The complexity of realizing global projects involving numerous industries is driving forward a need for change management processes that can enable organizations to respond to an increasingly dynamic marketplace. This paper examines configuration management (CM) as a critical component for managing change. In doing so, it identifies the several categories of CM before focusing this discussion on the category called configuration control (CC). It explains why many project managers perceive CC as a restraining and confining process; it outlines CC’s purpose and implementation process. It then details CC’s three components: documents, which includes processes such as configuration management plan (CMP) and configuration control plan (CCP); process, which involves change documentation, change approval, data collection, and change implementation; and closed-loop process, which entails technical review, change board review (CBR), and change implementation board (CIB). It also explains how project managers can execute a fast-track version of the closed-loop. It concludes by pointing out how organizations can successfully implement CC processes.

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http://www.pmi.org/learning/library/configuration-control-release-handcuffs-7440