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Who Is the Change Authority in PMP? (It’s not always the PM)
- Authors
- Name
- passpmpnow
The idea
Change Authority = the role or body authorized to approve changes. It depends on the type/impact of change and your governance model.
Common cases
- Low-impact changes (no baseline hit): PM or Product Owner (in agile)
- Baseline-affecting changes: CCB (Change Control Board)
- High-risk / regulatory / contract changes: Sponsor or Governance Board
- Agile backlog item tweak with no scope baseline: Product Owner (within agreed guardrails)
How the exam tests you
- If question says: “A change impacts cost baseline” → escalate to CCB
- If question says: “Regulator requires a new compliance step” → likely Governance Board / Sponsor
- If question says: “Team wants to refactor within sprint, no scope/cost change” → PO / team-level governance
Don’t fall into these traps
- “PM approves everything” → Not always
- “Customer requested → do it” → Still follow change control
- “Agile means no governance” → Agile has clear authority (PO + team + org guardrails)
Quick checklist for answers
- Is a baseline impacted?
- Is there a contract or regulation involved?
- Does your charter/plan name a CCB or board?
- If agile and minor, is it within PO authority?