Good project quality management techniques are important to ensure a project is delivered and end results meet or exceed customer expectations. It is important to monitor the project continuously to avoid errors and misunderstandings. “Quality” refers to the ability of a process or product to satisfy both stated and implied needs, these needs being defined by the interested parties.
Having a project quality plan will help determine which quality standards are important to the project. It will also help ensure that factors and activities required by stakeholders are included, while unnecessary activities are eliminated. It is also important to remember that quality is a continuous process. By refining and improving processes, the end result is continually improved until the desired level of quality is achieved.
A project quality team must have good communication with the key stakeholders of the project, in order to determine their needs and their definition of quality. In any project, quality should be considered as important as schedule or budget. Schedules and budgets often need to be adjusted as the project progresses until the desired result is achieved. After all, even if the final result is on time and under budget, the project cannot be considered a success if the quality does not meet the requirements.
Definition of quality
Project quality management begins with defining the quality standards to be used for the project. This definition will come from the stakeholders, the beneficiaries, and often from the general standards of the organization. Careful identification of quality standards will help ensure a successful project outcome that will be accepted by stakeholders. In addition to quality standards for the project’s end result, there may also be organizational quality standards that must be met for the actual management of the project, such as certain types of reporting or project tracking methods.
quality features
The project deliverables will be measured against certain characteristics that will determine their level of quality, depending on how well they meet the needs of the stakeholders. Quality characteristics such as performance, functionality, suitability, reliability, and consistency are commonly used to measure the project’s end result. These quality characteristics apply not only to the deliverable itself, but also to any process or method used to deliver the final product, such as equipment or computers. Therefore, the required quality characteristics must be established and fully understood before any service, material or equipment used in any part of the project is procured.
Quality plan
A quality plan should be written to establish the general activities and tasks that are needed to meet the quality standards of the project. This plan will include a description of all relevant quality standards and definitions, as well as a description of all conditions that must be met to satisfy stakeholders. The procedures that will be used to ensure that all quality standards are followed will also be part of the quality plan. All quality elements that are relevant to the project should be included, such as management responsibility, existing documented quality procedures, design and documentation control procedures, and purchasing requirements. The procedures designed to deal with the inspection tests, the nonconformity, and the resulting corrective actions are also important, as are the methods by which quality records are maintained. The quality audit schedule and any necessary training requirements should also be included.
Quality assurance
Quality assurance processes are used to provide stakeholders with assurance that standards are maintained and that the end result will meet their needs. Unlike quality control, which occurs at the end of the process, quality assurance is planned during the early stages of the project. To facilitate this assurance, quality audits are scheduled, which provide a structured review of project activities. As a result of these audits, corrective actions can be approved if necessary through change control processes.
Shewhart’s cycle
Often shortened to PDCA, this model includes four steps designed to help ensure quality assurance. This includes “plan” to establish processes and goals, “do” to implement the processes, “check” to evaluate and monitor the processes, and “act” to implement changes if necessary to achieve the desired quality result. This cycle is considered endless in a constant search for continuous improvement.
QA
Quality control is used to assess the final results of the project against the stated objectives and requirements, as well as the success of the project in terms of budget, schedule and scope management. Evaluations are made during quality control that will determine whether stakeholders accept or reject the end result. If it is rejected, rework actions must be planned so that the final result lives up to expectations. As a result, adjustments are added to the overall process through a change control process.
Quality improvement
Quality improvement is a continuous and systematic process used to find ways to eliminate waste or unnecessary action to make processes more efficient and effective. If the current level of quality does not match the expected level, quality improvement processes can be used to help identify and address issues that may be causing the discrepancy. Quality improvement focuses on identifying what needs to be improved, analyzing processes, developing solutions or revisions that resolve the problem, and testing to verify that the new solution is effective.
Cost of Quality
In every project, there is a cost associated with the methods used to maintain quality levels. Poor quality is defined as the end result not meeting stakeholder requirements, or any level of error or waste. These costs include any expenses that would be associated with the overall failure of the project, if that were to occur, plus preventative costs necessary to avoid quality issues, and appraisal costs for testing, evaluation, and inspection.
