5M1E, the best solution for software quality management

-How to make a good product？

-Users, needs, culture, value, design and process are indispensable.

-So, how to do an excellent job in product quality management？

-People, machines, materials, methods, environment and measurement are also indispensable.

Factors that can affect the fluctuation of product quality include the following aspects: man, machine, material, method, environment and measurement. This is the 5M1E of product quality management.

Initially, the 5M1E analysis method was used in the quality management process of manufacturing parts in the production workshop to reduce costs and improve the overall efficiency and quality of the operating system through the improvement of the quality of operating procedures. After a period of implementation, the 5M1E analysis method has helped workshop managers achieve great success in quality management. With the broader and broader application of lean in the software industry, people gradually find that the 5M1E product quality management analysis method has infinite potential in software research and development.

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1.Man

In terms of operators, the product quality may be reduced due to the boredom, lack of awareness and unskilled operation of operators.

Similarly, in the process of software R&D, it is also necessary to minimize the quality risk in terms of personnel. So how to manage man？

·Firstly, the Manager should improve the R & D skills, business literacy and R & D quality awareness of R & D personnel through publicity and training. Through R & D personnel to consciously strengthen the quality awareness, thus improving the controllability.

·Secondly, strengthen the communication in the R & D process, make the work transparent, and reduce the product design defects caused by inconvenient communication and process conflict.

·Then, clarify the "self-management" and specifically implement the responsibility to the individual. Avoid the separation of quality and R & D, mobilize the enthusiasm of R & D personnel and improve the sense of participation and responsibility of R & D personnel.

·Finally, actively verify and clarify user needs. Avoid the situation that the product design can not meet the needs of users.

2.Machine

In terms of machinery and equipment, equipment loss and performance testing problems will also affect product quality.

In terms of software R & D, rational use of tools will also improve product quality, such as:

·It is convenient to view and manage project progress and personnel status through project management tools;

·Build a test management tool to facilitate writing and later tracking use cases and viewing test details;

·Make good use of automatic testing tools, reduce manual testing costs and improve testing efficiency.

Business illustrations byStoryset

3.Material

In the actual product production process, the raw materials provided by the supplier determine the quality of the delivered products. In general, raw materials need to be marked with the source and only be used in the production process after passing the quality inspection.
Similarly, before writing code, the product manager needs to clarify the requirements and design the prototype. Unlike many assembly-line products built by the traditional manufacturing industry, the demand for software products is constantly changing. Suppose the initial demand is not apparent, or the demand changed midway is not synchronized to the hands of R & D personnel. In that case, it is impossible to control the product quality/value of software.
How to control the "material" of the software?
On the one hand, the product manager needs to strictly record the requirements, evaluate the feasibility and make a good product plan.
On the other hand, the product manager should bridge the gap between the R & D personnel and the actual customers (users) to reduce the distortion of demand delivery. After all, some requirements deteriorate with words.

4. Method

To reduce the impact of process methods on product quality, lean production decides to realize "automation," adding automatic machines in the production process. For example, when the pipeline is abnormal, the machine itself can sense and stop in time. Through "automation," we can ensure safety and product quality. In addition, lean production will ensure the quality of many products by "minimizing the batch and quickly changing the mold."

The "method" in 5M1E means that the R & D team should pay enough attention to code specification: whether naming specification, format specification, log specification or unit test coverage, it is an excellent weapon to ensure code quality. At the same time, you should "refactor boldly and test carefully" when you see destructive code.

Business illustrations byStoryset

5. Environment

The environment generally refers to the temperature, humidity, noise interference, vibration, lighting, indoor purification and on-site pollution of the production site. In addition to ensuring the unique requirements of products for environmental conditions, we should also do an excellent job in site sorting, rectification and cleaning, vigorously do an excellent job in civilized production, and create conditions for the sustainable production of high-quality products.
In addition to ensuring the cleanliness of the necessary office environment, software R & D also ensures the cleanliness of the virtual environment. This part will be carried out in detail in the article "5S management".I want to emphasize that the team should work in the same place as possible and conduct good communication and exchange to avoid information island.

Business illustrations byStoryset

6. Measure

During measurement, pay attention to the selection of instruments, measurement dimensions, measurement standards, etc.

Whether it is the measurement of the traditional manufacturing industry or the testing of the software industry, the purpose is to find problems and prove the existence of problems to make the products perfect.

Specifically, how to do it?

·Firstly, ensure the standardization of the test process: extract test requirements - write test cases - test execution - submit bugs - bug verification tracking - regression testing - acceptance - generate test reports;

·Secondly, write reasonable test cases through various methods, such as equivalence class division, cause and effect diagram method, scenario analysis method, orthogonal analysis method, path coverage, logic coverage, statement coverage, etc.;

·Finally, ensure the breadth and depth of use cases and the adequacy of test execution.

With the gradual increase of each process link, the 5M1E product quality management analysis method can help the team quickly identify the problem in which link. However, the method only plays an auxiliary role. In practice, we still need to integrate and continuously optimize and improve the product delivery process.

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