Quality Engineering Adoption Framework: A Strategic Implementation

Establishing the Context

Quality Engineering is not a synonym for testing or QA. It encompasses the entire lifecycle of software development, from design and requirements engineering through to release engineering and everything in between. It is about ensuring that quality is embedded at every stage, with teams working in a coordinated, transparent way, aligned on the same goals.

Every organisation operates within a unique context, shaped by its technical landscape, culture, and business priorities. Whether you’re embarking on a quality transformation, aligning with an agile shift, or seeking standardisation across an enterprise, success hinges on understanding where quality fits within the broader system.

To support this, I am introducing a structured yet adaptable approach: the Quality Engineering Adoption Framework. This framework provides a way for leaders to iteratively assess, join, and elevate quality within an organisation. Rather than focusing solely on tools and processes, it examines how people, culture, and strategy align to shape quality. This series of articles will break down each step, offering insights and practical guidance on how to implement meaningful and lasting quality improvements.

This framework is informed by my 20+ years of experience, my reading of the landscape, and my direct involvement in successful and unsuccessful transformations, as well as scaling initiatives. Each article in this series will explore one of the following key steps in detail:

1. Set the Stage with a Quality Perspective – Understanding how quality is currently perceived and identifying key gaps.
2. Engage Stakeholders with Quality-Focused Questions – Mapping out key players, their priorities, and how quality impacts their work.
3. Explore the Culture of Quality – Assessing collaboration, ownership, and psychological safety within teams.
4. Analyse the Quality Landscape – Reviewing tools, processes, technical debt, and the impact of quality on business value.
5. Facilitate Discovery Sessions with Quality at the Core – Running structured discussions to align teams on risk, ownership, and expectations.
6. Validate and Iterate with Quality in Mind – Establishing continuous improvement mechanisms and ensuring long-term quality sustainability.

In the final article, I will bring everything together, offering a practical guide to implementing and iterating on this framework within your organisation.

Why This Matters

Quality Engineering implementation exists on a spectrum, incorporating both technical and cultural solutions. Some organisations may require a stronger emphasis on automation and tooling, while others need a cultural shift in how teams perceive and integrate quality. By breaking down each step, this framework helps leaders uncover where their organisation fits and how to build a tailored approach to sustainable quality improvements.

Throughout this series, I aim to provide a roadmap for meaningful and lasting change, helping leaders and teams embed quality at every level of their work. Coming soon will be the first deep dive into Setting the Stage with a Quality Perspective.