If you’ve ever been a project manager, then you know that nothing tanks your profit on a project like “scope creep”– all those little additional requests a client makes while you’re in the middle of their project. It starts out innocently enough, but soon the additional work snowballs into a monster of accumulated free services you’re giving the client.
After years of building custom websites and programs for our clients, we’ve learned the main causes of scope creep and how to prevent them:
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1. Your project contract is verbal/nonexistent.
Nothing leaves you more exposed to scope creep than not having your project scope clearly defined in writing. Even if you know and trust your client well, it doesn’t mean that your relationship can’t turn sour when what you deliver is different than what the client is expecting. As our attorney eloquently warned us, “Love is good, but writing is better.” No matter how great your relationship is with your client, always put the parameters of the project in writing and, after reviewing together, have both parties initial each page and sign the final page.
Writing up a formal contract protects you both: you know what is being expected of you, and your client knows exactly what they’re getting for their money– no surprises for either of you.
A client who won’t put a contract in writing, or won’t sign one, is a red flag and likely to be a problem client. If a client refuses to work with you on putting your verbal agreement in writing, simply let them know that this is a standard procedure designed to protect both parties. If the client still refuses, then politely decline the project. The headaches from arguing over what was said or expected is not worth the money, trust us!
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2. Your project contract is ambiguous.
We’ve all heard the saying, “Measure twice, cut once.” This is truer than ever when you are writing your project contract. Make sure you express to your client (both verbally AND in writing) that if something is not expressly written in the contract, then it is not included within the scope of the project.
Another tip is to add a provision in the contract that states that any changes or revisions need to be quoted out separately. An easy way to do this is to make a Contract Addendum. Plan this addendum in the same way you wrote your original contract– be meticulous in your verbiage, quote out the additional work, and review with your client before both of you sign it.
If the client isn’t taking the time to really read and understand your contract and project scope, then arrange a meeting or conference call where you go through the contract line by line and explain what they are (and aren’t) getting with this deal. There should be zero questions before either of you sign the contract.
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3. You or your company has set a precedent for being overly flexible.
This happens all the time– if you bend once, you’ll be expected to bend time and time again. It’s the same reason why signs at parks implore you not to feed the animals– it creates an environment where the client will be encouraged to come back and ask for more! Now, don’t get us wrong– there’s nothing bad about being friendly or accommodating, but keep in mind that by throwing in “freebies” after your project scope has been defined may be inadvertently telling your client that your time or services have no value. After all, if you’re able to throw in extra work for free, then your work must be easy, right?
As we said in #2 above, gently remind the client that if work is not expressly outlined in the contract, then it is not part of the project. Offer to put together a Contract Addendum so the new requests can be included into the current project scope. Or, if you prefer, you can create a Phase 2 contract– an outline of work to be completed AFTER the original contracted work is finished.
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4. You’re too afraid to say no.
This might be the most common cause of scope creep. You’re halfway through the project, and a client asks if you could just “throw in” a couple changes. You know that saying yes to this will open a Pandora’s Box of revision requests, but you’re scared to say no– you don’t want to upset the client, or worse, lose them.
But let me ask you this: if a mechanic is working on your car’s brakes, would you ask them to “throw in” new tires? And if the mechanic refused, would you storm out and take your car somewhere else? Of course not (that is, unless you were a real jerk! 
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Contrary to popular belief, saying no doesn’t mean the end of your relationship with your client, especially when you take a friendly and personable approach. Gently remind them that the request is out of scope, and therefore can’t be accommodated by the budget you’d established for the project. Offer to meet with them to lay out the scope, timeline, and budget of this additional work, and write up a Contract Addendum. Let them know you’re happy to work with them to make the project outcome exactly what they want, but that out-of-scope work needs to be quoted out separately.
If your client turns out to be a jerk and throws a fit and/or threatens to pull the plug on the project, then you and your company really need to evaluate the worth of that client. Remember Pareto’s 80/20 Rule: roughly 80% of your profit comes from 20% of your client base, so it may actually be profitable to cut ties with a problem, inflexible client.
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5. A colleague (usually a sales person) over-promises.
This happens all the time. Your sales person closes a project, and it is passed on to the project manager to make sure it gets done. You get close to finishing the project, when all of a sudden, your client is upset: your sales person had promised this and that feature, and it’s nowhere to be seen in what you’re presenting.
This pitfall can be avoided! Simply include the project manager in pre-close negotiations with the sales manager. Read and approve the contract before it is signed. Stipulate in the contract that regardless of what was verbally agreed upon between the client and the sales person, if it is not expressly written in your contact, it is not included in the project. If the sales person agreed to something, it should have been written in the contract, and if it was accidentally omitted, then it should have been caught during the review period prior to signing. It’s that black-and-white. If they really need the omitted part, then quote it out in a Contract Addendum that is thoroughly reviewed before signed by both parties.
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The bottom line is this: there is no contract that can’t be amended to include a Contract Addendum to accommodate additional work at a price both you and the client think is fair. This stops scope creep in its tracks! Remember that the client-vendor relationship is actually an equal exchange of services– you don’t “owe” anything extra simply because you are the service provider and you don’t want to lose the client. Would it be fair to ask the client for additional money without doing any extra work on your end? The exchange should always be even if you are going to have a happy, long-term relationship.
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