6.2.1 The Ten Most Powerful Principles for Quality in Systems Engineering and Software

We know we need better engineering control. But which solutions work? What are the most fundamental underlying principles we can observe in successful projects? This paper presents 10 powerful principles, that are neither widely taught, nor appreciated. They are based on ideas of measurement, quantification and feedback. Our maturity level with respect to ‘numbers’ is poor. Within projects, many of our most critical measures are often not quantified, when they should be. Hopefully, as we move to higher maturity levels we will begin to appreciate the power of numeric expression for qualities such as security, portability, adaptability, maintainability, robustness, usability, and reliability. Decide to make them numeric on your project. Draft some more-numeric requirements today, surprise your team tomorrow!