Process Design — Revisiting the Top 5 Fundamentals that ensure Repeatable Success
Results do not matter, we are following a process. Results will take care of themselves.
We hear these words, everywhere, all the time, irrespective of the geographies and domains So, what does this mean?
There are a few important aspects that stand out:
· There is a process and it is being followed.
· People believe in that process, irrespective of initial failures or instant success.
· There is a belief, that success will be achieved eventually.
Let us take a detailed look into this:
What is a process?
A series of steps and decisions to achieve a desired outcome, a result, or completion of a task. These steps and decision may be interdependent or independent, but always lead to a common goal.
Once an outcome or result has been envisaged, a series of best practices along with decision cycle is established that would enable an entity to achieve it, not once but every time.
Process is always independent of procedures.
It is important to note that processes should be independent of procedures.
Consider an example of software testing, a process might stress on doing structural analysis first, followed by functional testing. However, it does not define the tools to be used and procedures of using those tools.
Likewise, a process may stress upon closure of a defect or non-conformance but is independent of coding language used or defect management tool employed.
Care needs to be taken that Processes are aligned with organizational vision, mission, and goals.
Process should be followed uniformly at holistic level.
Once primary stakeholders (senior management) approves a set of processes to be followed, it should be adopted throughout the organization as a culture. There is no point in having a very solid process that nobody follows.
Care also needs to be taken that the processes chosen are not complex enough that they cannot be followed. Also, the decision and approval processes should be carefully implemented so that they do not become a bottleneck.
Initial setbacks should not become process deterrent
Once people adopt a process, they should be totally believing in it and be prepared to be patient with the results.
It is always difficult to change habits and work styles. First, one need NOT do what has been done for a long time; Second, a new way of working needs to be adopted. It is not always easy. A lot of alignment needs to be done and efficiency is usually quite low in the initial stages. However, doing same things over and over again increases the efficiency and thus improves the results.
Belief in result
No matter what challenges the journey throws at us, destination will be reached if we keep moving in the right direction.
Failures test the belief system and increase noise along the way. However, it has often been observed that eventually results are achieved with much greater efficiency. This is evident from adoption of various standards, such as CMMI, Sigma, ISO etc.
The above principals are applied to Software industry as well.
Once Quality Vision, Mission, and Goals are defined, a Quality Management System (QMS) needs to be established and followed for achieving them with great efficiencies. A QMS is a set of formalized processes, guidelines, templates, and checklists along with defined responsibilities to achieve a desired outcome.
Following the guidelines advocated by established Quality standards, such as Six Sigma, CMMI dev, ISO/IEC 12207 etc ensure a continuous repeatable success. Processes designed based on Quality standards will ensure that there are no surprises in the End to End software development.
