Week 4 - Learning ObjectivesScope Management

You should be able to: Discuss the relationship between scope and

project failure Explain how projects are initiated and selected Define activities, inputs, and outputs of scope

initiation, planning, definition, verification Prepare a project charter Prepare a WBS

Scope Management

Processes needed to ensure that:– project includes all required work– project includes only required work

Product scope– features and functions of product deliverables– measured against product requirements

Project scope– work that must be done to deliver them– measured against project plan

Scope Management Processes

Project Initiation– commitment to next phase

Scope Planning– written scope statement

Scope Definition: WBS Scope Verification: formal acceptance Scope Change Control

Scope Initiation

New project, or, commitment to next phase of existing project

Inputs:– product description/business need– strategic plan/goals– project selection criteria & methods– expert judgment, historical information

Strategic Planning, Leading toProject Selection Business strategy and goals

– SWOT analysis IT systems help companies compete Identify and prioritize opportunities

Business Goals

Selected Projects

PotentialProjects

Business Needs

Methods for Project Selection Organizational Need Perspective

– Perceived need?– Likelihood of funding?– Willingness to support?

Source, time, impact, priority– problem– opportunity– directive

Financial Perspective

Project Selection

Low Benefit High Benefit

High Cost/Risk

Low Cost/Risk

C

B

E

G

A

D

F

Financial Perspective

Cost/benefit analysis– NPV - net present value– ROI - return on investment– Payback analysis

Limitations: difficulty of estimating Weighted scoring model

– incorporates multiple criteria

Weighted Scoring Model

Determine criteria Weight criteria by importance Score each project on each criterion Multiply scores by weights Get overall score for each project Select project with highest score “What-if” analysis may be helpful

Scope Initiation Outputs

Project Charter– Conceptual baseline

Project Manager selected Constraints

– factors that will limit the team’s options– e.g., fixed budget– e.g., contractual provisions

Assumptions

Project Charter

Formalizes existence of project

Provides direction on objectives

Signoff by key project stakeholders

Charter Components: title, date project manager scope statement summary of approach roles and responsibilities

matrix sign-off comments (assumptions,

constraints)

Scope Planning

Inputs to planning = outputs of initiation – description and charter– constraints and assumptions– product description and analysis– cost/benefit analysis

Scope Planning Outputs

Written Scope Statement– justification: business need– product description– project deliverables– quantifiable criteria for success

Common understanding of project

Scope Definition

Decomposition of project into more manageable components– sufficiently detailed for tasks, estimation

Helps improve estimation accuracy Defines a baseline for measurement

and control Clarifies responsibilities

Work Breakdown Structure Analysis of work needed to complete project Hierarchical breakdown of tasks Provides basis for planning and change

control Can be organized around products or phases Work package is lowest, detailed level Requires involvement of project team and

customers Helps identify needed coordination

Approaches to Preparing a WBS Use formal templates if available Use previous similar projects’ WBS Top-down

– iteratively add levels of detail Bottom-up

– team members identify detailed tasks– tasks are aggregated and summarized– creates buy-in by project team

Combination

WBS Principles

A unit of work appears only once Each unit of work responsibility is

assigned to one person Clear scope of each unit of work WBS reflects how work will be done

– serves project team first Must be flexible to accommodate

changes

Scope Verification

Formal acceptance by stakeholders Inputs:

– Work results from execution of project plan– Product documentation

Inspection Outputs:

– documented level of completion– documented acceptance

Scope Control and Project Failure Project failure often due to scope getting out

of control– Did not understand requirements– Or, allowed requirements to grow

On average, project scope increases 4-fold “Requirements (scope) creep”

– users see potential for automation, ask for more– users want new system for current jobs

Reducing IT Project Scope Creep

User involvement– project selection: ensure sponsor– easy access to project information– users as member(s) of project team– regular meetings with users– co-location with users– focus on completion dates– prototyping, use cases, JAD, CASE