This article will address the expected roles of quality control and quality assurance, how these roles are related and how they are different, and how they must work together to create a sound quality management system (QMS).

In recent years, the trend in the pharmaceutical, biopharma, and device industries has been to devote more attention to holistic quality systems and to ensure standardization of the company’s overall quality systems rather than using process-by-process policies that may or may not align completely. The 2015 changes to ISO 9001 and ISO 14644-1 and -2 standards have magnified the industry’s focus on risk assessment and quality management systems, integrating and unifying our approach to ensuring quality across all aspects of pharmaceutical, biopharma, and medical device manufacturing.

When he was home for the holidays, my 23-year-old son and I had intense, heated discussions about generational differences. We are still on speaking terms, but it got me thinking about how well we understand and value young people — and if we understand the people who make up our future workforce well enough to adequately train them. That is, are we doing everything we can to create a sustainable future workforce that feels valued and — just as important — is engaged, excited, and efficient (the “3Es”)?

The past several years have brought significant changes to the clinical trial landscape. Mergers and acquisitions, new players, the rapid proliferation of technology, increased patient advocacy, and new regulatory guidelines have added to the complexity of trials and burdened resource-strapped leaders with additional challenges and risks.