Many times we find our capability as testers being measured on our ability to help a project or program deliver to budget and on time. A lot of the time one key measurement is not included: Quality. How many of us are given quality objectives to achieve? Not many in my experience. This presentation looks at quality - it attempts to define it, and uses real life examples to help us understand quite how complex a subject this is. Focus is also given to looking at how some companies have made it very simple and are using their product quality to gain real market advantage.

1. Today’s webinar is presented by Geoff Thompson and he will
discuss The Third Project Paradigm
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This webinar is due to start at 11am. Make sure you stick around at the end for
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2. The Third Project Paradigm
Geoff Thompson, Experimentus Ltd. (UK)
Geoff is the Consultancy Director for Experimentus Ltd (www.experimentus.com), a leading Software Quality Management
consultancy based in the UK. Over the last 20 years he has an excellent track record in Test Management and Process
Improvement. He is particularly passionate about Test Process Improvement. In 1997 he started working with ISEB developing
the original Software Testing Foundation syllabus and exams; he then managed the development of the original Software
Testing Practitioner syllabus and exam in 2002. Geoff initiated the ISTQB (International Software Testing Qualification Board)
and is the UK representative to the board. He Chairs the UK Testing Board. He is also co-author of the biggest selling testing
book on www.amazon.co.uk – ISTQB/ISEB – A Software Testing Foundation He is a founder member and Chairman of the
TMMi Foundation Management Executive (see www.tmmifoundation.org.uk), He is also the Vice Chairman and Treasurer of
the BCS SIGiST (Specialist Group in Software Testing).
Geoff is a popular international speaker on all things testing, having delivered keynote presentations in the
UK, Germany, Sweden. Denmark, Australia, Malaysia and India and being a regular speaker at the EuroSTAR conferences (the
largest software testing conference in Europe), last year (2011) he was particularly proud to have been selected to
Programme Chair EuroSTAR in Manchester. In 2008 he was awarded the European Testing Excellence award for his work in
the field of testing.
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3. How can I get the slides?
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Slides and all materials will be posted on the EuroSTAR blog as
well as emailed to you.

4. Join the conversation on Twitter
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@geoffthommo
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Continue the conversation with the speaker on Twitter after the show!

5. Listen | Challenge | Understand | Interpret | Create
Experimentus Ltd 17a Dorset Square London NW1 6QB T: +44 (0)207 871 2304 www.experimentus.com
The third project paradigm
Geoff Thompson
27th March 2013

6. 6
SCOPE
TIME COST
QUALITY

7. So what’s the issue?
7
I want it by the 1st
June, and it should
cost no more than
£500k, and it should
work!
I want it by the 1st
June, and it should
cost no more than
£500k!

8. Software Fails!
iPhone alarm – January 2011
Toyota recall Prius Hybrid, braking problems - 2011
Windows phone update bug – Feb 2011
British Passport failure – 1999
Sainsbury Nector points - 2011
Therac 25 radiation overdosing – 1985 - 86
Ariane 5 - 1996
Mars Climate Orbiter & Polar Lander - 1998

9. • Software crash - NatWest/RBS – June 2012 – software upgrade crashed
and whilst fix made a huge backlog of transactions were held awaiting
payment.
• Impact - Branches had to stay open at weekends, and any late
payments were effectively waived
• Data loss - A public health corporation had to notify 1.7 million
patients, staff, contractors, vendors and others about a reported theft of electronic
record files that contained their personal information, protected health
information or personally identifiable employee medical information. The
information included social security numbers, names, addresses and medical
histories.
Recent High Profile Issues

10. 10
“To find fault is easy; to do better may be difficult”
Plutarch
“Companies invest significant amounts in maintaining
processes that don’t work, particularly in the areas of Software
Quality, but will invest little in getting it right”
Martin Adcock
“Those who don’t learn from history are doomed to repeat it”
George Santayana
Will we ever learn….

11. Some definitions…
• Quality is seven attributes – Glass
(portability, reliability, efficiency, usability, testability, understandability, modifiability)
• Quality is conformance to requirements – Crosby
• Quality is fitness for use – Deming
• Quality is value to some person – Weinberg
• Quality is whatever the customer decides quality is – Ginac
• Quality is an attitude or state of mind – Juran

12. 12
Hierarchy of Software Quality Factors
Enjoyabl
e
Proficiency
Usability
Availability and
Reliability
Correctness

13. Quality – satisfaction and
dissatisfaction
13

14. Mobile phones
14

15. 15
Cars

16. Its complicated…..
• Live outages
• Personal safety
• Security
• Risk Management
• Continuity
• Contractual Protections
• Regulatory Compliance
• Legal Compliance
• Reputational Risk
• IP Protection

17. Another definition….
Understanding precisely what customers need and
consistently delivering accurate solutions within
budget, on time and with the minimum loss to
society
17

18. Confidence
in
outcomes
Quality – what is it?

19. The Hidden Cost of Quality
Reqmts Build System Test UAT R
19
Reqmts Build System Test
UAT R
Reqmts Build System Test UAT R
Result
Quality
Timescales
Savings
Quality
Timescales
Savings
Quality
Timescales
Savings
Multiple Defect Fix Drops
Fewer Defect
Fix Drops
F O C U S ON Q U A L I T Y – PEOPLE/PROCESS/TECHNOLOGY
P R O C E S S R U L E S
DATE/T E C H N O L O G Y R U L E S

20. Case study 1
• Average test period 12 weeks (4 weeks to get application running)
• Only 4 weeks testing possible
• Engendered team working and poor quality from design and build would kill the
timescales
• Dev asked for 1 extra week
• When the code arrived it just worked
Saved £400k on estimated costs
20

21. Case Study 2
• Large integration Project
• 2 year project
• Plan 20 days – costs £160k
• Actual
21
235 days – costs £1.8m

22. BMW
22

23. Quality is QA?
• Quality Assurance has many facets:
– It’s the near retired old gent who wonders around with the clipboard ensuring you
follow process without worrying about the output
– Its testing
– External audit
• People
• Measurement
23

24. Objectives
• Time and budget objectives….
24
Quality is assumed!

25. A success story…
25

26. Who decides?
26
IT
Customer Management

27. Working together…
27
People
Process Technology

28. Finally
"Quality in a service or produce is not what you put into it, it is
what the client or customer gets out of it."
Peter Drucker
"Be a yardstick of quality. Some people aren't used to an
environment where excellence is expected."
Steve Jobs RIP
28

29. Or....
29

30. 30
Thank you
www.experimentus.com
+44 (0)207 871 2300
info@experimentus.com
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