Module 06: Scope Management

Open Ended

You have been assigned as the project manager for an ACTED humanitarian project in a rural province of Afghanistan, aimed at improving food security for vulnerable households. The project involves distributing food packages, conducting agricultural training, and establishing community gardens. You are at the beginning phase of the project, and it’s crucial to define the project scope accurately to ensure that all deliverables are clear and achievable.

How would you go about developing the project scope at this early stage? Describe the steps you would take to define a clear and detailed project scope.

Defining Scope - ACTED Project

To develop the project scope, start by creating a Project Scope Statement that outlines the project objectives, deliverables, boundaries, constraints, and assumptions. Engage with key stakeholders—including community leaders, project sponsors, and beneficiaries—to gather requirements and ensure all needs are documented clearly. Develop a Work Breakdown Structure (WBS) to break down the deliverables into smaller, manageable components, ensuring nothing is overlooked. Clearly define acceptance criteria for each deliverable to set quality expectations. Include a detailed description of what is in-scope and what is out-of-scope to prevent scope creep. Review and validate the scope with stakeholders before finalizing it, and document everything in the Scope Management Plan to guide the team throughout the project lifecycle.

Open Ended

You have been awarded a contract by the World Health Organization (WHO) to execute a vaccination project in the Nuristan province of Afghanistan.

Please outline 5 components of product scope and 5 components of project scope for this intervention.

Open Ended

You are leading a project for the International Rescue Committee (IRC) in Faryab province, Afghanistan, aimed at improving local healthcare services. The project involves constructing a health clinic, training local healthcare workers, and distributing essential medical supplies. At the early phase of the project, it's crucial to ensure that the project requirements are well understood and clearly defined to meet the community's needs.

How would you go about managing the requirements for this project?
Describe the approach you would take to ensure that the project requirements are professionally managed and agreed upon by all key stakeholders.

Managing Requirements

To manage project requirements, begin by engaging stakeholders through interviews, focus groups, and facilitated workshops to understand their needs and expectations. Use various data-gathering techniques such as surveys and observations to gather detailed information. Document each requirement with clarity in a Requirements Documentation that includes acceptance criteria, constraints, and assumptions. Analyze the requirements to ensure they are feasible and aligned with project objectives, using tools like prioritization and decision-making techniques. Establish a Requirements Traceability Matrix to link each requirement to project deliverables, ensuring alignment with project goals. Validate the documented requirements with stakeholders to confirm they accurately reflect the project’s objectives, and formalize them in a Requirements Management Plan for ongoing monitoring and control throughout the project lifecycle.

Open Ended

You are managing a project for UNICEF in Zabul province, Afghanistan. The project aims to improve education for children in remote areas by building temporary classrooms, distributing educational materials, and training local teachers to ensure quality education. You have completed the collection of all requirements from community leaders, local education authorities, parents, and UNICEF’s internal team.

Based on the PMP's Define Scope process, how would you define the scope for this project? Describe the approach you would take to create a clear and detailed project scope statement that aligns with the collected requirements.

Defining Scope - UNICEF Project

To define the project scope, start by creating a Project Scope Statement that clearly outlines the project’s objectives, deliverables, boundaries, constraints, and assumptions based on the gathered requirements. Specify the key deliverables such as the number and size of temporary classrooms, the type and quantity of educational materials, and the scope of the teacher training sessions (e.g., duration, topics covered). Clearly define what is in-scope (e.g., construction of 20 temporary classrooms, distribution of 1,000 educational kits, training for 50 local teachers) and what is out-of-scope (e.g., permanent school buildings or provision of advanced teaching equipment). Include acceptance criteria for each deliverable to ensure quality standards are met. Identify constraints such as budget limitations, geographical challenges, and timeline restrictions, and document any assumptions made during the planning phase (e.g., availability of local materials or cooperation from local leaders). Finally, validate the scope statement with key stakeholders to ensure alignment and update the project management plan to reflect the agreed-upon scope.

Multiple Choice

A project manager is leading a project that is critical for the company and must be completed within nine months. The project charter has been signed, but the project scope statement has not been prepared. Management asks the project manager to move forward with the project without an approved project scope statement. What should the project manager do next?

• Escalate the issue to the project sponsor and add it to the risk register.

• Refuse to work on the project because management is not following standard project management practices.

• Meet with management to explain the potential problems with running a project without a project scope statement.

• Start the project with inputs from the project charter to save time.

Open Ended

You are the project manager for a UNOPS infrastructure project in Wardak province, Afghanistan, aimed at building a clean water supply system for several rural communities. The project involves drilling wells, installing water tanks, laying pipes, and providing training for local technicians to maintain the system. After defining the project scope, it’s now time to develop the Work Breakdown Structure (WBS) to organize the work into manageable components.

How would you go about creating the WBS for this project? Describe the approach you would take to break down the project deliverables and ensure a structured and comprehensive WBS.

WBS - UNOPS Project

To create the Work Breakdown Structure (WBS), start by breaking down the project’s overall scope into major deliverables or phases, such as well drilling, water tank installation, pipe-laying, and technician training. For each major deliverable, decompose it further into smaller, manageable work packages. For example, under well drilling, define tasks like site selection, equipment mobilization, drilling, and testing. Under technician training, identify tasks such as curriculum development, trainer hiring, and training sessions. Continue breaking down each deliverable until reaching a level where tasks can be easily assigned, managed, and tracked. Ensure each work package has a unique identifier and is aligned with the scope to prevent scope creep. Document the WBS in a hierarchical structure and validate it with stakeholders to confirm that all project deliverables are covered comprehensively. Use the WBS as the foundation for creating a project schedule, estimating costs, and assigning responsibilities.

Multiple Choice

A project manager just completed a successful deployment and is preparing to transition the project to an operational state before starting closeout actions. What should the project manager do to ensure that the project is ready to move to an operational state?

• Meet with the project team to review the work breakdown structure (WBS) and confirm deliverables have been delivered.

• Develop a plan to repay the technical debt incurred during the project and ensure that the project sponsor agrees with the plan.

• Review the project approval requirements in the project charter and confirm who will be approving the project.

• Refer to the project’s work in progress (WIP) reports to ensure that there is no additional work in the backlog.

​Please watch a video on WBS for a developmental project.

Multiple Choice

During a scope validation exercise toward the end of a project, a project manager realizes that some operational project requirements were not captured in the project scope of work. Although completing these items will impact the project’s completion date, it will increase the likelihood of customer acceptance. What should the project manager do to address the issue?

• Issue a change request to remove items from the scope of work and keep the project on schedule.

• Issue a change request to include the additional scope and track the completion of the work items.

• Document the issue in the lessons learned document and discuss it with the project sponsor.

• Arrange to pass the cost to the operational area since the customer will benefit.

Open Ended

You are managing a livelihood project for ACTED in Afghanistan, focusing on supporting rural communities with vocational training and resources for small businesses. As part of the project, team members are tasked with conducting basic financial literacy workshops for participants. During a monitoring session, you discover that one of the trainers has been providing additional, in-depth financial consultation to participants, which was not included in the original scope and has resulted in extended workshop times and additional resource usage.

How would you address this situation to bring the project back within its defined scope? Describe the steps you would take to prevent further scope expansion and ensure the project remains aligned with its original objectives.

Validate Scope - Care International

To validate the project’s scope, begin by conducting a thorough review of each deliverable against the acceptance criteria defined in the Project Scope Statement and Requirements Documentation. Organize an inspection process with stakeholders to assess the quality and completeness of each deliverable, such as verifying the quantity and condition of farming tools, the quality of seed packages, and the effectiveness of the training sessions conducted. Document stakeholder feedback and note any discrepancies or issues that require correction. Once all deliverables meet the acceptance criteria, request formal sign-off from stakeholders to confirm their acceptance of each deliverable. Update the project documentation to reflect the validated scope, and record any lessons learned. This formal acceptance process ensures that the project meets its objectives and fulfills stakeholder expectations before project closure.

Multiple Choice

A project manager has encountered repeated scope changes during the project. These changes are increasing the project timeline and costs, and some stakeholders are becoming dissatisfied. What should the project manager do first to prevent further scope changes?

• Ask the stakeholders to reduce their requirements to keep the project on track.

• Review the scope baseline and implement a formal change control process.

• Increase the project budget to accommodate additional scope changes.

• Conduct frequent meetings with stakeholders to review their expectations.