One of the most common issues that teams come across as part of a project is the problem of scope creep. This is defined as uncontrolled changes or continuous growth of a project’s scope. This can occur when the scope of a project is not properly defined, documented or controlled.
This can be easily implemented incorrectly however; one could assume that defining a project’s scope is as easy as stating what a project will entail, the features required, systems involved etc. This is in fact correct but is missing a key detail of requirements gathering and outlining project scope. One of the key things to properly defining requirements and avoiding issues such as scope creep or conflict within the team, is to do the above, define requirements for what the project will entail but also define what the system will not include, features which are out of scope, areas that have been highlighted or proposed in the past but have been rejected. These are of equal importance as the definition of the actual included requirements because it avoids two major issues; the first being scope creep as previously mentioned and the second is lack of clarity. Clarity on what the project will actually be, what will be delivered, when it will be delivered, how it will be operated and how it will look and feel. Achieving this is possible by all stakeholders involved having a clear and defined picture of what the project will and won’t include.
Problems can very easily arise when people misinterpret requirements. This can very easily happen when all a stakeholder has is a definition of what the project requirements are, without the clarifying presence of what the project will not include. This can lead to wasted time, longer testing cycles and disagreements within teams over varying interpretations of what requirements actually mean.
By clearly defining requirements that are in scope and out of scope, we can avoid these pitfalls in our projects.
Aspira offer a range of courses in both Project Management & Business Analysis. These courses provide a structured approach to requirements gathering and provide valuable project management tools and techniques to support the creation of a detailed project plans, that are based on accurate business requirements. To find out more about Aspira’s public and private courses go to our website now.
Created By: Stephen Pearse
Company: Aspira
Title: Software Engineer