What is the difference between quality assurance and improvement?

Quality assurance and quality improvement are two important concepts in project management. Quality assurance is the process of ensuring that a project meets specified quality standards, while quality improvement is the process of identifying and eliminating defects in a project.

Quality assurance is typically carried out by a separate team of people, such as a quality control department, who are not involved in the actual development of the project. This allows for an independent assessment of the project's quality. Quality assurance activities can include:

- Reviewing project documentation

- Conducting inspections and tests

- Monitoring the project's progress

- Identifying and resolving defects

Quality improvement is typically carried out by the project team itself, with the goal of continuously improving the project's quality. Quality improvement activities can include:

- Setting quality goals

- Identifying and eliminating defects

- Implementing process changes to improve quality

- Educating project team members on quality improvement techniques

Both quality assurance and quality improvement are essential for ensuring that a project meets its specified quality standards. Quality assurance helps to identify and eliminate defects before they cause problems, while quality improvement helps to continuously improve the project's quality.

Here is a table that summarizes the key differences between quality assurance and quality improvement:

| Feature | Quality Assurance | Quality Improvement |

|---|---|---|

| Focus | Ensuring that a project meets specified quality standards | Identifying and eliminating defects in a project |

| Performed by | Separate team of people, such as a quality control department | Project team itself |

| Activities | Reviewing project documentation, conducting inspections and tests, monitoring the project's progress, identifying and resolving defects | Setting quality goals, identifying and eliminating defects, implementing process changes to improve quality, educating project team members on quality improvement techniques |

| Goal | Ensure that a project meets its specified quality standards | Continuously improve the project's quality |