2.7 Good change mechanisms should achieve at least the following outcomes:
• A clear process with clearly defined roles, responsibilities and timescales;
• Quick and efficient procedures (appropriate to the scale and complexity of the change required), with transaction time and cost kept to a minimum;
• Transparent pricing; and
• Value for Money.
2.8 As a minimum, an operational project change protocol should cover:
• Notification and Specification of the change;
• Contractor's estimate;
• Authority Approval;
• Change Implementation;
• Funding and Payment;
• Due Diligence;
• Documentation and monitoring; and Relationship with the existing contractual provisions.
2.9 Authorities should also consider whether different procedures are required for low, medium and high value changes. These are discussed in more detail later in this document. pre-SoPC 4 contracts may not differentiate between different values of variations.