Defining the Scope

There are three main areas that you need to focus on when you are developing your project’s scope.

As a project manager, you are solely responsible for developing a scope statement that will identify these three aspects of the project. First, we will look at boundaries. Boundaries can be linked straight to your objectives and clarify the expected results. They are measurable aspects of the project. Clear boundaries help to steer the actions of staff in the project and keep individual tasks on track.

Boundaries might include:

• Assumptions
• Constraints
• Exclusions and inclusions
• Principal work activities
• Product specification
• Project deliverables
• Project objectives
• Scope of works
• Work breakdown structure

Assumptions

Assumptions are concepts, factors or statements that we automatically believe to be factual. However, assumptions are not confirmed and in fact are more like guesswork. Although assumptions are often reasonable to make, as they are fair expectations of how the project will run, they are outside of the influence of staff. Yet they are important in shaping the project. In short, assumptions are essential—you cannot read the future as such, but good up-to-date information can help make more realistic assumptions.

Example

If you have a customer or client who is not exactly sure of all details of the project, you will have to use reasonable assumptions (based on the things that you do know) to perform planning work such as budgeting, timing, and other planning.

Assumptions will lay out benchmarks that can be revisited during your project to assist the team to stay within the scope, timeframes and budget of their tasks and the overall project. You should regularly analyse any assumptions that you have made to ensure that they remain relevant as the project goes on. Although assumptions can bring many possibilities to your project, they can also make it risky. If you make general assumptions that are incorrect, then your project can be thrown off the rails very quickly, with serious effects on its possible success and completion.

Constraints

Along with assumptions, constraints help to fill in the gaps between facts and estimates within your project. They bring limits to the project and should be incorporated into the plan. This ensures your plan is realistic. Constraints should be defined from the very beginning of your project in order to understand any limitations clearly. This can help to develop a good implementation plan and ensure the success of your project.

Exclusions and Inclusions

We can distinguish between what we call project inclusions and as noted below. Project inclusions are those items included in a project scope. Inclusions include:

• Items that are core to the project
• Items that are available and needed

If we think of a house building project given our project budget constraints, the building contract will include exclusions such as premium priced kitchen benches and cupboards or exclusion of pavement and landscaping. In contrast, inclusions are core to a build or house structure such as the electricals. Project exclusions are those items excluded from a project scope. Exclusions specify items not included within your project. Exclusions include:

• Items that are not necessities in reaching the successful completion of a project
• Items that are available options or extras but are not needed

Principal Work Activities

Principal work activities are the most important work activities within your project. These types of work contribute most to the value of your project.

Product Specification

A product specification is a statement that describes what your product is intended to do, including the required characteristics of the product. A product specification can ensure that the production process meets the needs of your customer or client. It can also ensure quality of design and that the end product is fit for purpose.

Product specifications can include:

• User requirements
• Legal requirements
• Materials
• Product function
• Overall dimensions.

Project Deliverables

Deliverables can be used as a general term that encompasses the requirements and expectations of your project. Some projects can have many deliverables, while others have only one.

Project Objectives

Project objectives are the small, specific statements that support your project’s goal(s). Objectives should be measurable and describe the "how to" process. The clearer your objectives are, the more likely you are to achieve them. Remember, your objectives should be SMART:

Scope of Works

A Scope of Work (SOW) is a formal document that specifies the criteria of the contract between the service provider and the customer. It defines what you can expect to get from the contract and is typically broken down into specific tasks with their accompanying deadlines. A SOW provides you with a clear picture of the complete project requirements and ensures both parties are on the same page. This means that you can avoid any ambiguities and situations leading to dispute.

A SOW describes elements such as:

• Work activities
• Deliverables
• Pricing
• Quality requirements
• Timelines
• Conditions Milestones.

Work Breakdown Structure

As previously discussed, to break your project into smaller manageable tasks, you should use a Work Breakdown Structure (WBS).

These smaller, more manageable targets comprise the tasks that you will need to perform while running the project.

This information will assist you to make reasonable estimates of the time each task may require as well as how long you think the overall project will take. Here is also where you should consider initial development of a project schedule.

A WBS is usually presented in a flowchart or similar format. It shows how tasks are related to each other and to the entire project.

Video

Watch the following YouTube video from Project Management Videos to learn more about Work Breakdown Structures: ‘Project Management: What is a Work Breakdown Structure’

Project Management: What is a Work Breakdown Structure? - YouTube

In order to identify the boundaries for a project, you will need to define the items that are inside and outside of the project. The project manager should use these project boundaries to set up an improvement plan and define the start and end of this improvement process.

When identifying project boundaries, you should consider:

• Group accountability
• Key project phases
• Project goals
• Product scope

The identification of project boundaries:

• Reduces the need for control
• Allows individuals and teams to manage own activities
• Improves project management process
• Helps plan human resources required for your project

If boundaries are not identified, the individuals and teams within your project will not be able to carry out their responsibilities. There will be no foundation for controlling performance within the project or for making delegations.

Work Breakdown Structure

A critical part of the project planning process is the implementation of a Work Breakdown Structure (WBS). The WBS is a deliverable that defines the scope of a project. Breaking the project into complex components and tasks organises the project so that it is manageable.

Another important consideration when designing or formulating a project is what we consider as measurables. The famous adage is that ‘If you can’t measure it, you can’t control it’. This principle equally applies when establishing and managing projects. Subsequently benefits and how these will be measured are included in a project plan. Let’s consider what we mean by project benefits and benefits management as outlined below

Project Benefits

Project benefits are essentially the desired (or required) positive results of a project; a project manager’s main responsibility is to ensure that these benefits are delivered. Project benefits can be measurable, tangible and objective—or they can be immeasurable, intangible and subjective. This will depend on the individual project.

Benefits Management

Benefits management involves the identification, planning, tracking and completion of the project’s benefits. When going through the benefits management process, you need to consider numerous factors.

These include:

• Why are we doing this?
• Is the project still valid further down the line?
• Can the time and expense involved in the project be justified?
• How will we measure benefits?

Following these steps and adhering to the process will dramatically reduce the risks involved in the project.

The types of benefits that you may be looking for include:

• Indirect benefits
  Indirect benefits can be broad and not directly related to the project but have flow-on effects as a result or outcome of the project, such as new learnings among project team members, access to new tools and methodologies that could assist with other projects.
• Non-monetary benefits
  Non-monetary benefits, such as indirect benefits and non-monetary benefits, can assist towards achieving organisational goals such as an enhanced knowledge sharing or collaboration between individuals and teams or meeting a company’s social and environmental responsibilities.
• Monetary benefits
  Monetary benefits relate to the term monetisation, which in Plain English means assigning a financial value to an activity or project to identify whether the project is worth investing in and will give a good Return on Investment (ROI) to the organisational stakeholders
• Disbenefits
  In contrast, we want to avoid disbenefits, which are negative consequences resulting from a project. Disbenefits are often ones that have not been planned for or foreseen and factored into the risk management plan.

Project outcomes

Project outcomes must be identified so that you can measure the success of aspects of the project and of the project in its entirety. This will also assist you when planning future projects. The project’s outcomes should be an accurate reflection of the impact and effect your project has had on the client and the organisation you have been working for.

To create outcomes, you need to transform your objectives into deliverables and outcomes. By ensuring that your objectives are clear and achievable, you will have good, measurable outcomes. This may take time to accomplish, but it is well worth putting in the hours, as the effort will benefit everyone involved in the project, particularly in clarifying individual and group expectations.

Project outcomes can be reviewed using a range of techniques, these include reviews, progress reports, and graphics and charts. Reviews and reports are often conducted multiple times within a project and follow a logical series of steps.

• Iterative reviews: Also called a check step. The review is conducted by the project owner who appraises the completed works against a set of criteria. This is completed in increments to assess how the project is progressing.
• Iterative processes: A technique used to continually improve a design or product. The goal is to get closer to the final project by repeating a set of steps. An example of this is the use of open public Wikis to document information

Project Outputs

The outputs of a project correlate directly with the project objectives. They are the parts of the project that emit from your efforts and actions.

Outputs could include:

• Renewed or new services
• Updated facilities
• Improved or new products.

Outputs are easy to see and to measure. They will only be considered complete upon delivery and implementation of the project.

Stakeholders can be many and varied. Regardless of who they are, you must develop a sense of complete collaboration with them and ensure that outcomes are clear to all.

Stakeholders can include:

• Clients
• Executives
• Financial controllers
• Decision makers
• Internal and external customers
• Sponsors

Remember that stakeholders can vary from project to project and organisation to organisation. When planning a project, think about identifying the crucial stakeholders to win over in getting your plans approved. To get the most from your stakeholders, you can use simple questioning techniques to identify the wants or needs of stakeholders.

Ask the right questions, such as:

• What exactly is the project requirement and end result designed by stakeholders?
• What resources are needed?

Where and when questions can also be useful to elicit useful information from stakeholders.

When communicating with stakeholders, you must remember the following points:

• Use time efficiently—yours and theirs
• Adapt your communication—target different stakeholders
• Be careful with your assumptions—ensure they are reasonable and not unobtainable or fanciful
• Use your skills and knowledge—share these with your team.

Video

Watch the following YouTube video produced by Software Maniacs for an explanation of scope definition: ‘Scope Definition the Easy Way’

Scope Definition the Easy Way - YouTube

Quiz

Drag and Drop