How To Handle/Process Change Request?

Changes  are requested during the ‘Executing’ or ‘Monitor & Controlling’ process.

These changes are accepted/rejected in the ‘Perform & Integrated Change Control’ process. 

Question: Stakeholder/Client/Functional Manager wants to make a change add scope to the project.

Question: Stakeholder/Client/Functional Manager wants to add scope to the project.

What Project Manager should do now? 

In summary –

• Normally change request are handled by preparing an Impact analysis document and then doing Re-Estimation. Example you have an ongoing project, which has a customer table. Now customer wants to also have addresses assigned to it. So you normally raise a change request and then do an impact analysis of the same.
• Depending on the impact you estimate and let know the client about the financial aspect of the project.
• Once client sign off or the upper management agrees to the change request you move ahead with implementation.

In Detail: The PM should follow below steps to process the change. 

1. Evaluate the Impact
2. Create a Change Request
3. Look for Options
4. Get the Change Request Approved
5. Adjust the Project Management Plan, Project Documents & Baselines
6. Manage Stakeholder Expectation

Evaluate the Impact:

• Check, if it’s a Scope Change, how it will affect the Project Cost, Quality, Risk, Resources, and Possibly Customer Satisfaction. I.e. Change in one Project Constraint must be evaluated for impacts on all other project constraints.
• Check, if it’s a Scope Change, how it will affect the rest of the schedule of the project.

Create a Change Request

• Once evaluation is completed, create a formal change request.

Look for Options

• This is taken to reduce/minimize the effect of change. Actions include compress the schedule thru crashing/fast-tracking, adjusting quality or cutting scope.
• However, be careful, it’s not wise to reduce the impact of every change. In doing so, PM could decrease the overall probability of success on the project.

Get the Change Request Approved

• Take the change and it’s estimation/cost to the Client/CCB/Sponsor to discuss the change.
• Get an approval/rejection from them.
• Once approved, update project documents as a result of approved changes.
• These approved changes are then implemented in ‘Direct & Manage Project Execution’ 

Adjust the Project Management Plan, Project Documents & Baselines

• Approved changes needs to be incorporated into the Project Baseline.
• Also the PMP and Project documents requires updating.

Manage Stakeholder Expectation

• Manage Stakeholder Expectation by communicating the change to stakeholders, affected by the change.
• This could be thought of as a configuration management, a form of version control, or a way to make sure everyone is working off the same project documentation.

Some More Concepts:

What is Change Control Board:

• Depending on the PM’s level of authority, he can facilitate the impact of change, rather than actually making the go or no go decision.
• For this reason, many projects have CCB.
• CCB is responsible for reviewing and analyzing change request.
• It then approve or reject the change.
• Board may include PM, Customer, Sponsor etc.

How PM  Should Control Changes?

• Generally the PM should proactively remain cautious in preventing the root cause of changes.
• Often Root cause are:
• PM did not talk to all the stakeholders and uncover their requirements.
• Get a sign-off on the functional specification before starting construction.
• PM did not properly plan the project. 

PM should make sure below to control changes:

• Obtain final requirements asap and get them signed-off.
• Come up with time and cost reserve.
• Have a process in place to process changes.
• Have ready CR templates
• Allow only approved changes to be added to the project baseline.
• Terminate the project having excessive changes and start a new project.

Hope this helps.

Regards,

Arun Manglick