Defining scope of work is an essential part of any software development project. Productivity and efficiency increase, when every member of the development team knows exactly what to do in advance. It helps to deliver your project on time and exclude contingencies.
Basic knowledge of scope development workflow will help you better understand the value of your software project and avoid traps that can be committed by BA.
There is a number of sources that can be useful within defining the scope including RFPs, conversations with a customer, discussing problem statements and so on. You can classify scope of work into 3 groups depending on the type of requirements.
Solution Scope
Solution scope focuses on “what” defining both functional and nonfunctional features, characteristics that are needed for the market. It is better to make a Solution scope first to understand the complexity, risks and required activities clearly. Solution scope can also help you to find out whether a product is competitive in the market.
Understanding of Solution scope can simplify collaboration between PM and development team as well as improve communication with stakeholders during the meetings. Usually, Solution scope includes scope statements and scope model. Using both options will give you two different points of view and clear overview whether the features correlate with business goals and take the best decision on the investment.
Product Scope
Product scope is often compared to Solution scope as it describes the components included in the features’ set. It can include consideration of business, user, functional and technical requirements. Product scope can become a good basis for Project scope and help Project Manager understand the specifics of the project.
Defining a Product Scope you can consider low-level and high-level requirements. High-level requirements represent the overview without a deep explanation of the point. For example, a mobile application allows users to schedule meetings in their calendars. Low-level requirements are specific and give a detailed description of a feature or a product. For example, mobile application users can arrange meetings using the New Event button choosing the day, time and place of a meeting. It is highly recommended to go from high-level to specific ones to figure out what features should be prioritized.
Project Scope
Project scope focuses on “how” and includes a description of all activities required for a successful delivery. It considers project implementation needs and steps a team has to take to achieve the result. Project scope is also used to specify a list of tasks and deadlines, goals, costs and deliverables. Project scope can become a guideline for a development team and help them stay focused on specific tasks.
Working on Project scope involves a Project Manager
Working on Project scope usually involves a Project Manager. By the way, a collaboration between BA and PM can become a powerful tool in terms of requirements management and performance analysis.
If you want to deliver strong software solution, it is important to consider Project, Product and Solution scope separately to cover all product specifications. Exposit Business Analysts and Project Managers can help you consider all the important requirements to meet your primary business needs. Contact us to share your project idea and transform it into an outstanding software solution.
