arslan. 2026. “Software Workforce Dynamics and Organizational Restructuring in Higher Education: A Retrospective Scenario Analysis”. Sakarya University Journal of Computer and Information Sciences 9 (3): 868-82. https://doi.org/10.35377/saucis. 1851026.

EndNote

Canay Ö, Arslan H (June 1, 2026) Software Workforce Dynamics and Organizational Restructuring in Higher Education: A Retrospective Scenario Analysis. Sakarya University Journal of Computer and Information Sciences 9 3 868–882.

IEEE

[1]Ö. Canay and H. Arslan, “Software Workforce Dynamics and Organizational Restructuring in Higher Education: A Retrospective Scenario Analysis”, SAUCIS, vol. 9, no. 3, pp. 868–882, June 2026, doi: 10.35377/saucis...1851026.

ISNAD

Canay, Özkan - Arslan, Halil. “Software Workforce Dynamics and Organizational Restructuring in Higher Education: A Retrospective Scenario Analysis”. Sakarya University Journal of Computer and Information Sciences 9/3 (June 1, 2026): 868-882. https://doi.org/10.35377/saucis. 1851026.

JAMA

1.Canay Ö, Arslan H. Software Workforce Dynamics and Organizational Restructuring in Higher Education: A Retrospective Scenario Analysis. SAUCIS. 2026;9:868–882.

MLA

Canay, Özkan, and Halil Arslan. “Software Workforce Dynamics and Organizational Restructuring in Higher Education: A Retrospective Scenario Analysis”. Sakarya University Journal of Computer and Information Sciences, vol. 9, no. 3, June 2026, pp. 868-82, doi:10.35377/saucis. 1851026.

Vancouver

1.Özkan Canay, Halil Arslan. Software Workforce Dynamics and Organizational Restructuring in Higher Education: A Retrospective Scenario Analysis. SAUCIS. 2026 Jun. 1;9(3):868-82. doi:10.35377/saucis. 1851026