ARTICLE SUMMARY: You have a project you have been working on for a couple of weeks and at first you were humming along at a steady pace and all was right with your design world.
As your going along all of a sudden you hit that proverbial bump in the road and realize something isn’t right, not only are things taking longer to get done, but, more and more responsibilities are being dumped in your lap and is now causing you scheduling problems, big time.
It’s called Scope Creep and it happens to the best of us, the trick is knowing what to do when it rears it’s ugly head.
In her article “How to Handle Scope Creep in Web Design” Sarita Harbour does a deep dive into Scope Creep that looks at
- What is Scope Creep?
- Characteristics of Scope Creep in Web Design
- Causes
- Solutions
If left unchecked Scope Creep could be costing you more than the money you’re not being paid for the extra work that keeps showing up out of nowhere. The increased workload caused by Scope Creep can lead to stress for the design team and a decrease in the quality of work, worse yet it can pull you away from other work putting your deadlines for your other clients in jeopardy. We know how clients frown upon missed deadlines.
Sarita finishes up her article with how Scope Creep could also turn into a business opportunity, she states “Scope creep isn’t always a bad thing. Expanding the scope of a project means more work, but it can also mean a further business opportunity. Again, communicate clearly with your client. Let them know if you can accommodate their requests and how fulfilling them will impact the budget and project deadline.”
This article is great for new and seasoned designers alike and a handy reference to have around when you feel like your project is starting to go off the rails and you’re not sure how to get it back on track.
We would be interested in your thoughts on this, please let us know in the comments.
