In this post i have explained about Project Scope Management.
Chapter 4
Project Scope Management
A Comprehensive Guide for PMP Certification by Parag Pal
Chapter 4 focuses on Project Scope Management, which is all about defining and controlling what is and is not included in the project. It ensures that the project team performs only the work required to complete the project successfully.
This guide will detail the six processes within Scope Management, from planning how to manage scope to validating and controlling it, highlighting key concepts, inputs, tools & techniques, and outputs for each.
4.1 Product Scope vs. Project Scope
Understanding the two types of scope is fundamental to effective project management. Project managers must avoid "gold plating" (adding extra features not requested).
Product Scope
The features and functions that characterize a product, service, or result. It describes the "what" of the deliverable.
- What the customer wants.
- Focus on the end result's characteristics.
Project Scope
The work that is needed to deliver a product, service, or result with specified features and functions. It describes the "how" of creating the deliverable.
- How the work will be done.
- Focus on the tasks and activities required.
Agile Scope:
In Agile projects, the scope is expected to change and evolve as the project progresses. Requirements are gathered incrementally, allowing for flexibility and adaptation.
4.2 Project Scope Management Processes Overview
Project Scope Management includes the processes required to ensure that the project includes all the work, and only the work, required to complete the project successfully.
The 6 Scope Management Processes are:
- Plan Scope Management (Planning)
- Collect Requirements (Planning)
- Define Scope (Planning)
- Create WBS (Planning)
- Validate Scope (Monitoring & Controlling)
- Control Scope (Monitoring & Controlling)
Scope Management Processes by Process Group
This chart shows how the 6 Project Scope Management processes are distributed across the Process Groups.
Note: Most scope management processes occur during the Planning phase.
4.3 Plan Scope Management
This process creates the Scope Management Plan and the Requirements Management Plan. It documents how the project and product scope will be defined, validated, and controlled.
4.3.1 Inputs
- Project Charter
- Project Management Plan
- Enterprise Environmental Factors (EEFs)
- Organizational Process Assets (OPAs)
4.3.2 Tools & Techniques
- Expert Judgment
- Data Analysis
- Meetings
4.3.3 Outputs
- Scope Management Plan: Documents how the scope will be written, baselined, controlled, and accepted (validated).
- Requirements Management Plan: Documents how requirements will be collected, analyzed, documented, and managed.
Exam Tip:
All management plans are "how-to's." They basically give the steps needed to manage that section of the project (e.g., how to manage scope, cost, quality).
4.4 Collect Requirements
This is the process of defining and documenting stakeholders' needs to meet the project objectives. It's a very important process at the beginning of the planning section, involving interaction with stakeholders to gather their requirements.
4.4.1 Inputs
- Project Charter
- Project Management Plan (Requirements Management Plan)
- Project Documents (e.g., Business Documents, Agreements)
- EEFs, OPAs
4.4.2 Tools & Techniques
- Expert Judgment
- Data Gathering:
- Brainstorming, Interviews, Focus Groups, Checklists, Questionnaires & Surveys.
- Benchmarking: Looking outside the project for performance measurements (e.g., industry best practices).
- Nominal Group Technique: Ranking and prioritizing ideas from brainstorming.
- Delphi Technique: Collecting requirements anonymously from SMEs to avoid influence.
- Observations/Conversation (Job Shadowing): Viewing stakeholders in their work environment.
- Data Analysis
- Data Presentation:
- Idea/Mind Mapping: Drawing ideas to generate new ones.
- Affinity Diagram: Grouping many ideas into categories.
- Context Diagrams: Visually showing how a business process, systems, and people interact (inputs/outputs).
- Decision Making
- Interpersonal Skills/Prototypes
Common Requirements Collection Methods
Project managers use various techniques to gather comprehensive requirements from stakeholders.
Note: The effectiveness of each method depends on project context and stakeholder availability.
4.4.3 Outputs
- Requirements Documentation: Detailed documentation of actual requirements (should be measurable, testable, acceptable).
- Requirements Traceability Matrix: A table created to link requirements back to their origin, tracking their source, stakeholder, and reason for inclusion.
4.5 Define Scope
This process develops a detailed description of the project and product. All requirements from the requirements documentation are analyzed and understood, and the final requirements are selected to become the final product, service, or result.
4.5.1 Inputs
- Project Charter
- Project Management Plan
- Project Documents (e.g., Requirements Documentation)
- Business Documents, OPAs
4.5.2 Tools & Techniques
- Expert Judgment
- Data Analysis
- Decision Making
- Interpersonal Skills
- Product Analysis: Analyzing the product to ensure it matches stakeholder requirements (e.g., product breakdown, systems analysis).
4.5.3 Outputs
- Project Scope Statement: Describes in detail the project deliverables and the work required to produce them. It includes:
- Project and product scope.
- Acceptance criteria (what must be done for deliverable acceptance).
- Exclusions (what the project will NOT get done or accomplished).
- Constraints (limitations like time or cost).
- Assumptions (things perceived to be true).
- Project Management Plan Updates.
Exam Tip:
The scope statement tells you what the project will not be doing, not just what it will be doing. At a minimum, all scope statements should have a detailed list of deliverables.
4.6 Create WBS (Work Breakdown Structure)
This is the process of breaking down the deliverables into smaller, more manageable components (decomposition). The main output of this process is the scope baseline.
4.6.1 Inputs
- Project Management Plan (Scope Management Plan, Requirements Management Plan)
- Project Documents (e.g., Requirements Documentation, Project Scope Statement)
- EEFs, OPAs
4.6.2 Tools & Techniques
- Expert Judgment
- Decomposition: A technique to divide project deliverables from the scope statement into smaller parts, known as work packages. Work packages are the lowest level on the WBS used for estimating time and cost.
WBS Decomposition Hierarchy
The Work Breakdown Structure breaks down the project into progressively smaller, more manageable components.
4.6.3 Outputs
- Scope Baseline: The main output of this process. It is one of the three baselines in the project management plan and is made up of three components:
- Project Scope Statement: Detailed list of project deliverables.
- WBS (Work Breakdown Structure): Subdivided work needed to produce deliverables, hierarchical in design, with control accounts broken into work packages.
- WBS Dictionary: A document with more details about each work package in the WBS (e.g., work description, scheduling, cost estimates, assumptions, constraints, acceptance criteria).
- Project Management Plan Updates.
Exam Tip:
After the project plan is approved and the project is executed, any changes to the scope baseline will need a change request. Work not within the project charter's scope should not be approved.
4.7 Validate Scope
This is the process where the project deliverables are formally inspected and accepted by the customer or sponsor. It's done at the very end of all executing and monitoring & controlling processes, typically immediately after "Control Quality."
4.7.1 Inputs
- Project Management Plan
- Project Documents
- Work Performance Data
- Verified Deliverables: The output of the Control Quality process, meaning deliverables have been inspected for quality requirements.
4.7.2 Tools & Techniques
- Inspection
- Decision Making
4.7.3 Outputs
- Accepted Deliverables: The main output if the customer finds the deliverable meets requirements.
- Work Performance Information.
- Change Requests (if the deliverable doesn't meet requirements, leading to defect repair).
- Project Documents Update.
4.8 Control Scope
The goal of "Control Scope" is to ensure that the project stays on scope as it is executed. You are basically "controlling" the scope by comparing the actual work against the project plan. This is a daily process.
4.8.1 Inputs
- Project Management Plan
- Project Documents
- Work Performance Data
- OPAs
4.8.2 Tools & Techniques
- Data Analysis:
- Variance Analysis: Determines if there is a variance between planned work (Project Management Plan) and actual work (Work Performance Data) related to scope.
- Trend Analysis: Used to determine if a trend related to scope is emerging as the project progresses.
4.8.3 Outputs
- Work Performance Information.
- Change Requests (needed if something is wrong with that section of the project, addressing it by implementing corrective or preventive actions).
- Project Management Plan Updates, Project Documents Update, OPA Update.
Work Performance Flow
The transformation of raw project data into actionable reports is a key aspect of monitoring and controlling.
Exam Tip:
All of the monitoring and controlling processes have an input of the Project Management Plan and Work Performance Data. They then output Work Performance Information and Change Requests.
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