The motivation for this research is a concern with the high rate of information system failures reported in the academic literature and in practitioner publications. It is proposed that the adoption of the customer-centred ideals and methods of quality management in information system development will increase the likelihood of the delivery of successful information systems. The approach taken in the research is to work with the ideas of multiple perspectives - organizational effectiveness, work-life quality, and technical artefact quality - and multiple stakeholders. The research approach is to use action research. The fieldwork comprises three phases. The first phase involved interviewing system developers and the second phase consisted of two case studies of implemented information systems. This preliminary analysis, together with a theoretical investigation of the foundations of quality, was used to inform the development of a quality approach to information system development. The information system development methodology (ISDM) is based upon Multiview, a multiple perspective approach to information system development, and the total quality management method used is quality function deployment. The resultant hybrid methodology is known as ISDM/Q. The ISDM/Q is tested using action research on a live system development project concerned with the development of a wind tunnel control and data collection system. Extensive organizational analysis was conducted to place this software development within a wider organizational context, involving quality requirements workshops and quality planning. The outcomes of the research are assessed in terms of the learning recorded with respect to the framework of ideas, the methodology (ISDM/Q) and the domain in which the action research took place. The field work showed that there were benefits to using a quality metaphor in information system development but that this would require a significant change in the culture and style of information system development organizations. A practical contribution of the research is the development of quality function deployment for information system development.

This thesis concerns ideas and practices about quality assurance systems, quality enhancement and performance indicators in higher education. The quality of higher education is important in a country's economic and social development and its enhancement is a major objective of any higher education system. There has been an increasing demand for institutions of higher education to be accountable and make their activities more transparent to their consumers and to society as a whole. Therefore, institutions have become more explicit about their aims and the methods used to achieve such aims. Also, the monitoring of inputs, processes and outcomes of a University has now become widely accepted. The context for the study of quality management in higher education is the 'Eduardo Mondlane' University (UEM) in Mozambique. This thesis aims to analyse the quality assurance procedures currently in existence at 'Eduardo Mondlane' University (UEM), to examine recent and ongoing efforts to build capacity, to consider a range of options for increased efficiency and effectiveness, and to make recommendations for quality management at UEM. Examples of British Universities already engaged in quality assurance initiatives are analysed and their relevance to UEM is discussed. This thesis comprises nine chapters. The first chapter contextualizes the thesis by considering the historical background to Mozambique. Chapters two and three discuss styles and strategies of managing quality, and ways of monitoring the performance of educational institutions. Chapter four examines arrangements in selected U.K. Universities for quality assurance. Chapters five to eight outline the methodology used to collect the research evidence and discuss the main results from the survey research conducted at UEM. Four main aspects of quality assurance at UEM form the focus of the research: the quality assurance of admission procedures, the quality assurance of teaching and learning, the quality assurance of student development and support, and a framework for quality enhancement. The concluding chapter presents a summary of the main findings as well as recommendations for quality enhancement at UEM. A list of performance indicators is provided along with suggestions for further research on quality assurance at UEM.