Monitoring & Controlling
Monitoring/controlling is a continuous process throughout the project life cycle. Project managers and team members need to establish a cycle to evaluate the progress of the project and report back to stakeholders about project developments.
Validating and Controlling Scope
This is a key component of the monitoring/controlling process group. Keep the following in mind:
Ensures that all the tasks necessary to achieve the project goals are completed.
Identify if any activities need to be added to the project.
Prevent work on the project from going beyond the scope.
Determine what to do if any activity is taking more time than planned.
Scope Creep
This occurs when work is added to the project without appropriately adjusting the schedule and resources, and without obtaining sponsor approval.
Routinely review the Acceptance Criteria that were established in the project to make sure that the products of a project will satisfy project stakeholders’ needs and meet their standards.
Avoiding scope creep should start early in the project, ideally during the initiating process when you established a goal and set the boundaries for the project’s work and scope. During the planning process you established what would not be included or would be “out of scope” for the project. If you establish early what is and what is not a part of the project’s scope you can rely on and monitor those plans to help you avoid scope creep.
Adjust for the unexpected
It is more than likely that you will encounter some surprises as the project progresses. This is OK, it is what monitoring and controlling is for. Discuss any surprises that occur as project work is being done. If a change needs to occur, review the schedule, resources and scope to see if there are other changes that need to be made.
Status Reports
A status report is an effective way to monitor and document of the progress of your project — and to communicate that progress to others. Each status report should include:
What work has been completed
What tasks are in progress
What work is still planned
What issues have developed
Status reports can help identify items that might affect the project scope, timeline, budget or deliverables. For example, if you raise money to buy a 3D printer but this arrives 2 weeks late, this will affect your timeline and you may not have time to 3D print your wheels for the regional final.
Key Terms:
Closing process: The process(es) performed to formally complete or close a project, phase, or contract.
Lessons Learned: The knowledge gained during a project which shows how project events were addressed or should be addressed in the future for the purpose of improving future performance.