“We have just released our first product under this model and I am delighted to report that the promises of on-time delivery and improved product quality have been realized.”

A major telecommunications company was facing serious problems: sales were under pressure because of increasing competition and the company's inability to quickly bring new products to market, and customer service costs were raising because of quality problems with recent product releases. The source of both problems was software development.  Schedules were unreliable, projects were late, market requirements were dropped to reduce delays, and quality assurance test cycles were long and not very effective. They needed to improve product quality, reduce the product development cycle, improve the accuracy of project schedules, and increase the productivity and effectiveness of the quality assurance group. 

ESTM analyzed the company's existing software development process, identifying both strengths and opportunities for improvement.  We then worked closely with management, software developers and quality assurance staff to define and put in place a revised process that preserved existing strengths, was applicable to small and large projects, improved project management, strengthened the tracking and management of product specifications, facilitated the early identification and correction of problems (late detection was a key source of schedule delays), and was acceptable to both organizations.

The revised approach significantly increased the reliability of development schedules, improved the definition of and adherence to product specifications, greatly improved the relationship between Quality Assurance and Software Development, improved the thoroughness of testing though both automation and the focused preparation and review of test plans, and reduced the number of post-release problem reports by more than 70%.  To quote the company’s General Manager, “We have just released our first product under this model and I am delighted to report that the promises of on-time delivery and improved product quality have been realized.”