Quality audits

The main mechanism for determining the effectiveness of the quality assurance activities is the quality audit. The audit is the structured review of the performance against the plan. The quality Audit is a structured independent review which is used to determine if the project activities are having the desired result. If the results do not show the conformance to the specifications then the quality assurance activities will have to be reviewed and improved.

The audits of the quality assurance might be conducted by the internal or external  elements.  A committed and honest  project  team may  have  no difficulty conducting the internal audits. The external audits often give more objective results and are often more respected by the third parties like the higher level management.

The Quality Audit approach affects the entire work lifecycle in the following ways:

• Pre-defined standards which will impact the way the project is planned.
• Quality requirements for particular work packages and deliverables will be identified in advance.
• Specific procedures will be followed at all stages.
• Quality Methods must be defined and followed.
• Completed work and deliverables should be reviewed for the compliance.