How to Perform Reviews & Audits in Software Development Projects
I N T R O D U C T I O N
How to Perform Reviews & Audits is a plain-english, simplified version of IEEE Std 1028-1988 - Standard for Software Reviews and Audits.
This how to guide encompasses the range of review and audit activities undertaken during a project.
Reviews and audits comprise the following five modules:
Management review. The formal evaluation of a project level plan or project status relative to that plan by a designated review team. Technical review. The evaluation of specified software modules and documents aimed at ensuring that the software modules and documents comply with the applicable standards while conforming to the specifications. The tech-nical review may provide recommendations after the exami-nation of alternatives. Walkthrough. An evaluation process that can result in recommendations for improvement or identification of alternatives to the current software modules or documents being developed. Audit. Provide objective evidence of compliance of products and processes with standards, guidelines, specifications and procedures. Includes audits of the quality management system. Inspection. Rigorous formal evaluations designed to detect and identify defects in the reviewed material. Normally conducted after the event and initiated by persons outside of the project team.
S C O P E
How to Perform Reviews & Audits applies to all project documents, software conduct specific reviews or audits - that need is defined by the project and quality plans. Also applies to the audit of the quality management system.
O B J E C T I V E S
How to Perform Reviews & Audits provides definitions and uniform requirements to enable project staff to perform the necessary reviews and audits of products and processes.
Contribution to IS Quality. An essential element in the development of project documentation is the verification and validation that their contents are true and accurate. It is recognised in the literature of software quality that the authors of documents and code inherently do not wish to find errors in their own work. They will often consciously or unconsciously overlook errors and inaccuracies. It is therefore not advisable to leave the review of project documentation to those who produce it. It is important for such checking to conducted in a consistent and systematic manner. If this is done, project documentation will serve the development process in the way in which they are intended.
This how to guide is an valuable aid for project and quality managers to address the important process of performing reviews and audits. It is is an easy to use checklist, as defined by IEEE Std 1028, and template to achieve this end.
V I E W - S A M P L E S
Click here to see the contents list.
Click here to see a sample of the plan.
Note formatting may be affected in conversion from Word to HTML.
D O W N L O A D - F R E E - U S E F U L - S A M P L E S
Two brief (~10 pages each) how to guides can be downloaded for free. They are zip files containing rtf & pdf copies of the documents.
They are useful and relevant to any software development project and are intended to give prospective buyers of the full featured range of TCS how to guides an indication of their quality and usefulness.
Click here to download How to Perform Risk Management (.docx format).
Click here to download How to Perform Project Estimates (.docx format).
A B O U T T H E A U T H O R
How to Perform Reviews & Audits was written by David Tuffley, who combines a successful commercial career as a quality management consultant with academic involvement at the School of ICT, at Griffith University, Australia, where he lectures and is engaged in postgraduate research in IS Quality.
See Client list.
O R D E R Y O U R C O P Y N O W
This guide, proven over the past five years at large commercial and public sector sites, could save you thousands of dollars in consultancy fees. Or put it another way, you could not buy even an hour of a good consultant's time for the price of this valuable How To guide. Yet consultants routinely spend weeks or months implementing procedures similar to those contained in this guide.
Ordering your copy of this excellent How To guide for only US$24.95 is easy. Buy It
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O T H E R T C S P U B L I C A T I O N S
Client list Complete Library (all of the below + 19 extra) 
User Manuals Software Requirements Specifications Capture IS User Requirements Software Test Documentation Software Design Descriptions Configuration Management Plans Version & File Software Development Documentation Software Project Agreements Software Project Plans Software Quality Management Plans Software Project Review & Audits Software Project Terms of Reference Perform Software Project Metrics Initiate Software Projects Software project procurement & handling client supplied materials
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