Inspection – Part of Quality Assurance or Control Quality?

Posted on by Kavita Sharma

One of my student posted this question today on Udemy “Pass PMP in 21 Days”

And It made me think that quality, out of all the knowledge area is the one, in which we think, we know but end up with wrong answers.

For instance  – This question:

Is inspection as a tool part of QC (Quality Control) Or a QA (Quality Assurance) Process?

Here is the answer which I posted – 

“Inspection is relevant in both Quality Assurance and Quality Control. I do understand that this is the most confusing aspect of quality management. However just keep in mind that inspection process happens in Quality Assurance (Also referred as Audit) and understand since this is part of executing process group, the deliverables are under progress (Direct and Manage project work). So Quality assurance focuses on process inspection in order to PREVENT defects.

Quality control is part of monitoring and Controlling process group. This is assumed that deliverables by the execution team is finished and now those deliverables needs to be tested before they can be produced for sign offs (to internal or external clients). (Check the ITTO of this process)

So in QC (or Control Quality) the inspection take place on completed deliverables. 

What does this imply? It imply that you need to refer to the question context and need to understand as the scenario represent preventive checks or corrective checks (as part of inspection), and then only select the right option.


I hope – you, who are reading this get a clarity on QA and QC process after reading the post..

Please leave your comments here, and I’ll get back to you.

Kavita Sharma

Kavita Sharma has over 2 decades of diverse management experience, including 15+ years in corporate roles at multinational companies, giving her a wealth of knowledge and skills that can help individuals and organizations achieve their goals. As a seasoned management consultant, Kavita has spent the past decade coaching individuals and consulting organizations, leveraging her expertise to drive results and foster growth. She has also authored several books that have been widely recognized for their insights and practical advice. Kavita Sharma's Pass PMP in 21 Days workshops are fun and engaging. The workshop uses quick learning techniques like keywords, revision Let's Play questions, and PMP-style homework. And that's the reason Kavita Sharma's students pass the PMP exam in their FIRST Attempt. PMI.org: Kavita Sharma's Students have one of the BEST PASSING PERCENTAGE RATIO as per PMI records* Kavita Sharma is the Author of the books "Pass PMP in 21 Days - Study Guide" and "Pass PMP in 21 Days - Practice Tests" - The BEST- SELLER in the PMP sphere. She worked closely with PMI in the development of PMBOK and is recognized by PMI as a significant contributor to PMBOK.