Software Project Management

Project Scope Management

What is Project Scope

Management?
Scope refers to all the work involved in creating the
products of the project and the processes used to create
them.
A deliverable is a product produced as part of a
project, such as hardware or software, planning
documents, or meeting minutes.
Project scope management includes the processes
involved in defining and controlling what is or is not
included in a project.
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Project Scope Management

Processes
Scope planning: Deciding how the scope will be
defined, verified, and controlled.

Project Scope Management

Processes

Scope definition: Reviewing the project charter and

preliminary scope statement and adding more
information as requirements are developed and change
requests are approved.

Project Scope Management

Processes

Creating the WBS: Subdividing the major project

deliverables into smaller, more manageable components.
The main outputs include a WBS, a WBS dictionary, a
scope baseline and updates to projects documents

Project Scope Management

Processes
Scope verification: Formalizing acceptance of the
project scope.

Project Scope Management

Processes
Scope control: Controlling changes to project scope.

Information Technology Project Management, Fourth Edition

Scope Planning and the

Scope Management Plan
The scope management plan is a document that
includes descriptions of how the team will prepare the
project scope statement, create the WBS, verify
completion of the project deliverables, and control
requests for changes to the project scope.
Key inputs include the project charter, preliminary
scope statement, and project management plan.

Information Technology Project Management

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(contd)

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(contd)

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Table 5.1. Sample Project Charter (contd)

Information Technology Project Management, Fourth Edition

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Scope Definition and the Project

Scope Statement
The preliminary scope statement, project charter, organizational
process assets, and approved change requests provide a basis
for creating the project scope statement.
As time progresses, the scope of a project should become
clearer and more specific.

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Further Defining Project Scope

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Media Snapshot
Many people enjoy watching television shows like Changing Rooms or
Trading Spaces, where participants have two days and $1,000 to update a room in
their neighbors house. Because the time and cost are set, its the scope that has
the most flexibility. Designers on these shows often have to change initial scope
goals due to budget or time constraints.
Although most homeowners are very happy with work done on the show,
some are obviously disappointed. Unlike most projects where the project team
works closely with the customer, homeowners have little say in what gets done
and cannot inspect the work along the wayWhat happens when the
homeowners dont like the work thats been done? The FAQ section of tlc.com
says, Everyone on our show is told upfront that theres a chance they wont like
the final design of the room. Each applicant signs a release acknowledging that
the show is not responsible for redecorating a room that isnt to the owners
taste.
Too bad you cant get sponsors for most projects to sign a similar release
form. It would make project scope management much easier!
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Creating the Work

Breakdown Structure (WBS)
A WBS is a deliverable-oriented grouping of the work
involved in a project that defines the total scope of the
project.
A WBS is a foundation document that provides the
basis for planning and managing project schedules,
costs, resources, and changes.
Decomposition is subdividing project deliverables into
smaller pieces.
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Successful Work
Breakdown

Status and completion is easily measured

Definite beginning and end
It is familiar with prior experience
Manageable work assignments
One continuous stream of work from start to finish

Steps for constructing a

WBS
Divide the project into major objectives
Partition objectives into activities
Divide activities with missing characteristics into
subactivities
Repeat #3 until all subactivities have desired
characteristics
Lowest subactivities are the basis of work
packages

The WBS
Drawings

Estimate

Facility
Services

WBS Element/
Work Package

Schedule

Cost
Reports

Contracts

Bill
of
Materials

Figure 5-1. Sample

Intranet WBS
Organized by Product

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Figure 5-2. Sample

Intranet WBS
Organized by Phase

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Table 5-3. Intranet WBS in Tabular

Form
1.0 Concept
1.1 Evaluate current systems
1.2 Define requirements
1.2.1 Define user requirements
1.2.2 Define content requirements
1.2.3 Define system requirements
1.2.4 Define server owner requirements
1.3 Define specific functionality
1.4 Define risks and risk management
approach
1.5 Develop project plan
1.6 Brief Web development team
2.0 Web Site Design
3.0 Web Site Development
4.0 Roll Out
5.0 Support

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Figure 5-3. Intranet WBS and

Gantt Chart in Project 2000

Project 98 file

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Figure 5-4. Intranet Gantt Chart

Organized by Project Management
Process Groups

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Table 5-4. Executing Tasks for

JWD Consultings WBS

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Approaches to Developing
WBSs
Guidelines: Some organizations, such as the DOD,
provide guidelines for preparing WBSs.

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Approaches to Developing
WBSs
Analogy approach: Review WBSs of similar projects
and tailor to your project.

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Approaches to Developing
WBSs

Top-down approach: Start with the largest items of

the project and break them down.

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Approaches to Developing
WBSs
Bottom-up approach: Start with the specific tasks and
roll them up.

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Approaches to Developing
WBSs
Mind-mapping approach: Write tasks in a non-linear,
branching format and then create the WBS structure.

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Figure 5-5. Sample MindMapping Approach

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Figure 5-6. Resulting WBS in

Chart Form

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The WBS Dictionary and Scope

Baseline
Many WBS tasks are vague and must be explained in
more detail so people know what to do and can
estimate how long the work will take and what it will
cost.
A WBS dictionary is a document that describes
detailed information about each WBS item.
The approved project scope statement and its WBS and
WBS dictionary form the scope baseline, which is
used to measure performance in meeting project scope
goals.
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Advice for Creating a WBS and

WBS Dictionary*
A unit of work should appear in only one place in the WBS.
The work content of a WBS item is the sum of the WBS items
below it.
A WBS item is the responsibility of only one individual, even
though many people may be working on it.
The WBS must be consistent with the way in which work is
actually going to be performed; it should serve the project team
first, and other purposes only if practical.

*Cleland, David I., Project Management: Strategic Design and Implementation, 2nd
edition (New York: McGraw-Hill 1994).
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Advice for Creating a WBS and

WBS Dictionary (contd)*
Project team members should be involved in developing the
WBS to ensure consistency and buy-in.
Each WBS item must be documented in a WBS dictionary to
ensure accurate understanding of the scope of work that is
included and not included in that item.
The WBS must be a flexible tool to accommodate inevitable
changes while properly maintaining control of the work content
in the project according to the scope statement.

*Cleland, David I., Project Management: Strategic Design and Implementation, 2nd
edition (New York: McGraw-Hill 1994).
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Scope Verification
It is very difficult to create a good scope statement and WBS for a
project.
It is even more difficult to verify project scope and minimize
scope changes.
Many IT projects suffer from scope creep and poor scope
verification (see What Went Wrong?).
FoxMeyer Drug filed for bankruptcy after scope creep on a robotic
warehouse.
Engineers at Grumman called a system Naziware and refused to
use it.
21st Century Insurance Group wasted a lot of time and money on a
project that could have used off-the-shelf components.
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Scope Control
Scope control involves controlling changes to the project
scope.
Goals of scope control are to:
Influence the factors that cause scope changes.
Ensure changes are processed according to procedures
developed as part of integrated change control.
Manage changes when they occur.

Variance is the difference between planned and actual

performance.
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Suggestions for Improving

User Input
Develop a good project selection process and insist that
sponsors are from the user organization.
Place users on the project team in important roles.
Hold regular meetings with defined agendas, and have
users sign off on key deliverables presented at meetings.
Deliver something to users and sponsors on a regular
basis.
Dont promise to deliver when you know you cant.
Co-locate users with developers.

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Suggestions for Reducing

Incomplete and Changing
Requirements
Develop and follow a requirements management
process.
Use techniques such as prototyping, use case modeling,
and JAD to get more user involvement.
Put requirements in writing and keep them current.
Create a requirements management database for
documenting and controlling requirements.
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Suggestions for Reducing

Incomplete and Changing
Requirements (contd)
Conduct adequate testing throughout the project life
cycle.
Review changes from a systems perspective.
Emphasize completion dates to help focus on whats
most important.
Allocate resources specifically for handling change
requests and enhancements (as NWA did with ResNet).
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Using Software to Assist in

Project Scope Management
Word-processing software helps create scope-related
documents.
Spreadsheets help perform financial calculations and
weighed scoring models, and help develop charts and
graphs.
Communication software, such as e-mail and the Web, helps
clarify and communicate scope information.
Project management software helps create a WBS, the basis
for tasks on a Gantt chart.
Specialized software is available to assist in project scope
management.
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Chapter Summary
Project scope management includes the processes
required to ensure that the project addresses all the
work requiredand only the work requiredto
complete the project successfully.
Main processes include:

Scope planning
Scope definition
WBS creation
Scope verification
Scope control
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