The extreme of scope creep

I didn't want to start this blog post angry but I will. I think all freelancers have experienced this at one point. You agree to a project and price and then get overwhelmed by the changes and sudden increase in scope of what the client wants you to do. This is a trap that we can too easily fall into especially since we try to be nice and accommodating.

The Project I am referring to is one that supposedly would last only 3 weeks. It would be a tough 3 weeks but we would do our best. I write this post after over two months work on this project. I can identify already the critical points that led us down this disaster.

No final scope of work

I say "final" because it is my job to define the scope of work and that I did using the PSDs that were given to me. I created the site map, I made the project schedule and I also informed the client that we were missing some creatives based on the copy deck that I was given. Little did I know that we would miss our "lock-down" date for creatives and that more PSDs and copy deck versions would arrive via e-mail almost every day.

You don't follow the schedule because you are using Agile

I find that some people have this idea that Agile means they can continuously give things to do and change every day. This is incorrect. Agile as a methodology has a backlog of tasks that are then given to the team to work on during their sprint, usually a two week period. During that sprint, no other additional items are given. QA is also part of that sprint. Then you do the entire process again.

No task management or updated documentation of changes

I initially did documentation but when there are changes happening every day I found it difficult to keep it up. I asked that maybe the client's partner could provide documentation. I was given a site map that was 3 months old. Just when I thought we were getting a handle on the changes, whole new sections of the site would suddenly appear as new PSDs that had to be done asap.

No weekly status reports were being made because each and every day something would change. Thus, progress could hardly be measured because there was no schedule to follow anymore versus a task list. Tasks were difficult to track because people would only send e-mails and not organize the tasks and resources. Developers often found themselves doing the exact same task.

No management of expectations

There was an absolute lack of management of expectations for this project. The client was furious that their deadline wasn't met. The team was boggled at how more and more tasks kept piling up their to-do list. The supplier and their partner were walking out on each other during meetings. There was a total lack of confidence and a lack of leadership.

I'm still working on this project and this is the last one I'll take from this specific client. I hope that you learn from my mistakes. As a freelancer this is something I will always remember. You must always know the scope of your work before you take a project. If you do not have a specific scope of work then you need to work out a monthly payment scheme. A project for $1,000 for 3 weeks is fantastic. A project for $1,000 for 3 months is not. Your time is money. Make sure that you are adequately compensated for it.