If you are new to ALM checkout this overview article on Application Lifecycle Management available on SDN at
http://www.sdn.sap.com/irj/scn/index?rid=/library/uuid/9096e72f-f328-2d10-bea3-dcbb6252993f
or at the SAP Insider web site at
http://sapinsider.wispubs.com/article.cfm?id=5153
The article serves as a kickoff to ALM deep dives in upcoming issues of SAP Insider. We will cross post them to the SDN site. Stay tuned.