6.2 Perform Quality Assurance - 6.2 Perform Quality Assurance
Perform Quality Assurance (QA) is a critical process in Project Quality Management that involves implementing the processes needed to ensure that the project will satisfy the stated or implied needs. This process focuses on improving the effectiveness and efficiency of the project's processes to deliver high-quality products and services.
Key Concepts
1. Quality Management Plan
The Quality Management Plan is a subsidiary plan of the overall Project Management Plan. It outlines the processes and procedures for ensuring that the project meets its quality requirements. This plan includes the quality standards to be applied, the processes for quality control, and the responsibilities for quality assurance.
Example: For an engineering project, the Quality Management Plan might specify that all design documents must undergo a peer review process before approval, and that all prototypes must pass a series of tests to ensure they meet the required specifications.
2. Quality Metrics
Quality Metrics are specific, measurable criteria used to assess the quality of project deliverables. These metrics help in evaluating whether the project is meeting its quality objectives. Common quality metrics include defect rates, test coverage, and customer satisfaction scores.
Example: In a software development project, quality metrics might include the percentage of code that has been unit tested, the number of bugs found per 1,000 lines of code, and the average time to resolve a customer support ticket.
3. Quality Audits
Quality Audits are systematic, independent examinations of the project's processes and deliverables to determine whether they comply with the defined quality standards and procedures. Quality audits help in identifying areas for improvement and ensuring that the project is on track to meet its quality objectives.
Example: For a construction project, a quality audit might involve inspecting the materials used in the foundation to ensure they meet the required strength specifications, and reviewing the construction logs to verify that all safety procedures were followed.
4. Process Improvement
Process Improvement involves identifying and implementing changes to the project's processes to enhance their effectiveness and efficiency. This includes analyzing current processes, identifying bottlenecks or areas for improvement, and implementing changes to streamline the workflow and improve quality.
Example: In an engineering project, process improvement might involve implementing a new software tool to automate the design review process, reducing the time required for reviews and improving the consistency of feedback.
5. Continuous Improvement
Continuous Improvement is an ongoing effort to enhance the project's processes and deliverables. This approach involves regularly reviewing and refining the project's processes based on feedback and performance data, with the goal of achieving higher levels of quality over time.
Example: For a manufacturing project, continuous improvement might involve regularly reviewing production data to identify trends in defect rates, and implementing changes to the production process to reduce defects and improve product quality.
Examples and Analogies
Think of Perform Quality Assurance as maintaining a high-performance car. Just as you need to regularly inspect, tune, and improve the car's components to ensure it runs smoothly and reliably, you need to regularly audit, improve, and refine your project's processes to ensure high-quality deliverables.
For instance, in an engineering project to design and build a new product, Perform Quality Assurance would involve setting quality standards, regularly auditing the design and manufacturing processes, and continuously improving these processes to ensure the final product meets or exceeds customer expectations.
By understanding and effectively executing the Perform Quality Assurance process, project managers can ensure that their projects deliver high-quality products and services, meet customer expectations, and achieve long-term success.