Friday 17 December 2021

Scope management is a matter of life, how should the project manager respond?

You are the project manager who is responsible for managing a video game project. two months ago you discussed with the customer the broad framework for the requirements statement and scope statement. 

 

The project management forum


The design is now 80%, and customers have come up with a specific new requirement to make the game an interactive game that can be played on TV and computer, which is not within your original scope. but what the customer means is that it doesn't change much and lets you do it for free. alliance of project managers

Your dilemma now is:


 

One. this new demand has led to both increased spreading costs and rework, which combined to cause a sharp drop in project profits. project management forum

Two. designers have subsequently scheduled other projects, and there are no resources to complete this increase in scope.
 

Three. what's more, the original program framework is written in a very general way, without these details, the customer does not think this is a change, will not pay for it.


Visible range of the consequences of the spread is very serious, is a matter of life. is there a way to prevent it? 


Of course. effective prevention comes from finding the root cause of the problem, and then the cure for the disease. 


The problem with project-wide spread, like compressing a sponge, expands when it falls into water, becoming 10 times its original size, 20 times the original size, and the root cause is that its boundaries (plastic capsules) are dissolved. to make it not expand to replace the capsule will not dissolve is solved. 


Also to prevent the spread of the scope of the project, you need to find the root cause of the scope spread problem. alliance of project managers

To explore the causes of the spread of scope project managers alliance

Why does range contagion happen so often? what is the root cause? what should be done to manage the scope? 

Come on, i'll share with you a very interesting scenario where you often run the risk of unclear scope during contract execution. alliance of project managers





First look at figure 1, how does the contract describe the scope? blurred, general, not very clear, right? it's so normal, everything's clear maybe the contract isn't yours. project manager blog

Then look at figure 2, how the customer explains the scope of the project at the beginning of the project. the scope of the explanation seems much clearer. alliance of project managers

Again, after listening to the customer's explanation, how does the project leader understand the scope of the project? look at figure 3, wow, how is it different from what the customer describes? and the difference is not small. 


Guess what it would look like if the project designer designed it? keep looking down at figure 4, surprised me, and it's not the same, as if there's more to offer. alliance of project managers




This multi-supply situation is generally called range spread. What's the reason?

reason one: maybe that's what your standard design is all about

reason two: maybe you think it's safer and more perfect. but here's the problem, part of the contract, you're over budgeting and paying for it yourself. project manager blog

What should be the right thing to do? 

Alliance of project managers

you can recommend a better solution for him to buy. to assess the situation of the client, for the financial situation is good, the perfect solution has a preference for the customer, you recommend a good solution to meet his needs to achieve a win-win situation. on the contrary, it is enough to meet the contract requirements "just fine".


Looking down at Figure 5, guess what written confirmation of the scope was made in the documents or minutes of the meeting signed by both parties? 

 

Wow! 

 

Stunned. there's nothing. it's all verbal communication. how risky is this in the future? transfer to the project managers alliance

Although this set of diagrams has an exaggerated component in it, it reflects a common problem. no attention is paid to clarity of scope, and the scope and customer text confirmation, there is no layout to solve the problem at risk. 


Looking down at figure 6, what does the customer really need? 


oh, it was completely unexpected. unlike what you described earlier, as you understand, the team doesn't do it the same way. transfer to the project managers alliance

it seems that business patterns are changing dramatically, businesses are in digital transformation, and customers will be less certain about what their needs are at the beginning of the project. project manager blog

So if your team is strong enough to lead the technical solution at an early stage and clarify the scope of the project, you can effectively mask the risk of spreading ranges and a lot of rework. PgMp.mypm.net

 

To explore the scope of the spread of the solution project managers alliance reflect on what these six diagrams have taught you. 

How you should prevent the scope from spreading: 

Project management training

First: the scope of the contract is often unclear, but you must identify it early and communicate to clarify the clear agreement with the customer on the scope of the project. project management training

Second: how to reach a consensus, that is, in the pre-project design freeze phase, to have sufficient communication with the customer will be figure 2, 3, 4 consensus, not only do not exceed the basic requirements of the figure 1 contract, but also as close as possible to figure 6, delivered to the customer really want, rather than a large number of late rework. alliance of project managers

Third: don't over-design the look of figure 3, over-designed part of the customer is not paid, you provide something free of charge customers do not know, no understanding. alliance of project managers

Fourth: in figure 4, the scope of confirmation is described and signed by both parties. avoid future disputes or rework. project management training

The project scope management extended to business management project manager alliance


Is avoiding scope contagion merely the control of the scope of the project supply? of course not, in business practice risk control, quality control, process control all have a scope management problem. alliance of project managers

It's a good idea to have any risk, any quality problem eliminated, through sophisticated process control, but any management is costly, and perfect requirements can lead to a surge in costs and even a loss of access to the project. project management forum

How to do in the scope of control "not much, just good."" both effective control of risk, control of quality, but also improve management efficiency, and the cost is acceptable, this balance point of pinching is the embodiment of ability and wisdom. alliance of project managers

There is a need for structured, systematic and adequate communication between the teams in the early stages, consensus-building, and standardization as standards and principles. to reduce the efficiency of communication due to cognitive differences in the team in the execution. project management forum

In the implementation process on the basis of unified principles, continue to explore better solutions, through the review, iteration of the original control principles, continuous improvement, and constantly toward greater success. alliance of project managers

Question: do you have the pain point of range spread, if you have a knife to eliminate the spread of range, where would you cut it? alliance of project managers

Alliance of project managers


The loss of the project scope boundary causes the scope to spread. establishing the concept and cognition of "just enough" and not "gold plated" is key. project management training

It is important to communicate with the customer in advance to truly understand the customer's needs, provide a clear solution to meet the customer's real needs, and confirm the scope in writing. the project manager circle

In risk control and quality control, it is also necessary to balance the scope of control, both to avoid out of control, but also to avoid excessive control brought about by cost improvement and efficiency reduction of the "inner volume."

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