Avoiding Gold Plating: A Guide to Preventing Scope Creep in Project Management

Gold plating and scope creep are common issues in project management that can lead to projects going over budget or missing deadlines. This article explains what gold plating is, how it differs from scope creep, and provides strategies for project managers to avoid gold plating and control scope.

What is Gold Plating in Project Management?

Gold plating refers to the practice of a project team adding extra features or deliverables that were not considered in the original project scope without the client's approval. It often occurs when the project team works ahead of schedule and decides to use the extra time to add bells and whistles to the project.

While the extra work may seem like it adds value, gold plating can negatively impact the project budget, schedule, and even quality. The client may not want or be able to pay for the additional features. Gold plating also takes time and resources away from completing the agreed-upon scope.

How Gold Plating Differs from Scope Creep

Scope creep occurs when changes or additions extend beyond the originally agreed-upon scope. The key difference between scope creep and gold plating is that scope creep involves changes requested by the client, while gold plating is extra work done by the project team without client approval.

For example, if the client requests additional features or expanding the project timeline, that would be scope creep. But if the project team adds extra features on their own without consulting the client, that is gold plating.

Why Gold Plating Causes Problems in Project Management

Gold plating may seem harmless on the surface, but it can cause several issues, including:

• Increased project costs without additional budget - Adding unplanned work can require more time, resources, and money. But if the client hasn't approved the extra costs, the project budget can overrun.

• Scheduling delays - Taking time to gold plate means time is taken away from completing the agreed-upon scope on schedule.

• Lower quality - Attempting too many extra features can spread resources too thin and result in poor quality work.

• Scope confusion - The client may not understand which features were part of the original scope vs. gold plating, making project acceptance confusing.

• Disappointed stakeholders - Clients may be unhappy if expected features are dropped while gold plated features remain.

• Reputation damage - Gold plating without client transparency can damage trust between the client and project team.

Real-World Examples of Gold Plating

To understand how gold plating can sneak into projects, consider these examples:

• Website Development: The project scope is to build a simple 10-page business website. But the developers finish ahead of schedule and use the extra time to build additional web pages, plugins, and complex animations that the client didn't request.

• Software Application: The engineering team adds advanced features and flashy custom graphics to the UI that weren't in the specifications. The gold plated features cause bugs in the original required functions.

• Construction Project: While renovating a kitchen, the contractors install luxury finishes like marble countertops and hardwood floors without approval. The client can't afford the high-end materials and doesn't want to pay.

• Marketing Campaign: The marketing team shoots extra promotional videos and adds social media contests to the campaign plan without consulting the client. The client asks to scale back the tactics to fit their budget.

Best Practices for Avoiding Gold Plating

Here are some tips project managers can follow to avoid unnecessary gold plating and control project scope:

• Develop a written scope statement - Detail the project deliverables, boundaries, and requirements that both parties agree to. Use it as a reference if scope questions arise later.

• Define a change management process - Make sure any changes to scope go through a formal approval process before work begins. Get signoff from the client for additions.

• Reinforce scope in team meetings - Regularly remind the team about the scope baseline and get agreement that they will not gold plate without approval.

• Review project status frequently - Through regular status meetings or reports, ensure the project is progressing per the scope and budget.

• Control timesheets and resource allocation - Verify team members are spending time only on work related to items in the project scope.

• Watch for warning signs - Be proactive about identifying possible gold plating, like finishing way ahead of schedule or team eagerness to add extra features.

• Have an open dialog with clients - Discuss any proposed changes and keep clients looped in so there are no surprises.

• Avoid overpromising - Be realistic in estimating project timelines, budgets, and deliverables. Don't make commitments to clients you can't keep.

Tips for Dealing with Gold Plating If It Occurs

Even with the best preventive efforts, gold plating can still happen. Here is how to address it if the project team adds features without approval:

• Be transparent with the client - Explain the situation exactly, take accountability, and apologize for the misstep.

• Remove gold plated items if possible - Offer to pull the extra features to get back on track with the original scope and schedule.

• Renegotiate the scope - If the client wants to keep the gold plated work, discuss how to update the scope, budget, timeline, and project plan.

• Analyze the root cause - Reflect on why the gold plating happened and how to improve scope management going forward.

• Don't assign blame - Work as a team to address what happened and avoid pointing fingers at specific team members.

• Implement lessons learned - Put preventive measures in place and educate the team on scopes and the change process to avoid gold plating again.

Key Takeaways on Preventing Gold Plating

A few important points to remember about avoiding gold plating:

• Document detailed scope requirements upfront and get written client signoff.

• Enforce a formal change process for any scope changes or additions.

• Rein in overeager team members who want to gold plate by maintaining focus on the agreed-upon scope.

• Foster open communication with clients and avoid promising more than you can realistically deliver.

• Act quickly if gold plating occurs to reconcile with the client and stop further issues.

Controlling scope and preventing unauthorized changes is a key part of project management. Following best practices around scope definition, change control, client communication and proactive status discussions can help project managers avoid gold plating.