What is planning and scoping?
Scoping establishes the boundaries of a project and is suggested for all projects within an organisation. The scope of a project represents the deliverables that are required in order for the project to be completed. It establishes what can be done within the constraints of the project, specifically its time and cost.
A project will usually change through its life cycle. It is with the benefit of planning that the amount of change and therefore its risk can be reduced. Project risk can never be removed completely however with through planning it can be reduced significantly.
The importance of planning at the initiation phase cannot be overestimated. It is through comprehensive planning that change is kept to a minimum through the project life cycle. The nature of change is that it becomes more expensive through the life of the project. By applying the appropriate planning, we can keep the cost of change to a minimum.
Ideally a project has had some stress placed upon it by applying feasibility studies and business cases during the initiation phase. It is all too common to see a project being initiated because it seemed like the right thing to do. By deciding whether the outcomes of the project are aligned with the organisation’s strategic objectives we can determine that it is the best recommended project to initiate at that time.
It is also imperative that the initial planning documents are regularly reviewed throughout the project. By referring to these during complex projects, decisions on whether the project is on track can be made.
Scope Change
The change in a project’s scope can be best visualised by the following equation:
So, the equation tells us that if the scope or amount of deliverables increase then there is an inverse effect on quality. That is as scope increases the quality of the project decreases.
It won’t have an effect on the quality if there are similar increases to time, cost or both. For example, if the owner of a new house build wants to add extra items to his house, it will take longer, cost more or both. If this doesn’t happen the quality of the finished project will reduce.
The increase in the deliverables or scope of the project is also known as scope creep. One way to prevent scope creep is to identify in the initiation phase what is in scope and what is out of scope in the project. Then get management to sign off on it! If requests to add to the project are made then you can go back to your managers and highlight the signed documents!
Another example of scope creep may present itself. Lets say your management requests an increase in the scope. As Project Manager are you in a position to say no? Why not say yes, and then also ask for more time and money? Lets see how desperately management wants the extra deliverables!
For an example of one of the worst projects in history refer to my article on the Sydney Opera House below.
If that interests you have a look at some more project disasters here!
A well-planned project will have a process for introducing change into the project via the Quality Management Plan. It provides a process for gaining agreement on how unexpected issues can be addressed.
Dealing with change of scope can involve:
- Engaging in a thorough risk analysis process that also develops contingency and mitigation strategies
- Identify early and track unanticipated issues through a designated issues register.
- At an early stage bring anticipated changes to the attention of the project sponsor or steering committee. A re-evaluation of the project may be required.
- Using an iterative project methodology where change is accepted as part of the project process. This is usually best suited to the IT or creative arts sectors.
If you are interested in reading further about agile methodologies follow the link below to my post that covers six agile methodologies.
