When Change Exposes the Myth of “QA Will Catch It”

One of the questions that often surfaces when a QA professional leaves a role is not “Who will take this on?” but something far more revealing:

“Will this place be OK without me?”

Gill recently stepped away from a previous position, and that question came up naturally. Not from ego, but from care. She wanted to be confident that the changes she had helped put in place would hold, and that her decision to move on would not inadvertently expose gaps she herself had become too close to see. It prompted a moment of reflection: had she, at times, become the person others turned to to notice problems, steady things, or smooth out complexity when work became pressured? Many of us will recognise that feeling.

The uncomfortable truth is that organisational change does not usually create quality gaps. It exposes them.

How quality drifts towards QA, then towards one person

Most organisations do not set out to make quality the responsibility of QA alone. It happens gradually.

Operational teams are under pressure. Timelines tighten. Resources stretch. A QA professional steps in to help, because that is what good QA people do. A few problems are fixed quickly. Someone says, “Let QA have a look.” Then it becomes, “QA will catch it.”

Over time, quality ownership shifts. Not formally. Not maliciously. Just through habit.

Until change arrives.

Someone leaves. A role changes. A team restructures. Suddenly the safety net is gone, and everyone is surprised by how much was resting on it.

Signs the organisation has drifted, long before someone leaves

There are usually signals that this has happened. They just tend to be dismissed as “part of the job”:

• QA feeling permanently overwhelmed or firefighting

• Escalations being raised, acknowledged, and parked

• Repeated low-level findings that never quite go away

• CAPAs that default to training, because it is easier

• Operational teams seeing QA as a gatekeeper rather than a partner

• One person being copied into everything “just in case”

None of these on their own are catastrophic. Together, they point to a system that has started to lean too hard on QA.

Why this matters even if no one is planning to leave

It is tempting to think this only becomes a problem when someone moves on. In reality, it is a problem long before that.

When quality sits with a function or an individual rather than the system, it becomes fragile. It relies on personal effort, goodwill, and resilience. That is not sustainable, and it is not what regulators expect either.

More importantly, it puts QA professionals in a position where burnout is almost inevitable. We see this repeatedly. People who care deeply about doing the right thing end up carrying far more than their share, because no one else is quite picking it up.

A harder question, asked gently

There is one more question worth asking, and it is not an easy one.It is something that often surfaces in my coaching.

Do you, somewhere deep down, like being the one who fixes everything?

Not because you want power or control, but because it feels good to be needed. Because pushing back is uncomfortable. Because things move faster when you just deal with it yourself.

Many very good QA professionals recognise themselves in that.

The challenge is that every time we quietly absorb responsibility that should sit elsewhere, we reinforce the problem we later feel trapped by.

Using change as a quality advantage

Change, uncomfortable as it is, gives organisations a chance to reset this balance. It creates a moment where assumptions can be questioned, roles clarified, and ownership redistributed.

Handled well, it strengthens quality rather than weakens it.

Whether you are preparing to leave a role, stepping into a new one, or staying exactly where you are, this is worth paying attention to. Because if quality only works when you are there to catch everything, that is not resilience. It is risk.

And recognising that early is one of the most valuable contributions QA can make.

Be honest. Is there a part of you that enjoys being the one who catches everything? What might change if you didn’t?