THE CREEPING CREEPS OF EVERY PROJECT – SCOPE, EFFORT AND HOPE CREEP

You might be familiar with Scope creep, but not Effort and Hope Creep. Meet them here.

Introduction

The Cambridge English Dictionary defines ‘creep’ as “to move slowly, quietly, and carefully, usually in order to avoid being noticed. The Longman Dictionary also defines it nicely thus “to move in a quiet and careful way, especially to avoid attracting attention” Project Managers/Leaders are seen as individuals who know the end of the project from the beginning. They are seen to have the entire project walled up in order to prevent any form of unwanted entry that may distort a portion, especially the triple constraints (Scope, Budget and Schedule) of the project. Whiles actively looking out for agents and activities that could result in tilting any of the components off-track, very little attention is paid to the creeps. The creeps are usually “passively active”.

Scope Creep

Project Management Institute defines Scope creep as “the uncontrolled expansion of project or product scope without adjustments to cost, time and resources”. Most often than not, changes to the scope of the project or product will result in a corresponding change in the magnitude of time(schedule) and cost (Budget). The possible need for different skillsets will result in training an existing project team member to acquire those skillsets or hiring an entirely new resource as a result of the proposed or recommended change. The time required to train the existing team member or to recruit a new resource might also be significant enough to affect the expected handing over date of a deliverable or the entire project product or result. Scope creep begins with a poorly articulated project objectives. To prevent or minimize scope creep and its accompanying effects on the project and by extension, the credibility of the Project Manager, these pointers can be helpful; • Ensure all stakeholders understand the content of the Project Scope statement and where applicable, have major stakeholders sign it off. The Project scope statement among other things, contains what is included and what is not included in the scope. • Even though the Project Scope statement is signed off by the Sponsor as part of the Project Charter, it is a living document which must be progressively developed with key features and descriptions that paint the true picture of the expected product, service or result of the project. • Be concise on the deliverables including ancillary features, capabilities and or functionalities that form the components of the final product, service or result. • Acceptance criteria must be clear and concise. They must also be consistently and unambiguously communicated within the project team and the lager stakeholder community in order to manage stakeholder expectations throughout the project life-cycle. • The assumption log must be inclusively developed, to ensure the most critical ones are captured. • One of the key weapons for the Project Manager in dealing with Scope creep is the “Exclusion list”. The exclusion list enumerates all features, characteristics, functionalities or capabilities that may be expected by “any reasonable person” to be present in the final project product, service or result, but will not be present. It is important for the Project manager to seek guidance from his/her subject matter experts on the project like Engineers, Medical professionals, Communication professionals, etc in having an exhaustive elusion list. All items that are not on the exclusion list and also do not appear in the requirements documentations have often provided fertile grounds for conflicts and possible litigation. • Make use of visual controls to disseminate information on the status of the work, including the rules and the underpinning data based on which those decisions were made. Even in the event of a particular risk manifesting and becoming an issue, visual controls radiate these. Interruptions to project workflow or activities that emanate from without the project team are also published on the visual controls. •  In order to carry the entire or the greater proportion of the stakeholders along the project lifecycle, updates to crucial documents like assumptions log, requirements documentation, requirements traceability matrix and stakeholder register is essential. • Finally, ensure there is a known change control processes in place. As much as possible, let all requested changes, recommended corrective, preventive actions be processed through the Integrated Change Control Process. Usually, Project Managers on smaller projects are at a loss how to institute an Integrated Change Control Process and or a Change Control board as is the recommended standard. You can however begin with a simple change request form, empanel the team members who are responsible for cost, schedule and scope unto a change control board, to perform the assessment/evaluation of the proposed or recommended change and its impact on the triple constraints. As the Project Manager, use their recommendations as a guide to take a decision on the said change, i.e. accept, reject or defer to the next phase, the requested change.  Change is inevitable and hence should not be seen as a bad thing. Not even the most extensive planning regimes have been able to eliminate change entirely from projects. The growth or expansion of the project or product scope occurs slowly, quietly and carefully. The manner is ostensibly to avoid being noticed. These changes do not have legs; they creep in through human agents. These agents are stakeholders. Just like creeping plants which have very fragile, long and thin stems and can neither stand erect nor support their own weight, the creeps are unable to support themselves into any project except through human agents.   To avoid scope creeping, provide a single entrance/gate for all stakeholders who desire to propose or recommend all forms of change to pass through. With this instituted, any stakeholder who attempts to introduce any form of change outside of this agreed and known system is an agent of scope creep and must not be entertained. Such stakeholders will usually refuse to fill a form or write anything on record concerning the change s/he is recommending. As the Project Manager, you will need to be firm and fair in saying no to everyone who insists on doing the wrong thing or even doing the right thing the wrong way. One of the key benefits of implementing project management practices is transparency. Transparency breeds conformance and to a large extent, performance.

Others also read: understanding-scope-creep-in-your-project-management-how-to-avoid-it

Effort Creep

Effort creep can be likened to the team filling up a leaking tank with water. In effort creep, very little or no progress is made, no matter the efforts that is put in by the team. This usually happens at the beginning or at the near-end of a project.

Anxiety meets over-optimism

Over-optimistic Project Managers and team leads make estimates and provide timelines on behalf of the team members, often without their inputs. The effort required to accomplish tasks, produce certain deliverables or the entire project product or result is also underestimated. The anxious team members who are eager to prove their worth and the over-optimistic team lead or Project Manager quickly get to work with conflicting mind-sets; “How am I going to fit in here?” against “This is a small job! We should be able to finish and hand over by end of next month!” The lack of coordination at this point results in lack of proper sequencing of activities, rework and lack of motivation. A look at the man-hours that have gone into the project and the resulting wages that have been paid will be seen to be more than the amount of work that have actually been completed or produced. Essentially, the effort put into the work is not proportionate to the progress made. Effort creep is a latent cost centre.

The Forming - Norming effect

Characteristic of the forming stage of the Tuckman’s team model, at this point, team members are unsure of the purpose of the team, nor objectives of the tasks they have been assigned. They are also unsure whether they are good fits for the team and worry over whether they will get along with other team members. To confront effort creep, the Project Manager: • Should institute regular status meetings with the team member(s) involved in the task, activity or the project concerned.

Hope Creep

Hope creep, also called the students’ syndrome is basically telling lies about the actual schedule, progress or completed tasks, with the hope of achieving them before the physical inspection of superiors, clients or other stakeholders. Team members can lie to team leaders, team leaders can lie to Project Managers; Project Managers can lie to clients or Sponsor(s). If hope creep occurs down the ladder, it is generally believed that the Project Manager will be able to find out and correct it in order to present the true status of the project or particular tasks. If the phenomenon, however is being perpetrated by the Project Manager, it becomes dangerous and threatens the credibility of the Project Manager and the Profession. Hope creep begins with lying about the status of minor tasks/activities and progresses to the dissemination of misleading or dubious reports Project Managers who fall for this temptation often live in fear; knowing that s/he will be fired when caught. They are usually fired as anticipated, when caught. In order to overcome this particular creep, Project Managers should; • Institute physical checks mechanisms into the product/deliverable acceptance processes • Do away with the fear of telling the truth; but rather embrace the fear of being caught and being humiliated. • Conquer the fear of looking stupid when you tell the truth and accept responsibility for erroneous estimates or assumptions. • Keep the PMI Code of Ethics handy. For members of the Project Management Institute, individuals who have registered to take any Certification exam of the Institute, you are bound by these Code of ethics and professional conducts https://bit.ly/3D1wx2p Frank Owusu-Asamoah, PMP®, MSc, AH-MC