An Empirical Study Of Software Quality Improvement Practices From Multiple Perspectives - An Australian Case Study

The literature on software quality research to date has shown a lack of empirical insight into the use of methods for achieving quality in a real context. Further investigation is required if we want to increase our understanding on how to improve software quality practices. In particular, we wanted to explore the key factors which impact software improvement practices in a case study, by studying the perspectives of three key stakeholders developers, managers and customers. The selected exemplary case is a small Australian based software company with exceptional record in terms of organizational growth and performance. A qualitative approach was adopted to conduct this exploratory study. Results were analyzed using the Grounded Theory approach to develop an initial framework from the empirical data. We hope that this framework will provide a deeper understanding of the reasons and perceptions for the use of quality methods in practice, and thus have an impact on both researchers and practitioners.