Project changes are a fact of life, and every project manager should expect changes to occur sometime during the project. Change Management is the process that is used to manage these project changes.
The Change Management Plan lays out how changes will be handled during the life of the project. The approach to change management must be consistent and repeatable to provide a quality change management plan and process.
All change requests should be logged, reviewed, and approved the project owner or customer before the change is implemented.
With that introduction, there are four common types of changes that may be requested for most projects. These change requests may include schedule change, budget change, scope change, or changes to project documentation.
Scheduling Changes
Scheduling changes will impact the approved project schedule. These changes may require fast tracking, crashing, or re-baselining the schedule depending on the significance of the impact.
Budget Changes
Budget changes will impact the approved project budget. These changes may require requesting additional funding, release of funding which would no longer be required, or adding to project or management reserves. May require changes to the cost baseline.
Scope Changes
Changes impacting the project’s scope may be the result of unforeseen requirements or deliverables which were not initially planned for. These changes may also impact budget and schedule. Scope changes may require updates to project documentation such as the WBS, project scope statement, or other project documentation to incorporate the approved change.
Documentation Changes
Project documents must be revised or updated when approved changes are incorporated into the project.