What is "Continuous Implementation"?

Question

Is "Continuous Implementation" the name of a software development methodology? If so, what is it exactly?

Do you have experience using it?

Note that I know what continuous integration is, but not continuous implementation.

Background: today I learned (second hand) of a company that uses "Continuous Implementation" in the context of their software development. Is it formally defined or is it part of some agile software development methodology?

The best I could find was this paper in the European Journal of Information Systems:

Agility Through Scenario Development And Continuous Implementation

"... a business and IS/IT initiative at Volvo ... development and implementation of an agile aftermarket supply chain. ... to create a platform, Web services, and a Web portal for selling spare parts over the Internet. "

Answer 1

Try searching for "Continuous Integration". It's a Good Thing(TM), in my opinion. "Continuous Implementation" would only be a good development methodology in the Dilbert universe. ;)

Edit:

The original question was simply asking what "continuous implementation" is. Since this site is StackOverflow, not EconomicsOverflow or PolymerEngineeringOverflow, the correct answer is "nothing."

The question was edited afterward to expand the scope, but that doesn't really change my answer.

All references of this term I can find in the realm of software development appear to be a mistake where the author is really meant continuous integration, a common agile technique.

The OP now referenced a a paper using the term in the context of use of the term in an "agile" supply-chain management implementation. Even so, despite the publication, the term has not entered common parlance in SCM, much less software development, and thus has no generally-accepted definition.

Answer 2

Richard is likely correct that you mean Continuous Integration, a practice whose primary element is frequent builds to ensure the incremental addition of working functionality to your software.

The seminal article on this practice is "Continuous Integration" by Martin Fowler (this is the original, there is a link at the top to an updated version).

Answer 3

I think, the OP is referring to 'Continuous Implementation' only. It is not a commonly used term.

I didn't hear the term, but in the Agile or Scrum methodology, the implementations happen frequently than the traditional waterfall model (but obviously not continuously as in 'Continuous Implementation').

At the company I work, we follow Scrum methodology to deliver the new version every 6 months. Since ours is a product company offering Software-as-Service, the implementations are in our control. We eventually plan to have more frequent implementations. This is much different from the pre-Scrum days, when the new version comes typically every 2 years.

Answer 4

Actually, I think that this new animal comes from a Lean background (which makes sense in the context of Volvo). Nothing formal though. In other words, it sounds Agile, it taste Agile but nobody knows exactly what it means and, for these reasons, I'm sure Volvo's C-level managers like it a lot :) This makes my bullshit detector ring very loudly actually.

Answer 5

Sounds like marketing people mismatched the terminology. Happens all the time.