Top-down vs. bottom-up process improvement
Martyn Thomas, Frank E. McGarry · IEEE Software · 1994
There are two approaches to process improvement. The top-down approach compares an organization's process with some generally accepted standard process. Process improvement is then the elimination of differences between an existing process and a standard one. The assumption is that, once the process is changed the generated products will be improved-or at least the risk of generating new software will he reduced. The bottom-up approach assumes that process change must be driven by an organization's goals, characteristics, product attributes, and experiences. Change is defined by a local domain instead of a universal set of accepted practices. For example, an organization whose primary goal is improving time to market may take a significantly different approach to process change than one whose primary goal is to produce defect-free software.>