Walden University EDUC 6145 Week 6 - Scope
I like to work on my car sometimes. Unfortunately, I will start one “small” project of repair or maintenance and then the next minute I am driving to Walmart to buy extra things to work on extra parts of the car. For example, I wanted to change my oil. But I found you could add engine cleaners before changing oil that would help ensure a cleaner engine after the oil change. Then I looked at fuel cleaners. I went from studying what motor oil to use to what engine cleaner to use to what fuel system cleaner to use.
Time and money stop mission creep. But some “creep’ is good. The best my car has run is after using the following:
1. Marvel Mystery Oil (Engine and fuel Cleaner)
2. Royal Purple 5W20 Motor Oil
3. 44K BGR Fuel Cleaner
4. Royal Purple Fuel Cleaner
I belong to a car group on Facebook and look for recommendations by others to improve my car’s performance and long-term reliability. I also google products and articles as well as use Amazon & Walmart reviews to help identify which products to try and which products not to try.
On the one hand I enjoyed reading
about each product and asking questions. But on the other hand, if you saw how
much time I spent researching products you would agree I probably spent too
much time because I enjoyed doing the research sometimes so much I spent too
much time reading, watching product videos by real world users and asking
questions.
The same thing happened several years ago when I started to study how to wax and buff a car then how to detail a car. I would drive to Walmart on a Saturday night at 9:00 pm just to look at car products that clean upholstery or fabric or the outside of the car such as windshields or painted parts.
In project management time and
money are critical as well as opportunities to pursue other endeavors which
could be lost if one project is worked on longer than it should be. Voltaire
one time stated that, "The perfect is the enemy of the good." A
project manager should look at the temptation to pursue perfection in each
aspect of a project and forgo the temptation by replacing the goal of
perfection with the goal of good work, not perfect work at times. So that
excess time on one aspect of a project does not subtract time from another part
of the project.
Morphy (2024), points out that when “Project schedule is not clearly defined or understood.” project creep can occur as in my case above.
Greer (2010) recommends the following steps to prevent project creep (pp. 31-32).
1. Check Your Project’s Scope.
2. Check Your Deliverables (Work
Products)
3. Check Your Schedule
4. Analyze Variances (Deviations
from Plan) By Comparing “Estimated”
To “Actual.”
5. Address Scope Changes.
6. List, Track, And Try to Resolve
Open Issues.
7. Revisit Potential Project Risks.
8. Report Project Status and
Communicate Regularly
9. Drive For Close-Out of
Activities and Sign-Off of Deliverables As
Appropriate.
10. Create A List of Lessons
Learned.
11. Complete Appropriate Evaluation
Checklists.
Meirkhanovam et al. (2023), recommend using a three-part system of analysis: a systematic approach, situational approach and behavioral approach (p. 1). By looking at the behavior of people, the situation they are in and system they operate under we can predict when project creep may or may not occur or be beneficial or detrimental. A beneficial type of mission creep occurs when new opportunities that benefit stakeholders are discovered and utilized without adding to project overruns.
References
Greer, M. (2010). The project management minimalist: Just enough PM to rock your
projects! (Laureate custom ed.). Walden University Canvas.
https://waldenu.instructure.com
Meirkhanovam, Y, Kupeshova, S. Bahauovna A., & Dzholdosheva, M. (2023).
Project management in the system of education. E3S Web of Conferences.
381. 10.1051/e3sconf/202338102014.
Morphy, T. (2024). Risk Management, Risk Analysis, Templates and Advice
https://www.stakeholdermap.com/risk/register-common-project-risks.html
Christopher, your blog post thoroughly examines scope creep, highlighting its causes and potential impacts on project success. Your emphasis on establishing a robust change control process is crucial, as it ensures that any alterations to the project scope are systematically evaluated and approved, thereby maintaining control over project deliverables. This approach is consistent with the Project Management Institute's guidelines, which advocate formal change management procedures to prevent unauthorized scope changes (Project Management Institute, 2017).
ReplyDeleteCheers, Holli
Reference
Project Management Institute. (2017). A guide to the project management body of knowledge (PMBOK® guide) (6th ed.). Project Management Institute.
Hi Christopher! Thanks for sharing. I can see how scope creep benefitted your car! I like the phrase you used, “the perfect is the enemy of the good.” I agree that perfection can be detrimental to a project and can invite scope creep. Perfection is difficult to obtain and can be an unrealistic goal depending on the goal. In a previous role, a manager sought perfection which caused friction amongst their employees. Additionally, it required more time to be spent on projects and rework was commonly done. According to Campbell (2023), although the benefit seems obvious to the group, in the overall context of the project, a small shift in rework may have unintended consequences that can be detrimental to the project. Have you been apart of a work project that was victim to scope creep?
ReplyDeleteReference
Campbell, J. (2023). Scope creep. Salem Press Encyclopedia.
I completely agree with the insights shared in this blog about the challenges of project creep, especially in personal projects like car maintenance. It's so easy to get caught up in the details and lose sight of the original goal. The reference to Voltaire's perspective on perfection really resonates with me; striving for the perfect outcome can often lead to delays and frustration. The three-part analytical system proposed for assessing project creep sounds like a valuable tool for anyone managing projects, whether big or small. Thanks for sharing these thoughts; they provide a great framework for managing projects more effectively!
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