Quality Leadership Forum Virtual Series

The Quality Leadership Forum (QLF) is an aerospace forum that strives for the advancement of Quality Assurance practices, for discussing Quality issues and for sharing Quality information. Visit the QLF page to learn more about the forum.

The QLF is shifting from an in-person event to a virtual series taking place throughout 2026. Presenters will share their valuable Quality insights, case studies and lessons learned.

If you have an interesting case study, an innovative approach to Quality, or want to start a conversation with other Quality professionals about a topic you find riveting, please contact Don Brandl.

Upcoming Events

QLF Virtual Series: Supply Chain Risk Management

Sept. 10, 1-2 p.m. Eastern

NASA’s Supply Chain Risk Management (SCRM) Program faces growing challenges, making it necessary to update processes, policies and tools to provide consistent, data‑driven solutions.

Join team members from the Office of Safety and Mission Assurance (OSMA) SCRM Program who will examine the rapidly evolving landscape of supply chain risk. Presenters include Lisa Hicks, OSMA SCRM deputy, and Valle Kauniste, program executive.

This session will explore a forward-looking view of NASA’s evolving supply chain environment and outline how enhanced visibility, coordination and initiatives are integrated to support mission assurance and effective procurement across the agency.

Internal NASA attendees can access the event here.

External non-NASA attendees can access the event here.

Oct. 15 Topic: How Fatigue Impacts Performance and Quality

Presenter: Denise Zona

Dec. 2 Topic: IMAP Lessons Learned

Presenter: Christina Collura

Previous Events

QLF Virtual Series: COSMIC — Unify Work Authorization, Nonconformance Reporting and Inventory Management Across NASA

August 20, 2026

NASA centers rely on a unique set of tools and processes to manage quality and engineering data. Many of these tools have become siloed, resource-intensive and error-prone. As NASA centers increase the cadence and complexity of work, the need for an agency-level data analysis tool continues to grow.

In this webinar, Nicholas Holaday, Quality Engineer at Johnson Space Center, and Tyson Tucker, Project Manager for MRI Technologies at Johnson, discussed their center’s successful transition from legacy tools and processes to COSMIC. They detailed early lessons learned, direct and indirect Returns On Investment and how other NASA centers can benefit from the tool.

This session explored how COSMIC supports Johnson’s broader digital transformation strategy by connecting key sources of truth, including engineering drawing and part information systems, program and project requirements, calibration data, certification data and other life-cycle information.

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QLF Virtual Series: Risk-Based Assessment and In-Line Assessment Methodologies

June 18, 2026

Quality professionals utilize both Risk-Based and In-Line Assessment (ILA) methodologies to help their organizations allocate resources toward understanding and making improved risk-informed decisions. Risk-based methodology uses a series of screening questions and risk ranking criteria to assess risk. One of the primary methods is ILA, an insight Quality Assurance methodology performed in parallel with a prime contractor’s manufacturing, assembly and testing processes to ensure requirement compliance and contractor performance.

In this webinar, Brad Johnson, Quality Engineer Subject Matter Expert for Bastion Technologies at Marshall Space Flight Center, explored the utilization of Risk-Based and ILA methodologies.

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QLF Virtual Series: A Digital Engineering Toolchain Concept for Quality

April 16, 2026

The emergence of digital tools presents opportunities for quality professionals. While the tools can perform tedious tasks quickly and efficiently, they lack properties that are unique to the human mind.

In this webinar, Ronnie Knight, Quality Engineer Subject Matter Expert for Bastion Technologies at Marshall Space Flight Center, presented a digital engineering toolchain concept that integrates the capabilities of digital engineering tools with the expertise of human engineers.

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