Change Management, Change Control, Change Request

A group of related terms that should refer to a formalized system for documenting and implementing changes to products or “deliverables” to meet customer requests. Changes and customizations (or customer configurations) are often ubiquitous in high technology, especially software, and can be minor or fundamental. Good practice requires a formal process of managing such changes, since an unmanaged process can result in unpredictable costs, futile or un-fulfillable promises, resource over-stretch, unidentified and untraceable “bugs,” etc. The key to a successful change management system is to, a priori, establish a system for documenting and implementing changes and enforce use of the system. Typical system steps are first, customer proposes a change; second (i) feasibility, (ii) cost, (iii) impact on other deliverables, (iv) system dependencies and (v) time-frame for execution are evaluated and communicated to customer; third, the customer agrees to change proposal and price; fourth, change process is implemented and documented; and fifth change is delivered. Such a change management process is often present is technology development and supply contracts.

Related Terms

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