Personal quality management with the Personal Software Process

Summary form only given, as follows. Software development organizations have a variety of mechanisms at their disposal to help in managing and improving the quality of the products they produce. Quality assurance organizations, problem reporting systems, software process improvement and peer reviews (to name just a few) are important tools for product quality enhancement, but an often-overlooked piece of the quality puzzle may well provide the most effective means to improve product quality: the individual software engineer. In this paper, we begin with an overview of the ways in which individual engineers (and their organizations) can benefit from adding the Personal Software Process´s (PSP´s) personal quality management techniques to their professional repertoires. We take a brief look at the benefits that have been achieved by those who have already learned to apply these principles in their work. Then we examine in more detail the specific activities PSP-trained engineers engage in to manage the quality of the software they produce. We look at everything from simple defect logging, to personal and peer reviews, to developing a personal quality plan and using it to guide your work