Every project manager dreams of smooth project execution without delays and running out of budget. But the reality is far away from it. Show
No matter how well you plan, there is always something that changes the project scope. In fact, 52% of the projects are affected by scope creep. Not planning your project scope properly can lead to higher chances of the project crossing the budget, deadline, or even failing altogether. It's not surprising then that according to a Harvard Business Review study, one out of six projects experienced an average cost overrun of 200% and an average schedule overrun of 70%. Therefore, it is critical to have a proper project scope management process in place to save your project from falling apart. What is Project Scope?The project scope outlines everything required to meet project goals and avoid scope creep. It includes project objectives, deliverables, constraints, assumptions, functions, deadlines, cost, and other measures that determine how the project runs on track. What is Project Scope Management?Project scope management refers to identifying and mapping the scope of a project. It must have all the crucial project information and work required to complete the project on time and nothing else. It helps project managers, coordinators, supervisors to focus on what’s really important for the project. An accurately defined project scope will allow you to assign the right amount of work to team members, ensuring the successful completion of the project. Use SmartTask for Project Scope ManagementWhat is The Importance of Project Scope Management?For project managers, one of the most challenging factors is to manage the expectations of stakeholders and clients. Failing to meet their expectation ultimately results in scope creep.
Although project scope management does not prevent changes, it does help tackle changes that can throw the project off course. Whenever a change is needed to keep the project on track, you should do your best to make it happen. The Process of Project Scope ManagementHere is a practical step-by-step process that will guide you to establish a robust project scope management process in your organization. 1. Collecting stakeholder requirementsThe first and the most critical step is to understand the stakeholder requirements. Before defining the process, reach out to each project stakeholder and note their expectations from the project. This will ensure you don’t miss out on anything important, plan the project accordingly, and avoid scope creeps while meeting their expectations better. 2. Defining scope statementNow that the project goal is clear and you know what is expected from the project, it's time to outline the most important document that decides the success of your project- ‘the project scope statement’. Here is an example of what a project scope statement should contain: Let’s say your company is developing a low-cost electric car- MODEL T. So, the scope statement of this project would look like - Project Description: MODEL T is a low-cost, four-door electric vehicle with good gas mileage, great durability, and an inexpensive interior that can be upgraded. The use of gas-powered cars is creating pollution, and fuel prices are rising making them expensive. Low-cost electric cars will solve these problems and help protect the environment. Project Acceptance Criteria: 1. The car should run to 400km on a full charge battery 2. Low service costs 3. Low financing options from all major financial institutions 4. Upgrade options 5. High durability 6. Two-year warranty on external and internal parts 7. The car should reach 110 km/h within 10 seconds Project Deliverables: 1. One electric vehicle 2. One full car battery warranty 3. One spare wheel 4. One front airbag 5. Back and front leather seat covers Project Exclusions: 1. Free spare battery 2. Free charging cables 3. Extra coolant or any spare parts 4. No insurance policies 5. no free service Project Constraints: 1. COVID-19 may affect demand 2. The car should be launched by fall 2021 3. Budget 4. Time/resources/personnel limitations 5. Project team members will be backfilled as necessary 6. Funding for recommended and approved changes will be provided Project Assumptions: 1. All raw materials will be available 2. All semiconductor chips will be available 3. Permanent staff will not be reassigned 4. Funding will be available when required Defining the project statement is not something you should do impulsively or without a detailed study of what would affect your project. You need to be precise and fore-think all the possibilities and work related to your project—even the smallest details that can affect your project should be included. Your project scope statement should also be flexible enough to make room for necessary changes and rigid enough to keep away unwanted scope creep. 3. Finalizing work breakdown structure and assigning responsibilitiesOnce you have defined the scope statement and the work required to complete the project, you need to break down the work into smaller tasks and subtasks and assign them to your team members. At this stage, you also need to establish a clear project timeline, define project dependencies, set milestones, identify the project’s critical path. Each created task or subtask must have a fixed budget, and due date. You can use a project management tool to assign tasks to team members and set effort estimates and timeline. This way you will be able to keep your project within the set budget and ensure every member knows what are the allotted resources and deadlines. With SmartTask, you can easily take care of all these factors and track how every action impacts the project. By tracking the project in real-time as it progresses, you will be able to take the right decision at the right time and prevent scope creep. Prevent scope creep with SmartTask4. Stakeholder engagement and making changes where neededA major obstacle to project success is repeating the same task time and time again due to disagreements among stakeholders. If you don’t want to fall into this loop, it's better to keep your stakeholders involved throughout your project lifecycle right from the planning phase. Here’s how you can plan better stakeholder engagement:
This will save you from scope creep, unnecessary changes, and reworks. And when there are fewer surprises and disagreements, the project executes smoothly, project deliverables and expectations are met better. Your project scope is beyond important and defining it right can make or break the whole project. As the project scope statement is a vital document you need to keep referring to it constantly. Therefore it is only sensible to keep it accessible and visible to your team and stakeholders at all times, rather than locking it away in your safe once you are done with it. Now you must be thinking that how will you be able to manage and communicate all these things effectively throughout the project cycle? Yes, there is a lot to manage, but with the right tool, it is easier than ever to ensure everything runs smoothly from the project's initiation to its completion. This is where smart project management tools like SmartTask can save your lives! SmartTask allows you to assign tasks to your team members and communicate & collaborate with them in real-time, share files, and monitor the whole project's progress. Here’s why SmartTask makes the best tool to help you with project scope management:
SmartTask supports everything that you need for effective project scope management but that is not all. It is jam-packed with many amazing features that make managing your projects and teams a lot easier. Some of the amazing features SmartTask is known for are:
Because SmartTask is a one-stop solution for your whole project, you will be able to work much faster. Your project won’t be scattered anymore around a dozen unnecessary tools. SmartTask keeps all your work in one place and pushes your productivity to a new level. What more could project managers want? Frequently Asked Questions:What is the best way to manage scope on a project?Here are seven ways to keep scope creep from happening or to stop it in its tracks.. Know your project goals from the start. ... . Get serious about documenting requirements. ... . Use project management software to keep everyone on track. ... . Create a change control process. ... . Set (and stick to) a clear schedule.. How does project management Handle scope changes?Tips for managing scope changes in project management. Understand and communicate the need behind the change. ... . Document the change. ... . Evaluate the change and understand the impact in scope, schedule, and budget. ... . Consider the implications and get any change(s) approved. ... . Implement and communicate to the team.. Who is responsible for scope management in a project?One of the project manager's responsibilities is to ensure that only the needed work (the scope) will be performed and that each of the deliverables can be completed in the allotted time and within budget.
What are the 5 scope management processes?Processes of project scope management
Collecting requirements. Defining scope. Creating the Work Breakdown Structure. Validating scope.
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