AD Quality Assurance & Improvement 2 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: Which continuous improvement model uses Plan, Do, Study, Act cycles to test changes in athletic program operations?
- Six Sigma DMAIC
- PDSA cycle (Correct answer)
- Balanced Scorecard
- ISO 9001 framework
Correct answer: PDSA cycle
The PDSA (Plan-Do-Study-Act) cycle is a widely used continuous improvement model for testing and refining changes in organizational processes.
Question 2: An athletic director wants to benchmark their program against peer institutions. What is the PRIMARY purpose of benchmarking in quality assurance?
- To identify legal compliance gaps
- To compare performance against best practices and set improvement targets (Correct answer)
- To justify budget increases to administration
- To evaluate individual staff performance annually
Correct answer: To compare performance against best practices and set improvement targets
Benchmarking compares an organization's performance against industry best practices or peer institutions to identify gaps and establish improvement targets.
Question 3: A root cause analysis (RCA) following a student-athlete injury reveals a systemic equipment inspection failure. What should follow the RCA?
- Terminating the responsible staff member immediately
- Implementing a corrective action plan targeting the systemic failure (Correct answer)
- Documenting the finding and filing it for future reference
- Increasing insurance coverage for the athletic department
Correct answer: Implementing a corrective action plan targeting the systemic failure
After a root cause analysis, a corrective action plan must be developed to address the identified systemic issue and prevent recurrence.
Question 4: Which data collection method is MOST appropriate for gathering student-athlete satisfaction with athletic program services?
- Focus groups with coaches only
- Anonymous surveys distributed to student-athletes (Correct answer)
- Review of game statistics and win-loss records
- Analysis of facility usage logs
Correct answer: Anonymous surveys distributed to student-athletes
Anonymous surveys allow student-athletes to provide honest feedback about program services without fear of reprisal, yielding more accurate satisfaction data.
Question 5: When developing key performance indicators (KPIs) for an athletic department, which characteristic is MOST important?
- KPIs should be set by external accreditors only
- KPIs must be measurable and aligned with departmental goals (Correct answer)
- KPIs should focus exclusively on win-loss records
- KPIs should remain unchanged year over year for consistency
Correct answer: KPIs must be measurable and aligned with departmental goals
Effective KPIs must be measurable and directly aligned with the department's strategic goals to track meaningful progress.
Question 6: An athletic department conducts an annual program review. Which element is ESSENTIAL to include for quality improvement purposes?
- A comparison of coaching salaries to national averages
- Analysis of outcomes data against established benchmarks and prior-year performance (Correct answer)
- A narrative history of the program's founding
- A list of all equipment purchases made during the year
Correct answer: Analysis of outcomes data against established benchmarks and prior-year performance
An effective annual program review must compare current outcomes data against benchmarks and prior-year performance to identify trends and areas for improvement.
Question 7: Which approach BEST describes a proactive quality assurance strategy in athletic administration?
- Responding to complaints as they arise from stakeholders
- Conducting regular audits and risk assessments before problems occur (Correct answer)
- Implementing changes only after external accreditation reviews
- Relying on coaches to self-report program deficiencies
Correct answer: Conducting regular audits and risk assessments before problems occur
Proactive quality assurance involves conducting regular audits and risk assessments to identify and address potential issues before they escalate.
AD Quality Assurance & Improvement 2
Which continuous improvement model uses Plan, Do, Study, Act cycles to test changes in athletic program operations?