<Enter Project Name Here>

Quality Assurance Plan

Department of Veterans Affairs

<Month><Year>

Version <#.#>

This template contains a paragraph style called Instructional Text. Text using this paragraph style is
designed to assist the reader in completing the document. Text in paragraphs added after this help text is
automatically set to the appropriate body text level. For best results and to maintain formatting
consistency, use the provided paragraph styles. Delete all instructional text before publishing or
distributing the document Revision History.
This template conforms to the latest Section 508 guidelines. The user of the template is responsible to
maintain Section 508 conformance for any artifact created from this template.

Revision History
Date

Version

Description

Author

Place latest revisions at top of table.

The Revision History pertains only to changes in the content of the document or any updates
made after distribution. It does not apply to the formatting of the template.
Remove blank rows.

<Project Name> Quality Assurance Plan

<Month> <Year>

Table of Contents
1.

Introduction..........................................................................................1
1.1.
1.2.
1.3.
1.4.

2.
3.

Purpose...............................................................................................................1
Scope...................................................................................................................1
Definitions, Acronyms and Abbreviations......................................................1
References..........................................................................................................1

Quality Objectives...............................................................................1
Management.........................................................................................1
3.1. Organization.......................................................................................................1
3.2. Reviews...............................................................................................................2

4.
5.
6.

Documentation....................................................................................3
Standards and Guidelines..................................................................3
Documentation Reviews.....................................................................3
6.1.
6.2.
6.3.
6.4.
6.5.
6.6.
6.7.

7.
8.
9.
10.
11.

Artifacts...............................................................................................................3
Review Plan........................................................................................................3
Review Schedule................................................................................................3
Organization and Responsibilities...................................................................3
Problem Resolution and Corrective Action....................................................3
Tools, Techniques and Methodologies............................................................4
Quality Records..................................................................................................4

Test and Evaluation.............................................................................4

Tools, Techniques and Methodologies..............................................4
Configuration Management................................................................4
Supplier and Subcontractor Controls...............................................4
Risk Management................................................................................4

<Project Name> Quality Assurance Plan

<Month> <Year>

1. Introduction
Provide an overview of the entire document.

<Project Name> Quality Assurance Plan

<Month> <Year>

Purpose

This Quality Assurance (QA) Plan details the overall approach to quality assurance activities for
<Project Name>. This QA Plan documents how the project defines, implements and assures
quality during the software development process.
This QA Plan is a communication vehicle for the entire project team, including the project
manager, development manager, developers, test analysts, SQA analysts, technical writers,
functional analysts, other project teams, and users.

<Project Name> Quality Assurance Plan

<Month> <Year>

Scope

Provide a brief description of the scope of this document. Include what Project(s) it is associated
with and anything else that is affected or influenced by this document. This section should detail
what items are considered to be in scope for the Project(s) and what items are considered out of
scope for this QA Plan.

<Project Name> Quality Assurance Plan

<Month> <Year>

Definitions, Acronyms and Abbreviations

List or reference the project-specific definitions that impact this document in this section. Enter
additional project-specific definitions that further help support this document. If possible, avoid
duplicating definitions defined elsewhere in your project deliverables.

<Project Name> Quality Assurance Plan

<Month> <Year>

References

Provide a complete list of all documents and other sources referenced in the Quality Assurance
Plan including all referenced policies and procedures.

<Project Name> Quality Assurance Plan

<Month> <Year>

2. Quality Objectives
Reference the section of the Requirements Artifacts that deals with quality requirements.

<Project Name> Quality Assurance Plan

<Month> <Year>

3. Management

<Project Name> Quality Assurance Plan

<Month> <Year>

Organization

Describe the structure of the organization responsible for Quality Assurance. Process
Management Services is responsible for the process component of Quality Assurance. The
evaluation of the product should be done within the project (most notably by an independent test
team) and by joint customer/developer review. The following organizational items should be
included or referenced here:

Office of Enterprise Development QA Organization Chart (to include Program

Management, Program Executive Office, Portfolio and Software Development)
Project Team Organization Chart (to include the project SQA team)
Additional supporting organizational documents, to include other internal teams,
external vendors, and any other teams/organizations participating in the projects QA
process.

<Project Name> Quality Assurance Plan

<Month> <Year>

Reviews

Include these three types of reviews:

Peer Review - the evaluation of an artifact or its performance by peers in order to

maintain or enhance the quality or performance of the artifact.
Formal Review - a structured examination of an artifact by an assigned formal review
team.
Milestone Reviews - PMAS Milestone Reviews are mandatory and ensure that the work
required in the current state or increment is complete and the project or increment is
ready to enter the next state or increment. PMAS Guide Section 6.4.1. Defines these
reviews.
1. The Milestone 0 Review occurs in Project Initiation after the Formal Review of the
Business Requirements. Projects require a Milestone 0 review to establish if in full
compliance before transitioning to Planning.
2. The Milestone 1 Review occurs in Project Planning after review by the appropriate
Office of Responsibility verifies readiness for PMAS review and ITRM verifies funding
is available to proceed. Projects require a Milestone 1 review to establish if in full
compliance before transitioning to Active.
3. The Milestone 2 Review occurs after the increments Initial Operational Capability, or
IOC, and confirms that IOC entry and exit have been achieved. The review also ensures
the increment is ready to enter the Active Implementation increment. Projects can deliver
multiple increments and each increment would receive a Milestone 2 Review.
4. The Milestone 3 Review occurs at the end of the Active state and establishes that the
project has completed all of its Active state activities. The review also ensures the project
is ready to enter the Closed state.
5. The Milestone 4 Review occurs at the end of the Closed state. The review ensures that
the project has completed all of the activities of the Closed state. It also ensures that the
project is ready to end all activities. At this review, the project is closed and the delivered
capabilities are in use.
6. A Milestone 4 Review is also required if a project is Closed-Stopped; no other review is
necessary.

<Project Name> Quality Assurance Plan

<Month> <Year>

4. Documentation
Reference the Project Artifact Summary here for the list of documentation the project will
produce.
http://vaww.oed.wss.va.gov/process/Lists/Activities_Production/Project_Artifact_Summary.aspx

<Project Name> Quality Assurance Plan

10

<Month> <Year>

5. Standards and Guidelines

Reference any standards and guidelines you expect to use on the project and describe how the
project team will determine if it complies with these standards and guidelines. Enclose the
relevant artifacts by reference. Refer to the following link for standards and guidelines that may
be relevant to this QA Plan: http://vaww.oed.wss.va.gov/process/home.aspx

<Project Name> Quality Assurance Plan

11

<Month> <Year>

6. Documentation Reviews

<Project Name> Quality Assurance Plan

12

<Month> <Year>

Artifacts

Identify the project artifacts that will be the subject of the review. These may include Joint
Customer-Developer, Technical, Process Reviews, Internal Technical and Management Reviews.
Artifacts are pieces of information that are produced, modified, or used by a process; define an
area of responsibility, and are subject to version control. An artifact can be a model, a model
element, or a document. Artifact templates can be found at:
http://vaww.oed.wss.va.gov/process/home.aspx

<Project Name> Quality Assurance Plan

13

<Month> <Year>

Review Plan

Develop a Review plan. The Review Plan specifies the schedule, resources, and methods and
procedures to use while conducting a project review. The Review Plan details the various types
of reviews and identifies any external agencies that are expected to approve or regulate the
artifacts produced by the project.

<Project Name> Quality Assurance Plan

14

<Month> <Year>

Review Schedule

Detail the schedule for the reviews. This should include reviews scheduled at project milestones,
as well as reviews that are triggered by delivery of project artifacts. This subsection may
reference the project or iteration plan.

<Project Name> Quality Assurance Plan

15

<Month> <Year>

10

Organization and Responsibilities

List the specific groups or individuals involved in each of the identified review activities. Briefly
describe the tasks and responsibilities of each. Also, list any external agencies you expect to
approve or regulate any product of the project.

<Project Name> Quality Assurance Plan

16

<Month> <Year>

11

Problem Resolution and Corrective Action

Describe the procedures for reporting and handling problems identified during project reviews.

<Project Name> Quality Assurance Plan

17

<Month> <Year>

12

Tools, Techniques and Methodologies

Describe any specific tools, techniques or methodologies that are to be used to carry out the
reviews identified in this plan.

<Project Name> Quality Assurance Plan

18

<Month> <Year>

13

Quality Records

Describe the quality records and documentation that will be maintained during the project.
Quality records include documentation established and maintained to provide evidence of
conformance to requirements and to the effective operation of the quality management system
Examples of quality records are meeting agendas, meeting minutes, email correspondence,
attendance sheets, training certificates, review results, evaluation of suppliers, and more.
Documentation includes artifacts that are maintained as evidence of the software development
lifecycle practices. Examples of documentation include baselined work products, issue resolution
logs, summary of work product reports, and more.
Quality records shall be archived for three years. Documentation shall be archived for seven
years. Some applications may have additional regulatory requirements that govern quality
record and documentation retention. For instance, if your application can be classified as a
medical device, additional record retention requirements may apply. (Example - The FDA
retention period is the life of the product plus two years).

<Project Name> Quality Assurance Plan

19

<Month> <Year>

7. Test and Evaluation

Reference the Master Test Plan.

<Project Name> Quality Assurance Plan

20

<Month> <Year>

8. Tools, Techniques and Methodologies

Include a list of any tools, techniques, and methodologies will be used while performing quality
assurance activities.

<Project Name> Quality Assurance Plan

21

<Month> <Year>

9. Configuration Management
Reference the Configuration Management Plan, if available or describe the configuration
management techniques applied to quality assurance activities.

<Project Name> Quality Assurance Plan

22

<Month> <Year>

10. Supplier and Subcontractor Controls

Describe the management techniques applied to quality assurance activities

<Project Name> Quality Assurance Plan

23

<Month> <Year>

11. Risk Management

Reference the Risk Management Plan, if available or the activities applies to quality assurance
activities.

Template Revision History

Date

Versio
n

Description

Author

February 2015

1.5

Upgraded to MS Office 2007-2010

version, updated to conform with latest
Section 508 guidelines, and remediated
with Common Look Office tool

Process
Management

November
2014

1.4

Added instructional text to recertify any

artifact created from this template for
Section 508 conformance

Process
Management

April 2014

1.3

Reordered cover page to enhance

search capabilities

Process
Management

December
2013

1.2

Correction to headings

Process
Management

March 2013

1.1

Formatted to documentation standards

and edited for Section 508 conformance

Process
Management

January 2013

1.0

Initial Document

PMAS Business
Office

Place latest revisions at top of table.

The Template Revision History pertains only to the format of the template. It does not apply to
the content of the document or any changes or updates to the content of the document after
distribution.
The Template Revision History can be removed at the discretion of the author of the document.
Remove blank rows.

<Project Name> Quality Assurance Plan

24

<Month> <Year>