How to Handle Scope Changes

Use this guide to manage mid-construction scope changes using the Change Proposal workflow.

Prerequisites

• Active DLC work in progress with at least an Intent Brief in _cat/artifacts/intent/

When You Need a Change Proposal

• Requirements changed after Intent Brief was approved
• A technical discovery during construction invalidates an ARC constraint
• Stakeholder priorities shifted mid-sprint
• An ARC constraint is impractical to implement as written

Creating a Change Proposal

cat-change-proposal

Clara and Julian jointly produce a Change Proposal with:

1. What’s changing — Explicit old → new diff
2. Why — Business or technical justification
3. Impact analysis across:
   • Intent Brief sections affected
   • ARC constraints added, modified, or removed
   • Bolt specs requiring updates
   • Completed work that may need rework
4. Recommendation — Accept, reject, or modify

Output: _cat/artifacts/construction/change-proposal-{date}.md

After the Change Is Approved

1. Update the Intent Brief — cat-intent-edit
2. Update the ARC — cat-arc-edit
3. Update affected bolt specs — cat-bolt-edit
4. Re-run readiness check — cat-readiness-check to verify traceability still holds

Avoiding Scope Creep

Not every change needs a formal Change Proposal. Use judgment:

Situation	Action
New requirement from stakeholder	Change Proposal
Bug fix within existing scope	No proposal needed
”While we’re at it…” feature	Change Proposal
Implementation detail change	Update bolt spec only
ARC constraint relaxation	Change Proposal

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See Also: Build an ARC · Construction Phase · Workflows Reference