What is Quality Management Plan?
Quality Management Plan is a well-defined set of documents and information to efficiently manage the quality throughout software development project starting from planning to the software deployment. The primary goal of making a Quality Management Plan is to ensure that the project deliverables are of adequate quality and fit for the software requirements.
Download the below Quality Management Plan Template
1.1 Purpose of this Quality Management Plan
The primary goal of the QM plan is to ensure that the project deliverables are of adequate quality and fit-for-purpose. Quality assurance and Quality control is an integral part of the Project Quality Management Plan.
1.2 Quality Management Plan Components
To achieve this, the <project name> Quality Management Plan includes the following components:
- Quality Assurance - to ensure quality project management processes.
- Quality Control - via the development of quality outputs
- Quality Improvement – review points to assess and improve quality where possible.
1.3 Quality Philosophy
The Quality Philosophy describes the overall intentions and approach to be applied for maintaining quality.
The Quality Philosophy for the <Project name> Project involves:
- Standards and methodologies for project management quality assurance
- Effective processes to support arrangements for good governance and accountability;
- Input from individuals with the appropriate subject or technical expertise to ensure the development of outputs that are fit for the purpose.
1.4 Quality Strategy
The Quality Strategy for the <Project name> Project involves:
- Quality related issues faced in the application of the project management processes
- Quality issues encountered in the development of the outputs
- Relevant standards that must be applied
- Activities in the work plan that should be conducted correctly
2 Project Quality Assurance
Quality assurance will be achieved by defining the defining the relevant quality project management processes.
2.1 Methodologies and Standards
The relevant methodologies, guidelines should be maintained for following items
- Standards of Risk Management must be maintained
- Records management, web publishing, information security, privacy, etc.
- Relevant business domain driven standards
Any changes to these standards need be recorded as an issue in the Project Issues Register.
2.2 Quality Review
2.2.1 Project Quality Consultants
The role of any Quality Consultants should be explained in detailed depending on their area of expertise. Project Quality Consultants also contribute to the formal Project Evaluation by providing a Project Performance Review.
2.2.2 Project Evaluation and Review
In this Quality Management Plan sample, you need to define:
- The timing for reviews, which may be conducted at the end of a phase or every phase.
- Topics of each review(s)
- A review of project performance and comparison with the defined project target outcomes
- A review of the methodologies needed to produce the outputs
- Learning points of the project
- Area for improvement
2.2.3 Management of changes to project scope
Management of changes to the project involves:
- Planning for possible changes through proper risk analysis
- Keeping track of all types of possible unanticipated issues
- Using an iterative approach to make change within the scope of a single project
- Reflecting changes of project scope in Project Business Plan
In this Project Quality Management Plan example, you need to identify the process that helps you to manage changes to the project scope and how it will be reflected in the project business planning.
2.3 Risk Assessment and Management
Risk management aims to ensure that levels of risk are managed properly. It includes the level of resourcing, time, cost, quality, and the realization of outcomes by the Business Owner should appropriately manage to ensure the project is completed successfully.
Here, you need to document the project approach to risk assessment and management to identify how risks to quality will be reflected during the process.
2.4 Information Management
2.4.1 Document Management
In this Quality Plan example, you need to explain what review and acceptance procedures will apply to the management of the project business plan and other core documents.
2.4.2 Record keeping
In this Quality Management Plan example, you need to mention relevant government policy, legislation, and rules which can easily affect how records for the project must be kept. It also includes detail of any protocols which needed to apply for records management, and how registration of all official documents should be managed.
3 Output Quality Control
Quality control for the <Project Name> Project can easily have accomplished by defining the relevant quality criteria for the outputs, or what characteristics should be used for this purpose.
Quality planning includes identifying the Output Quality Criteria and standards that will be used to determine their acceptability and 'fitness for purpose.' In this Quality Plan template, you can define who or what groups will be involved in the specification of the output quality criteria
Relevant methodologies and guidelines may be used to assist. These include technical specifications or other specific criteria. 'Fitness for purpose' for each output is also determined by the needs, expectations, requirements, and 'critical success factors' of various key stakeholders like:
- Business Owner(s) - The Business Owners need to contribute resources to the project during their development to ensure that the outputs are being developed satisfactorily.
- Advisory Groups: provide advice or technical expertise in relation to output development and quality assurance
- Reference Group: give a forum to achieve consensus among groups of stakeholders
- Working Group(s) - consist of small specialist work groups, which is dedicated to producing a well-defined output within a specific timeframe.
- Consultants – which provide advice about the development of specific outputs.
3.1 Output Review Procedures
In this Quality Management Plan example, you need to define when and how the outputs will be tested and reviewed and by whom.
This section of Project Quality Management Plan example includes a description of the approach to:
- Output testing and review: Generally, it is assumed that testing is only applied to IT systems, but it is also relevant to other outputs which may require testing to ensure they meet specified functional requirements. It is also important to formalize the output change management procedures that will be used to document problem reporting and rectification.
- Progressive audits or appraisals to be conducted throughout the project. These reviews are undertaken progressively, as quality cannot be built in at the end of a project.
The section should also cover:
- The technological aspects of the project.
- Project compliance with internal and external audit
- The form advice, preferably with dates, and to whom this advice will be provided should also need to mention here.
Change Control
In this Sample Quality Management Plan, mention the process that should be used for changes which need to be approved. Any changes to output specifications need to be controlled through a change process which should include:
- A structured process to facilitate the change to the system.
- Complete assessment of the impact of the projected changed
- A method of authorizing a change
3.2 Output Acceptance Procedures
Output acceptance includes acceptance of related ongoing management responsibilities and accountabilities.
In this section, you need to define:
- Processes that Business Owners will apply to conduct final review and acceptance of the outputs based on the agreed criteria.
- Formal agreement captured in appropriate documentation like Handover Plan
Appendices include:
- Change request/rectification log
- Forms and templates developed by the Project to offer consistent documentation
- Relevant operational documents
Summary
- Quality Management Plan is a well-defined set of documents and information to efficiently manage the quality throughout software development project starting from planning to the software deployment.
- Quality assurance and Quality control is an integral part of the Project Quality Management Plan.
- The Quality Philosophy describes the overall intentions and approach to be applied for maintaining quality.
- Quality assurance will be achieved by defining the defining the relevant quality project management processes.
- The role of any Quality Consultant should be explained in detailed depending on their area of expertise.
- Quality planning includes identifying the Output Quality Criteria and standards that will be used to determine their acceptability and 'fitness for purpose.'
- Output acceptance includes acceptance of related ongoing management responsibilities and accountabilities.
Appendix A: Change Request/Rectification Log
Date | Output | Request | Impact | Responsible Officer | Authorisation date | Completion date | Comments |
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Download the above Quality Management Plan Template
