Standards, certification and assessment

The benefits of use of standards

• The ability to apply software development and maintenance methodologies and procedures of the highest professional level
• Better mutual understanding and coordination among development teams but especially between development and maintenance teams
• Greater cooperation between the software developer and external participants in the project
• Better understanding and cooperation between suppliers and customers, based on the adoption of known development and maintenance standards as part of the contract

The organizations involved in standards development

• IEEE (Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers) Computer Society
• ISO (International Organization for Standardization)
• DOD (US Department of Defense)
• ANSI (American National Standards Institute)
• IEC (International Electrotechnical Commission)
• EIA (Electronic Industries Association)

Classification of SQA standards

 

Quality management standards

The scope of quality management standards

• Enable a software development organization to demonstrate consistent ability to assure that its software products or maintenance services comply with acceptable quality requirements
• Serve as an agreed basis for customer and supplier evaluation of the supplier’s quality management system
• Support the software development organization’s efforts to improve quality management system performance and enhance customer satisfaction through compliance with the standard’s requirements

ISO 9001 and ISO 9000-3

ISO 9001 :

• applies to the processes that create and control the products and services an organisation supplies
• prescribes systematic control of activities to ensure that the needs and expectations of customers are met
• is designed and intended to apply to virtually any product or service, made by any process anywhere in the world 

ISO 9000-3 :

• Develop the organization’s SQA system
• Implement the organization’s SQA system
• Undergo certification audits.

Capability Maturity Models – CMM and CMMI assessment methodology

The principles of CMM

• Application of more elaborate management methods based on quantitative approaches increases the organization’s capability to control the quality and improve the productivity of the software development process.
• The vehicle for enhancement of software development is composed of the five-level capability maturity model
• Process areas are generic; they define the “what”, not the “how”

SQA project process standards – IEEE software engineering standards

The main benefits gained by use of project process standards are:

• The ability to apply the most professional software development and maintenance methodologies available.
• The ability to apply state-of-the-art project process procedures.
• Better mutual understanding and coordination among teams, especially between development and maintenance teams.
• Greater cooperation between the software developer and external participants in the project.
• Better understanding and cooperation between suppliers and customers, based on incorporation of known standards within the contract.

Structure and content of IEEE software engineering standards

• Conceptual standards
• Prescriptive standards of conformance
• Guidance standards

IEEE/EIA Std 12207 – software life cycle processes