Software Improvement Feedback Loops: How to Develop a Learning Organization

Over the past twenty-five years, the Software Engineering Laboratory (SEL) at NASA/GSFC has studied mechanisms for improving the software process and product. During this time, a set of processes has evolved: the Goal/Question/Metric Paradigm; the Quality Improvement Paradigm; and the Experience Factory Organization. These processes are based on the needs for measurement and feedback loops, from project to process and project to project, creating a learning organization for building software competencies. In this presentation, Victor Basili discusses these processes, how they evolved, the lessons learned, and the effects of their application in the SEL.