Study guide
8.5 Quality Management
Project Management Professional PMP
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1 Chapter 1: Introduction & Fundamentals
1.1 About the PMP Exam 1.2 What is a Project? 1.3 Project, Program & Portfolio Management 1.4 The Project Manager Role 1.5 PMBOK 7 Principles Overview 1.6 Performance Domains Overview 1.7 What Changed in the July 2026 PMP Exam
2 Chapter 2: People Domain Part 1
2.1 Managing Conflict 2.2 Leading a Team 2.3 Supporting Team Performance 2.4 Empowering Team Members 2.5 Training & Development 2.6 Building a Team 2.7 Removing Impediments
3 Chapter 3: People Domain Part 2
3.1 Negotiating Project Agreements 3.2 Collaborating with Stakeholders 3.3 Building Shared Understanding 3.4 Engaging Virtual Teams 3.5 Defining Team Ground Rules 3.6 Mentoring Stakeholders 3.7 Emotional Intelligence
4 Chapter 4: Process Domain - Planning
4.1 Determining Project Methodology 4.2 Integrating Project Planning 4.3 Planning & Managing Scope 4.4 Planning & Managing Schedule 4.5 Planning & Managing Budget 4.6 Planning & Managing Quality 4.7 Planning & Managing Resources 4.8 Planning & Managing Procurement
5 Chapter 5: Process Domain - Execution & Control
5.1 Executing with Urgency for Value 5.2 Managing Communications 5.3 Assessing & Managing Risks 5.4 Engaging Stakeholders 5.5 Managing Project Changes 5.6 Establishing Project Governance 5.7 Managing Project Issues 5.8 Managing Project Artifacts 5.9 Knowledge Transfer & Closure
6 Chapter 6: Business Environment Domain
6.1 Planning & Managing Compliance 6.2 Evaluating & Delivering Benefits 6.3 External Environment Changes 6.4 Supporting Organizational Change
7 Chapter 7: Agile & Hybrid Approaches
7.1 Agile Mindset & Values 7.2 Scrum Framework 7.3 Kanban & Lean 7.4 Extreme Programming (XP) 7.5 Hybrid Project Management 7.6 Agile Planning & Estimation 7.7 Agile Metrics & Tools
8 Chapter 8: Predictive (Waterfall) Approaches
8.1 Predictive Lifecycle 8.2 Scope Management 8.3 Schedule Management 8.4 Cost Management 8.5 Quality Management 8.6 Risk Management Process 8.7 Procurement & Contracts 8.8 Change Control
8.5 Quality Management
Key Takeaways Explain This Topic AI
PDCA (Plan-Do-Check-Act) cycle, also called the Deming Cycle, is the foundation for continuous improvement in quality management
The Seven Basic Quality Tools include: Cause-and-Effect Diagrams, Flowcharts, Check Sheets, Pareto Charts, Histograms, Control Charts, and Scatter Diagrams
Quality Assurance focuses on preventing defects through process improvement, while Quality Control focuses on detecting defects in deliverables
Quality Audits are structured, independent reviews to ensure compliance with policies, processes, and procedures
Cost of Quality (COQ) includes prevention costs, appraisal costs, internal failure costs, and external failure costs
Last updated: January 2026
Quality management ensures that the project will satisfy the needs for which it was undertaken. It addresses both the quality of the project deliverables and the quality of the project management processes used to create them.
Quality Management Processes
- Process Purpose Focus
- Plan Quality Management Identify quality requirements and standards Planning
- Manage Quality Translate quality plan into activities Prevention (QA)
- Control Quality Monitor results to ensure quality standards are met Detection (QC)
- Plan-Do-Check-Act (PDCA) Cycle
The PDCA Cycle , also known as the Deming Cycle or Shewhart Cycle , is the foundation for continuous improvement:
PDCA Components
- Phase Activities Purpose
- Plan Identify improvement opportunity, analyze process, develop improvement plan Define the change
- Do Implement the plan on a small scale, collect data Test the change
- Check Analyze results, compare to expectations, identify lessons learned Study the results
- Act Standardize successful changes, identify next improvement Implement or iterate
- PDCA Application
- Quality audits and inspections occur in the Check phase
- Corrective actions are implemented in the Act phase
- The cycle repeats continuously for ongoing improvement
- Forms the basis for quality management system standards like ISO 9001
- Quality Assurance vs. Quality Control
- Key Differences
- Aspect Quality Assurance (QA) Quality Control (QC)
- Focus Process Product
- Approach Prevention Detection
- Timing Throughout project During/after production
- Goal Prevent defects Find defects
- Activities Process audits, training Testing, inspection
- Quality Assurance Activities
- Process improvement
- Quality audits
- Training and development
- Procedure development
- Quality planning
- Quality Control Activities
- Testing and inspection
- Peer reviews
- Measurement and monitoring
- Defect identification
- Statistical analysis
- The Seven Basic Quality Tools
The Seven Basic Quality Tools (7QC Tools) are fundamental techniques for analyzing and solving quality problems:
Tool Overview
- Tool Purpose When to Use
- Cause-and-Effect Diagram Identify root causes of a problem Problem investigation
- Flowchart Visualize process steps and flow Process analysis
- Check Sheet Collect data systematically Data gathering
- Pareto Chart Prioritize problems by frequency Focus improvement efforts
- Histogram Show distribution of data Understand variation
- Control Chart Monitor process stability Track performance over time
- Scatter Diagram Show relationship between variables Correlation analysis
- Cause-and-Effect Diagram
Also known as Ishikawa Diagram or Fishbone Diagram :
- Structure
- Problem statement at the "head" of the fish
- Major cause categories form the "bones"
- Specific causes branch off from main bones
- Traces effects back to root causes
- Common Categories (6 Ms)
- Manpower (People)
- Methods (Processes)
- Materials
- Machines (Equipment)
- Measurement
- Mother Nature (Environment)
- Flowchart
Flowcharts display the sequence of steps in a process:
- Elements
- Start/End (oval)
- Process step (rectangle)
- Decision point (diamond)
- Flow direction (arrows)
- Connectors (circle)
- Benefits
- Visualize process flow
- Identify bottlenecks
- Find unnecessary steps
- Clarify handoffs
- Check Sheet
A Check Sheet is a structured form for collecting and analyzing data:
- Uses
- Count defect occurrences
- Track frequency by category
- Identify patterns
- Gather data for other tools
- Example
- Defect Type Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Total
- Scratches III II IIII I II 12
- Dents I I II I 5
- Missing Parts I II I 4
- Pareto Chart
Based on the Pareto Principle (80/20 rule): 80% of problems come from 20% of causes.
- Components
- Bar chart showing frequency of causes (descending order)
- Cumulative line showing percentage
- Helps prioritize improvement efforts
- Application
- Focus on the "vital few" causes
- Allocate resources effectively
- Track improvement over time
- Histogram
A Histogram shows the distribution of numerical data:
- Uses
- Understand data variation
- Identify patterns
- Detect outliers
- Compare to specifications
- Interpretation
- Shape indicates process behavior
- Width shows variability
- Position shows central tendency
- Compare to tolerance limits
- Control Chart
Control Charts monitor process stability over time:
Components
- Element Description
- Center Line (CL) Process mean or target
- Upper Control Limit (UCL) +3 standard deviations
- Lower Control Limit (LCL) -3 standard deviations
- Data Points Individual measurements plotted over time
- Interpretation
- Pattern Indication
- Within limits, random Process in control
- Point outside limits Special cause variation
- 7+ points one side Process shift
- Trending pattern Process drifting
- Control Limits vs. Specification Limits
- Limit Type Set By Purpose
- Control Limits Process data What process IS doing
- Specification Limits Customer requirements What process SHOULD do
- Scatter Diagram
Scatter Diagrams show the relationship between two variables:
Correlation Types
- Pattern Correlation Interpretation
- Up slope Positive Variables move together
- Down slope Negative Variables move opposite
- No pattern None Variables unrelated
- Quality Audits
Quality Audits are structured, independent reviews:
- Objectives
- Identify good practices and best practices
- Identify non-conformance and gaps
- Share best practices across the organization
- Proactively offer assistance to improve processes
- Confirm implementation of approved change requests
- Types
- Type Conducted By Focus
- Internal Organization's own auditors Compliance, improvement
- External Third-party auditors Certification, compliance
- Process Quality team Process effectiveness
- Product Quality team Deliverable quality
- Cost of Quality (COQ)
Cost of Quality includes all costs incurred to prevent defects and fix problems:
Cost Categories
- Category Type Examples
- Prevention Costs Conformance Training, planning, equipment maintenance
- Appraisal Costs Conformance Testing, inspections, audits
- Internal Failure Costs Non-conformance Rework, scrap, retesting
- External Failure Costs Non-conformance Warranty, returns, liability
- COQ Principle
It is less expensive to prevent defects than to find and fix them.
- Key Takeaways
- PDCA Cycle provides the framework for continuous improvement
- Quality Assurance prevents defects; Quality Control detects them
- The Seven Basic Quality Tools help analyze and solve quality problems
- Control Charts monitor process stability and distinguish common from special cause variation
- Quality Audits verify compliance and identify improvement opportunities
- Cost of Quality shows that prevention is cheaper than correction