Welcome back!
Our topic today is discussing scope, how day to day changes out of our control can alter it, and what can be done about it. The project scope is normally outlined in the scope statement. It is a document that outlines the objectives, schedules, tasks and deliverables that will be completed in the duration of the project. However, as one will quickly learn when completing any type of project; things do not always go as planned. Scope creep can be defined as varied issues that arise during a project’s creation that can affect the quality, satisfaction or outcomes of the project.
Most people learn best by example. So, I am going to use the example of a project that I worked on professionally while working with the school system. This project was our annual S.T.E.M. (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) night. I was a mathematics teacher at a middle school during this time, (S.T.E.M. not had not yet become S.T.E.A.M. incorporating the Arts). Originally the math department used the large space of the art room, created several stations to accommodate the large number of people and set up materials. Parents and students came in rotated groups and the educators repeatedly conducted the experiments for each group to complete. Our projects were lava lamps and slime (a crowd favorite). We bought
Our scope creep arrived just 4 days before our event. The year was 2021 as a district we had been implementing the pandemic protocols for various events and were told that we would be conducting the night virtually. This meant that we had to change our project scope completely. Now conducting it virtually we were now tasked with compiling and distributing our materials to students.Then we were to determine a platform (whether Teams, Zoom, Google Meets, etc) and have everyone gather in that space, determine a schedule and have each area present one time and conduct their experiments. We now had other risks to consider. We usually did not have to consider that the entire school would come to STEM night. We usually estimated about ⅓ of the population and then did the math for parents and younger or older siblings to possibly attend. Now we were determining how many more supplies we needed to purchase given that we are distributing them at school. What middle school student would refuse to get supplies to make slime at home? We had to consider raising our budget significantly. We usually saved buying huge bottles of glue, but now we had to ensure every student had glue. Did this mean we now had to purchase 1,200 + bottles of glue!? This number did not even account for parents and siblings who did not attend our school.
Our solution was that we only supplied 6th grade students with slime. 7th and 8th grade students would make the lava lamps, which supplies solely consisted of a water bottle, 2 alka seltzer tablets and a bottle of dye. We had teachers ask students in 7th and 8th grade if they were willing to participate which allowed us to determine how many bottles of dye and what colors we needed. We even got the okay for 7th and 8th grade students to stay after and complete it during tutoring so they could share dye.
Looking back, if I was given the leadership role of this project I would have ensured long before the week of the event as to whether or not it was acceptable for us to conduct it face to face. It was not that it was extremely difficult to transition to virtual, but some of the tweaks could have been ironed out had there been more notice. Also I personally hate to change such a detail to children and parents last minute, especially with a population as big as our school. It is important to know that things can always happen out of your control, and the best way to handle it is to simply be ready with ideas of how to still make things work as efficiently as possible.
Halle,
Your project brought to mind the commercial food preparation practical that our teachers had to manage virtually at my school during the COVID-19 pandemic. A significant challenge and a source of frustration revolved around ensuring that all students had access to the same ingredients, tools, and equipment required for the practical. To address this issue, the school opted to purchase and package the necessary items for the students, and we also established collaborative partnerships with other schools to facilitate the practical sessions. This approach was necessary due to the restrictions on gatherings, which were limited to ten persons at the time.
Dr. Van Rekom (Walden University LLC, n.d.) emphasizes that while project managers cannot anticipate scope creep, they can proactively address it by including additional time and budget provisions during the project planning phase. Therefore, integrating schedule buffers to accommodate potential scope changes should also be considered. This involves setting aside time or resources to handle changes without affecting the timeline. The first step for a project you describe would be thoroughly analyzing the changed requirements. The transition from in-person to virtual events with material distribution introduces significant alterations to the project scope. As you mentioned, waiting until the week of the event to determine whether it should be virtual or in-person is not advisable. It is essential to make this decision in advance to allow for the development of a comprehensive project scope statement that clearly defines the new objectives, deliverables, and constraints.
Moreover, effective communication with all stakeholders, including teachers, parents, and students, regarding the changes in project scope and requirements is crucial. They should be informed well about the updated plan, timelines, roles, and expectations. Utilizing virtual meetings or sending out detailed information packages can be valuable in achieving this objective.
References
Walden University, LLC. (Executive Producer). (n.d.). Practitioner voices: Planning for contingencies [Video file]. Retrieved from https://waldenu.instructure.com