Give the change an identity before debating the price
Assign a stable identifier as soon as a potential change appears. Record who raised it, the location, the date and the question being answered. Describe the original scope before describing the proposal. This prevents a quotation from becoming the only explanation of why the work changed.
Distinguish a request for information, a proposed change and an instruction that the authorized parties have accepted. A question about a drawing may end with no cost change at all. CMHC’s construction guidance recommends a process for approving changes to plans, schedule and design. Choose a workflow that lets the team see those decisions without treating every open question as approved spending.
- Assign an identifier used in every related document.
- Describe the original and proposed scope.
- Separate questions, proposals and authorized instructions.
Build a price that another person can reconcile
Request a breakdown appropriate to the change: added work, omitted work, quantities, rates, subcontractor amounts and stated assumptions. Show taxes consistently with the project budget, and identify whether the amount is fixed, estimated or subject to later measurement. Have the responsible reviewer check contractual pricing rules before accepting the proposal.
For a fictional corridor finish change, the proposed replacement costs $18,000 and omitted work creates a $6,000 credit. The resulting proposed addition is $12,000 before the example’s excluded tax treatment. Keep the credit visible. If the budget later shows an $18,000 addition while the omitted item remains, the log should make that mismatch easy to find.
- Show additions and credits separately.
- Record estimate limitations and pricing assumptions.
- Reconcile the net change with the budget version.
Explain the schedule effect instead of adding days blindly
Ask which activity changes, what must happen before it starts and what work depends on its completion. A supplier’s three extra days may affect the project completion date, fit within an existing allowance or overlap another delay. The answer belongs in the schedule review, not only in the price column.
In the corridor example, suppose material availability adds three working days to one activity. Record the affected delivery, installation and inspection tasks, then ask the scheduler to confirm the effect on the completion forecast. If another approved change affects the same period, summing both durations may overstate the delay. Preserve the individual assumptions while keeping one reviewed project forecast.
- Identify affected activities and dependencies.
- Record whether delays overlap or affect completion.
- Update the reviewed forecast rather than just a total.
Make approval evidence and authority easy to find
Define the person responsible for technical review, commercial review and final authorization. A team member confirming that a product fits is not necessarily authorizing the price. Record the decision date and the document reference when the required approval is obtained. Keep rejected and superseded proposals visible so they cannot be mistaken for current instructions.
The RBQ’s Quebec residential renovation contract model illustrates written, signed amendments attached to the contract. That model has a specific context; a development project must follow its own agreement. Ask the contract administrator how notices, signatures, emergency instructions and disputes should be handled. A status marked approved in a software tool is a record of a decision, not the decision’s legal foundation.
- Identify the authority for each type of decision.
- Reference the actual approval document and date.
- Keep rejected and superseded versions distinguishable.
Connect the decision to drawings, site work and payment review
Once authorized, check who needs the updated information: design consultants, affected trades, the scheduler and the person reviewing invoices. Record which drawing or specification version applies. Toronto’s plan-review information provides a channel for revised drawings and supporting material; the project team should confirm with its own authority whether the proposed change requires a permit revision or other review.
On site, link the change identifier in the daily log and relevant task notes. When an invoice arrives, compare it with the approved amount and the work evidence. Record unresolved differences instead of quietly editing the approved value. The original authorization, later adjustment and payment review should remain understandable as separate events.
- Identify the current drawing or specification revision.
- Link the change to site tasks and daily records.
- Reconcile invoices without overwriting prior approvals.
Review the change log as a forecast, not just a history
Use a brief recurring review to separate draft, submitted, approved and rejected changes. Show approved budget adjustments and unresolved exposure in different totals. A submitted amount may still change, but excluding all pending work makes the forecast look more certain than the team’s actual position.
For each open item, ask what is needed to reach the next decision: missing scope, a revised quote, a technical response or formal authorization. Give that action an owner and date. At project close, reconcile the log against the final scope and commercial records with the responsible advisers. Use repeated causes, such as incomplete interfaces or late selections, to improve the next project’s preparation.
- Separate approved adjustments from pending exposure.
- Assign an owner and next action to every open item.
- Reconcile final scope and costs without deleting history.
