Question A

Quality is one of the more difficult Project Management concepts. Although there are tools and techniques to use to plan and control project quality, the application of those tools and techniques is more obtuse than something like planning and controlling a Project Schedule. The reason is that quality may be in the "eye of the beholder". Each stakeholder's idea of quality may be different. The best way to manage Project Quality is to return to one of the Project Management basics: make sure that expectations for the project's quality, both the quality of the management of the project (i.e. how you will communicate with stakeholders) and the quality of the ultimate product from the project, are set properly at the beginning of the project. Then, the tools, techniques, and applications of modern initiatives to manage the quality of the project, as well as the quality of the project's product, will be effective. Explain who your stakeholders are and how each group might define "quality" for your project.

Question B

Why is it important to determine the definition of quality of each group of stakeholders prior to beginning a project? How would you handle a situation where the definition of quality did not match?