An analysis of software quality management at AWE plc.

A detailed question set is required to test and measure the true extent that a software quality management system is adopted and implemented across a large company like AWE plc. The analysis of the gathered data reveals specific topics of weakness that can also reflect the cultural acceptance or resistance that management groups have towards the adoption of quality systems. Having identified detailed problems and barriers, effective strategies and programmes can be deployed to improve the level of implementation and, therefore, the effectiveness of a software quality management system. This paper presents the question set used and the subsequent results obtained from the implementation assessment for 55 software systems at AWE plc. The data is collated into management groups and the associated cultures discussed. The topics of weakness are highlighted together with the very specific actions that are least undertaken. A range of improvement actions is also presented

Achieving business excellence in software quality management

Many companies have had difficulties in achieving success with software process improvement initiatives or have had adverse experiences in implementing quality systems. With a plethora of standards available and the numerous frameworks to apply best practice, none appears to act as a panacea to guarantee fulfilment or realise a true Return-on-Investment. This thesis proposes a holistic approach to software process improvement, describing a range of supporting tools and methods highlighting a true understanding of the customer base and associated cultures. The research aim was to develop and evaluate a demonstrably effective and efficient software quality management methodology suitable for a technical company such as AWE plc. To be effective the methodology must deliver an improved conformance to the quality standards and deliver real process improvement. To be efficient the methodology must deliver a real Return-on-Investment. Case studies on the implementation of the quality system were carried out at AWE plc. Each case study provided a further opportunity to measure and analyse the success or otherwise of that method or tool for further refinement. Audits, self-assessment, training, system design, marketing, and the people skills associated with a consultation process are all examined in detail. The research methodology has demonstrated its success as case studies show that steady improvement in implementing the software quality system has occurred year on year. This success has been validated by third party ISO 9001 assessments and has led to an enhancement in AWE plc reputation as a centre of software excellence. The approach has overcome cultural resistance and changed working practices. With a philosophy of customer care, consultation, and active engagement, practitioners now adopt best-practice quality management principles. The cost effectiveness of this methodology means its adoption could be considered by any organisation whether large or small

Providing demonstrable return-on-investment for organisational learning and training

Purpose – The aim of this paper is to present a holistic approach to training, that clearly demonstrates cost savings with improved effectiveness and efficiencies that are aligned to business objectives. Design/methodology/approach – Extending Kirkpatrick’s evaluation framework with Phillips’s return-on-investment (ROI) concepts, the paper conveys a number of successes; including trainee satisfaction and the capturing of improved knowledge and skills. Findings – The paper includes case studies of how, and to what extent this knowledge has been applied with examples of resulting efficiency savings. The paper shows that there is growing agreement that one of the primary drivers, if not the key driver of long-term organisational effectiveness, is the ability of an organisation to learn effectively. The methodology requires some additional assessment and course preparation to establish a basis from which to demonstrate learning effectiveness. The financial benefits of the applied learning are far greater than the additional preparatory costs. Practical implications – Learning organisations that anticipate, react to change and learn, are likely to maintain a competitive advantage. These organisations are constantly looking for more effective and efficient ways of training. Paradoxically, other organisations will often slash training budgets in times of hardship, as training departments are unable to demonstrate the effectiveness of their programmes. Originality/value – The paper presents a practical example of how training should be applied to truly demonstrate its value in the workplace

Achieving business excellence in software quality management

Many companies have had difficulties in achieving success with software process improvement initiatives or have had adverse experiences in implementing quality systems. With a plethora of standards available and the numerous frameworks to apply best practice, none appears to act as a panacea to guarantee fulfilment or realise a true Return-on-Investment. This paper proposes a holistic approach to software process improvement, describing a range of supporting tools and methods highlighting a true understanding of the customer base and associated cultures. The research aim was to develop and evaluate a demonstrably effective and efficient software quality management methodology suitable for a technical company. To be effective the methodology must deliver real process improvement conformance to the best practice quality standards. To be efficient the methodology must deliver a real Return-on-Investment. A range of case studies are described including audits, self-assessment, training, system design, marketing, and the people skills associated with a consultation process are all examined in detail. Each case study provided a further opportunity to measure and analyse the success or otherwise of that method for further refinement. The research methodology has demonstrated its success as the data collected during these case studies show that steady improvement in implementing the software quality system has occurred year on year. This success has been validated by third party ISO 9001 assessments and has led to an enhancement in reputation. The approach has overcome cultural resistance and changed working practices. With a philosophy of customer care, consultation, and active engagement, practitioners adopt best-practice quality management principles. The cost effectiveness of this methodology means its adoption could be considered by any organisation whether large or small

Efficiency metrics computing in combined sensor networks

This paper discusses the computer-aided design of combined networks for offices and building automation systems based on diverse wired and wireless standards. The design requirements for these networks are often contradictive and have to consider performance, energy and cost efficiency together. For usual office communication, quality of service is more important. In the wireless sensor networks, the energy efficiency is a critical requirement to ensure their long life, to reduce maintenance costs and to increase reliability. The network optimization problem has been solved under considering of overall-costs as objective and quality of service including throughput, delay, packet losses etc. with energy efficiency as required constraints. This can be achieved by a combination of different planning methods like placement of wired and wireless nodes, tracing of cabling systems, energy-efficient sensor management and event-based sampling. A successful application of these methods requires a combined harmonized design at different levels of the networks. This paper aims to demonstrate how these methods are realized in the network planning. These tools provide optimized wired and wireless topologies under considering of costs, distances, transmitted power, frequencies, propagation environments and obstacles given in computer-aided design compatible formats

Learning from mutants: Using code mutation to learn and monitor invariants of a cyber-physical system

Cyber-physical systems (CPS) consist of sensors, actuators, and controllers all communicating over a network; if any subset becomes compromised, an attacker could cause significant damage. With access to data logs and a model of the CPS, the physical effects of an attack could potentially be detected before any damage is done. Manually building a model that is accurate enough in practice, however, is extremely difficult. In this paper, we propose a novel approach for constructing models of CPS automatically, by applying supervised machine learning to data traces obtained after systematically seeding their software components with faults ("mutants"). We demonstrate the efficacy of this approach on the simulator of a real-world water purification plant, presenting a framework that automatically generates mutants, collects data traces, and learns an SVM-based model. Using cross-validation and statistical model checking, we show that the learnt model characterises an invariant physical property of the system. Furthermore, we demonstrate the usefulness of the invariant by subjecting the system to 55 network and code-modification attacks, and showing that it can detect 85% of them from the data logs generated at runtime.Comment: Accepted by IEEE S&P 201