In this chapter, the learning objectives are: To introduce the quality management process and key quality management activities; to explain the role of standards in quality management; to explain the concept of a software metric, predictor metrics and control metrics; to explain how measurement may be used in assessing software quality and the limitations of software measurement. | Quality Management Objectives To introduce the quality management process and key quality management activities To explain the role of standards in quality management To explain the concept of a software metric, predictor metrics and control metrics To explain how measurement may be used in assessing software quality and the limitations of software measurement Topics covered Process and product quality Quality assurance and standards Quality planning Quality control Software quality management Concerned with ensuring that the required level of quality is achieved in a software product. Involves defining appropriate quality standards and procedures and ensuring that these are followed. Should aim to develop a ‘quality culture’ where quality is seen as everyone’s responsibility. What is quality? Quality, simplistically, means that a product should meet its specification. This is problematical for software systems There is a tension between customer quality requirements (efficiency, . | Quality Management Objectives To introduce the quality management process and key quality management activities To explain the role of standards in quality management To explain the concept of a software metric, predictor metrics and control metrics To explain how measurement may be used in assessing software quality and the limitations of software measurement Topics covered Process and product quality Quality assurance and standards Quality planning Quality control Software quality management Concerned with ensuring that the required level of quality is achieved in a software product. Involves defining appropriate quality standards and procedures and ensuring that these are followed. Should aim to develop a ‘quality culture’ where quality is seen as everyone’s responsibility. What is quality? Quality, simplistically, means that a product should meet its specification. This is problematical for software systems There is a tension between customer quality requirements (efficiency, reliability, etc.) and developer quality requirements (maintainability, reusability, etc.); Some quality requirements are difficult to specify in an unambiguous way; Software specifications are usually incomplete and often inconsistent. The quality compromise We cannot wait for specifications to improve before paying attention to quality management. We must put quality management procedures into place to improve quality in spite of imperfect specification. Scope of quality management Quality management is particularly important for large, complex systems. The quality documentation is a record of progress and supports continuity of development as the development team changes. For smaller systems, quality management needs less documentation and should focus on establishing a quality culture. Quality management activities Quality assurance Establish organisational procedures and standards for quality. Quality planning Select applicable procedures and standards for a particular project and .
