Software Quality
Assurance Foundations and Processes
2 Days
Contact
Us to bring this course to your company or your city!
This course is designed for Quality Assurance
professionals who want to learn the foundational concepts of software
quality and the processes used to achieve high-quality software.
There is a lot more to software quality than testing! In this course,
Quality Assurance is defined as (1) A planned and systematic pattern of
all actions necessary to provide adequate confidence that an item or
product conforms to established technical requirements and (2) A set of
activities designed to evaluate the process by which products are
developed or manufactured.
By attending this course, you will be able to understand both the
theory and practical application of software quality practices. The
course concludes with developing your own action plan for quality.
Who Should Attend
- QA Analysts
- QA Managers
- Test
analysts
- Testers
- Project
Leaders
Return on Investment
- Learn how
to find costly and embarrassing problems before your customers find
them.
- Understand
the key issues in achieving high-quality software applications
- Learn the
difference between QA and QC.
- Understand
the principles of quality that form a firm foundation for quality
improvement.
- Advance
your career by reinforcing your skills in designing, deploying and
evaluating processes to deliver quality software applications.
Topics
Module 1 - Concepts
of Quality and Quality Assurance (1 hr.)
- Two Views
of Quality
- Verification
and Validation
- The Cost of
Quality
- Who is Your
Customer?
- The Deming
Workbench Model
- The
Difference Between QA and QC
- What is the
Value of QA?
- Why Are
Standards Important?
- Process
Improvement Analysis
- Cause and
Effect Analysis
- Pareto
Analysis
- Flowcharting
- Brainstorming
- What Works
in Improving Quality
Module 2 – The Role of
Software QA (1 hr.)
- What is
Software Quality Assurance?
- The Purpose
and Role of SQA
- The
Dimensions of SQA
- The
Components of SQA
- Pre-project
Components
- Software
Project Life Cycle Components
- Infrastructure
Components
- Management
Components
- SQA
Standards, System Certification and Assessment Components
- Organizational
Components
- Independent
SQA
- The SQA
Plan and What to Address in it
- Summary
- References
Module 3 – The Basics
of Process (1 hr.)
- The Role of
Process in Software Quality
- What is
Process Maturity and How Does it Impact Software Quality?
- Exploring
the CMM and CMMi
- CMMi Models
- Benefits of
the CMM and CMMi
- How to
Define a Process in About an Hour: The Workbench Approach
- Where Do
Standards Fit in?
- What’s
the First Step?
- What is
Required for Mature Processes
- Marking the
Need for Processes
- Resources
- How to
Assess your Process Maturity
Module 4 – Process
Assurance (1 hr.)
- The Purpose
of Process Assurance
- Who
Performs Process Assurance?
- The
Importance of Oversight
- Techniques
of Process Assurance
- Checkpoint
or milestone reviews
- Management
control
- The Role of
V&V in Process Assurance
- How Process
Assurance Can Fail
- The Product
Delivery Process
- How Process
Quality Works
- The Balance
of QA and Test
- What are
the Risks?
- How Can
These Risks be Mitigated?
- References
Module 5 – Developing
Quality Requirements (1 hr.)
- The
Importance of Requirements
- Quality
Requirements
- Testable
Requirements
- Identifying
Needs
- Ambiguity
in Requirements
- The
Importance of Inflection
- The
Importance of Word Meanings
- Word Games
- The Right
People – Who Do We Involve?
- Brainstorming
- Prototyping
- Dealing
with Change
- How to
Control Change
- Requirements
Reviews
- Special
Considerations For Existing Software Requirements
- Exercise:
Role Playing the Requirements Process
Module 6 – The Role of
Standards (1 hr.)
- The Role of
Standards
- Why are
Standards Important?
- What Is in
a Standard?
- What Is Not
in a Standard?
- Which
Standards Apply to Testing and Software Quality?
- Where
Standards Can Be Obtained
- What is
Tailoring?
- The
Tailoring Process
- How to
Tailor and Apply Standards
- Example
Module 7 – Risk
Assessment (1 hr.)
- What is
Risk?
- The Nature
of Risk
- Three Views
of Risk
- The
Elements of Risk
- Why is Risk
Assessment Important?
- Computer
System Risks
- The Project
Risk Assessment Process
- Building
the Risk Assessment Team
- Presenting
the Risk Assessment Tutorial
- Completing
the Risk Questionnaires
- Scoring the
Risk Assessment
- Reporting
the Risk Assessment Results
- Summarizing
the Risk Findings
- Presenting
the Risk Findings
- Assessing
Technical Risks
- Ways to
Apply the Results
- Assessing
Business Risk
- How Can
This Information Be Used?
- When is
Testing Complete?
- When is
Risk Assessment Performed?
- Who
Performs Risk Assessment?
- Who Owns
Risk Assessment?
- Additional
Resources
- Conclusion
Module 8 – Root Cause
Analysis (3 hrs.)
- How To
Define the Problem and Collect Data
- How to
Perform an Analysis of the Current Situation – Current State
Analysis
- How to
Identify Opportunities for Process Change – Gap Analysis
- Control
Barrier Analysis
- Charting
Events And Causal Factors
- How to
Conduct Effective Interviews to Gather Information
- Determining
Root Causes Of Failures
- Making
Process Changes
- Documenting
Your Findings in Writing
Module 9 – Process
Definition and Improvement (2 hrs)
- The Nature
of Processes
- Why are
Processes Important?
- A Process
Framework: The Workbench
- What You
Need to Begin Documenting Processes
- Deliverables
– The Attributes of a Good Process
- Key
Principles for Process Definition and Improvement
- Light vs.
Heavy Processes
- Popular
Process Models
- Three
Phases of Process Definition and Improvement
- Phase 1
– Build a Framework
- Phase 2
– Understand and Document Current Processes
- Interview
Techniques
- Brainstorming
- Phase 3
– Improving Processes
- Objectives
- Knowing
When to Challenge the Process
- Knowing
When to Make Process changes
- The
Approach and Process for Process Improvement
- Defining
Positive and Negative Motivations for Change
- Setting
Expectations
- Identifying
the Reasons for Process Change
- Identifying
the Impact of Process Change
- How to Get
Management Support for Process Change
- How to Get
Stakeholder Support for Process Change
Module 10 – Software
Metrics (1 hr.)
- Measurements
vs. Metrics
- What Do
Metrics Tell Us?
- Which
Metrics are Most Helpful?
- Five Core
Metrics
- A Primer on
Function Point Analysis
- How to
Capture Metrics
- How to
Implement Metrics
Module 11 – Software
Configuration Management (1 hr.)
- What is
Configuration Management?
- What is the
Scope of Configuration Management?
- The
Objectives of Configuration Management
- Why Should
You Care About Configuration Management?
- Legalities
- The Foreign Corrupt Practices Act of 1977
- What’s
Required for Effective Configuration Management?
- A Basic
Process for Configuration/Release Management
- Configuration
Management Tools
- Summary
- Resources
Module 12 – Reviews and
Inspections (1 hr.)
- What are
Reviews?
- Types of
Review-based Activities
- Why perform
early verification?
- Where
Defects Originate
- Where
Testing Resources are Used
- The
Relative Cost of Fixing Defects
- The Bottom
Line
- Managing
Expectations
- Terminology
- Interpersonal
and Cultural Issues
- Critical
Success Factors
- Software
Inspection Best Practices
- Review
Traps to Avoid
Module 13 – Building
Your Action Plan for Quality Improvement (1 hr.)
- A Basic
Framework for Improvement
- The
Goal/Question/Metric Paradigm
- Identifying
Needs and Goals
- Answering
the Right Questions
- Getting the
Right Data
- Critical
Success Factors
- Exercise -
Develop Your Own Action Plan for Improvement
Resources
- Checklists
and Templates
- Glossary
- Bibliography
Deliverables
- Course
notebook with slides, worksheets, checklists, complete examples and
supporting text
- You will
have the information needed to be an effective test team leader.
All
materials on this site
copyright 1996 - 2008, Rice Consulting Services, Inc.
Rice
Consulting Services, Inc.
P.O. Box 892003
Oklahoma City, OK 73189
405-691-8075