Comments on: “Scope Seep” or what happens if you give a mouse a cookie http://www.guerrillaprojectmanagement.com/scope-seep-or-what-happens-if-you-give-a-mouse-a-cookie Wed, 08 Sep 2010 09:30:28 -0400 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.8.4 hourly 1 By: Scope Management – additional reading… « Musings About Software Development http://www.guerrillaprojectmanagement.com/scope-seep-or-what-happens-if-you-give-a-mouse-a-cookie/comment-page-1#comment-486 Scope Management – additional reading… « Musings About Software Development Tue, 06 Apr 2010 20:56:14 +0000 http://www.guerrillaprojectmanagement.com/?p=253#comment-486 [...] The Guerilla Project Manager post on “Scope Seep” – which offers a different perspective on the traditional idea of scope [...] [...] The Guerilla Project Manager post on “Scope Seep” – which offers a different perspective on the traditional idea of scope [...]

]]> By: samad_aidane http://www.guerrillaprojectmanagement.com/scope-seep-or-what-happens-if-you-give-a-mouse-a-cookie/comment-page-1#comment-484 samad_aidane Tue, 06 Apr 2010 20:35:11 +0000 http://www.guerrillaprojectmanagement.com/?p=253#comment-484 Carol, Thank you so much for taking the time to read and comment. I look forward to reading your blog and connecting with you in future conversations. Carol,

Thank you so much for taking the time to read and comment. I look forward to reading your blog and connecting with you in future conversations.

]]> By: Carol Dekkers http://www.guerrillaprojectmanagement.com/scope-seep-or-what-happens-if-you-give-a-mouse-a-cookie/comment-page-1#comment-483 Carol Dekkers Tue, 06 Apr 2010 20:07:18 +0000 http://www.guerrillaprojectmanagement.com/?p=253#comment-483 Samad, I enjoy your posts - they compliment some of my own blog postings. Nice to see that there are like-minded people involved in software development. Keep blogging! Carol Dekkers http://musingsaboutsoftwaredevelopment.wordpress.con Samad,

I enjoy your posts – they compliment some of my own blog postings.

Nice to see that there are like-minded people involved in software development.

Keep blogging!
Carol Dekkers
http://musingsaboutsoftwaredevelopment.wordpress.con

]]> By: samad_aidane http://www.guerrillaprojectmanagement.com/scope-seep-or-what-happens-if-you-give-a-mouse-a-cookie/comment-page-1#comment-257 samad_aidane Wed, 24 Feb 2010 18:57:22 +0000 http://www.guerrillaprojectmanagement.com/?p=253#comment-257 Matthew, you summed up that paradox so well when you said "The IT vendor, wants the customer to sign off that the design will met their requirements. The customer wants the system to work like it does in their often undocumented, frequently changing vision of how it should work." I can't agree with you more on this one. I agree with you also when you said that there aren't many solutions to this paradox other than commitment to benefits and sharing of risks. I this that lack of sharing of risks that makes us all defensive about scope creep and scope seep. In the absence of shared commitment to benefits as well as risks, each party in an agreement is protective of their interest. It is unfortunately the reality of vendor/client relationships. Thank you so much for taking the time to comment. I look forward to continuing the conversation here and on you blog, www.managewithoutthem.com, which I am enjoying a lot. Matthew,

you summed up that paradox so well when you said “The IT vendor, wants the customer to sign off that the design will met their requirements. The customer wants the system to work like it does in their often undocumented, frequently changing vision of how it should work.” I can’t agree with you more on this one. I agree with you also when you said that there aren’t many solutions to this paradox other than commitment to benefits and sharing of risks. I this that lack of sharing of risks that makes us all defensive about scope creep and scope seep. In the absence of shared commitment to benefits as well as risks, each party in an agreement is protective of their interest. It is unfortunately the reality of vendor/client relationships. Thank you so much for taking the time to comment. I look forward to continuing the conversation here and on you blog, http://www.managewithoutthem.com, which I am enjoying a lot.

]]> By: samad_aidane http://www.guerrillaprojectmanagement.com/scope-seep-or-what-happens-if-you-give-a-mouse-a-cookie/comment-page-1#comment-256 samad_aidane Wed, 24 Feb 2010 18:50:17 +0000 http://www.guerrillaprojectmanagement.com/?p=253#comment-256 Derek, I had to laugh because I have a 7 year old and that's been my experience. Thank you for taking the time to read and comment. After all, it was you post that inspired this one. So I have to thank you for that as well. Derek, I had to laugh because I have a 7 year old and that’s been my experience. Thank you for taking the time to read and comment. After all, it was you post that inspired this one. So I have to thank you for that as well.

]]> By: Derek Huether http://www.guerrillaprojectmanagement.com/scope-seep-or-what-happens-if-you-give-a-mouse-a-cookie/comment-page-1#comment-255 Derek Huether Wed, 24 Feb 2010 14:16:44 +0000 http://www.guerrillaprojectmanagement.com/?p=253#comment-255 Samad, comparing a customer to that mouse in the book is spot on! Now that I think of it, customers are not unlike my 4-year-old, to whom I read that book. They all ask and ask and ask with the hopes you will give in. Don’t blame them for asking. Just learn how to deliver a positive no. If we satisfy their wants in the short term, we often fail to meet their needs in the long term. Best Regards, Derek http://thecriticalpath.info http://twitter.com/derekhuether Samad, comparing a customer to that mouse in the book is spot on! Now that I think of it, customers are not unlike my 4-year-old, to whom I read that book. They all ask and ask and ask with the hopes you will give in. Don’t blame them for asking. Just learn how to deliver a positive no. If we satisfy their wants in the short term, we often fail to meet their needs in the long term.

Best Regards,
Derek
http://thecriticalpath.info
http://twitter.com/derekhuether

]]> By: Matthew http://www.guerrillaprojectmanagement.com/scope-seep-or-what-happens-if-you-give-a-mouse-a-cookie/comment-page-1#comment-254 Matthew Wed, 24 Feb 2010 09:58:25 +0000 http://www.guerrillaprojectmanagement.com/?p=253#comment-254 I think there is a problem with talking about the software development life-cycle (SDLC) with respect to scope management. This is because the software development life-cycle doesn't actually manage scope - it only managers the elaboration of requirements, into designs, into code, into tested code, into implemented systems. It's when the SDLC doesn't work perfectly - which is to say, always - that there are problems. So the problem in software development projects is often less about scope creep, or scope seep, it's about the IT vendor trying to shift the baseline as the project progresses. The IT vendor, wants the customer to sign off that the design will met their requirements. The customer wants the system to work like it does in their often undocumented, frequently changing vision of how it should work. There aren't many solutions to this other than commitment to benefits and sharing of risks (and a very detailed understanding of how these relating, that I wont go into here). With this in mind I'd agree that ALL change needs to be managed. However, some changes are internal and don't impact the scope, and other changes are external and do impact the scope. I think there is a problem with talking about the software development life-cycle (SDLC) with respect to scope management.

This is because the software development life-cycle doesn’t actually manage scope – it only managers the elaboration of requirements, into designs, into code, into tested code, into implemented systems.

It’s when the SDLC doesn’t work perfectly – which is to say, always – that there are problems.

So the problem in software development projects is often less about scope creep, or scope seep, it’s about the IT vendor trying to shift the baseline as the project progresses.

The IT vendor, wants the customer to sign off that the design will met their requirements. The customer wants the system to work like it does in their often undocumented, frequently changing vision of how it should work.

There aren’t many solutions to this other than commitment to benefits and sharing of risks (and a very detailed understanding of how these relating, that I wont go into here).

With this in mind I’d agree that ALL change needs to be managed. However, some changes are internal and don’t impact the scope, and other changes are external and do impact the scope.

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