Defect Prevention is one of the key process area for CMM
Level 5.
The main purpose of Defect Prevention is to identify the
root cause of the issue and prevent it from occurring again in the future by
taking necessary actions.
The set of defects introduced are listed down and the root
cause for them are analyzed. The trends are then observed and preventive
measures are taken.
Defect Prevention process involves the following activities.
- Defect Prevention process is defined in Project Plan
- Defect Prevention Anchor is identified
- Defect Prevention Activities are implemented
- The results of DP activity is reviewed and addressed
Define Defect Prevention Process:
Defect Prevention Process should be
defined as part of Project Plan. All standards and guidelines should be in
place.
Defect Prevention Anchor:
Defect Prevention Anchor should be
identified. He is the person responsible for conducting DP meeting and carrying
out DP activities
Defect Prevention
activities:
- Kick off meeting
Kick
off meeting is conducted to make the team members aware of the DP process to be
followed in the project. The DP anchor will be explaining about the process and
meeting schedule and what is expected from the team members
- Casual Analysis Meeting:
The DP anchor will come up with the list of defects to be discussed in
the meeting. This meeting will be attended by all responsible developers and
testers in the project.
All the defects are analyzed/discussed one by one and
the root cause for each defect is identified.
Based on the root cause and
analysis, the Defect-Cause, Severity and Priority are determined for each
defect as shown below.
 |
| Example: Defect Classification |
After the defects are classified to appropriate cause category, a Pareto
Chart is prepared to show the defect category and its frequency of
occurrence.
 |
| Example: Pareto Analysis Chart |
While discussing the defect causes in a brainstorming session, there may
be different opinions. All the possible causes can be represented using Cause-and-Effect
diagram also known as Fishbone Diagram or Ishikawa Diagram as shown below
 |
| Example: Fishbone Diagram |
- Measures to Address the Root Causes:
Based on
the Casual Analysis, top Problem Areas are identified and preventive measures
to avoid the causes in future is recorded. Problem Areas, Benefits of addressing
the problem, Action Items, the Person responsible for the action and actual
implementation date of the action are all recorded in Casual Analysis and Resolution Report.
Defect Prevention
Activity Review:
The Defect
Prevention Activity Results and Action Items status should be reviewed continuously.
Monitor whether the Defect Cause
has been eliminated based on the action taken.
The DP activity data and results
are recorded, so that other similar projects in the same organization can use
it.
Finally the Software Quality Assurance group audits the DP
activity report and use it to determine the CMM Level of the project.
