How do you deal with a client when the project's scope begins to creep?

Why the Interviewer Asks This Question
The Goal
What You Need to Know
Scope Creep Example

The interviewer is asking this question to get a greater sense of how your problem-solving skills when a client is involved. The interviewer wants to get a gauge of your comfort level with client communication and your ability to manage a project. This question also indicates that part of your role will be working directly with clients.

The best way to answer this question is with an example that explains a situation, your actions and the outcome. You want to show that you are confident working with clients and adaptable when things change. You want to demonstrate your level of tact and business acumen.

The use of a creative brief for large projects is very common in agencies. There is a growing trend to use a creative brief in corporate in-house agency work. This question is an excellent opportunity to tie back to the use of a creative brief. The creative brief is essentially a contract that explains the original scope of the project. When a project scope begins to creep, the creative brief is updated and shared with the client to help show that the terms of the project have changed.

When I'm working on a project that has scope creep, I think it really important to have a conversation about it with the client. Scope creep can create risk for a project in multiple ways. It can lead to missing deadlines, rushed work close to the deadline that could be of lower quality and cost increases. Creative briefs are really helpful in this situation. A creative brief not only lays out the tone, feel and goals of design work, it specifies that deadlines, deliverables, budget and logistics. If things change with a project, you can leverage the creative brief to help drive the conversation with the client. For example, if they want more work than originally listed in the creative brief, they need to understand that the project's deadline may need to be pushed or that the cost will increase. You can update the creative brief together to reflect the scope creep.