Software architecture is the baseline that helps to build a system to satisfy all the business requirements. While designing a new product, many of the software developers focus on its capabilities and behavior only. However, it’s not just the functionality that affects the users.
If the system is missing on the quality attributes such as reliability, scalability, etc. it will fail the same way as it does due to the lack of functional requirements. Therefore, it is crucial to optimize the quality attributes for software architecture.
Impact Of Poor Software On Business
When dealing with bad software quality attributes, here are some of the common scenarios for the businesses to end up-
- Usage Loss
- Poor Customer Reviews
- Discounts or freebies in an attempt to bring the customers back
- Brand Damage
- Losses to the competitors
- Financial problems
- Loss of faith
Reasons For Poor Software Quality Attributes
Software quality attributes are a type of non-functional requirements that aren’t visible to the users but offer positive value. Though these attributes remain invisible as long as the software is working correctly, the users are likely to notice when it isn’t performing well.
Here are some of the reasons that lead to the poor quality attributes of a product in the market-
Weak Technical Manual
A good leader never writes the projects instinctively and sets the tone for the other team members. It involves well-organized and structured decisions that focus on long-term goals.
Writing A Project Without Testing The Codes
Many of the developers consider testing code a wastage of time. Sometimes, there are no integration tests or unit. However, codes can be written and issued to clients.
Vague Responsibilities
It is crucial for software developers to have a clear understanding of their tasks. A clear task will allow them to formulate the measures on how to achieve a business goal.
Short-Term Goals
Many organizations hand over a project without completing all the appropriate tests. But, the developers need to understand the whole picture. If he/she takes up the project with incomplete data, it slows down the entire work.
Software Quality Attributes To Consider Before Starting A Project
When a software development team knows what functional requirements they need, it becomes easy to understand which attributes should be optimized. While checking if everything is going well to achieve the long-term business goals, it’s good to have a list of quality attributes to go through-
Reliability
It is the ability of software to function correctly under the given conditions. It also includes tolerance and recoverability.
Interoperability
It is defined as the ability of software to connect to the other software systems and communicate with them effectively. Here you can use measures such as agnostic data format, backward compatible APIs, etc.
Performance
The performance of the software is measured by latency, response time, efficiency, resource consumption, processing speed, etc. You have to create the right data structures and data algorithms to detect the regressions.
Security
Security means authenticity or confidentiality. This attribute ensures that the user can implement secure processes and perform authentication.
Testability
Testability is the ability to change the system as per the requirements. It is possible through loose coupling or abstraction and depends a lot on configurability.
Besides these quality attributes, it is essential to optimize availability, scalability, usability, operability, adaptability, etc. There are many more attributes present inside the software system depending upon the business you are running. The more you go through these attributes, the more you get to know what matters the most.
It’s All About Finding A Balance Between The Quality Attributes
When it comes to software quality attributes, it’s quite impossible to have it all! Several tactics can help you achieve the desired quality, but they may conflict with the other attribute. Also, not all attributes have the same priority. So, it’s crucial to think of them as per the different scenarios so that you can plan accordingly. It requires proper analysis to find the right attributes for a specific application, their priority, and how they will affect the rest of the attributes.
Keep an eye on both the functional, as well as non-functional requirements of your business; it will help keep your customers or end-users happy!
