Project Quality Management in a Competency-Based Approach

The Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK) standard and guide has offered a comprehensive approach to project management for decades. The seventh edition, published in 2021, embodies significant changes by switching from process orientation to competencies. Project quality management is a knowledge area where process monitoring and documentation must have special attention. Competencies lead to a broader interpretation of quality-related activities, with reduced weight on quality assurance but an increased focus on quality inspection and management. The paper aims to evaluate the main changes in quality-related regulation. The evolution of the approach is radical, but the benefits are available only for organizations with well-established methodological knowledge. The support of process-oriented project management may not be abandoned.