Software Quality Assurance

Software Quality Assurance involves the entire software development process - monitoring and improving the process, making sure that any agreed-upon standards and procedures are followed, and ensuring that problems are found and dealt with. It is oriented to 'prevention'.

Software Quality Assurance & Testing involves operation of a system or application under controlled conditions and evaluating the results (e.g., 'if the user is in interface A of the application while using hardware B, and does C, then D should happen'). The controlled conditions should include both normal and abnormal conditions. Testing should intentionally attempt to make things go wrong to determine if things happen when they shouldn't or things don't happen when they should. It is oriented to 'detection'.

Organizations vary considerably in how they assign responsibility for Software Quality Assurance and testing. Sometimes they're the combined responsibility of one group or individual. Also common are project teams that include a mix of testers and developers who work closely together, with overall Software Quality Assurance processes monitored by project managers. It will depend on what best fits an organization's size and business structure.

A lot depends on the size of the organization and the risks involved. For large organizations with high-risk (in terms of lives or property) projects, serious management buy-in is required and a formalized Software Quality Assurance process is necessary.

Where the risk is lower, management and organizational buy-in and Software Quality Assurance implementation may be a slower, step-at-a-time process. Software Quality Assurance processes should be balanced with productivity so as to keep bureaucracy from getting out of hand.

For small groups or projects, a more ad-hoc process may be appropriate, depending on the type of customers and projects. A lot will depend on team leads or managers, feedback to developers, and ensuring adequate communications among customers, managers, developers, and testers.

The most value for Software Quality Assurance effort will be in:

• Requirements management processes, with a goal of clear, complete, testable requirement specifications embodied in requirements or design documentation and
• Design inspections and code inspections.

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