Chapter 4 – Scope Management

Question 1

Collecting Requirements

Answer 1

• A condition or capability must be met or possessed by a:
	- System
	- Product
	- Service
	- Result
	- Component
• To satisfy a:
	- Contract
	- Standard
	- Specification
	- Other formal document
• Helpful to:
	- Divide requirements into categories called:
		~ Elicitation
		~ Analysis
		~ Specification
		~ Validation
• Important to use:
	- An iterative approach
		~ To defining requirements unclear early in a project

Question 2

Methods for Collecting Requirements

Answer 2

• Conduct an interview
• Observing operations
• Conduct user survey
• Prototyping

Question 3

Defining Scope

Answer 3

• Key inputs include:
	- Project charters
	- Requirements documentation
	- Organizational process assets
		~ Policies
		~ Procedures
	- Project files
	- Lesson learned from previous, similar projects
		~ For project scope statement preparation

Question 4

Creating the Work Breakdown Structure (WBS)

Answer 4

• Deliverable-oriented grouping
• Involved in a project that defines:
	- Total scope of the project
• Provides:
	- Basis for planning & managing:
		~ Project schedules
		~ Costs
		~ Resources
		~ Changes
• Decomposition:
	- Subdividing project deliverables
		~ Into smaller pieces
• Work package:
	- A task at the lowest level of the WBS
• Example:
	- Intranet WBS

Question 5

Approaches to Developing WBSs

Answer 5

• Analogy Approach:
- Review WBSs of similar projects and tailor to your project
• Top-down approach
- Start with the largest items of the project and break them down
• Bottom-up approach
- Start with the specific task that can be easily done and complete it
• Mind-mapping approach
- Write down the task in non-linear, branching format and then create WBS structure

Question 6

The WBS Dictionary and Scope Baseline

Answer 6

• Many WBS tasks:
	- Vague
• Must explain so that people:
	- Know what to do
	- Estimate how long it will take
	- Costs to do the work
• WBS dictionary:
	- A document
	- Describes detail information about:
		~ Each WBS item
• Scope baseline:
	- Formed by:
		~ Approved project scope statement
		~ WBS
		~ WBS dictionary
	- Used to:
		~ Measure performance in meeting project scope goals

Question 7

Advice for Creating a WBS and WBS Dictionary

Answer 7

• Unit of work:
	- Appear at only one place in WBS
• Work content of a WBS item:
	- Sum of the WBS item below it
• WBS item:
	- Responsibility of only one individual
	- Documented in a WBS dictionary
		~ Ensure accurate understanding of the scope of work included not included in that item
• Consistent:
	- Serve the project team first and other purposes
		~ Only if practical
• Project team members:
	- Involved in developing the WBS
		~ Ensure:
			\+ Consistency
			\+ Buy-in
• Flexible tool:
	- Accommodate inevitable changes
	- Properly maintaining control of the work content
		~ According to the scope statement

Question 8

Verifying scope

Answer 8

• Very difficult to:
	- Create a good scope statement and WBS
	- Verify project scope
	- Minimize scope changes
• Scope verification:
	- Involves formal acceptance (completed project scope)
		~ By the stakeholders
• Acceptance:
	- Achieved by:
		~ Customer inspection
		~ Sign-off on key deliverables

Question 9

Controlling Scope

Answer 9

• Involves controlling changes to the project scope
• Goals:
	- Influence factors
		~ That causes scope changes
	- Assure:
		~ Changes are processed according to developed procedures (part of integrated change control)
	- Manage changes
		~ Whenthey occur
• Variance:
	- Difference between:
		~ Planned performance
		~ Actual performance

Question 10

Best practices for avoiding scope problems

Answer 10

• Realistic scopes
- Break down large projects into a series of smaller ones
- Don’t make projects that are too large
• Involve users in project scope management
- Assign key users
- Give them ownership of:
~ Requirements definition
~ Scope verification
• Use off-the-shelf hardware & software whenever possible
- Business needs take priority, not technology trends
• Follow good project management process

Question 11

Importance of Project Schedules

Answer 11

• Delivering project on time
	- Biggest challenge
• Time has the least amount of flexibility
• Schedule issues
	- Main reason for conflicts

Question 12

Individual Work Styles and Cultural Differences Cause Schedule Conflicts

Answer 12

• Meyers-Briggs Type Indicator:
	- Focuses on peoples’ attitudes toward structure and deadline
• Some:
	- Prefer to follow schedules
	- Meet deadlines
		~ Some do not
• Different cultures & countries:
	- Different attitudes about schedules