Analyzing Scope Creep

Analyzing Scope Creep

Creeping Paint

This week I am considering a project that was affected by scope creep. One that came to mind was a project that took place 3 years ago. The project was to paint the half-bath in the hallway. The initial plans called for a simple repaint (color to be chosen by my wife). The budget was created to allow for purchasing paint and supplies. As I was the labor, there were no actual labor charges incurred.

The Paint Project Begins to Creep

As I began the project it occurred to me that the mirror behind the vanity was set too low. Unfortunately, in order to raise the mirror I would have to change the location of the lights located above it. While I was at it… we decided to go ahead and change the vanity and mirror and light fixture. This added substantial cost and time to the original project. It was also decided that the room really needed crown molding to give it a finished look and the base molding seemed to be too small when considered in light of the crown molding. So, the crown molding was put in place and the existing base molding was removed and replaced with a larger molding. Additionally, the toilet was replaced with a taller and more efficient unit. Eventually, the entire room was stripped down to nothing but walls. This made the painting part exceptionally easy until …..

The color did not work. The color that was chosen, while a very nice color, was just too dark for a room without windows. I tried to paint stripes hoping to lighten up the darkness. What happened instead was the distinct and rather unpleasant feeling of being in a jail cell. By now I had 2 coats of paint on the ceiling, 2 coats of primer on the walls, 2 coats of wall paint, and 3 coats of paint on the stripes. The decision was made to change the color (to a much lighter color). This now involved several hours of sanding the stripes (to make the edges flush with the wall), 2 additional coats of primer (to cover the dark color), and 2 additional coats of the new color.

All of these changes resulted in substantial delay and additional costs not originally anticipated for the project. According to Lynch and Roecker, “There is a constant tension between the desire to add functionality and the requirement to control time and resources while maintaining quality” (Lynch & Roecker, 2007, p. 95). This was a good example of adding functionality (changing to a color and fixtures that were appropriate) and maintaining quality. The time and budget functions had the largest impact due to the change of the scope on this project. Fortunately, I was both the client and the company so these changes were understood. Everything worked out very well in the end and the room looks nice.

The Stakeholders

In this project, my family was the stakeholders. The primary stakeholders were my wife and I as we had investment in the outcome of the project. In order to deal with the additional expenditures we shopped very carefully and found the items at discounted prices. Additionally, we communicated well with each other regarding our expectations and decided it was better to go ahead and spend the extra to finish the project with a high level of quality as opposed to doing the minimal work. There was some stress in that much of my “free” time was taken to complete the project as soon as possible. This meant I was not available to be as involved with my family for a short while.

Looking Back

Understanding scope creep as I now see it, I would have done several things differently to reduce the likelihood of its occurrence. At the top of the list would be a very clear statement of work. According to Portny, Mantel, Meredith, Shafer, Sutton, and Kramer, “A Statement of Work (often referred to as an SOW) is written confirmation of what a project will produce and the terms and conditions under which the project team will perform the work” (Portny, Mantel, Meredith, Shafer, Sutton, & Kramer, 2008, p. 42). Simply writing down the details of the project would have helped us to see more clearly the work to be done. Additionally, it would have provided an opportunity to discuss the possibility of incorporating major changes (new vanity, mirror, light fixture, etc…) before the work began. Additional communication as the project was in progress would have also been helpful. Rather than painting the entire room (only to discover the color just did not work), painting a wall would have given the client (my wife and I) a chance to see the product and suggest changes early in the process which, would have been less costly in terms of time and money.

Concluding Thoughts

Not all scope change is bad. In this situation, allowing the scope to change to include updating the vanity and fixtures added value and quality to the finished product. According to Greer, “scope changes can be beneficial when they allow the project team to respond sensibly to changing conditions that exist outside the project” (Greer, 2010, p. 35). Realizing the fixtures and vanity needed replacing was important because it allowed that room to be completely updated to a point where it will not be in need of anything (other than maintenance) for many years. A final consideration is the importance of scheduling tasks and being aware of the critical path. This is crucial to avoid time dealys and to reduce to possibility of some rework. Portny et.al, indicates, “Project managers must monitor critical-path activities closely during performance because any delays in critical-path activities will delay the final project completion” (Portny, et.al, 2008, p. 157).

-jeff

References:

Greer, M. (2010). The project management minimalist: Just enough PM to rock your projects! (Laureate custom ed.). Baltimore, MD: Laureate education, Inc.

Lynch, M., & Roecker, J. (2007). Chapter 5: Controllong the project. In M. Lynch, & J. Roecker, Project management e-learning: A handbook for successful design, delivery, and management (pp. 94-108). London: Rutledge. Copyright by Taylor & Francis Group, LLC. Reprinted by permission of Taylor & Francis Group, LLC via the Copyright Clearance Center.

Portny, S. E., Mantel, S. J., Meredith, J. R., Shafer, S. M., Sutton, M. M., & Kramer, B. (2008). Project Management: Planning, scheduling, and controlling projects. Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons, Inc.