Metrics - Are We Doing Well or Are We Doing Poorly

December 3, 2003

Location: The Clarion Hotel (I-494 & Hwy 100), Bloomington, MN

Wednesday, 03 December, 2003
6:00-8:00 p.m. at The Clarion Hotel (I-494 & Hwy 100)
6:00 start of networking, 6:30 start of meeting, 8:00 end of meeting
Bloomington, MN

Joint Meeting with the TCQAA

Abstract:

Software metrics don't solve problems. People solve problems. What software metrics can do is provide information so that people can make informed decisions and intelligent choices. According to the new ISO/IEC 15939 Software Measurement Process standard, decision criteria are the "thresholds, targets, or patterns used to determine the need for action or further investigation, or to describe the level of confidence in a given result".

Decision criteria provide people with guidance that helps them interpret the measurement results and make decisions. This presentation will discuss decision criteria, why we need them and how to establish useful decision criteria. This talk:

Defines what decision criteria are and why we need them,
Provides guidance in establishing decision criteria for different types of metrics,
Describes how to use decision criteria when making decisions.

This presentation will answer these questions and look at why relationships and building relationships are so important to the success of projects. It will also look at what you can do to improve your ability to recognize and deal with relationship issues on your projects. Several proven techniques will be presented that you can use to improve your soft skills.

About the Speaker:

Linda Westfall is the President of The Westfall Team, which provides Software Metrics and Software Quality Engineering training and consulting services. Prior to starting her own business, Linda was the Senior Manager of Quality Metrics and Analysis at DSC Communications where her team designed and implemented a corporate wide metrics program.

Linda has more than twenty-five years of experience in real time software engineering, quality and metrics. She has worked as a Software Engineer, Systems Analyst, Software Process Engineer and Manager of Production Software.

Very active professionally, Linda Westfall is a past chair of the American Society for Quality (ASQ) Software Division. She has also served as the Software Division's Program Chair and Certification Chair and on the ASQ National Certification Board. She is also the past chair of the Association for Software Engineering Excellence (ASEE) which is the Dallas/Fort Worth SPIN.

Linda Westfall has an MBA from the University of Texas at Dallas and BS in Mathematics from Carnegie-Mellon University. She has her Professional Engineer (P.E.) license in software engineering from the State of Texas. She is an ASQ Certified Software Quality Engineer (CSQE) and Certified Quality Auditor (CQA).