046 Feature Creep
A continuous expansion or addition of new product features.
• Feature creep is one of the most common causes of cost and schedule overruns. This occurs because features are easy or convenient to add, accumulate over multiple generations of a product, or are added to appease internal project stakeholders.
• The key driver is the perception that more is better, and therefore features are continuously added and rarely taken away. But adding features adds complexity, and complexity is expensive.
• Beware feature creep in design and development. Ensure features are linked to customer needs, and are not added out of convenience or appeasement. Create a milestone to formally freeze the product specification, and shout “feature creeper” ...
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