The Effect of Quality Certification on the Software Development Process

One of the purposes of software quality certification is to enable organisations to effectively manage issues generally considered problematic within the software development process. In an earlier paper the authors established that the process of certification has a number of positive consequences. In this paper we present two models developed firom the experiences of three software development organisations that had gained ISO 9001 certification. These models articulate the mechanics by which the practical benefits of certification are realised. The models suggest explanations for how, and under what circumstances, certification will lead to positive outcomes.