22 Pre-Project Software Quality Components: Contract Review

A project is a temporary endeavor undertaken to create a unique product, service or result. Temporary means, every project has a definite beginning and a definite end. The end is reached when the project’s objectives have been achieved or when it becomes clear that the project objectives will not or cannot be met and the project is terminated. A Project creates unique deliverables, which are products, services or results. The presence of repetitive elements does not change the fundamental uniqueness of the project work. A product or artifact that is produced, is quantifiable, and can be either an end item in itself or a component item.

To have a successful software project, the project objectives should be clearly defined as Specific, that is, concrete and well-defined, in terms of Measurable, satisfaction of the objective can be objectively judged ; Achievable, it is within the power of the individual or group concerned to meet the target; Relevant, the objective must relevant to the true purpose of the project;

Time constrained, there is defined point in time by which the objective should be achieved. The Management involves the following activities

Planning – deciding what is to be done Organizing – making arrangements
Staffing – selecting the right people for the job Directing – giving instructions
Monitoring – checking on progress
Controlling – taking action to remedy hold-ups
Innovating – coming up with solutions when problems emerge
Representing – liaising with clients, users, developers and other stakeholders

Project management is the application of knowledge, skills, tools and techniques to project activities to meet project requirements. Project management is accomplished through the application and integration of the project management processes of initiating, planning, executing, monitoring and controlling, and closing.Managing a Project Includes:

Identifying requirements
Establishing clear and achievable objectives
Balancing the competing demands for quality, scope, time and cost
Adapting the specifications, plans, and approach to the different concerns and Expectations of the various stakeholders.

Contract and Contract Review

Contract is the basis for considerable litigation when delivered software does not perform as expected. The purpose is to arrive at a realistic budget and timetable and discovering pitfalls early and then, to arrive at final contract draft with these important parameters revealed.

Several situations can lead a software company to sign a contract with a customer. The most common are:

Participation in a tender.
Submission of a proposal according to the customer’s RFP.(Request For Proposal)
Receipt of an order from a company’s customer.
Receipt of an internal request or order from another department in the organization.

Request for Proposal is a solicitation made, often through a bidding process, by an agency or company interested in procurement of a commodity, service or valuable asset, to potential suppliers to submit business proposals. A good RFP allows contractors or a project team to understand what the customer expects so that they can prepare a thorough proposal that will satisfy the customer’s requirement at a realistic price. An RFP must provide a statement of work (SOW) A SOW deals with the scope of the project, outlining the tasks or work elements the customer wants the contractor or project team to perform. The RFP must include the customer requirements which define specifications and attributes. The RFP should state what deliverable the customer expects the contractor or project team to provide. The RFP should list any customer-supplied items. The RFP might state the approvals required by the customer. Some RFPs mention the type of contract the customer intends to use. An RFP might state the payment terms the custome intends to use. The RFP should state the required schedule for completion of the project. The RFP should provide instructions for the format and content of the contractor proposals. The RFP should indicate the due date by which the customer expects potential contractors to submit proposals.

A bad contract is characterized by loosely defined requirements, and unrealistic budgets and schedules and is expected to yield low-quality software. SQA program performs its preventive quality assurance efforts with a review of the Proposal draft, Contract draft. The two reviews are aimed at improving the budget and timetable.

The objective of the proposal draft review is to make sure that the following activities have been satisfactorily carried out. Customer requirements have been clarified and documented. Alternative approaches for carrying out the project have been examined and formal aspects of the relationship between the customer and the software firm have been specified.

The three contract draft review objectives that make sure the following activities have been satisfactorily carried out:

No unclarified issues remain in the contract draft.
All understandings reached subsequent to the proposal are correctly documented.
No “new” changes, additions, or omissions have entered the contract draft.

Contract reviews vary in their magnitude, depending on the characteristics of the proposed project. This complexity may be either technical or organizational. Accordingly, different levels of professional effort are justified for the various contract reviews. The task of contract review can be completed by various individuals, listed here in ascending order, according to the complexity of the project:

The leader or another member of the proposal team.
The members of the proposal team.
An outside professional or a company staff member.
A team of outside experts.

Implementation of a contract review process for a major project usually involves substantial organizational difficulties. The major difficulties in carrying out the contract reviews for major proposals are:

Time Pressure.
Proper contract review requires substantial professional work.
The potential contract review team members are very busy.

The careful planning of contract reviews is required for their successful completion, they are:

The contract review should be scheduled.
A team should carry out the contract review.
A contract review team leader should be appointed.

The contract review should be scheduled. Contract review activities should be included in the proposal preparation schedule, leaving sufficient time for the review and the ensuing corrections to be made. Teamwork makes it possible to distribute the workload among the team members so that each member of the contract review team can find sufficient time to do his or her share.

The loose relationships maintained between the internal customer and the internal developer increase the probability of project failure. This trend can be reduced by adequate procedures that will define the preparation and by applying the same guidelines used for external project contract review. Loose Relationships are usually characterized by:

Inadequate definition of project requirements.
Poor estimates of required resources.
Poor timetable/scheduling.
Inadequate awareness of development risks.

A substantial number, if not the majority, of software projects are internal projects — “in-house” projects – carried out by one unit of an organization for another unit of the same organization. In such cases, the software development unit is the supplier, while the other unit can be considered the customer. Internal software development projects are not based on what would be considered a complete customer–supplier relationship. In many cases, these projects are based on general agreements, with goodwill playing an important role in the relationships between the two units.

Contract reviews examine many subjects, based on the contract review objectives. Checklists are useful devices for helping review teams to organize their work and achieve high coverage of the relevant subjects. It is clear that many of the subjects on these lists are irrelevant for any specific project. At the same time, even a comprehensive checklist may exclude some important subjects relevant to a given project proposal. It is the task of the contract review team, but especially of its leader, to determine the list of subjects pertinent for the specific project proposal.

Summary:

Contract review process originates in the customer–supplier relationship and is very much fruitful for external projects and internal projects. Factors that affect the extent of the contract review and difficulties in performing a major contract review are listed and avenues for implementing a major contract review are recommended.