A scope statement is a document created by a project manager at the beginning of a project to outline objectives, steps, costs, and potential obstacles. It serves as a checklist and contract between the manager and client, ensuring clarity and success.
A scope statement is a written document prepared by a project manager at the start of any significant business or construction project. This document should be shared with the client if it is an external engagement or with the sponsor if the project is carried out internally. The main purpose of a scope statement is to provide a detailed account of the project’s objectives, the steps taken to achieve them, and the obstacles and costs associated with the entire process. In this way, it can provide a kind of checklist that determines whether or not the project was a successful undertaking once completed.
A project manager’s job is to act as overseer of all the disparate aspects of any type of project his company is hired to do. Depending on the size of the project, this can be a seemingly overwhelming task without some sort of statement of goals and objectives that can be referred to during the process. A scope statement serves this purpose, and is important not only to a project manager, but also to the clients who need the work done.
Many items must be included in an effective scope statement. He must first identify the reason why this project is being carried out, setting it up as a kind of problem that the project must correct. This must be followed by any product the project intends to create. This product is essentially the solution to the problem identified in the first part.
From that point on, the scope statement should get more detailed in its descriptions of the needs and realities of the project. The statement should provide a clear picture of exactly what the project manager’s team can provide to the process and what is out of their reach and therefore must be provided by others. In this way, the manager can define exactly what can be expected of his workers during the project.
Another part of the scope statement should be devoted to costs, both in terms of how much the project will cost and, if it’s some kind of business, how much money it should generate. At project completion, a quick look at the original statement should leave no doubt as to whether or not the project’s mission was accomplished. It acts as a kind of contract between the project manager and the client and, if done well, eliminates any uncertainties that could be detrimental to both parties.
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