Quality Assessments using QPAM

This book is intended for consultants, facilitators, delivery teams or organizations who are interested in determining where their team(s) stand from an agile quality practices perspective.

It provides a deeper view of what it means to truly deliver successfully in an agile way. Janet and Selena introduce a quality practices assessment model (QPAM) that considers dimensions and quality aspects for behaviours and practices within teams and organizations. Consultants, coaches, managers, and even team members learn what high quality looks like for feedback loops, testing, code quality, culture, and more.

The reader is invited to dig deep to reflect on the quality of their products as well as the quality of a team's agile processes and those of the entire organization. The model enables teams to assess where they are, and what practices they may want to improve.

Without quality, there is no value.” ~Selena

Conducting an assessment of work practices for a software team or organization can be daunting. Many individuals muddle through their first ones by trial and error, evolving their approach one assessment at a time. Some never make the attempt. Janet and Selena share the process they've used for decades to help organizations understand where they stand in their quality journey. Whether you are an external or internal consultant or a team who wishes to self-assess, the steps are mapped out for you. This book guides you from starting an assessment engagement to gathering information, conducting interviews and process retrospectives, evaluating results, and finally creating and delivering your report. 

This book is a companion to Janet and Selena’s Assessing Agile Quality Practices with QPAM: Enabling Teams to Improve, which explains the Quality Practices Assessment Model created by Janet and Selena. In this second book, you'll find a detailed approach to conducting assessments, along with realistic examples. For further facilitator support, four case studies detail what teams may look like in their daily practices in one of the four dimensions of the QPAM model: Beginning, Unifying, Practicing, and Innovating. These examples provide additional guidance to facilitators evaluating a team with the QPAM model.

Whether you are new to assessments or are experienced and want to improve your assessment offering, this book provides techniques, tools, approaches, and examples to support your success.