SOFTWARE QUALITY CONCEPTS - Software Design for Six-Sigma: A Roadmap for Excellence - page 5

include quality planning, quality control, quality assurance, and quality im-
provement.
Quality Management System (QMS) : A QMS is a web of interconnected pro-
cesses. Each process uses resources to turn inputs into outputs. And all of these
processes are interconnected by means of many input-output relationships. Ev-
ery process generates at least one output, and this output becomes an input for
another process. These input-output relationships glue all of these processes
together—that's what makes it a system. A quality manual documents an orga-
nization's QMS. It can be a paper manual or an electronic manual.
Quality Planning : Quality planning is defined as a set of activities whose purpose
is to define quality system policies, objectives, and requirements, and to explain
how these policies will be applied, how these objectives will be achieved, and
how these requirements will be met. It is always future oriented. A quality plan
explains how you intend to apply your quality policies, achieve your quality
objectives, and meet your quality system requirements.
Quality Policy : A quality policy statement defines or describes an organization's
commitment to quality.
Quality Record : A quality record contains objective evidence, which shows
how well a quality requirement is being met or how well a quality process is
performing. It always documents what has happened in the past.
Quality Requirement : A quality requirement is a characteristic that an entity
must have. For example, a customer may require that a particular product (entity)
achieve a specific dependability score (characteristic).
Quality Surveillance : Quality surveillance is a set of activities whose purpose
is to monitor an entity and review its records to prove that quality requirements
are being met.
Quality System Requirement : A quality is a characteristic. A system is a set of
interrelated processes, and a requirement is an obligation. Therefore, a quality
system requirement is a characteristic that a process must have.

1.3 QUALITY, TIME TO MARKET, AND PRODUCTIVITY

The time to market of a software product is how fast a software company can
introduce a new or improved software products and services to the market. It is very
important for a software company to introduce their products in a timely manner
without reducing the quality of their products. The software company that can offer
their product faster without compromising quality achieve a tremendous competitive
edge with respect to their competitors.
There are many techniques to reduce time to market, such as (El-Haik, 2005):

Use the proper software process control technique(s), which will reduce the
complexity of the software product