By now, you've successfully navigated the Front-End Loading (FEL) phases, clearly defined your scope, budget, and schedule, and received approval for funding. However, the real challenge arises when plans meet the unpredictability of real-world execution. Monitoring, managing changes, and reporting effectively during this execution phase are critical to a project’s success.

 

Contractor Reporting Requirements

Detailed reporting expectations must be clearly defined early — ideally during the solicitation phase — to ensure effective project control. Three key elements to consider with contractor reporting requirements are:

Required Information Must be Specified

Explicitly state the type of information needed, including task progress, upcoming activities, recent accomplishments, roadblocks, and actionable items. Specify the report format (e.g., Excel, Microsoft Project, Primavera) to ensure data usability.

Reporting Frequency

Reporting intervals — which are typically established based on the project’s size — enable timely identification of issues and corrective action. Frequent communication helps maintain project momentum and clarity.

Report Detail

Reports should provide enough detail to enable actionable decisions without overwhelming the management team. They should also include specific metrics on schedule performance, budget status, and risk assessment outcomes.

 

Managing Change Orders

Changes will happen. Whether driven by unexpected conditions, improved technical ideas, or shifting requirements, a structured change management process with proper documentation is essential. Change orders fall into two types of categories, which is determined by the reasoning behind the change:

Design Change Orders

Design changes can be positively received as they often involve beneficial, innovative ways to achieve the same project goals more efficiently. Design changes usually involve adjustments in how requirements are implemented rather than what is implemented. They typically deliver cost, schedule, or reliability benefits.

Scope Change Orders

Usually driven by unforeseen events or missed requirements, scope changes can be particularly challenging to justify. They require a thorough evaluation and management buy-in of documented impact on costs, schedule, and potential new risks. Even legitimate scope changes can face high scrutiny, as they must demonstrate independent financial justification and alignment with organizational priorities.

Both types of change orders should follow a structured approach:

1. Document the proposed change via a Request for Information (RFI)

2. Group review to determine if there is a compelling reason supporting the change

3. Estimate the impact on scope, schedule, cost, & new risks

4. Approval or rejection by the designated management team

This ensures transparency and control, preventing unauthorized or detrimental changes.

 

Earned Value Management 

Earned Value Management (EVM) is a powerful tool that integrates project scope, schedule, and budget. To leverage EVM effectively, projects must be set up correctly during FEL phases with:

1.      A well-defined Work Breakdown Structure (WBS)

2.      Resource-loaded schedules

3.      Documented cost allocations

 

 

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EVM allows project managers to detect early deviations in schedule or budget, enabling timely corrective actions. The primary metrics used in EVM include:

• Planned Value (PV): What you planned to spend. This can also be referred to as Budgeted Cost of Work Scheduled (BCWS).

• Earned Value (EV): The amount of work that’s been performed and the budgeted cost of that work.

• Actual Cost (AC): The actual expenditure for the work completed, sometimes referred to as Actual Cost of Work Performed (ACWP).

Regularly tracking these metrics helps maintain control and transparency, providing valuable insight into how well a team is managing budget and schedule, in addition to indicating early warnings that can help prevent minor deviations from escalating.

 

The Takeaway

Effective project monitoring, proactive change management, and thorough reporting are keys to successful control system migrations. When executed properly, these processes provide significant stress relief, enabling project teams to maintain control amidst inevitable uncertainties. Organizations benefit immensely from clearly defined reporting standards, structured change processes, and earned value management practices. By incorporating these practices early and consistently, teams enhance project outcomes and organizational confidence in project delivery.

 

In the meantime, check out parts 1-5 of our control systems migration blog series.