ISO 9001 model support for software process assessment

For most software companies, the pressure for process improvement arises from the direction of a recently released standard in the domain of process assessment and determination of capability (ISO 15504). In the case of ISO 9001 a valuable framework for evaluation of the degree of compliance to this standard is provided by SABS ARP 042: 1997, while ISO 15504 Part 5 offers a detailed assessment model for a suite of processes important to software development and maintenance. There will be obvious benefits to a company if the data collected during assessments conducted using either the ISO 9001 or ISO 15504 models can be applied with minimal additional effort to provide capability achievement profiles associated with either model. It is shown that the work products produced in the development and maintenance processes represent the link between the two models. The paper illustrates how the process assessment tool developed by the Software Engineering Applications Laboratory provides the facilities for conducting assessments using these models and mapping the results to the application model of either model.