Changes are inevitable in every project.

With the passage of time, the targets and goals may change
and therefore, project needs alteration. However, a project leader can have three actions to apply;
corrective (deliberate action), preventive (intended action) and defect repair (intentional action) to
deal with the changes (Project Management Institute, 2013). Changes are significant and may bring
negative or positive impact on the project and overall performance (Wysocki, 2013). Few of the
events are out of the control of project team and they have to undergo changes keeping in mind
the issues, risks and financial factors. However, change must be implemented with a proper control
process and strategy. Improper implementation of changes may lead to;
1- Run over costs
2- Negatively affect agreement between or among parties
3- Time barred

The case study of Corwin Corporation is the best example of improper implementation of change
process. The effective role of leadership was missing and changes were not anticipated. The project
manager was inexperienced and couldn’t stop the intrusion of Pat Ray and the ultimate blame of
failure was on project team. The project manager failed to established a management plan and
change management plan. He was unable to control the changes occurring. However, it is essential
for a project manager to follow some basic guidelines like;
1- Change Request Performa
2- Project Impact Statement
3- Scheduling and rescheduling
4- Change Control System (Heldman, 2013)

The most important task for any project team is to remain organized and focused. Any improper
and unanticipated change step could lead to failure of the project. To keep track of budget related
tasks, I have used MS Excel application as it helps creating pie charts and statistical figures. MS
Excel helps in keeping track of the proposed changes and actual situations. Ghantt chart may help
in scheduling at initial phases of the project and it is easy to manage proposed future changes
through it. Project team and leader can be successful only if they implement changes in right way
at right time.
References:

1. Heldman, K. (2013). PMP: project management professional exam study

guide (Seventh edition). Indianapolis, Indiana: Sybex, a Wiley brand.
2. Project Management Institute. (2013). A guide to the project management body of
knowledge (PMBOK Guide®) (5th ed.). Newtown Square, Pennsylvania: Project
Management Institute.
3. Wysocki, R. K. (2013). Effective project management: traditional, agile, extreme,
seventh edition (7th edition). Indianapolis, IN: John Wiley and Sons.

Reply:

Your discussion has increased my understanding about crucial role of change request process. In
my opinion, first of all the the proposed changes must be documented and discussed. After that
they must be integrated into the project. If changes are not documented or discussed, they may
lead to unintended risks and failures. Evaluation and analysis regarding the intended changes must
be done keeping inn view the overall scope of project. Perform integrated change control process
must be utilized by the managers to manage and implement approved changes only. It is a tool
which can help the project team and leader to continuously manage the project plan. Changes do
occur at any phase of lifecycle of a project and the team must be ready to adapt itself according to
it. Changes may occur at technical or human level which will have impact on performance,
functionality or design of the project. Moreover, a project leader must have strategic influence
and must be strict enough to have strong monitoring and controlling process to ensure effective
transition. In my opinion, Project Impact Statement is a necessary tool to forecast the impact of
the change and to check whether or not the changes must be accommodated.