Design Firm Friday: The Scope Creep Spiral (and How to Stop It)

LIKE

11

LEAVE COMMENT 0

6 min read

Every principal has watched it happen: a tidy design contract slowly swells into something unrecognizable. This can happen so slowly and so subtly that looking back, you almost feel like you’ve had an out-of-body experience. What started as a living room project now has you rethinking the entryway, updating the powder room, and hunting down patio furniture. No one sat down to renegotiate terms, but the work has doubled. That slow leak is scope creep, and if it isn’t caught early, it erodes profit, stretches timelines, and frays client relationships.

Project Creep Affects All Industries

The irony is that this isn’t unique to design. Project managers in every field will tell you the same story: once the edges blur because clients realize they want more, costs climb and work hours explode. The Project Management Institute has tracked scope creep for years, and more than half of projects still fall victim.

McKinsey’s analysis of large IT initiatives shows budgets ballooning by nearly 45% on average when requirements keep shifting. Those same projects run 7% over time and deliver 56% less value than predicted. Oxford professor Bent Flyvbjerg even coined the “iron law” of megaprojects: nine out of ten blow past their budgets, often dramatically. Different industries, same lesson; uncontrolled change is expensive.

Why It Happens in the Design Industry

Most scope creep isn’t deliberate; it’s human. Clients see possibilities as the design nears completion; their excitement grows and “just one more thing” feels harmless. On our side, we want to be accommodating. But without boundaries, generosity turns into unpaid work.

Psychological Tools You Can Use to Combat Scope Creep

Psychology helps explain why it feels so fraught. People experience surprise charges as losses (loss aversion), and once a number is set, every addition is judged against that first anchor (anchoring bias). If the starting point didn’t include the full picture, every adjustment feels unfair. Use the following techniques backed by research to frame scope, set expectations, and make transparent fees feel normal rather than a surprise.

Start with a strong anchor

The first scope discussion, estimate, or contract is your chance to frame the conversation. Include the big line items like freight, storage, installation, and sample approvals up front. Even if amounts are TBD, showing them early sets a reference point. According to meta-analyses, anchoring influences what clients will accept later, even when new data gets introduced.

Frame fees as protections rather than extras

Humans dislike losses more than they appreciate gains. The psychology of loss aversion shows that surprise fees feel worse than foreseen ones. So instead of saying “We charge shipping, installation, etc.,” reframe to “These ensure that furniture arrives undamaged/finish is preserved/install goes smoothly.” Framing hidden costs as safeguards turns them into value, not penalties.

Highlight fairness and consistency

People have a strong sense of equity. When they see that scope boundaries and change-order processes are consistent across clients, that builds trust. You might say something like, “Across all our projects, when additions are made, we document them, adjust cost/timeline, then get approval.”

That narrative reduces the sense of “why am I being charged this when others aren’t?” because you implicitly show standard practice. Research in fairness and social preference (like inequity aversion) supports that people favor arrangements that feel even and predictable.

Fuel your creative fire & be a part of a supportive community that values how you love to live.

subscribe to our newsletter

_{*please check your Spam folder for the latest DesignDash Magazine issue immediately after subscription}

Subscribe

Use social proof (norms & examples)

If clients are unsure what is “typical,” they often default to what they believe others do. One study of social proof nudges found that when people didn’t have strong preferences, showing them what others had chosen helped reduce friction in decision-making.

So use client stories, testimonials, or case studies where you delineate scope clearly, or mention “this is how most clients proceed” or “this is standard in our contracts.” It reassures clients that they’re not being charged arbitrarily; it’s the norm for solid work.

Of course, you have to be thoughtful when nudging clients in a certain direction.

Remember: Not All Reactions Are Equally “Nudgeable”

Researchers studying nudges have shown that “certain behavior might be more ‘nudgeable’ in certain populations or settings.” In other words, when people don’t have a clear preference, you can more easily guide their choice. One study illustrates that with food. At a train station, where people are simply hungry, repositioning healthy snacks can steer them toward better options. But in a movie theater, where the preference is firmly for a “treat,” that nudge simply won’t work most of the time.

Design projects can be similar. When clients don’t have a fixed opinion (say, on how shipping fees are handled, or whether project management should be a separate line item), they’re far more open to the structure you provide. That’s the “train station” moment. Show them the industry-standard process, anchor with a clear estimate, and frame fees as safeguards, and most will adopt your way of doing things without resistance.

But when preferences are strong (imagine a client who insists on price-matching vendor invoices or who expects “just one more thing” to be included), the “movie theater” dynamic applies. A gentle nudge won’t cut it. This is where you absolutely need boundaries and change-order processes to protect both you and the relationship.

If you take away anything from this article, let it be not to wait for clients to form their own anchors around scope. The earlier you show them how projects are structured, the easier it is to steer expectations before those hopes harden into demands.

Establishing Guardrails Early

The firms that avoid the worst creep start by defining deliverables in detail. “Design the living room” leaves the door wide open. “Design the living room: seating plan, lighting, rug, window treatments, art placement, finishes, and specifications” makes parameters clear, visible, and non-negotiable (unless you want to renegotiate, of course).

Explain how to add something you’re comfortable with later through a simple change order and revised timeline. Clients may not love limits, but they respect consistency.

Setting expectations is equally as important as putting up guardrails around a project. An estimate that shows freight, storage, insured receiving, and installation (marked “TBD” if needed) sets expectations that later invoices reinforce rather than contradict. PMI’s research shows that organizations with clear scope and stakeholder management deliver more projects on time and on budget.

How to Say It

Scope control doesn’t have to sound combative. You’re not “denying requests;” you’re delivering on what you promised. Below are a few ways principals keep the tone collaborative and the language concise.

• “We’d love to add that in. Let me send over a change order so the cost and schedule reflect the new work.”
• “That request sits outside the scope we agreed on. We can either swap it for something already in scope, or expand the scope and update the proposal and timeline.”
• “To give this the attention it deserves, we’ll revise the contract and then fold it into the new plan.”
• “We’d need to allocate the right team for that addition and they’re all booked out. Their next availability is [X date], so we can put you on the calendar and keep moving on the project as is until then.”

But What Do I Do When It’s Already Happening?!

So you’re already in the spiral. That’s alright; don’t panic. But don’t keep muddling through either. The most effective way through is to pause and reset before making any changes. According to PMI’s guidance, protecting the baseline, defining a change-order process, and ensuring stakeholder alignment are some of the key controls that distinguish projects that recover from creep from those that don’t. That discipline is what keeps projects from collapsing under their own weight. Here’s what to do.

1. Start by writing a scope memo with what’s been added, what each addition touches, and what’s still pending. Keep it clear and factual. Don’t respond to the client just yet; or do, but just say you’re working on it!
2. Next, price the delta. Does this sound like tech bro jargon? Yes. Is it essential? Also yes. Don’t try to absorb the change without assessing costs. Put numbers to the added work, whether that’s procurement time, new freight and storage, or extended project management hours.
3. Adjust the schedule accordingly once you have the new numbers.
4. Now it’s time to contact the client with new info. Get signatures, and then update the contract or issue a change order.
5. Finally, just move forward. This reset doesn’t have to stall momentum. While the paperwork catches up, reassure clients that the agreed scope is still advancing. But remember, this was their choice and it should be communicated to them. They’ll appreciate understanding the implications of that decision.

Written by the DesignDash Editorial Team
Our contributors include experienced designers, firm owners, design writers, and other industry professionals. If you’re interested in submitting your work or collaborating, please reach out to our Editor-in-Chief at editor@designdash.com.