Methods of Quality Improvement

Following are basic steps for the Quality Improvement:


1. Define and verify the process to be improved
2. Collect and analyze data to establish baselines, identify root causes and point toward possible solutions
3. Based on the data, develop action plans for improvement, including implementation, communication, and measuring/monitoring
4. Implement the action plans, on a pilot basis as indicated, and
5. Install an ongoing measuring/monitoring (process control) system to ensure success.

Quality for Product and services

Product quality

1. Reliable (performs as expected)

2. Easy to use

3. Easy to maintain when completed

4. Available when needed

5. Flexible for future needs

6. Good value for money spent

7. Intuitive / easy to understand

8. Secure

9. Well documented

10. Minimally defective

11. Responsive

12. A match to client needs

Service quality

1. Responsive (you get back to the client quickly)

2. Competent

3. Accessible

4. Courteous

5. Good communicators

6. Credible

7. Knowledgeable of the client business

8. Reliable (you do what you say)

Cost of Software Quality

It is the cost of not creating quality project. Software failure can cost 100% of project cost.

Cost of defect repair in various stage of development cycle can be as below:

Requirement gathering stage	0%
Design Stage	10%
Development stage	20%
Testing stage	50%
Deployment stage	100%

Cost of quality can be divided in two parts:

a.     Prevention Cost

Costs of all activities specifically designed to prevent poor quality in products or services.

Examples are the costs of:

·         New product review

·         Quality planning

·         Supplier capability surveys

·         Process capability evaluations

·         Quality improvement team meetings

·         Quality improvement projects

·         Quality education and training

b.     Appraisal Costs

The costs associated with measuring, evaluating or auditing products or services to assure conformance to quality standards and performance requirements.

·         These include the costs of:

·         Incoming and source inspection/test of purchased material

·         In-process and final inspection/test

·         Product, process or service audits

·         Calibration of measuring and test equipment

·         Associated supplies and materials

c.      Internal Failure Costs

Failure costs occurring prior to delivery or shipment of the product, or the furnishing of a service, to the customer.

Examples are the costs of:

·         Scrap

·         Rework

·         Re-inspection

·         Re-testing

·         Material review

·         Downgrading

d.     External Failure Costs

Failure costs occurring after delivery or shipment of the product — and during or after furnishing of a service — to the customer.

Examples are the costs of:

·         Processing customer complaints

·         Customer returns

·         Warranty claims

·         Product recalls

QA and QC steps

Quality Assurance:

1.Process Improvement practice

2.Standards and Development Procedures

3.Product Evaluation and Process Monitoring

4.Configuration Management Monitoring

5.The role of SQA in the Product Development Cycle

6.monitoring and improving the software development process

7.making sure that any agreed-upon standards and procedures are followed

8.ensuring that problems are found and dealt with

9.It is oriented to prevention 

10.It helps establish processes.

11.It sets up measurement programs to evaluate processes.

12.It identifies weaknesses in processes and improves them.

Quality Control:

1.It is correction activity.

2.It is identify defect for the purpose of correcting them.

3.Quality control relates to a specific product or service

4.Quality control verifies whether specific attribute(s) are in, or are not in, a specific Product or service

5.It contains various kind of testing for software product.

6.It is work of actual team who is involved in software development.

Quality Assurance and Quality Control

For quality software product we need to follow both kinds of quality parameters. For which quality achieving 

process is divided in two parts:

1.      Quality Assurance

2.      Quality Control

Quality Assurance: It is practice where we follow the standard guidelines and practice to make sure we are making quality product. It is function of team to follow certain guidelines when implementing product.

It contains method and procedure for follow software development like: Development methodologies, Testing process, Requirement design methodology.

Quality assurance is continuous process improvement activity to improve software development quality which can assure we are heading to right way for software project.

Quality Control: It is actual verification of customer requirement and testing software behavior by using various input and output criteria based on various standards.

It contains following practice: Requirement verification, Design verification, Code review, software testing

Quality control is the process of identify defect and deficiencies in product as per speciation. 

What is Software Quality?

Quality is satisfaction of customer. A product will be called quality product if it satisfy expectation of customer.

Two important factors which define quality very much are:

1.      Actual Quality: state of being free from defects and deficiencies, and follow actual standard provided by various standard agencies.

2.      Quality in View: state where product fulfill all requirement of customer.

Both type of quality is very much required for any software product. If we achieve one and missed other it can be tough for us to be in business for longer term.

For example: 

we are following all standards and making fully defect free software but it is not meeting the customer requirement, we are losing faith of our customer.

Again if we are making a product which meets all customer requirement but fails to be in standard of market we cannot survive for long as customer can be happy now but in future he will have issues with same product.