Possible Application of Quality Function Deployment in Software SystemsDevelopment in the United States Air Force

摘要

The objectives of the thesis were to determine whether the methods of QualityFunction Deployment (QFD) could be used in the software development environment within the USAF, and whether or not this area should be researched further. The research was limited to the requirements analysis and definition phase. The different areas of study included a brief review of the structured analysis methodology, a detailed review of the QFD models currently being used in the product industries, a review of how QFD fits into the software development cycle, and specific software modifications to the QFD methodology. A review of some applications of software QFD (SQFD) is also performed. A sample problem consisting of an Automated Teller Machine is developed in detail using the SQFD methods identified. A subjective survey was conducted of a small sample of USAF software experts to determine the suitability of SQFD for USAF use based on the sample problem. The results of the thesis show that QFD can be adapted to software development. SQFD also shows potential to save both time and money for the USAF. Consideration must be given to the sample size and nature of the survey when interpreting the results of this research.