PLANNING STAGE (SCOPE) : PLAN SCOPE MANAGEMENT

Scope in simple understanding is a foundation that explains the boundaries of the project. It can be in form of Product scope (meaning functionalities or features of the product itself) or Project Scope (meaning the work that aims to produce a product or service or result with specified features or functionalities).

Simple example: Building a house

• Product Scope is a house with the following characteristics like big master bedroom, and open space with dining and sitting rooms as well as kitchen)
• Project Scope is all about activities that involved in building the house with above characteristics.

Scope management is very important because

• It ensures that the requirements of the stakeholders are met. 
• It helps to understand the features or functionalities of the product which is going to be delivered in the project. 
• It also avoids overdoing (gold plating) or underdoing (scope creep) the work that was NOT STATED in the project.
• Taking the same example of Building a house:
• Gold plating like adding a guest room in the house
• Scope creep like a master bedroom that lacks a bathroom. 

From this example you may notice that they do affect the scope of the project because the house differs from what was stated, planned and documented. Moreover, the project itself will affect the cost, time and quality of the house because it may need revisions to some of the activities.

Planning Scope comprises of four processes:

1. Plan Scope Management
2. Collect Requirements
3. Define Scope
4. Create Work Breakdown Structure

Plan Scope Management is the process of creating a scope management plan that explains how the scope is defined, validated and controlled in order to avoid the scope creep and gold plating.

Collect Requirements is the process of determining the needs of the stakeholders to achieve the project objectives. The needs can be for the business, the product, or the project itself.

Define Scope is the process of providing detail description of the project and the product

Create Work Breakdown Structure is the process of dividing the project work into very small and manageable works.

How to:

1. PLAN SCOPE MANAGEMENT

In order to do the Plan Scope Management process, you have to use the Project charter (which indicated the scope of project and a product though it was very generalized) and review Organizational Process Assets (if there was any lesson learnt basing on the same scope) and Enterprise Environmental Factors (if there is any relation or support or challenge with the scope stated, in order to avoid the change of scope in future).

You can also complete this process by having a meeting with the experts and few project stakeholders to have their views on the particular scope for the purpose of getting more detailed requirements of the project and creating a scope management plan and requirements management plan.

These plans will help preventing the scope creep, handling change requests and creating ways of having the scope statement and Work Breakdown Structure for the project.

Reference:

PMI (2013). A Guide to the Project Management Book of Knowledge (PMBOK Guide 5^th Ed.) USA, Project Management Institute

Thank you and if you have any questions or suggestions, please don't hesitate to post on the comments below.

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