The Southern California Quality Assurance Association (SCQAA) San Fernando Chapter presents

******* Tim Pelland *******

"Improving Your Processes: The New Reality Show”

Wednesday, June 2, 2004 Networking @ 5:45; Business @ 6:45; Program @ 7:00 PM

Countrywide, 2900 Madera, Simi Valley, CA 93065

Everywhere you turn you see an onslaught of reality shows. While these shows may be fun to watch, we fail to look at our own companies and face our own reality of process management. We're constantly missing deadlines, exceeding budgets, and discovering defects after the application is moved into production. We are working 60-hour weeks and our departments' credibility within the organization is at an all-time low. What can we do? Our CIO says we will be SEI-CMM Level 2 compliant in two years. How can we do it? In today's economy, reality says we can't afford to do this. To accomplish this, we must define our current processes and measure the effectiveness of those processes to meet the new reality. For many companies, an effective process improvement program may be their only effective approach to improving productivity. Tim will give you some ideas to help you in meeting the new reality of defining those processes. The ideas you'll walk away with can be used simply as a means to improve overall performance or can be applied against any quality model in the world.

Tim Pelland is the Director of Technology at the Quality Assurance Institute. He has over 26 years in the telecommunications and computer industry with over 15 years as a trainer of various hardware and software products. Tim has also worked as a Web developer and tester of various Web based products. Tim has worked closely with the development of Interactive Voice Recognition (IVR) applications for various companies including Sprint and AT&T. Tim has worked in various capacities within the IT industry including being an A-plus certified PC technician, Certified Software Tester (CSTE), Certified Software Quality Analyst (CSQA), and a Certified Microsoft Office User Specialist. He also teaches the Boot Camp for Software Quality, Boot Camp for Software Testers, Effective Methods of Software Testing, Risk, Reviews during Software Development. He also teaches the entire line of on-line quality and testing courses through St. Petersburg College in Florida. In addition to his normal duties at QAI, he also teaches the various QAI seminars and programs, acts as a consultant on quality and testing matters, and presents at QAI conferences.

MARK YOUR CALENDAR! Wednesday, July 7, 2004 July Monthly Meeting in Countrywide, Simi Valley, CA Speaker: Jim Kelton, Topic: Security and Quality Wednesday, August 4, 2004 August Monthly Meeting in Countrywide, Simi Valley, CA Speaker: Frode L. Ødegård, Topic: LEAN for Software Development

Fee: $10 nonmembers; Free for members Questions? Contact scqaasf_newsletter@sbcglobal.net

Membership: $65/year standard (one year of meetings); $100/year (one year of meetings + training discount)

Quality Assurance Institute Courses

SCQAA- San Fernando Chapter is proud to offer 3 more excellent and nationally recognized courses in software testing and software quality assurance. These classes taught by distinguished QAI instructors have not been offered in the Los Angeles area for a very long time and we are happy to bring these courses back here, in response to several dozens of requests from our local members.

To find out more about the classes and to register online be sure to visit our web site at www.scqaa.us. Take advantage of our membership benefits, become a privileged member if you are not already and get the courses at 50% discount!!

Remember, only those SCQAA-SF full members are eligible for our course discounts. To become a member click here: http://www.scqaa.us/member.php

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***** Prep course for CSQA *****

Thursday & Friday, June 3 & 4, 2004

7:45 AM - 8:30 AM - Continental Breakfast/Registration

8:30 AM - 5:30 PM

The Certified Software Quality Analyst Prep Course has been designed specifically to prepare the quality assurance professional for the CSQA examination. The course provides a thorough background of the Quality fundamentals and also includes the more advanced concepts, which the Certified Software Quality Analyst must understand. The successful completion of this course along with the necessary practical experience and related resource familiarity will well prepare the candidate for the CSQA examination.

Enroll [Course Fee: Members $400.00 - Non-members $800.00]

Message from your President: Judy Cheves

Certification course attendance has been incredible! Twenty-seven people attended the May CSQA Boot Camp. We are very excited about the participation in the classes and are currently evaluating what other courses would be of interest to our members. Look for more course offerings in the future.

Did you attend our CSTE courses? Are you enrolled in the CSQA courses? Or, would you like to meet our instructor, Tim Pelland? Those of you who know Tim will be pleased to know that Tim will present at our chapter meeting on Wednesday, June 2nd. If you haven’t had an opportunity to hear Tim speak, you won’t want to miss his presentation on “Improving Your Processes, the New Reality Show”. And, he’s bringing great raffle prizes, as well! You won’t want to miss this meeting.

We still have opportunities for you to become involved in chapter activities. We will be participating in the 5th Annual Vendor Showcase and Conference this year. This is a chance to be involved in a chapter event even if you have limited time or are unable to make a commitment as a member of our board. You will be able to work closely with the chapter leaders, meet interesting people from other chapters and organizations and build your personal network with others in the industry.

Mark your calendars for our June 2nd chapter meeting. See you then.You don’t want to miss the networking session prior to the meeting. Come a little early for great discussion and great food!

Regards,

Judy

SCQAA-SF Meetings – Door Prizes for You!

If you have stopped attending our meetings lately, you are missing out on some really GREAT door prizes. At our last meeting in May we gave away a home DVD/CD/MP3 player. For the month of June we have something really special !!! Interlink Electronics Inc. (a local manufacturer and a world leader in the design and manufacture of intuitive interface technologies and products) has provided a full-sized wireless multimedia keyboard, wireless optical mouse, and wireless remote control package valued at almost $100.00 for this month's door prize. Be sure to attend so you can have an opportunity to win this flexible, powerful, and convenient door prize!

Whether you come for our enlightening speaker, come for the announcements, come for the food, or come for a chance at the door prize, come to our next meeting and learn more about software quality assurance!

Ron Winters, Membership Chair

Job Opportunity

Q/A Manager/Lead for a leading Global ASP (Application Service Provider) of web-based and interactive online training courses with related program management tools and services in Westwood, CA. $80-105K + bonus + options. Experience either rebuilding Q/A Departments or establishing Q/A Departments from scratch utilizing formal QA methodologies, standards, best practices, processes and/or procedures (SEI-CMM, ISO, Six Sigma, RUP, IEEE etc.) Contact: Al Karaptian ,eQuest Solutions 310.937.3388 al@eQuestSolutions.com

Quality Assurance Analyst for a leading Global ASP (Application Service Provider) of web-based and interactive online training courses with related program management tools and services in Westwood, CA $65-80K + bonus + options. Experience with Automated Testing with Mercury’s Loadrunner and WinRunner. Contact: Al Karaptian ,eQuest Solutions 310.937.3388 al@eQuestSolutions.com

Quality Assurance Tester

Business Financial Analyst

Financial Technology Manager

Programmer Analyst

Systems Analyst

Client firm in LA area is entering the analysis phase of a large PeopleSoft 8.8 installation in the Los Angeles area. The client firm is newly installing the GL, AP, AR, Procurement, and Treasury modules. They are also upgrading the HR and Payroll modules. The project is due to span an additional 18 months. Contact: Haig Armaghanian, Haig Barrett Incorporated, Management Consultants, 6100 Wilshire Blvd. Suite 305, Los Angeles, CA 90048. 323.937.8300 www.haigbarrett.com

Quality Meetings Upcoming

May 24-27, 2004 Mobile & Wireless World (MWW) at the JW Marriott Desert Springs Resort in Palm Desert, California. Featuring enterprise CIOs and key leaders responsible for advanced mobile applications in user companies. http://www.mwwusa.com?s=mcwt

May 27 10 – 11 AM MDT Telelogic Agile Methodology Webinar It is a common belief that tools and process are a hindrance in an Agile Methodology. Given this belief, it is a common misconception that Agile Methodologies cannot scale to large complex projects - however, with the right set of tools both of these concerns can be laid to rest. Attend this Webinar and you will:

· Get an overview of Agile Philosophies and the various ecosystems

· Get a closer look at SCRUM (one of the most popular and scalable Agile Methodologies)

· Understand how Requirements Management, Change Tracking and Configuration Management fit into SCRUM

· Recognize the benefits of using tools in an Agile Methodology

To register to this FREE Webinar please respond dan.mitchell@telelogic.com or call 949-885-2413.

June 3 Introducing Lean Software Development, presented by Frode Odegard, sponsored by SCQAA-Orange County in Lake Forest. Two half day sessions offered each for $95, but $25 discount for SCQAA members (SF, LA or OC). http://www.scqaa.com/

June 4 9AM – Noon Software Engineering, Professionalism & Liability. Presenter: John Cosgrove, P.E. CDP, Cosgrove Computer Systems Inc. Sponsored by SPIN at Northrop Grumman E2 Presentation Center (in tall building off Entrance 2), Redondo Beach, CA (formerly TRW) - 2299 Marine Ave., Redondo Beach, CA 90278. Free. Mark K. Smith, Program Manager, Professional Development. CSULB University College and Extension Services, 800.963.2250 x58452 http://www.uces.csulb.edu

June 8 8:00 – 10:30 AM The Realities of Offshore Outsourcing. An Executive Session exploring key aspects of offshore Outsourcing. Presented by Meta Group at the Beverly Hilton Hotel, Beverly Hills. Free. call META Group's Events Department at (800) 945-META [6382] http://www.metagroup.com/ExecutiveSessions

June 10 6 – 9 PM Govern Yourself Accordingly - Compliance with Sarbanes-Oxley. Presented by: Rudolf Melik, President and Chief Executive Officer, Tenrox. Sponsored by PMI at Proud Bird Restaurant near LAX. http://www.pmi-la.org/

June 15-17 All Day. Business 4Site conference in Century Plaza Hotel, Los Angeles. Highest value business & technology solutions: Outsourcing, VOIP, Web Services, Wireless, Supply Chain Management, On-Demand Computing, Security, New eBusiness, Linux, RFID, Sarbanes-Oxley, Data Center Management. 15% discount for AITP members. http://www.business4site.com/conference.html

June 15 6:30 PM Climate Control: Professional and Personal Support Networks, Community Involvement. Sponsored by STC. http://www.stcsfv.org/meetings.htm#June

June 25 9 – 5 Payor’s Perspective on Information Technology and 2^nd annual career fair sponsored by Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society, Southern California chapter. http://www.himss-socal.org/calendar/calendar.html

August 7 5th Annual Vendor Showcase and Conference for SCQAA, PMI, AITP, etc. Details to be provided next issue.

Our Corporate Meeting Sponsors

Serena, Corp. at 20920B Warner Center Lane, Woodland Hills, is our very first chapter Corporate Meeting Sponsor. We very much appreciate their sponsorship, which provides the SCQAA San Fernando Board with a fine workspace for our Board meetings.

Countrywide, Corp. in Simi Valley is our second chapter Corporate Meeting Sponsor, as they are providing Membership meeting space, starting with the first monthly meeting on September 17, 2003.

Our Corporate Sponsors

Kaiser Permanente, headquartered in Oakland, is sponsoring SCQAA-SF this year to enable its Southern California employees to take advantage of chapter meetings and instructor-led QAI training.

QAI Certification Programs

To request more information, send email to certify@qaiusa.com.

Earn CPEs

Are you a CQA or CSTE? Earn some of your Continuing Professional Education (CPE) points by attending SCQAA-SF meetings. Earn even more by helping with our committees!

Southern California Quality Assurance Association San Fernando Chapter (SCQAA-SF)

QAI Certification Programs

To request more information, send email to certify@qaiusa.com.

Meet Your SCQAA

San Fernando Chapter Board

The new Board slate is composed of:

Position	Board Member	Backup Member
Chapter Chair	Judy Cheves	Shahidul Manan
Vice Chair	Shahidul Manan
Treasurer	Deanna Witrack	Judy Cheves
Secretary	John Heeg	TBD
Chapter Advisor	Jim Stoumpos
Events/Promotion	TBD
Food Service Chair	Peter Reidy
Historian/Librarian	Lenni Lara
Mail List Chair	Gerry Caruso	Karina Gamble
Meeting Chair	Kidra Shidroo
Membership Chair	Ron Winters
Newsletter Chair	Elizabeth Runyon	Deanna Witrack
PMI Liaison	Bill Hackenberg
Program/Education Chair	Karina Gamble
Sponsor/PR Chair	Bob Tabaka	Bill Hackenberg
Web Team	Shahidul Mannan Kidra Shadroo Leonard Daly
Webmaster	TBD

Would you like to be a speaker and have a topic of interest to the quality community? Contact the Program Chair (karina@qainsight.com) or Chapter Chairperson (Judy.cheves@Countrywide.com) and let us know what you would like to contribute.

Would you like to contribute information to this Newsletter? Contact the Newsletter editor at this address: scqaasf_newsletter@sbcglobal.net.

The SCQAA San Fernando Board holds monthly Board Meetings at Serena Inc. in Woodland Hills. If you would like to attend the Board meeting and would like to help this chapter, please contact Judy Cheeves at E-Mail (Judy.cheves@Countrywide.com ) to obtain the meeting schedule and location.

Subscription Information

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We'd love to hear from you. Questions? Comments? Suggestions? Please help us respond to your requests and input by writing to one of the Board members. See our contact list at http://scqaa.us/contact.php

Privacy policy: We will not distribute your name or e-mail address to anyone, other than for SCQAA or QAI chapter purposes.

Directions to Our Meeting Location in Simi Valley:

You might want to check out driving directions from your starting point on yahoo.com, but here is how you will finish the trip:

Countrywide Financial 2900 Madera Road, Simi Valley, CA 93065 1C Central Lobby Presentation & Video Make your way to CA-118 and go to Simi Valley Exit CA-118 on Madera Road North Go 0.3 miles then turn right on North Madera Road Go 0.3 miles past Countrywide Way to first driveway on the right: 2900 North Madera Road. Follow the driveway up and around the building on your right and park on the other side (which is actually the front). Conference room 1C is right off the main lobby.