Determining factors influencing the success of software projects has been the emphasis of extensive research for more than 40 years. However, the majority of research in this domain has focused on developed countries, with little attention paid to underdeveloped and developing countries. The primary objective of this article was to assess the effect of critical elements on the success of software projects in underdeveloped countries (like Pakistan), because enterprise environmental factors and staff working habits, as well as their experience and expertise level, all have an effect on a project's success. For this purpose, data were collected from 339 senior developers and project managers working in Pakistan Software Export Board (PSEB) registered software companies. Structural Equation Modelling (SEM) was used to analyze the constructs and to assess the relationship between factors affecting software success. The empirical results showed that improper planning, inadequate human resources, wrong estimation of time and cost significantly negatively impacted the success of software projects. This research has opened new doors to extend our work in the software community to ultimately succeed in software projects.

Cost estimation; human resource selection; software planning; software project management; software success; time estimation