Our Project Managers and Account Managers are in constant conflict over client scope creep, with project delivery blaming account management for giving away free work. Where should scope change accountability sit on the Accountability Chart to end this dispute?

Question

Tyler Smith · Accepted Answer

When two departments consistently blame each other for the same financial failure, the root cause is structural ambiguity on your Accountability Chart. Account Management is typically measured on client retention and relationship health, which incentivizes them to say yes to every client request. Delivery seats are measured on margin, deadlines, and project utilization, which causes them to resent out-of-scope tasks.

To end the war, you must place scope change authorization squarely in one seat and align that seat with gross margin accountability.

On your Accountability Chart, define the Project Management or Delivery Director seat to own project profitability, timeline adherence, and change order technical validation. Delivery must have the authority to flag any deliverable exceeding the signed statement of work. They price the scope extension in hours and dollars.

Assign the Account Management seat the role of client contract compliance, renewal revenue, and commercial negotiation. Account Managers are the only people permitted to present change orders to clients, but they cannot authorize non-billable additions independently.

If Account Management believes an out-of-scope deliverable must be conceded for free to preserve a strategic relationship, that financial loss must hit Account Management Scorecard measurables, not Delivery margins. If the concession exceeds a predetermined dollar threshold, the decision escalates to the Integrator.

Document these handoffs in your Level 10 Meetings. When both seats know exactly where their authority begins and ends, finger-pointing stops and gross margins stabilize.