8.0 Project Quality Mgt.
Agile Considerations and Emerging Practices
In order to adequately manage quality during the incremental and frequent delivery cycles of an agile project, smaller-batch systems aim to uncover defects earlier in the project, when overall costs of change in processes or procedures will be lower.
The use of continuous improvement is an important emerging practice (it is not necessarily new, but is becoming more applicable to all industries and hence all types of projects and organizations). Continuous improvement incorporates several effective quality management methodologies, such as plan-do-check-act (PDCA), total quality management (TQM), six sigma, and lean six sigma. These practices are used to improve both the quality of project management and that of the final product. Effective implementation of continuous improvement can lead an organization to the higher-order quality management status mentioned earlier, whereby the organization can create a culture of quality awareness and commitment.