Chapter 8:

Project Quality
Management

Information Technology
Project Management,
Seventh Edition
The Importance of Project Quality
Management

 Many people joke about the poor quality of IT

products
 People seem to accept systems being down
occasionally or needing to reboot their PCs
 But quality is very important in many IT projects

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What Is Project Quality?
 The International Organization for Standardization
(ISO) defines quality as “the degree to which a set
of inherent characteristics fulfils requirements”
(ISO9000:2000)
 Other experts define quality based on:
◦ Conformance to requirements: The project’s processes
and products meet written specifications
◦ Fitness for use: A product can be used as it was intended

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 What Is Project Quality Management?
 Project quality management ensures that the project
will satisfy the needs for which it was undertaken
 Processes include:

◦ Planning quality management: Identifying which quality

standards are relevant to the project and how to satisfy them;
a metric is a standard of measurement
◦ Performing quality assurance: Periodically evaluating
overall project performance to ensure the project will satisfy
the relevant quality standards
◦ Performing quality control: Monitoring specific project
results to ensure that they comply with the relevant quality
standards

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Planning Quality
 Implies the ability to anticipate situations and
prepare actions to bring about the desired
outcome
 Important to prevent defects by:
◦ Selecting proper materials

◦ Training and indoctrinating people in quality

◦ Planning a process that ensures the appropriate

outcome

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Scope Aspects of IT Projects
 Functionality is the degree to which a system performs
its intended function
 Features are the system’s special characteristics that
appeal to users
 System outputs are the screens and reports the system
generates
 Performance addresses how well a product or service
performs the customer’s intended use
 Reliability is the ability of a product or service to perform
as expected under normal conditions
 Maintainability addresses the ease of performing
maintenance on a product

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 Who’s Responsible for the Quality
of Projects?
 Project managers are ultimately responsible for
quality management on their projects
 Several organizations and references can help project
managers and their teams understand quality
◦ International Organization for Standardization (www.iso.org)

◦ IEEE (www.ieee.org)

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Performing Quality Assurance
 Quality assurance includes all the activities related to
satisfying the relevant quality standards for a project
 Another goal of quality assurance is continuous quality
improvement
 Benchmarking generates ideas for quality
improvements by comparing specific project practices
or product characteristics to those of other projects or
products within or outside the performing organization
 A quality audit is a structured review of specific quality
management activities that help identify lessons
learned that could improve performance on current or
future projects

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Controlling Quality
 The main outputs of quality control are:
◦ Acceptance decisions
◦ Rework
◦ Process adjustments
 There are Basic Tools of Quality that help in
performing quality control. This include;

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1. Cause-and-Effect Diagrams
 Cause-and-effect diagrams trace complaints
about quality problems back to the responsible
production operations
 They help you find the root cause of a problem
 Also known as fishbone or Ishikawa diagrams
 Can also use the 5 whys technique where you

repeated ask the question “Why” (five is a good

rule of thumb) to peel away the layers of
symptoms that can lead to the root cause

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Sample Cause-and-Effect Diagram

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2. Quality Control Charts
 A control chart is a graphic display of data that illustrates
the results of a process over time
 The main use of control charts is to prevent defects, rather
than to detect or reject them
 Quality control charts allow you to determine whether a
process is in control or out of control
◦ When a process is in control, any variations in the results of
the process are created by random events; processes that
are in control do not need to be adjusted
◦ When a process is out of control, variations in the results of
the process are caused by non-random events; you need to
identify the causes of those non-random events and adjust
the process to correct or eliminate them

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3. Check sheet
 A check sheet is used to collect and analyze data
 It is sometimes called a tally sheet or checklist,

depending on its format

 In the example in Figure (slide 11), most

complaints arrive via text message, and there are

more complaints on Monday and Tuesday than on
other days of the week
 This information might be useful in improving the

process for handling complaints

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Figure 8-4. Sample Checksheet

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4. Scatter diagram
 A scatter diagram helps to show if there is a
relationship between two variables
 The closer data points are to a diagonal line, the

more closely the two variables are related

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Sample Scatter Diagram

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5. Histograms
 A histogram is a bar graph of a distribution of
variables
 Each bar represents an attribute or characteristic

of a problem or situation, and the height of the bar

represents its frequency

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Sample Histogram

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6. Pareto Charts
 A Pareto chart is a histogram that can help you
identify and prioritize problem areas
 Pareto analysis is also called the 80-20 rule,
meaning that 80 percent of problems are often
due to 20 percent of the causes

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Sample Pareto Chart

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7. Flowcharts
 Flowcharts are graphic displays of the logic and
flow of processes that help you analyze how
problems occur and how processes can be
improved
 They show activities, decision points, and the

order of how information is processed

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Sample Flowchart

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8. Run Charts
 In addition to flowcharts, run charts are also used
for stratification, a technique that shows data from
a variety of sources to see if a pattern emerges
 A run chart displays the history and pattern of

variation of a process over time.

 You can use run charts to perform trend analysis

and forecast future outcomes based on historical

results

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Sample Run Chart

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Statistical Sampling

 Statistical sampling involves choosing part of a

population of interest for inspection
 The size of a sample depends on how
representative you want the sample to be
 Sample size formula:
Sample size = .25 X (certainty factor/acceptable error) 2
 Be sure to consult with an expert when using
statistical analysis

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Table 8-1. Commonly Used Certainty
Factors

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Six Sigma
 Six Sigma is “a comprehensive and flexible system
for achieving, sustaining, and maximizing business
success. Six Sigma is uniquely driven by close
understanding of customer needs, disciplined use
of facts, data, and statistical analysis, and diligent
attention to managing, improving, and reinventing
business processes”*

*Pande, Peter S., Robert P. Neuman, and Roland R. Cavanagh, The

Six Sigma Way, New York: McGraw-Hill, 2000, p. xi.

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Basic Information on Six Sigma
 The target for perfection is the achievement of no
more than 3.4 defects per million opportunities
 The principles can apply to a wide variety of
processes
 Six Sigma projects normally follow a five-phase
improvement process called DMAIC

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DMAIC
 DMAIC is a systematic, closed-loop process for
continued improvement that is scientific and fact based
 DMAIC stands for:
◦ Define: Define the problem/opportunity, process, and
customer requirements
◦ Measure: Define measures, then collect, compile, and
display data
◦ Analyze: Scrutinize process details to find improvement
opportunities
◦ Improve: Generate solutions and ideas for improving the
problem
◦ Control: Track and verify the stability of the improvements
and the predictability of the solution

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How is Six Sigma Quality
Control Unique?
 It requires an organization-wide commitment.
 Six Sigma organizations have the ability and

willingness to adopt contrary objectives, such as

reducing errors and getting things done faster
 It is an operating philosophy that is customer

focused and strives to drive out waste, raise levels

of quality, and improve financial performance at
breakthrough levels

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 Six Sigma Projects Use
Project Management
 The training for Six Sigma includes many project
management concepts, tools, and techniques
 For example, Six Sigma projects often use business
cases, project charters, schedules, budgets, and so
on
 Six Sigma projects are done in teams; the project
manager is often called the team leader, and the
sponsor is called the champion

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Testing
 Many IT professionals think of testing as a stage
that comes near the end of IT product
development
 Testing should be done during almost every phase
of the IT product development life cycle

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Modern Quality Management
 Modern quality management:
◦ Requires customer satisfaction

◦ Prefers prevention to inspection

◦ Recognizes management responsibility for quality

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ISO Standards
 ISO 9000 is a quality system standard that:
◦ Is a three-part, continuous cycle of planning, controlling,
and documenting quality in an organization
◦ Provides minimum requirements needed for an
organization to meet its quality certification standards
◦ Helps organizations around the world reduce costs and
improve customer satisfaction

 See www.iso.org for more information

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Improving Information Technology
Project Quality
 Several suggestions for improving quality for IT
projects include:
◦ Establish leadership that promotes quality

◦ Understand the cost of quality

◦ Focus on organizational influences and workplace factors

that affect quality

◦ Follow maturity models

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Leadership
 As Joseph M. Juran said in 1945, “It is most
important that top management be quality-minded.
In the absence of sincere manifestation of interest
at the top, little will happen below”*
 A large percentage of quality problems are
associated with management, not technical
issues.

*American Society for Quality (ASQ), (www.asqc.org/about/history/juran.html).

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The Cost of Quality
 The cost of quality is the cost of conformance
plus the cost of nonconformance
◦ Conformance means delivering products that meet
requirements and fitness for use
◦ Cost of nonconformance means taking responsibility
for failures or not meeting quality expectations
 A study reported that software bugs cost the U.S.
economy $59.6 billion each year and that one
third of the bugs could be eliminated by an
improved testing infrastructure

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 Five Cost Categories Related to Quality
 Prevention cost: Cost of planning and executing a project
so it is error-free or within an acceptable error range
 Appraisal cost: Cost of evaluating processes and their
outputs to ensure quality
 Internal failure cost: Cost incurred to correct an identified
defect before the customer receives the product
 External failure cost: Cost that relates to all errors not
detected and corrected before delivery to the customer
 Measurement and test equipment costs: Capital cost of
equipment used to perform prevention and appraisal
activities

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Organizational Influences, Workplace
Factors, and Quality
 Study by DeMarco and Lister showed that organizational
issues had a much greater influence on programmer
productivity than the technical environment or
programming languages
 Programmer productivity varied by a factor of one to ten
across organizations, but only by 21 percent within the
same organization
 Study found no correlation between productivity and
programming language, years of experience, or salary.
 A dedicated workspace and a quiet work environment
were key factors to improving programmer productivity

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Expectations and Cultural
Differences in Quality

 Project managers must understand and manage

stakeholder expectations.
 Expectations also vary by:
◦ Organization’s culture

◦ Geographic regions

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Maturity Models
 Maturity models are frameworks for helping
organizations improve their processes and systems
◦ The Software Quality Function Deployment Model
focuses on defining user requirements and planning
software projects

◦ The Software Engineering Institute’s Capability Maturity

Model Integration is a process improvement approach
that provides organizations with the essential elements of
effective processes

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CMMI Levels
 CMMI levels, from lowest to highest, are:
◦ Incomplete
◦ Performed
◦ Managed
◦ Defined
◦ Quantitatively Managed
◦ Optimizing
 Companies may not get to bid on government projects
unless they have a CMMI Level 3

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Using Software to Assist in Project
Quality Management
 Spreadsheet and charting software helps create
Pareto diagrams, fishbone diagrams, and so on
 Statistical software packages help perform
statistical analysis
 Specialized software products help manage Six
Sigma projects or create quality control charts
 Project management software helps create Gantt
charts and other tools to help plan and track work
related to quality management

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