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Avoid Gold Plating (Project Scope Inflation)

March 20, 2009 | Author: PM Hut | Filed under: PMP, Project Management Best Practices, Scope Management

Avoid Gold Plating (Project Scope Inflation) (#10 in the series PMP Exam Themes – The Perspective You Need To Develop To Be Prepared)
By Brian Denis Egan, B.Sc, M.Sc., M.B.A., PMP - Global Knowledge Course Director

Gold plating (or project scope inflation) means overshooting on the scope of a project. It is usually done with the best of intentions. Team members working on a project believe they are ‘adding value’ to a project by going beyond the requirements.

Gold plating is a remnant of the past when the motto of project management was to “meet or exceed customers expectations”. This motto suggested that overshooting expectations was a good thing.

But overshooting is not a good thing anymore. Experience has shown that adding extras will always take more time to accomplish, and time means money. Changes are almost guaranteed to take more time and money, yet they are not guaranteed to increase customer satisfaction. It makes more sense to concentrate on delivering the project on time, within budget, and within scope.

If there is a surplus of time and money at the end of a project let the customer decide how they would like the surplus consumed, if at all.

About the Author

Brian Denis Egan is CEO of a manufacturing company (Book Box Company) and a management consultant. He has written three professional development manuals and numerous white papers on aspects of management science. Since 2000, Brian has been a part-time instructor for Global Knowledge within the Management product line.

This article was originally published in Global Knowledge’s Business Brief e-newsletter. Global Knowledge delivers comprehensive hands-on project management, business process, and professional skills training. Visit our online Knowledge Center at www.globalknowledge.com/business for free white papers, webinars, and more.

© Copyright 2008, Global Knowledge. All rights reserved.

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• Putting the Cart After the Horse - Project Planning and Scope Definition

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