Project scope management includes the six elements (processes) required to ensure that the project includes all the essential work to complete the project successfully. So, this article will guide you to project scope, the six elements in project scope management, and the benefits of project scope.
Table of Contents
What is the project scope?
The project scope requires all necessary tasks and activities to complete the project successfully. As well as the project scope helps that the project is mapped out well and defined to know who will receive the deliverables and who will use them.
However, before defining the project scope, managers should understand the nature and complexity of the project because it will help them clearly define their project. Furthermore, the project scope should include the project budget/cost, timeline, and resources to ensure that all work falls within the scope and supports the outcomes.
The project triple constraint model is a tool that helps project managers decide if the changes in scope are acceptable or not. Before deciding on project changes, project managers should consult with the sponsor and stakeholders to get their approval if a change needs to be made.
So, these three most significant elements are crucial because they help direct the project to different conditions. As a result, the project will succeed. Furthermore, understanding the project triple constraint model will help you evaluate the changes and play a vital role in scope management.
What is project scope management?
Project scope management includes the elements (processes) required to ensure that the project includes all the essential work to complete the project successfully. Simply put, project scope management ensures what is and is not part of the project scope. However, project managers can identify the top three processes in project scope management. Those are as follows,
Project planning – The planning process includes identifying and defining the work that needs to be done.
Project controlling – The project controlling process includes all relevant approving/disapproving changes, documenting, scope creep, and tracking information in the project scope.
Project closing – The project closing process includes all relevant audits of the project deliverables and evaluating the outcomes of the original plan.
Once the processes are understood, project managers should create a scope statement document to delineate the project. This document outlines the goals, deadlines, and relationships of the project. As well as it includes all major deliverables, assumptions, and constraints.
6 Essential elements in project scope management
Project scope management elements (processes) are vital because they help manage project scope and supporting tools and techniques. However, these processes can vary by project.
The following are the elements (processes) of project scope management.
- Plan project scope management
- Collect requirements
- Define project scope
- Create work breakdown structure (WBS)
- Validate project scope
- Control project scope
Furthermore, these elements can be categorized into two groups, including planning process groups and monitoring and controlling process groups.
So, let’s discuss these six elements of project scope management.
- Plan project scope management
During this process, project managers should create a scope management plan document, and that document describes how the project scope will be,
- Defined
- Validated
- Controlled
Therefore, this is another vital document in project scope management because it provides clear guidance and shows the right path to how the project scope will be managed during the project life cycle. Furthermore, this process includes all relevant subsidiary plans and baselines.
Related post: Project Schedule Baseline and Project Cost Baseline
- Collect requirements
Collecting requirements is a vital process in scope management because this process helps project managers determine, document, and manage all relevant stakeholder needs and requirements to meet the project’s acceptable outcomes. Every project’s success depends on many criteria and specifications. Among them, stakeholders’ involvement directly influences the project’s success.
Many organizations divide requirements into different types, such as
- Stakeholder requirements
- Solution requirements
- Business requirements
These requirements can include various conditions or capabilities. Therefore, these things should be met by the project agreement or other specifications. Furthermore, these requirements will become the foundation of the work breakdown structure (WBS). Accordingly, project cost, schedule, quality planning, and other things are based on these requirements.
- Define project scope
This element helps project managers to develop a detailed description of the project. During the collect requirements process, they can collect various requirements. However, those requirements may not include in the project because the define scope process helps select the final project requirements from the requirement documentation delivered during the collect requirement process.
After selecting all relevant final requirements, project managers should develop a detailed description. So, the preparation document of a detailed project scope statement is crucial to project success. It includes all major deliverables, assumptions, and constraints that are documented during project initiation.
However, during the planning process, the project scope is defined and explained with more vital information about the project is known. On the other hand, existing risks, assumptions, and constraints are analyzed for entireness and added or updated as required.
- Create work breakdown structure (WBS)
Creating work breakdown structure (WBS) is another vital element of scope management because it helps project managers subdivide project deliverables and project work into smaller, more flexible components. As well as this process is also performed once or at predefined points in the project. Furthermore, this process gives a framework of what has to be delivered.
- Validate project scope
Validate project scope is another crucial process of scope management because it helps project managers standardize acceptance of the completed project deliverables. Furthermore, this process is performed throughout the project as needed.
On the other hand, this element will bring objectivity to the acceptance process and maximize the probability of final result acceptance by validating deliverables.
- Control project scope
Control scope is the element of scope management. This process helps project managers monitor project status and manage essential changes to the scope baseline as needed. Furthermore, this process is performed throughout the project and helps the maintained scope baseline.
Benefits of project scope
- Project scope ensures that your project is clearly defined and mapped out. It will help you understand the project’s complexity.
- After understanding the project scope, managers documented all relevant information. Therefore, it will help everyone review the project scope anytime as needed.
- Ensuring everyone agrees on the project scope, including your stakeholders and team members.
- Determining and evaluating project changes as needed
Conclusion
Understanding the project scope is vital because it helps to decide changes in the scope, cost/budget, and time/schedule. These scope, time, and cost link and impact each other. Thus, you should have a good understanding of scope management. Accordingly, project scope management elements ( processes) include plan scope management, collect requirements, define project scope, create work breakdown structure, validate project scope, and control project scope.
