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 The Rapid Process Improvement Toolset

 

The Rapid Process Improvement toolset is a selection of tools and techniques developed by and for software process engineers.

They are a teachable set of tools that equip process engineers to improve understanding, and to change intrinsically complex software development and support activities. They have been acquired and developed over a number of years and will continue to be developed and added to. Tools are classified in three main categories; visibility, construction and infrastructure. A fourth ‘catch all’ category, ‘other’, is used for tools that do not fall readily into one of these categories. We are keen to develop this classification as a tool in its own right to enable process engineers to more readily select the right tool for the job. Any suggestions or pointers to better classification systems would be very welcome.

 The RPI toolset is reasonably stable now but continues to be developed and refined. If you would like to know more about, or trial some of the tools then email us at info@osel.co.uk.  

If you have tools or assets you are willing to share we are keen to hear from you too.

The RPI slides, describing the rationale behind RPI, and outlining the principal tools are here

SPI and RPI  discuss SPI and why RPI is different

Why have process improvement tools?

 

Tools for Visibility:

These tools are designed to show how software development and support is performed. They answer the questions: “what is happening?”, “what effect have our process improvement activities or technology introductions had?”. These tools give process engineers data to work with.

V - 1 Post Implementation Review

V - 2 Assessment & Audit

V - 3 Focussed Quality Assurance (FQA)

V - 4 Records

V - 5 Formal Technical Review (FTR)

V - 6 Defect Tracking

V - 7 Measurement

V - 8 Performance Targets

V - 9 Cost of Quality (CoQ)

V - 10 Visualization - of processes, products and projects

V - 11 External Consultants

V - 12 New Hires

 

Tools for Construction and Change:

Software development is dependent on both technology and the people using it. These tools are designed to aid the change of technology, processes, expectations and behaviour.

C - 1 Developing a Process Improvement Plan (DevPIP)

C - 2 Process Definition

C - 3 Tactical Change Management (TCM)

C - 4 PIR Led Process Improvement (PIRL)

C - 5 Process Improvement Templates

C - 6 Joint Application Development (JAD)

C - 7 Making Checklists

C - 8 Training

C - 9 Process Workshop (PW)

C - 10 Prefabricated Software Process Components

C - 11 Strategy: Development, validation and maintenance

 

Infrastructure Tools:

These tools are models or templates for robust process infrastructures. They eliminate ambiguity redundancy and contention, and enable effective communications and collaboration.

F - 1 Software Process Infrastructure

F - 2 Process Improvement Infrastructure

F - 3 Software Process Architecture

F - 4 Tools Group

 

Other Tools:

A selection of difficult to classify tools and techniques.

T - 1 ‘Upstreaming’

T - 2 Resource Models

T - 3 Leverage and ‘Reverse Leverage’

T - 4 Visible Migration (or development) of Process Assets

T - 5 Skills Recognition

T - 6 Process Sponsor and Process Champion

T - 7 Other Tools (mostly from other disciplines)

T - 8 Process Action Teams (PATs)

 

For further information email: info@osel.co.uk

 


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This page was updated  02/06/08
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