Scope change and baselines

Question

I’m still learning MS Project and I have a question.  I created a project and fine-tuned it and set the baseline.  The project started and I was a 1/4 of the way through the project when a significant change (many additional tasks) to the scope happened.  What is the best way to now track the variance as the project moves along.  Do I set another baseline?  Thanks for the help!

Answer 1

And the real answer is: do what your project governance processes demand. If you don't have governance procedures around baselines then do what helps you report progress the best. I wouldn't however over-write the original baseline, but set a new one and record when and why you did. that way you can record progress against both baselines as and when needed.

Answer 2

mjhegg,

Project has 11 baselines available, the basic plus 10 additional. In your case it depends on whether you want/need to keep a copy of the original baseline before the scope change. If you do, then you could use one of the other baselines for the added scope. If not, then you can simply reset the baseline for just a selected set of tasks, perhaps those added by the scope change. That will roll up the added scope to summary levels but keep the original baseline for the existing tasks. However, keep in mind that added scope often impacts existing tasks and therefore you may want/need to also reset the baseline on those tasks.

If you are using earned value metrics you can set the option for which baseline to use in earned value calculations. The option is under File/Options/Advanced tab/earned value options for this project group.

Hope this helps.

John