UNIT 6: Quality Management
Scope Aspects of IT Projects That Impact Quality (quality could be measured using these)
Functionality Systems Outputs Performance Reliability Maintainability
Quality Concepts
Gold Plating - giving customers extras (increases costs/time required) Prevention Over Inspection - quality must be planned in, not inspected in. Marginal Analysis - looking for the point where benefits/revenue received from improving quality equals the cost to implement. Continuous Improvement - Just in time - quality must be high if using this strategy TQM (total quality management) - continuous improvement Responsibility for Quality - entire org; PM is ultimately responsible for high quality of the project.
Plan Quality Management (Process 1)
Implies the ability to anticipate situations and prepare actions to bring about desired outcome. Objectives: identify relevant organizational and industry practices, standards and requirements for quality Level of quality should be appropriate for the needs of the project - don't affect time, scope, etc needlessly - why build the Taj Mahal when you need a garage? Keep in Mind: Cost-benefit analysis and cost of quality. - Cost of Conformance and Non-conformance.
Six Sigma Conversion Table
Look in Notes
Costs of Quality (Managing Quality; Video)
Managing Quality - Monitoring quality - Identifying problems - Finding root causes - Devoting resources to fix the causes
Specification Limits (control charts)
More broad compared to upper/lower control limits Based on customer expectations (as opposed to control limits which are organizational limits)
The Quality Management Process (done during...)
Plan Quality Management - Planning Process Group Perform Quality Assurance - Executing Process Group Control Quality - Monitoring and Controlling Process Group
Five Costs Categories Related to Quality
Prevention Costs Appraisal Costs Internal Failure Costs External failure Costs Measurement and test equipment costs
Quality Control Charts (In/Out of Control Processes)
Process *in-control* - any variations in the results of the process are created by random events; process that are in control don't need to be adjusted Process *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.
What is Quality?
The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) defines quality as "the degree to which a set of inherent characteristics fulfills 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.
The Seven Run Rule
You can use quality control charts and _ _ _ _ to look for *patterns* in data. _ _ _ _ states that if *seven* data points in a row are all below the mean, above the mean, or are all increasing/decreasing, then the process needs to be examined for non-random problems.
Six Sigma
a comprehensive and flexible system for achieving, sustaining, and maximizing business success. _ _ is uniquely drive by close understanding of customer needs, disciplined use of facts, data and statistical analysis, and diligent attention to managing, improving, and reinventing business processes. instead of focusing on quality initiatives primarily on checking products for defects, the focus is *shifted towards improving the production process so that defects don't occur*
Six 9s of Quality
a measure of quality control equal to 1 fault in 1 million opportunities e.g. in the telecommunication industry, it means 99.9999% service availability or 30 seconds of down time a year. this level of quality has also been stated as the target goal for the number of errors in a communication circuit, system failures, or errors in lines of code.
Performance
addresses how well a product or service performs the customer's intended use.
Maintainability
addresses the ease of performing maintenance on a product
Based on Opportunities, Not Units (Six Sigma)
an important clarification is that Six Sigma measures *defect opportunities* and not defective products. The more complex a product, the more defect opportunities it has. e.g. there are more defect opportunities in an automobile compared to a paper clip.
Measurement and test equipment costs
capital cost of equipment used to perform prevention and appraisal activities
Appraisal Costs
cost of evaluating processes and their outputs to ensure quality Cost of finding the root causes for quality problems (process inspections, inspector and consultant fees, lab time fees, systems interruptions, and interviews)
Prevention Costs
cost of planning and executing a project so it is error-free or within an acceptable error range Fix present problems and prevent future problems (efforts to improve product, improve training, changing hiring policies to attract better employees, choosing better supplies, purchase premium raw materials, etc)
Internal Failure Costs
costs incurred to correct an identified defect before the customer receives the product Problems found and fixed before they reach the customer (wasted resources, disposal of damaged goods, or cost to repair the damaged item)
External failure cost
costs that relate to all errors not detected and corrected before delivery to the customer Problems that actually reach the customer; repairing the damage caused (reverse logistics costs, warranty costs, replacement costs) ; damaged brand
Control Quality (Process 3)
ensures that a certain level of quality is delivered measures products/services to see if they meet quality requirements helps answer the following: -are the results of our work meeting the standards? -what is the actual variance from the standards? -is the variance outside the acceptable limits? -what changes should be considered?
Control (Quality Management Process)
examines the deliverables; purpose is to ensure deliverables are correct, at quality level, and find problem source and recommend.
Plan (Quality Management Process)
focuses on defining quality and planning how it will be achieved
Perform Assurance (Quality Management Process)
focuses on the work being done
Out of Control (control charts)
if a data point falls outside the control limits or there are non-random points (trends, etc)
Mean (control charts)
indicated by line in the middle of the chart
Statistical Sampling
inspecting part of a population 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 assume you desire 95% certainty then the equation would be: .25x(1.960/.05)^2 = 384
Pareto Analysis
involves identifying the vital few contributors that account for the most quality problems in a system *80/20 rule*: 80% of the problems are often due to 20% of the causes *Pareto Diagrams* are histograms, or column charts representing a frequency distribution, that help identify and prioritize problem areas. - also important to look at severity of problems, not just quantity.
Cause and Effect Diagram
it is better to fix a defect *and* get to the root cause can be used to: -look backward to see what contributed to quality problems -plan how the work of quality should be performed
Upper and Lower Control Limits (control charts)
shown as two dashed lines acceptable range of variance in results indicated what is stable vs. unstable
Flowchart
shows how process or system flows from beginning to end a common model is SIPOC (supplier, input, process, output, customer)
Scatter Diagram
tracks two variables to determine their relationship
Checksheet (Tally Sheet)
used to keep track of data such as quality problems uncovered during inspections purpose: to gather data
Design of Experiments
uses experimentation to determine statistically what variables will improve quality - which mix of raw materials should be used in the manufacturing of a chip to produce the most reliable chip. also applies to project management issues, such as cost and schedule tradeoffs -do use faster, more experienced programmers, or slower, cheaper programmers? involves documenting important factors that directly contribute to meeting customer requirements.
Six sigma uses a conversion table
using a normal curve, if a process is at six sigma, there would be no more than two defective units per billion produced six sigma uses a scoring system that accounts for *time*- an important factor in determining process variations *Yield* - represents the number of units handled correctly through the process steps a *defect* is any instance where the product or service fails to meet customer requirements There can be several opportunities to have a defect
DMAIC (acronym)
*Define* the problem/opportunity, process, and requirements *Measure* - define measures, then collect, compile, and display data (in defects per opportunity) *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 predictability of the solution
Who's responsible for Quality?
*Project Managers* are ultimately responsible for quality management on their projects several organizations and references help project managers and their teams understand quality (ISO; IEEE)
Quality Control Charts
*created* in plan quality management *used* in control quality *a geographic display of data that illustrates the results of a process over time. it helps determine whether a process is in control or out of control* main use: to prevent defects, rather than to detect/reject them. allow you to determine whether a process is *in control* or *out of control*
Impact of Poor Quality
- Increased costs - decreased profits - low morale - low customer satisfaction - increased risk - rework - schedule delays
The Importance of Project Quality Management
- many people joke about the poor quality of IT products (cars/computers joke) - People seem to accept systems being down occasionally or needing to reboot their PCs. - but quality is very important in many IT projects
Cost of Conformance
- quality training - studies - surveys - efforts to ensure everyone knows the processes to use to complete their work
Cost of nonconformance
- rework - scrap - inventory costs - warranty costs - lost business
Important to prevent *Defects* by:
- selecting the proper materials - training and indoctrinating people in quality - planning a process that ensures the appropriate outcome
Plan Quality Management (Basic Quality Tools(
-Cause and Effect Diagram(fishbone diagram, Ishikawa diagram) -Flowchart (Process Map) -Checksheet(Tally Sheet) -Pareto Diagram(Pareto Chart) -Histogram -Control Chart -Scatter Diagram
How is Six Sigma Quality Control Unique?
-it requires an organization-idea commitment -training follows the "belt" system -six sigma organizations have the ability and willingness to adopt contrary objectives, such as reducing errors and getting things done faster ("we can do it all "philosophy") -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.
Normal Distribution and Standard Deviation (defective units)
1 sigma - 68.27% percent of population within range- 317, 300,000 defective units per billion 2 sigma - 95.45% - 45,400,000 3 sigma - 99.73% - 2,700,000 4 sigma - 99.9937% - 63,000 5 sigma - 99.999943% - 57 6 sigma - 99.9999998% - 2
DMAIC (video)
5 step improvement methodology (DMAIC) Define the System - Project is defined - Team is selected - Project is launched - Performance outcome to be improved = Y (Y=f(x)) Measure - Determine size/scope of problem - Measure performance on Y Analyze - Perform root cause analysis - Identify x factors that drive performance Y Improve: Solutions are developed and implemented Control: Controls are established to make sure so gains are sustainable
DMAIC
A systematic, closed-loop process for continued improvement that is scientific and fact based.
Perform Quality Assurance (Process 2)
Done while project is being performed usually performed by a quality assurance department Quality Audits - checking compliance with company policies, standardized practices. - checking whether policies, practices, and procedures are efficient and effective. - do not think of audits as negative; they are ways to improve. Process Analysis - continuous improvement Other tools and Techniques: -affinity diagrams -tree diagrams -process decision program charts -interrelationship diagraphs -matrix diagrams -prioritization matrices -project schedule network diagrams or activity network diagrams
Six Sigma (video)
techniques used to improve processes and eliminate defects. 3.4 defects per 1 million opportunities DMAIC: - Define the System - Measure - where are you today? - Analyze - what do the numbers mean? - Improve - create a plan and put it into action - Control Six Sigma Certification - Understanding the intricacies of the methodology - Mastering the tools, charts, and calculations that guide managers toward the root of the problem. There are different levels of classifications Critiques: - Focused on fixing yesterday's product, while other companies look to be more revolutionary Lean Six Sigma is another option Must evolve to fit changes Provides powerful tools for improvement
Reliability
the ability of a product or service to perform as expected under normal conditions
quality
the cost is long forgotten but the _ is remembered forever
Functionality
the degree to which a system performs its intended function. *Features* are the system's special characteristics that appeal to users.
Quality
the degree to which the project fulfills requirements ties back to requirements-gathering
Basic Information on Six Sigma
the large 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.
Quality Control
the main outputs of the quality control are: Acceptance of decisions - if yes, validated deliverables - if no, rework (if too expensive to rework=scrap) *Rework* - actions to bring work into compliance = expensive *process adjustments* - correct/prevent further problems some tools and techniques include: - pareto analysis - statistical sampling - six sigma - quality control charts
System Outputs
the screens and reports the system generates
Six Sigma and Statistics
the term *sigma* means standard deviation *standard deviation* measures how much variation exists in a distribution of data - it's a key factor in determining the acceptable number of defective units found in a population Six sigma projects strive for no more than 3.4 defects per million opportunities, yet this number is confusing to many statisticians
Six Sigma Projects Use Project Management
the training for six sigma includes many project management concepts, tools, and techniques. - e.g. 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 the team leader, and the sponsor is called the champion.
