How it happens
- A stakeholder requests a small addition mid-sprint.
- The PM says yes to keep the relationship warm.
- A second small addition arrives next week.
- By month two, scope has expanded 30% with no schedule change.
- By delivery, the team is overworked, the deadline slips, and the PM looks responsible.
How to recognize
- Compare current scope list to original charter. If > 10% bigger without a documented change request, you have creep.
- Watch the team's velocity vs. plan. Expanding scope without expanding velocity = silent slip.
- Listen for the words "just add" and "tiny tweak" in stakeholder requests.
↳ the prevention move
Maintain an explicit out-of-scope list from kickoff. Every new request gets compared to it. If the request is in the out-of-scope list, the conversation is short. If it's not listed but feels in-scope, file a change request — visible, traded against schedule or other scope.
How to recover
Once creep has happened, the conversation is uncomfortable but unavoidable. Map current scope vs. original. Show the delta. Three options: (1) keep the new scope, slip the date. (2) keep the date, drop new or original scope. (3) keep both, add resources. The PM doesn't pick — the sponsor does. Surfacing the trade-off is what reclaims control of the schedule.