Alec Dorling is the international convener of ISO/IEC 15504 (SPICE) and coordinator of the Automotive SPICE® initiative with the leading European car OEMS.

The tutorial will provide participants with a good understanding of the role of ISO/IEC 15504 – Process Assessment, and of the relationship between ISO 15504 and other standards and assessment approaches.
ISO/IEC 15504 is the International Standard for Process Assessment.  Its development, with the parallel empirical studies of its use by the SPICE Project, has spanned 10 years – the initial Study Group established to explore the needs and requirements for the standard reported in 1992.  The final part of the International Standard, Part 5, was published in February 2006.
The use of techniques for assessment and evaluation of the software development process has been the focus of increasing attention over recent times.  The available evidence indicates that methods based on the various process assessment models provide the potential for substantial improvement in productivity and quality, as well as giving increased confidence to purchasers of software.  Initiatives have been taken at the international level to develop a standard for process assessment, based on generally agreed principles.  An international collaborative effort - the SPICE Project - has supported the development of a draft international standard for software process assessment, which is now published as ISO 15504.
This workshop provides a detailed analysis of the framework for process assessment in ISO 15504, placing it in the context of international developments in the area, and emphasizing the role of the framework in harmonizing existing assessment approaches such as those based upon the Capability Maturity Model.  It stresses the practical issues of performing and using the results of assessment.  Because of the presenter’s close involvement with the standards development effort and the SPICE Project, the information presented will be the most current available, being based upon the approved and published version of ISO 15504 and incorporating results from the second phase of the SPICE Trials, which concluded in April 1998..  The course will include a detailed discussion of the relationship of the SPICE Framework to existing assessment approaches such as the Capability Maturity Model, as well as to other International Standards including ISO 9001 and ISO 12207.  It also discusses the emergence of new approaches to process assessment based on ISO 15504, including Automotive SPICE® and Pathfinder.

At the completion of the tutorial, participants will be able to:

• Appreciate the principles and purposes of process assessment, particularly in relation to quality improvement;
• Have a good understanding of emerging international trends in relation to software process assessment.
• Understand the two-dimensional nature of the reference model defined in the emerging international standard.
• Appreciate how the results of assessments conducted using the framework can be applied for both process improvement and capability determination.
• Discuss the relationship of other assessment approaches to the emerging international standard.
• Discuss the major strengths and weaknesses of the assessment approach;
• Discuss the cost-benefit implications of assessment-based improvement in software development;
• Apply the results of assessment to planning an improvement programme;

The course is designed for management and senior technical staff in the field of software and systems engineering.  It is expected that participants would be practicing computer professionals with some experience in the area of quality management or process improvement.  Familiarity with basic software quality principles is expected.

The Information and Communications Technology (ICT) world is addicted to dysfunctional behaviour and the problem is spreading globally. The impact of this addiction is devastating - billions of dollars are spent on rework and enhancements to (often defective) software. While professional project management and process improvement initiatives have improved the situation, the sad truth is that the parties in the ICT relationship (the customer and the supplier) are largely co-dependent on pattern of dysfunction characterized by ineffective communication and eroding trust. As part of the industry, we believe that all parties to the problem need to face up to their role and take steps to sustainable recovery. For many ICT projects, this is a surmountable problem with positive outcomes.  By tackling the issues head-on, progress is reported by two countries: Australia and Finland, through formalized scope management concepts embodied in their southernSCOPE and northernSCOPE approaches respectively. Within the first few years, both initiatives have reversed the trend of failed projects posting increased ICT program success and improved customer / supplier relationships. Both approaches are based on project management best practices combined with customer-centric scope management.

This tutorial focuses specifically on the northernSCOPE 12-step process for ICT program “recovery” established and practiced by the Finnish author. It also outlines the qualifications for the new Certified Scope Manager (CSM) job role standardized by the European Certificates Association (ECA) in support of northernSCOPE.  SouthernSCOPE is a similar approach developed by the Victorian Government in Australia and is composed of 8 of the steps of northernSCOPE. (For the interest of participants from the Southern Hemisphere, we have indicated which northernSCOPE steps are not included in the southernSCOPE method.)

This tutorial focuses on the aspect of test management and the role of psychology in it. It will cover the following topics:

• psychological aspects of desicion making
• risk management
• interactive workshop on communication techniques (von Thun's theory)
• building tester's and test managers's job analysis using Thomas Intenational® method
• creativity in software testing
• assertiveness: "a tester is not a vacuum cleaner" (Schaefer) and "testing as co-dependent behaviour" (Copeland)
• against broken windows (concept by Michael Levine) in:
• customer relations and support
• process improvement (according to ADP principles)
• interaction design (psychology of user-centred design)
• public presentations: how to present test results and to whom
• negotiations: typical negotiations situations in testing and in SQA, typical difficualties, how to cope
• coping with stress in testing

This tutorial will present a method for establishing ISO/IEC 15504-Based Process Capability Profile to Process Improvement (PRO2PI). In order to use the flexibility of continuous architecture, we need methodological support to establishing (define, document, validate and use) a process capability profile integrated with the organization strategy aiming better business results. The tutorial will cover the rationale for the method, considerations about its constructions during the last seven years of industry-as-laboratory cycles, examples using ISO/IEC 15504-5, SW-CMM, CMMI-DEV and other models, and discussing about the method. The method is named PRO2PI-WORK (Workshop for establishing a Process Capability Profile to Process Improvement).

Clenio F. Salviano is a researcher at the “Renato Archer” Research Center (CenPRA) in Campinas, Brazil since 1984 and a professor in software process improvement in professional courses at UFLA, SENAC and UNIMEP Universities. At CenPRA, he coordinates a software process improvement division, doing technological research and consultancy in software industry. He is co-editor of ISO/IEC 15504-5, the exemplar process assessment model for ISO/IEC 15504. His research interests include software process capability models, process improvement, process assessment and software patterns. He received his PhD at Unicamp (State University of Campinas) in 2006 with a thesis on a process capability profile driven proposal for software process improvement.