In The Beginning There Is (Always) A Deliverable

The importance of systematic management of scope on a project

“The first secret of getting what you want is knowing what you want.” — Arthur D. Hlavaty

The What & Why:

In project management, the term “scope” refers to the specific deliverables that a customer or stakeholder has requested and is paying to have created or performed. These deliverables form the basis of the project’s success. All the work we and our team do on a project support the development of the scope. Scope is the raison d’être of a project. Any tasks, purchases, work, or activities that do not contribute to the creation of the scope are almost always unnecessary. 

It is important, therefore, to have a clear and organized process in place for defining, documenting, creating, verifying, controlling changes to the scope, and for obtaining approval from project stakeholders upon delivery. The Scope Management process helps us understand and define the goals of the project. It helps us avoid scope creep, which is when the project drifts off course and adds additional work that is unneeded. It keeps us on budget, on schedule, and focused on the big picture. Without it, achieving success on the project will be essentially impossible. We need to know what our stakeholders want in order to achieve it, and the Scope Management process is our means of accomplishing it.

The How:

There are seven basic steps to managing scope in a project. These steps are shown in the process flow chart, above, and described in the follow bullet points:

1. Establish A Scope Management Approach. This first step involves deciding at a high-level how scope will be managed, including which type of tools and techniques will be used. It also involves identifying the basic roles and responsibilities of the project team members and stakeholders in Scope Management. This first step is a preamble to Step 3, below, which is when the fully detailed Scope Management Plan is worked out, documented, and put under configuration control.

2. Define High-Level Scope. This second step involves gathering and documenting the scope requirements for the project, including the business needs, objectives, and deliverables. This information is then used to create a Scope Statement, which is a formal document that defines the high-level deliverables (and exclusions) and associated quality requirements.

3. Create A Detailed Scope Management Plan. This third step involves formally establishing the methodologies and plans for defining, documenting, verifying, controlling, and validating the total project scope. The Scope Management Plan is the formalization of this entire flowchart process outlined in this introduction.

4. Refine And Document Total Project Scope. The next stop in the process is one of the most important. It is the process in which we take the high-level deliverables described the Scope Statement and break them down into all of their constituent parts. We formally document these deliverables and sub-deliverables by name in a Work Breakdown Structure (WBS). We also describe each of the WBS elements in an associated WBS Dictionary. The WBS is a hierarchical representation of the deliverables, while the WBS Dictionary provides explicit, detailed information about each deliverable element, including descriptions of that element, along with other key pieces of information that help clarify exactly what is (and isn’t) included in each element.

5. Establish Scope Contingency. The fifth step is prioritizing the total project scope. This prioritization defines the order in which deliverables may be considered for exclusion from the project if serious execution problems are encountered that cannot be solved in any other fashion (e.g., by the application of budget contingency). At the start of a project, we always hope we’ll never have to dip into Scope Contingency, but it’s important to establish it now, before execution gets underway.

6. Acquire Scope. This step involves procuring the scope, internally verifying (and documenting) that it is completed, and controlling it, which means making formal adjustments or changes to its definition as required during execution.

7. Validate Scope With Stakeholders. This last step in the Scope Management process is the formal act of delivering the product scope to the stakeholders and ensuring that it meets their needs and expectations. Typically, this step involves a structured review of the deliverables along with the handover of all supporting verification documentation that we have gathered and curated in the previous step.

Cautions & Caveats:

Every project is different.

The level of rigor and formality of your Scope Management process can vary from very simple and informal to complex and bureaucratic. Step 1 of the process is when we set the stage for the required level of detail and complexity with our stakeholders, and Step 3 is when we formally document those expectations. While it may seem like overkill to formalize the details of the Scope Management plan, it is highly important.

Look, the art of Project Management is the science of managing expectations. There is nothing worse than to get to the end of a project, deliver the deliverable, and be met with an unsatisfied stakeholder who was expecting a different result. Therefore, it is highly important to involve stakeholders in the scope management process from the beginning to ensure that the project delivers the intended result and meets their expectations.

The Bottom Line:

Scope Management is a critical part of project management, even simple and informal projects. Every Project is planned and executed around it’s deliverable. A logical, systematic, and documented Scope Management process is essential for ensuring that our project stays on track and ultimately meets its objectives. By following a logical set of steps like those shown above, we can more effectively manage our projects, increase our chances of success, and improve overall stakeholder satisfaction.