Software is found in a vast range of products, from embedded controllers in domestic appliances to huge information systems implemented across large numbers of computers. Quality is a key issue for all products and this applies to both the hardware and software parts of the product. However quality management requires different techniques for hardware and software.
There is no single approach to software quality managementA quality management system is the set of interrelated or interacting elements that direct and control an organisation with regard to quality.. that will cover all types of software product. With embedded controllers it is possible to confidently identify all requirements prior to the start of the project and fully test every function of the completed product. For a large networked system it is very difficult to identify all requirements and in addition it can be expected that the requirements will change during the development and use of the product (system). The quality planThe quality plan should document the quality activities for each software development on the basis of the quality organisation. A quality plan should be developed or identified for each software project.. for these two product should reflect these differences.
Software quality can demonstrated by quality control methods (showing by test that the product meets all its requirements). However for large, complex systems this is normally not possible. For these systems the quality control methods are augmented by quality assurance techniques. Quality assurance is the demonstration that the processes, development techniques, plus the time, cost and people allocated are sufficient for the project.
Software quality management within an organisation should identify the software quality control and assurance activities that are required for each product. These activities can be customised from the company quality manualDocument that demonstrates the compliance of an organisation with ISO 9001:2000. Should contain sections dealing with: scope and exclusions; documented procedures and interactions between processes., which may need to be extended to include new activities. For each new project the quality activities should be described in the quality plan for the project.
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