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How to deal with scope change in project management

Blog: Monday Project Management Blog

Your team is getting started on a new project and the goals and end products are clear. You have a plan to meet the deadline and make the best, most professional final product possible. But then, all of a sudden, the project changes in size, budget, features, or even timeline. This is scope change, a stressful and potentially overwhelming part of project management.

In this blog we’ll look at what scope change is, why it’s important to handle it strategically, and how a project management tool such as monday.com can help scope change feel manageable.

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What is scope change?

Scope change is an official decision to change the scope of a project. It must be agreed on by both (or all) sides involved in order to move forward.

Scope change can include changing:

Scope change occurs in the “executing” phase of project management and can cause the entire project to become disorganized and in certain cases cause massive frustration for those involved. This is because a project that has been planned well will naturally be disrupted by scope change, no matter its size. Therefore, having a plan and strategy to handle scope change is critical for any team and project.

Why is it important to handle scope change strategically?

Scope change happens, even to those who try to avoid it at all costs. The project management process is inevitably dynamic, and good project managers and teams need to learn to deal with scope change when it comes their way.

The most important thing is to approach scope change strategically and not just go with the flow. When scope change isn’t handled correctly, it can quickly get out of control, forcing teams to try and pick up the slack and understand how they will be able to deal with the repercussions of the new scope while working on the project.

The best thing to do with scope change is to take a step back, reevaluate the project, make a new plan, and get back to work.

Scope change vs. scope creep

Differentiating scope change from scope creep is important when making a game plan of how to proceed.

Scope creep is when a project slowly grows behind the original scope, without having made an official decision to make a change to a project. Scope creep is much more difficult to manage and usually involved a lack of planning, a change of budget, etc. For example, a client may ask to add a small new feature to a project. This is scope creep.

Examples of scope change

Different types of projects can include different types of scope change. In general, scope change is related to a defined change in scope, whether it be related to budget, functions of a project, goals, or specific deliverables.

Some examples of scope change include:

The most important part of scope change is understanding how the change will affect the final product and if it is possible in the given time frame.

How to use a project management tool to manage scope change

A project management tool is critical for handling scope change. This is because scope change requires reworking project plans and strategies as well as timelines and budgets.

When you use a project management tool such as monday.com, you can make adjustments to your project plan and get an overview of the impact right away. This is possible by using the timelines, project overviews, dashboards, and much more.

When you have a project management tool that is set up correctly, scope change doesn’t feel overwhelming because you are able to build and execute a new plan ASAP.

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Frequently asked questions

What is scope change in project management? 

Scope change is an agreed-upon change in the scope of a project. Scope change typically takes place in the execution phase of a project, and can relate to budget, adding or removing certain parts of a project, and more. Scope change, as opposed to scope creep, is agreed upon in advance of making the change.

Why is project scope change in project management important? 

Tackling scope change as soon as it happens and making a new plan for your project is critical to any project’s success. In many cases, scope change can be inevitable. Handling it in the right way with the right tools makes any change more manageable for your team.

What is project scope change management?

Managing project scope change means being prepared to tackle scope change when it happens. Using a project management tool such as monday.com can help you navigate scope change with ease.

Be ready for any scope change with monday.com 

No matter what comes your way, you’ll be ready to handle scope change when you manage projects with monday.com. By creating project dashboards and boards that give you a bird’s eye view of your projects, you’ll have the oversight necessary to make changes and stay on track (and on time).

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The post How to deal with scope change in project management appeared first on monday.com Blog.

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