Step By Step Scope Management For A Project
May 9th, 2008 | by Ahmed Arbab |A project may have a good plan and resources, but due to some factors like ambiguity, incompleteness transient and uncollaborative scope it may not be as successful as it can be. So removing these in simple steps is very much necessary. How can a project manager do this, goes here:
1. Define the Project Need
When scoping the project it very important to define the need for the project. Implementation can change based on the need but the need should remain unchanged.
2. Identify Key Stakeholders
Stakeholders here are the individuals and organizations who are actively involved in the project, or whose interests may be positively or negatively affected as a result of project. No hard or fast rules exist to tell us whom to involve and how, but knowing the stakeholder involvement is context-specific. Stakeholders in a project can include people those who:
- Buy it
- Sell it
- Use it
- Train others to use it
- Design it
- Develop it
- Test it
- Market it
- Maintain it
- Expect to profit from it.
3. Identify Project Drivers
Organizations are driven by many outside influences, e.g., regulations, standards, laws, and other considerations. A major driver for many organizations is the set of existing equipment, software, or processes. Other drivers include security and safety concerns.
4. Develop Operational Concepts
Operational concepts bridge the gap between product scope and formal requirements. The operational concepts are plain-language descriptions of user product/system interactions in the life of your product for both nominal and off-nominal conditions. Many great products start with an intuitive operational concept. High-level operational concepts will help in the creation of the project scope.
5. Identify External Interfaces
External interfaces fall into two broad categories:
- User (usually a human being) and
- Everything else
User external interfaces include buttons, levers, handles, straps, warning bells, safety labels, and displayed information. Non-user external interfaces include command, data, operating system, computer system, and existing equipment used with your product.
There are different classes of interfaces you must consider: First, there are fixed interfaces that are well known and unchangeable. Second, there may be existing interfaces that can be changed, either to save money, or because that interface is being updated. The third type of external interface is one that does not currently exist. In both the second and third cases, negotiation must be completed and agreed to as part of
