SCOPE

MANAGEMENT
Scope management Plan Process
Scope Planning and the Scope Management Plan

◦ A project’s size, complexity, importance as well as other factors determines the amount of effort to be spent
on the scope planning.

◦ The main output of scope planning is a scope management plan.

The scope management plan documents include:

◦ A process to prepare a detailed project scope statement based upon the preliminary project scope statement.
Scope management Plan Process
◦ A process that enables the creation of the WBS from the detailed scope statement and establishes how the
WBS will be maintained and approved.

◦ A process that specifies how formal verification and acceptance of the completed project deliverables will
be obtained.

◦ A process to control how requests for changes to the detailed project scope statement will be processed.
This process is directly linked to the integrated change control process.
Scope management Plan Process

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 Benefits of the Scope Statement
It is important to update the scope statement as more information becomes available and decisions are made, since
it:

◦ helps improve the accuracy of time, cost and resource estimates

◦ defines a baseline for performance measurement

◦ aids in communicating clear responsibilities

◦ ensures a common understanding among all parties

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◦ ensures customer satisfaction,

◦ prevents delays or scope creep – the tendency for project scope to continually increase
 Work Breakdown Structure (WBS) and WBS Dictionary
◦ After the project scope document is created, a detailed Work Breakdown Structure (WBS) must be created.

◦ The Work Breakdown Structure divides a project into tasks, which are subdivided into more detailed and manageable
components; into a set of activities or work packages with their related costs.

◦ It is the deliverable-orientated grouping of work involved, and defines the total scope of the project, breaking all the
work required into discrete tasks and grouping them into hierarchies
WBS Dictionary

◦ A WBS dictionary is a document that describes the actual tasks in detail, with the format differing according to
project needs.

◦ It could be a short paragraph describing each work package, or a whole page describing all responsibilities,
resources and costs.

◦ The scope management plan is a synthesis which provides the roadmap for scope planning
Approaches to the development of a WBS

Schwalbe (2009) describes five approaches to the development of a WBS:

a. Using Guidelines: Some organizations prescribe the form and content for the projects. If guidelines for a project
exist, it is very important to follow them.

b. The Analogy Approach: This uses similar projects’ WBS as a starting point. Many organizations have sample WBSs
from previous projects. It can save a lot of time but must ensure that it addresses the unique characteristics of the
project at hand.
a. Top-Down Approach: This is a conventional method that starts with the largest items and breaks them
into subordinate items, refining down into greater amounts of detail.

◦ After breaking down the top-level items, resources should then be assigned at work package level. It is
best suited to those who have vast technical insight and a big picture perspective.

b. The Bottom-Up Approach: It is important to identify as many specific tasks related to the project as
possible, which are aggregated and organized into summary activities or higher levels of the WBS.
◦ Some use post-it notes on the wall which help people to see logical groupings
e. Mind mapping This is a technique that uses branches which radiate out from a core idea to
structure thoughts and ideas.

◦ It unlocks creativity and increases participation and morale. Each of the main branches jutting
out from the core is a Level 2 item.

◦ It can be used when applying the Top Down or Bottom-Up approaches.

◦ A mind map could also be done for each major deliverable, and then merge all to form one large
diagram for the project