Managing project quality in organizations without an independent QA department

The first thing to do is to understand that quality must be defined at strategical level. It is an enteprise wide term to define. Second understanding that quality is a subjective matter that must be translated into objective ones (and that is because an enteprise wide definition). Third, remember that stakeholders do not buy the product/service/result or the process to create it. They buy the fact that you (as project manager) will assure them that their objectives will be achieved with the product/service/result to be created and the process to create it.

The first thing to do is to understand that quality must be defined at strategical level. It is an enteprise wide term to define. Second understanding that quality is a subjective matter that must be translated into objective ones (and that is because an enteprise wide definition). Third, remember that stakeholders do not buy the product/service/result or the process to create it. They buy the fact that you (as project manager) will assure them that their objectives will be achieved with the product/service/result to be created and the process to create it.

Quality can be managed by the PM and the team, but it requires careful planning and metrics to ensure objectivity.

If you don't have a QA organization or enterprise definition for quality, you do have the Project Quality Management section of the PMBOK to use as a resource.

Hi Nasrullah,

I want to understand does your org has QA department and you don't have confidence in their role or you don't have a QA dept at all?
Product Manager should define a standard to which a particular product needs to meet and those include quality expects from design, plan and implemention. Based on the direction from its leadership about at what standard deviation the quality of that product is acceptable.
As a project manager you manage product as a project based on the quality specified by the stakeholders and validated at the Srope verification.
And as Aaron pointed out PMBOK has Qality section. You can also look at Six Signa it has a set of quality management methods