The ABCs of KPIs: Quality metrics every QA team should track monthly (and how to automate them)

Table of Contents: 

• Document Management Metrics to Track
• Training Management Metrics to Track
• Issues Management Metrics to Track
• Change Control Metrics to Track
• Audit Management Metrics to Track
• How to automate quality management reporting

In our recent post, we covered how to structure and build a quality management report. The next step is no surprise. 

Once the framework is built, it’s time to add in the data. 

But what quality metrics should QA teams include in their quality reports?  

The exact KPIs will depend on your organization’s metrics (for example, a CMO might care about batch failure rates, while a CRO might track deviations by study site), but there are core quality metrics that are universally valuable to track.

These metrics help QA teams measure the health of their processes, spot trends, and provide leadership with data that drives action. Across document management, training, issues, change controls, and audits, let’s dive into the metrics worth watching. 

Document Management Metrics to Track

Good document management means your documents are up-to-date, your reviews and approvals happen on-time according to your SOPs, and your version control is seamless. Prove you’re on track – or in need of a document control revamp – with these metrics: 

• # of Document Versions Created: Tracks new or revised procedures, forms, or policies. A spike could indicate process changes or regulatory updates that mean your quality team needs more resources to help with the workload.
• # of Document Versions Approved: Reflects throughput and workflow efficiency. Is the number of Document Versions Approved significantly smaller than your Versions Created? Time to look for bottlenecks in your document lifecycle stages.
• # of Document Versions Retired: Ensures outdated procedures are being removed from circulation, minimizing compliance risk.
• # of Past Due Periodic Reviews: Highlights documents overdue for scheduled review (a potential red flag for auditors).
• % of Periodic Reviews Completed on Time: This is a great metric to track on an ongoing basis. If the percentage of on-time reviews are consistently low or suddenly dropping, it’s a sign to take a look at the big three: processes, resources, and expectations.
• Median Days to Document Approval: Measures how long it takes to get from draft to effective. If your eQMS data tracking capabilities allow for it, break this down by both document stage and document category to pinpoint exactly where slowdowns are happening.
• % of Documents Approved on Time: Shows whether teams are consistently meeting approval deadlines. The higher the number, the better your document management system.

An example graph available in the ZenQMS Insights module showing average time to first approval by Document Category. Including visual charts and graphs help readers stay engaged in your reports. 

Example Insights:

Document management metrics can help justify additional staffing, training resources, or investment in workflow automation tools. Here are some examples of how you might position these insights in your report: 

• “Approval bottlenecks are delaying new procedures by an average of X days, impacting operational readiness. Adding one more document approver or automating notifications could cut that by X%.”
• “X% of overdue document reviews are clustered in Manufacturing SOPs. This team may need additional support.”
• “Document throughput has increased 25% year over year. It’s worth continuing our eQMS investment.”

Training Management Metrics to Track

Training compliance is critical for GxP organizations, which means training metrics are critical for Quality teams. These are a few that help make sure your training program is effective and your teams are audit-ready: 

• Total Training Items Due in Period: Tracks how many training activities are due. Sudden spikes might mean it’s time for department managers to adjust workload to allow for training completion.
• Total Training Items Completed in Period: Indicates participation and completion volume. Low completion rates could signal over-assignment, unclear expectations, or lack of visibility.
• Total Non-Compliant Users: This is a leading indicator of audit-readiness risk. If certain roles consistently show higher non-compliance, that’s where retraining or better communication might help.
• Average competency scores: If you’re using a tool like SCORM training which allows you to move beyond “read and understand” training and use interactive tests, track overall test scores. Set a target competency score threshold to measure performance against.

An example graph available in the ZenQMS Insights module showing monthly on-time versus over-due training completion trends. 

Example Insights:

Training metrics help QA leaders identify weak points before they become audit findings. Here are some example insights you might find:

• “Training non-compliance in Production increased by 12% last quarter, correlating with a rise in minor deviations. Targeted retraining could reduce errors.”
• “Average completion time improved from 5 days overdue to 1 day early, showing our new training accountability process works.”
• “Departments using automated training reminders achieved 95% compliance versus 80% for those without reminders. We recommend rolling out automated reminders across the entire organization.”

Issue Management Metrics to Track

These metrics give visibility into both issue responsiveness and risk:

• # of Issues Created / Active / Completed: These show total issue volume and workflow efficiency. A backlog of active issues can signal resource strain or slow investigations.
• # of Stage 1 Issues: It’s important to quickly assign a risk category to issues so your team knows if safety is at serious risk. You want as few issues in Stage 1 as possible, or else you risk missing a critical (potentially even life-threatening) problem.
• Median Days to Completion: Measures how quickly issues move from initiation to closure. Certain data tools, like Insights Pro from ZenQMS, even allow you to filter this data by department or root cause for more actionable insights.
• Top Issue Categories: Reveals the most common problem types (e.g., equipment, training, method). This is where you’ll find your biggest opportunities for preventive action.
• Time to Completion by Category Version: Tracks how long issues stay in each stage compared to expectations; a useful metric for finding specific workflow bottlenecks.

An example dashboard available in the ZenQMS Insights module showing Issues Management KPIs.

Example Insights: 

• “X% of recurring issues stem from the same root cause: equipment calibration. Additional maintenance checks could prevent repeat deviations.”
• “Median issue resolution time dropped from 18 to 12 days this quarter, signaling our new CAPA review process is working.”
• “The highest number of open issues are linked to Packaging — we recommend shifting a FTE to this area to balance workload.

Change Control Metrics to Track

Track your proactive risk management and mitigation with these change control metrics:

• # of Change Controls Created / Active / Completed: Shows process volume and throughput.
• # of Stage 1 Change Controls: Highlights potential bottlenecks early in the review process.
• Average Days to Completion: Measures efficiency and consistency. If the average completion time is growing, it’s time to take a closer look at resource strain.
• Top Change Control Categories: Shows which types of changes (equipment, process, documentation, etc.) occur most frequently.
• Time to Final Stage by Category Version: Do certain change control categories take an unusually longer timeframe to resolve than others? This metric will help you spot them.
• % of Past Due Change Controls / % Completed On Time: Indicates overall process control. Consistently late completions point to bottlenecks or unrealistic timelines.

An example graph available in the ZenQMS Insights module showing past due Change Controls by month. 

Example Insights: 

• “Most overdue change controls involve supplier qualification. We may need to review the vendor approval processes.”
• “We’re seeing a growing number of changes initiated by Operations rather than QA. This is evidence that ownership of quality improvement is expanding across the organization.”

Audit Management Metrics to Track

“Audit-ready” isn’t a feeling; it’s a measurable metric. Here are a few audit management KPIs to add to your list: 

• Total Audits Conducted: Tracks the overall workload and scope of your audit program. Spikes could indicate increased supplier or internal activity.
• On-Time Completion Percentage: Measures how well audit schedules are being met — a strong indicator of planning effectiveness and compliance maturity.
• Current Past Due Audits: Flags audits that haven’t been completed on schedule. These should be monitored closely, as they can impact risk management programs.
• Top Auditor Workload: Ensures even workload distribution and proper auditor rotation — a requirement for unbiased oversight.
• Top Audit Categories: Identifies high-focus or high-risk areas (e.g., supplier, internal, external). Tracking by category helps assess whether audit coverage aligns with risk priorities.
• Total Number of Audit Observations: Provides insight into quality system performance. A decrease in findings suggests stronger preventive controls.
• Audit Observation Response Time: Measures responsiveness to findings and CAPA effectiveness.

An example dashboard available in the ZenQMS Insights module showing Audit Management KPIs.

Example Insights: 

• “Audit response time improved by 30%, reducing open observations and showing faster CAPA follow-through.”
• “Repeat findings decreased by 40% this year, validating the effectiveness of our recent process changes.”

How to automate quality management reporting

If you’ve made it this far, you’re probably thinking that's a lot of data to track.

And you’re right.

But Quality teams do sit on a lot of data, and these metrics are important to track, not just to prove the impact of your team, but to drive continuous improvement across your organization.

The trick to successfully tracking all of these KPIs without drowning in spreadsheets is to automate quality management reporting.

An eQMS with data reporting capabilities is the best way to do this.

At ZenQMS, this automated quality management reporting comes in the form of our core Insights Module and the Insights Pro add-on: 

Insights Module

The core Insights Module is designed to give Quality teams a powerful reporting foundation with minimal setup:

• It aggregates your quality data into a single source of truth. No more chasing documents, digging through emailed spreadsheets, or merging multiple exports.
• It provides real-time, automated dashboards and visualizations (for documents, training, issues, audits, change controls, and tasks) so you can see performance trends and export graphs and charts to PDF or CSV for leadership review.
• It dramatically cuts reporting time. What might take a full day in spreadsheets can now take less than an hour.

Insights Pro Add-On:

For teams that need more granularity, segmentation, and tailored reporting capabilities, the Insights Pro add-on extends the capability deeply.

• If you can track it in a custom field, you can chart it in Insights Pro. Build, view, and share the unique metrics that matter to your quality process, from root cause categories to department-specific deviations and everything in between.
• Once your custom fields are added, use them to filter your dashboards to uncover patterns and pinpoint what’s working – and what’s ready for improvement.

Curious to learn more about Insights and Insights Pro? Need more support building your quality reports? Our team can help!