Quality in Projects

Quality means achieving the required performance levels. It is often defined in documents like completion criteria, definition of done, statement of work, or requirements documentation.

The sponsoring organization usually bears the cost of quality, and this is shown in its policies, procedures, and workflows.

Project teams must balance the quality requirements with the cost of meeting those requirements.

• Why Quality Matters?
• Ensures customer satisfaction
• Helps in reducing project costs
• Aids in mitigating risks

Cost of quality and suboptimal outcomes

COQ helps find the right balance between spending on quality now (to prevent problems) and the cost of fixing issues later

• Prevention Costs : These are the costs to stop defects before they happen. It includes training, process improvements, and quality system design.
• Appraisal Costs : These are costs for checking quality like inspections, testing, and audits to make sure things meet the required standards.
• Internal Failure Costs : These happen when defects are found before delivery to the customer. It includes rework, scrap, and fixing mistakes during production.
• External Failure Costs : These occur when defects are found after delivery like customer complaints, warranty claims, repairs, or damage to the brand.

Suboptimal Outcomes

All projects aim to deliver successful results, but some may fail or end up with less-than-ideal (suboptimal) outcomes. This risk exists in every project.

In experimental projects, the goal is to create something new or achieve a breakthrough (e.g., a new technology). But the outcome is uncertain, and success is not guaranteed.

Some projects fail to deliver because the market opportunity is lost, or competitors launch first, making the project’s results less valuable or irrelevant.