Luis BrancoCEO| Business Insight, Consultores de Gestão, LdªCarcavelos, Lisboa, Portugal
Ixchel Izasmendi Moctezuma This is a great question — and one that arises frequently in real-world project environments.
According to the PMBOK® Guide (7th Edition), effective change management should be tailored to the project’s context, with thresholds or tolerances for formally initiating change control clearly defined in the project’s governance or change management plan, ensuring alignment with the project’s objectives and intended value.
(See PMBOK® Guide 7th Edition, Performance Domains: Planning & Measurement.)
While the 7th Edition moves away from prescriptive processes, it emphasizes the importance of establishing clear criteria for when a change should be formally evaluated and approved.
In practice, it is important not to wait until a delay becomes critical.
As soon as it becomes clear that schedule slippage cannot be recovered through internal corrective actions (such as fast-tracking or resource reallocation), it is time to initiate a discussion about change control — especially if project objectives, milestones, or external commitments may be affected.
For example, in a recent software implementation project, a 15% schedule delay that impacted the agreed go-live date led to the formal initiation of the change control process.
This approach ensured all stakeholders could evaluate alternatives and make timely, informed decisions.
Key steps include:
- Assessing the impact — not all delays require formal change control, but if objectives or commitments are at risk, this is a clear trigger.
- Escalating according to the thresholds and tolerances defined in the project plan.
- Documenting the context, root cause, actions attempted, and rationale for the formal change. This level of transparency builds trust and facilitates future reviews.
The bottom line is to initiate change control as soon as a delay exceeds the agreed thresholds or tolerances — and always before the impacts become unmanageable.
Early engagement enables creative solutions and reduces project risk.
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1 reply by Ixchel Izasmendi Moctezuma
Jul 18, 2025 12:56 AM
Ixchel Izasmendi Moctezuma
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Hello Sr. Lui Branco.
Thank you very much of your guidance. Each point you mentioned is valuable especially the reminder to ensure the project remains manageable by respecting established thresholds and tolerances.
It depends on the organization's PM policies/standards as well as the change management plan for the specific project.
In theory, a delay is a variance and wouldn't be accepted by stakeholders as a change to approved baselines. However, many organizations' policies permit unrecoverable variances to be formalized as baseline changes.
In such cases, I would suggest the change request could be submitted as soon as it is confirmed that there is no way to make up the delay and the impacts to all other key project variables (e.g. cost, staffing, benefits) have been assessed.
Kiron
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2 replies by Ixchel Izasmendi Moctezuma and Zakaria Botros
Jul 15, 2025 2:00 PM
Zakaria Botros
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Great points! Change management really depends on the organization's approach and its PM policies. Some organizations only allow changes to scope or budget, but not timelines. Others might not have a formal change management process, instead using editable project documents that go through multiple iterations. It all comes down to the organization’s standards and the specific change management plan for each project.
In theory, delays are considered variances and not typically accepted as changes to the approved baselines. However, many organizations have policies that allow for unrecoverable variances to be formally integrated into the baseline. In these cases, I’d recommend submitting a change request once it’s clear that the delay can’t be recovered and the impacts on cost, staffing, and other variables have been fully assessed.
Jul 18, 2025 1:07 AM
Ixchel Izasmendi Moctezuma
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Hello Mr. Kiron
Thank you very much for your response. It´s becoming much clearer to me now how I should procced and take appropriate action to action.
Senior Projects Manager | Field & Marten AssociatesNew Westminster, British Columbia, Canada
Ixchel, in our Real Estate Development projects, a change control is normally initiated as soon as it becomes clear that a project delay will significantly impact the approved scope, schedule, cost, or quality. This typically occurs when the delay is confirmed and cannot be resolved through internal mitigation efforts. If the delay affects key milestones or deliverables and requires adjustments to the baseline plan, formal change control is necessary to ensure proper documentation, stakeholder communication, and approval.
Waiting too long can lead to misaligned expectations, resource conflicts, and uncontrolled project drift. To avoid surprises and maintain transparency, it’s best to raise a change control as soon as the delay is known to require adjustments that deviate from the approved project plan. Saving Changes...
PMO Leader | Speaker & Mentor | Content Leader – PMOGA Latin America
Hub| Catholic University of UruguayMontevideo, Montevideo, Uruguay
The appropriate time to initiate a change control for a delayed project is crucial to minimize negative impacts on the schedule, budget, and quality. Here are key considerations for determining when a change control is necessary:
Identify Deviations: Initiate change control as soon as significant deviations from the project plan are identified, such as schedule delays or cost overruns.
Impact Assessment: Evaluate the potential impact of the delay on the project's budget, schedule, and objectives before implementing change control.
Team Consultation: Consult with the project team and stakeholders to explore alternative solutions and assess the need for formal change.
Documentation and Approval: Formally document the change request and seek approval to ensure controlled and transparent management of changes.
Corrective Actions: Once approved, implement specific corrective actions to address the delay and realign the project with its original goals.
In summary, change control should be initiated as soon as significant deviations are identified, with careful impact assessment, team consultation, and proper documentation to ensure effective management and minimize negative impacts. Saving Changes...
Project Manager | Driving Clean Energy Innovations for a Sustainable Future| Canadian Nuclear Laboratories Ontario, Canada
Jul 15, 2025 4:50 AM
Replying to Kiron Bondale
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Ixchel -
It depends on the organization's PM policies/standards as well as the change management plan for the specific project.
In theory, a delay is a variance and wouldn't be accepted by stakeholders as a change to approved baselines. However, many organizations' policies permit unrecoverable variances to be formalized as baseline changes.
In such cases, I would suggest the change request could be submitted as soon as it is confirmed that there is no way to make up the delay and the impacts to all other key project variables (e.g. cost, staffing, benefits) have been assessed.
Kiron
Great points! Change management really depends on the organization's approach and its PM policies. Some organizations only allow changes to scope or budget, but not timelines. Others might not have a formal change management process, instead using editable project documents that go through multiple iterations. It all comes down to the organization’s standards and the specific change management plan for each project.
In theory, delays are considered variances and not typically accepted as changes to the approved baselines. However, many organizations have policies that allow for unrecoverable variances to be formally integrated into the baseline. In these cases, I’d recommend submitting a change request once it’s clear that the delay can’t be recovered and the impacts on cost, staffing, and other variables have been fully assessed.
Ixchel Izasmendi Moctezuma This is a great question — and one that arises frequently in real-world project environments.
According to the PMBOK® Guide (7th Edition), effective change management should be tailored to the project’s context, with thresholds or tolerances for formally initiating change control clearly defined in the project’s governance or change management plan, ensuring alignment with the project’s objectives and intended value.
(See PMBOK® Guide 7th Edition, Performance Domains: Planning & Measurement.)
While the 7th Edition moves away from prescriptive processes, it emphasizes the importance of establishing clear criteria for when a change should be formally evaluated and approved.
In practice, it is important not to wait until a delay becomes critical.
As soon as it becomes clear that schedule slippage cannot be recovered through internal corrective actions (such as fast-tracking or resource reallocation), it is time to initiate a discussion about change control — especially if project objectives, milestones, or external commitments may be affected.
For example, in a recent software implementation project, a 15% schedule delay that impacted the agreed go-live date led to the formal initiation of the change control process.
This approach ensured all stakeholders could evaluate alternatives and make timely, informed decisions.
Key steps include:
- Assessing the impact — not all delays require formal change control, but if objectives or commitments are at risk, this is a clear trigger.
- Escalating according to the thresholds and tolerances defined in the project plan.
- Documenting the context, root cause, actions attempted, and rationale for the formal change. This level of transparency builds trust and facilitates future reviews.
The bottom line is to initiate change control as soon as a delay exceeds the agreed thresholds or tolerances — and always before the impacts become unmanageable.
Early engagement enables creative solutions and reduces project risk.
Hello Sr. Lui Branco.
Thank you very much of your guidance. Each point you mentioned is valuable especially the reminder to ensure the project remains manageable by respecting established thresholds and tolerances.
...
1 reply by Amit Kapoor
Jul 20, 2025 4:15 PM
Amit Kapoor
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I think change management is required whenever the change is initiated to take care of the consequences it poses. As it will not only resolve the concern but also helps in mitigating the risks further.
It depends on the organization's PM policies/standards as well as the change management plan for the specific project.
In theory, a delay is a variance and wouldn't be accepted by stakeholders as a change to approved baselines. However, many organizations' policies permit unrecoverable variances to be formalized as baseline changes.
In such cases, I would suggest the change request could be submitted as soon as it is confirmed that there is no way to make up the delay and the impacts to all other key project variables (e.g. cost, staffing, benefits) have been assessed.
Kiron
Hello Mr. Kiron
Thank you very much for your response. It´s becoming much clearer to me now how I should procced and take appropriate action to action. Saving Changes...
Change management is the way to go as per the current scenarios in the PMI global benchmarks. as more and more organizations are leading towards growth, change is evident and should be tackled in the most professional manner. Saving Changes...
Sergio Luis ConteHelping to create solutions for everyone| Worldwide based OrganizationsBuenos Aires, Argentina
First of all, one thing is Change management and other thing is Project change management. The second is a subset of the first. Second thing, you must (sorry for using must) put clear the project change management process from the very beginning of the project. You must agree that with all the stakeholders. If not, the project will fail indeed. Saving Changes...
Marc KaneAssociate Director | Digital Core - Oracle| AccentureLos Angeles, CA, United States
The short answer: as soon as the delay begins to impact scope, budget, timeline, or stakeholder alignment (and not a moment later).
From a governance perspective, the best time to initiate a change control is not when “we feel like we’re late,” but when the integrated schedule says we are deviating beyond tolerances agreed upon in the baseline. That moment might not feel dramatic, but that’s the point. Change control, done right, is boring. Quiet. Controlled. But behind that process is a signal to leadership that you are safeguarding delivery integrity with discipline. Saving Changes...
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