13 - Project Quality Management Terminology Flashcards
Accuracy
The degree of correctness within a quality system
Attribute Sampling
A testing approach that involves noting the presence or lack of a characteristic (attribute) in each unit being tested and then deciding if the entire sample will be accepted, rejected, or require re-testing after the addition of additional units.
Audit
A review of the quality system to determine that it is capable of ensuring quality project results.
Benchmarking
The comparison of enterprise standards and practices to those used in similar organizations for the purpose of determining best practices and/or improvements and establishing a basis for performance measurement.
Cause-and-effect Diagram
A decomposition approach used to identify the root cause of a problem; also known as a fishbone or Ishikawa diagram.
Central Tendency
A property of the central limit theorem, which states that data tends to group around a central location; typically utilizes three measurements: the mean, the median, and the mode.
Checklist Analysis
An evaluation of project checklists to determine their effectiveness.
Check Sheets
Tools that can be used to capture and categorize data.
Common Cause
A predictable source of variation in a system.
Compliance
Conformance to a rule, standard, law, or requirement.
Conformance
Within the quality management system, the delivery of a product or result that falls within the acceptable tolerance levels of quality requirements.
Conformance to Requirement
The point where the project and product meet the standards of the written specifications defined at project inception (or modified through change control).
Conformance Work
Endeavors, typically related to prevention and inspection, that compensate for issues preventing organizations from achieving planned results.
Control Chart
A graphic representation of process data over time that is set against documented control limits and has a center line (mean) to assist in identifying trends.
Control Limits
The area comprised of three standard deviations that occur on either side of the mean of normal data distribution on a control chart.
Control Quality
The process of testing a project’s product, service, or result and then issuing an approval or recommendation for change.
Cost of Nonconformance
Cost associated with not meeting quality expectations of the project or product.
Criteria
Standards applied to a product, service, result, or process in order to make a decision or render a judgment about that product, service, result or process.
Customer Satisfaction
Meeting or exceeding customer expectations as a result of evaluation within the quality system.
Defect
A fault or inadequacy in a project component that must be corrected or replaced before project requirements or specifications can be met.
Defect Repair
The correction of a fault or inadequacy in a project component.
Design of Experiments
A statistical process used to determine the factors that may impact specific product or process variables.
Documentation Reviews
The process of ensuring the accuracy and completeness of project exhibits.
Failure Mode and Effect Analysis (FMEA)
An analytical process that examines all possible failure points, individually or in conjunction with others, to ascertain the impact on the product or system.
Features
The characteristics that the user desires built into a product.
Fitness for Use
A product that can be used as it was intended when designed.
Flowchart
A graphical representation, including inputs, actions, and outputs, of one or more of the system processes.
Flowcharting (Technique)
A decomposition approach to breaking a system or process into block steps that can be repeated by following the diagram.
Grade
A ranking to classify products that have different functions or features.
Guideline
An official recommendation that describes the policies, standards, or processes related to the completion or a process or activity.
Histogram
A graphical representation, in the format of bar chart, that depicts the central tendency, dispersal, and shape of a statistical distribution.
Influence Diagram
A graphical representation of relationship between variables and outcomes including situations with causal influence and event time sequences.
Inspection
The evaluation of an activity, product, result, service, or component to determine that it meets the desired standards for use and conforms to requirements.
Interrelationship Diagrams
A graphical representation of the cause-and-effect relationships of the variables of creative problem solving.
ISO 9000
Developed by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) as a means to plan, control, and document processes, and overall improve quality.
Kaizen
A technique that takes a proactive stance to process development, one that makes improvements throughout a process as time evolves.
Manage Quality
The process of converting the quality management plan into executable activities that integrate the organization’s quality policies into the project.
Mean
The average value in a measurement of a population.
Nonconformance Work
The work associated with correcting errors, including those that arise from a failure to adhere to the policies, standards, rules, and regulations that impact the project.
Normal Distribution
A bell-shaped curve that is in sync with the mean of the population.
Pareto Analysis
A technique used to identify instances of frequently recurring issues that impact a system, project, or process.
Pareto Diagram
A bar chart, ordered by occurrence frequency, depicting the number of outcomes for each identified cause.
Performance
The level of success at which a product performs its intended use.
Plan Quality Management
The process of identifying quality requirements and standards for the project and deliverables as well as documenting compliance with the project’s quality approach and requirements.
Population
The entire group of similar criteria (Ex: All Americans, all owners of a particular product).
Precision
The accuracy of the measurements used by the quality management system.
Prevention Cost
Cost of planning and executing a project within an acceptable range of error (or error free).
Preventive Action
An activity performed to evade an event that would negatively impact project performance.
Prioritization Matrices
A quality management tool used to identify issues and potential alternatives related to the establishment of implementation priorities.
Procedure
A method executed to achieve a suitable performance or result.
Process Adjustments
Adjustments made to modify the output of a process to achieve a better degree of quality.
Process Analysis
The evaluation of a process with the goal of identifying potential improvements.
Process Decision Program Charts (PDPC)
A graphical representation used to develop contingency plans based on possible failure points in the main plan.
Project Quality Management
The processes defined and activities performed by the organization to identify quality related policies, aims, and responsibilities in order to ensure that the project meets its objectives.
Quality
The degree to which a group of fundamental characteristics satisfies requirements.
Quality Assurance
The repetitive examination of quality requirements and quality control measurements to effect the use of requisite quality control standards and operational definitions.
Quality Audits
A formal, independent process that assesses whether project activities are in compliance with organizational and project policies, processes, and procedures.
Quality Checklists
A tool used to verify that project work and deliverables have been completed in accordance with project requirements.
Quality Control Measurements
The documented outcome of quality control functions.
Quality Management and Control Tools
Mechanisms used to ensure quality products and processes, often more efficiently and at a lower cost.
Quality Management Plan
The document, part of the project or program management plan, used to describe the execution of the organization’s quality policies.
Quality Management System
The system within a company that provides policies, processes, and resources to implement the project’s quality management plan; that the quality management plan typically aligns with the company’s quality system.
Quality Metrics
The description of a project or product attribute and the measurements that must be applied to the attribute within the quality control process; examples of metrics include failure rate, defect frequency, cost control, reliability, and availability.
Quality Policy
The organizational policies crafted to achieve quality goals.
Quality Report
A project document that addresses quality management issues, recommendations for corrective actions, and a recap of findings from quality control activities; the report may include advice related to the improvement of process, project, and product.
Quality Requirement
Condition designed to ensure that a deliverable conforms to its intended use.
Regression Analysis
An analytical technique that examines a series of input variables in relation to their corresponding output results for the purpose of establishing a mathematical or statistical relationship.
Reliability
The likelihood of a product or service to function as planned.
Rework
Action taken to bring any component that is flawed or out of conformance into compliance with specifications or requirements.
Sample
A part of the population used for a measurement (instead of the entire population).
Scatter Diagram
A graphical representation that shows the relationship between two variables by putting one on the x axis, the other on the y axis, and analyzing the intersecting points; typically used to determine root causes or the presence of a cause-and-effect relationship.
Seven Basic Quality Tools
A group of devices used by quality management for quality planning and for monitoring and controlling.
Seven Run Rule
A rule that states if seven consecutive data points are on one side of the mean (above or below) or increasing/decreasing, then the process is out of control and should be investigated.
Sigma
A measurement of acceptability of a product or process.
Special Cause
A non-random or intermittent variable in a system.
Specification
An instrument that effectively defines the requirements, design, characteristics, and other attributes of a system, component, product, result or service and typically provides for procedures to determine that the provisions of the instrument have been met.
Specification Limits
The area on either side of the mean of data distribution on a control chart.
Standard Deviation
The measurement of variation within a distribution.
Statistical Sampling
The selection of a part of a population for examination rather than using the entire population.
Test and Evaluation Documents
Project Documents that delineate the activities used to determine if the product satisfies the quality objectives described in the quality management plan.
Tolerance
The measure of acceptable variation.
Tree Diagram
A graphical representation that uses decomposition to organize data into parent and child relationships.
Value Engineering
An approach to efficiently and effectively execute the project to decrease life cycle costs and schedule, increase profits and market share, improve quality and use of resources, and competently resolve issues and problems.
Variation
The difference between the baseline project management plan and actual project data at a specific point in time.
Verification
The process, typically internal, of determining that the results of the project are in compliance with appropriate specifications, requirements, regulatory requirements, and imposed conditions.
Verified Deliverables
Completed project deliverables that have been reviewed and confirmed for correctness through the Control Quality Process.
Voice of the Customer (VOC)
The translation of customer requirements into requisite technical requirements in a manner that ensures the results of the project will meet the requirements of the customer.
