A field study of the use of quality function deployment (QFD) as applied to software development

This research explores the use of quality function deployment as applied to software development addressing research issues in the areas of: the relationship of software quality functions deployment and Total Quality Management based philosophies of organizations, adoptionary considerations for the implementation of softwarequality function deployment, training and education techniques, and perceptions of need.

Abstract

Quality function deployment is a widely used technique in traditional product manufacturing to solicit and translate consumers' demands into quantifiably measured quality characteristics for product design. In recent years, this technology has been transferred to the area of software development (herein referred to as software quality function deployment). This research explores the use of quality function deployment as applied to software development addressing research issues in the areas of: the relationship of software quality function deployment and Total Quality Management based philosophies of organizations, adoptionary considerations for the implementation of software quality function deployment, training and education techniques, methodological perspectives of software quality function deployment, use of software quality function deployment on specific software development projects, future of software quality function deployment, and perceptions of need of Total Quality Management and software quality function deployment in higher education. This research is carried out within the context of a field study of the software industry. Data gathering is carried out by recorded telephone interviews. The results of this research are presented as descriptive statistics and in discussion form. Implications of the results are presented through discussion of the research issues and the development of a set of contentions concerning the nature and use of software quality function deployment.