Change Control Plan

Change Control is a formal process used to ensure that changes to a product or system are introduced in a controlled and coordinated manner. It reduces the possibility that unnecessary changes will be introduced to a system without forethought, introducing faults into the system or undoing changes made by other users of software. The goals of a change control procedure usually include minimal disruption to services, reduction in back-out activities, and cost-effective utilization of resources involved in implementing change.

Change control is currently used in a wide variety of products and systems. It is a major aspect of the broader discipline of change management. Typical examples from the computer and network environments are patches to software products, installation of new operating systems, upgrades to network routing tables, or changes to the electrical power systems supporting such infrastructure and off course change in the project’s scope.

Change Reasons

Let's consider some of these reasons:

Change Driver	Comment
The business needs have changed	Business needs are changing ever more rapidly, particularly as competitors explore new business models. All businesses must be willing to change if they are to remain competitive.
The organization has changed	It is surprisingly common to find that the organization undergoes some form of restructuring during the life of a project. This could involve mergers, acquisitions, being taken over, new departments, new business leaders, new products, new accounting structures, new locations etc.
Exploit technology improvements	The available technology improves constantly. All the time your Project Team are trying to exploit the various technology components, each of those components has a large team of people working to create a better version - and thus to make your version obsolete.
The organization’s priorities have changed	Although the scope and objectives of your project remain valid, the organization may decide that there are other business needs that have high priority and should be addressed.
New business partners and channels	Organizations are responding to the rapidly changing marketplace by forming new business partnerships and alliances. New business channels are becoming available through those relationships, e.g. using industry hub portals and intermediaries.
New legislation and regulations	There may be unavoidable external requirements over which you have no control, such as new regulations for data privacy, changed regulatory reporting requirements etc.
Globalization, standards etc.	The organization is making progress in presenting and managing itself as a global entity and, hence, there are new or revised standards for such things as website design, database definitions, corporate knowledge sharing, data warehouses etc.
Effect of other projects and initiatives	Other initiatives within the organization result in revised needs for this project, e.g. there is a new accounting system so the interface from our new system will have to be changed.
We messed up	Or, to put it more discreetly, elements of the project's design and deliverables do not fully meet the defined need and will need to be re-worked.

“A user is somebody who tells you what they want the day you give them what they asked for” - Unknown author