How do quality assurance and quality control differ?

• A. Quality assurance focuses on process improvement to prevent defects; quality control inspects deliverables to verify they meet requirements.
• B. Quality assurance is about testing, quality control about planning.
• C. QA certificates product, QC certifies process.
• D. QA inspects deliverables, QC prevents defects.

Answer: (A)

Quality assurance is about shaping how the work is done. It focuses on the processes used to create the product, aiming to prevent defects by improving workflows, standards, and practices. Quality control, on the other hand, is about the product itself: it uses inspections and testing to detect defects and verify that the deliverables meet the requirements. So QA is proactive and process-oriented, while QC is reactive and product-oriented.

That’s why the statement that QA focuses on process improvement to prevent defects and QC inspects deliverables to verify they meet requirements matches the real distinction. For example, in a software project QA would establish coding standards, process improvements, and quality audits, while QC would run tests and reviews on the software to find defects. Other options mix up who does testing versus planning, or who certifies what, which doesn’t align with how QA and QC are defined.