Project Management: A Systems Approach to Planning, Scheduling, and Controlling, Tenth Edition

THE BUSINESS OF SCOPE CHANGES

22.0 INTRODUCTION

PMBOK^® Guide, 4th Edition

5.4 Verify Scope

Very few projects are ever completed according to the original plan. The changes to the plan result from either increased knowledge, a need for competitiveness, or changing customer/consumer tastes. Once the changes are made, there is almost always an accompanying increase in the budget and/or elongation of the schedule.

The process for recommending and approving scope changes can vary based upon whether or not the client is internal or external to the organization. Scope changes for external clients have long been viewed as a source of added profitability on projects. Years ago, it was common practice on some Department of Defense contracts to underbid the original contract during competitive bidding to assure the award of the contract and then push through large quantities of lucrative scope changes.

External customers were rarely informed of gaps in their statements of work that could lead to scope charges. And even if the statement of work was clearly written, it was often intentionally misinterpreted for the benefit of seeking out scope changes whether or not the scope changes were actually needed. For some companies, scope changes were the prime source of corporate profitability. During competitive bidding, executives would ask the bidding team two critical questions before submitting ...