Start with the agreed baseline
Attach the agreement, scope version, milestone, and included outcome that the request would alter. “We discussed it” is not enough for a buyer to compare the new work with the old commitment. If nobody can identify the baseline, pause and reconstruct it before agreeing to a cost or date.
Then write the requested outcome in observable terms. Avoid beginning with a solution like “add a dashboard.” State what the user, staff member, or buyer must be able to confirm, and name the requester's reason.
Ask for impact, not a single number
The buyer change-request record in this article's worksheet section has fields for cost, schedule, acceptance evidence, support, data, training, dependencies, assumptions, and exclusions. A supplier may not know every effect immediately; “more information needed” is a valid decision. It is safer than accepting a number whose scope is invisible.
Keep a request separate from authorization. A meeting attendee is not automatically the person who can commit budget or change the agreement. Record the buyer and supplier roles, the date through which the proposal remains valid, and whether the decision was accepted, rejected, or deferred.
Close the loop after a decision
When a change is accepted, update the affected scope, plan, acceptance packet, billing record or invoice where applicable, and support or handover material. When it is rejected, preserve the reason and leave the baseline intact. Either way, avoid treating an email thread as the only record of a material change.
This worksheet is not legal advice and is not a substitute for the contract or a qualified adviser. It does not say what price, delay, warranty, or remedy is appropriate. Its job is to stop those decisions from being hidden.
Buyer change-request worksheet
| Field | Buyer record |
|---|---|
| Record ID and date | __________ |
| Existing baseline | Agreement, version, milestone, and included outcome: __________ |
| Requested change | Observable change, requester, and reason: __________ |
| Alternatives considered | Defer, swap scope, reject, or investigate: __________ |
| Impact supplied | Cost, schedule, acceptance evidence, support, data, training, and dependencies: __________ |
| Assumptions and exclusions | __________ |
| Decision authority | Buyer role and supplier role: __________ |
| Valid-until date | __________ |
| Decision | Accepted, rejected, or more information needed: __________ |
| Documents to update | Scope, plan, acceptance packet, billing record where applicable, support, and handover material: __________ |
Does every request need a formal change record?
Use a record when the request can change a committed outcome, cost, date, acceptance evidence, or operating responsibility. Define a lighter internal threshold with the buyer's authorised owner.
Can a supplier start before the buyer signs the record?
That is a contract and relationship decision. This article does not answer it. If authority or the baseline is unclear, the safe worksheet outcome is “more information needed.”