What Is Scope of Work Software?

• Scope of work (SOW) software helps agencies and service teams produce accurate, consistent scopes.
• The hardest parts to get right are conditional sections and hours/pricing calculations — not formatting.
• Most "proposal tools" handle sending and signatures, not scope assembly.
• If your team scopes in Google Docs, you are probably doing structured work manually.
• RuleDox adds rules-based scope assembly to Google Docs.

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Scope of work software helps teams generate scope documents by standardising structure, inclusions, exclusions, and — in the best tools — calculations.

A scope of work (SOW) defines what will be delivered, what won't be delivered, what assumptions are being made, and how changes are handled. It is the delivery contract between a service provider and their client.

Good SOW software makes it possible to produce these documents consistently, without relying on one person's institutional knowledge.

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Not all SOW tools are equal. Here is what to look for:

• Standardise scope structure — every scope follows the same sections, in the same order, with the same level of detail.
• Make exclusions explicit — what is not included is as important as what is. Good SOW software forces you to define boundaries.
• Support conditional sections — different project types need different sections. The tool should include or exclude content based on variables, not manual editing.
• Calculate hours and pricing — if your scopes include time estimates or pricing, the tool should calculate these from rules, not from memory.
• Enable delegation — any team member should be able to produce a consistent scope by answering a set of questions (variables), without needing to understand every edge case.

• Google Docs or Word integration (work where your team already works)
• Version history and audit trail
• Approval workflows
• CRM or project management integration

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Most agencies start with templates. A Google Doc or Word template with standard sections, boilerplate language, and placeholders for project-specific details.

Templates help with formatting, but they don't solve the hard problem:

• Conditional logic is manual. You have to decide which sections to include and delete the rest by hand.
• Calculations are manual. You estimate hours and pricing in your head or a spreadsheet, then type the numbers into the doc.
• Consistency depends on the person. Different team members make different decisions about what to include, and the scope varies.
• Delegation is risky. Handing a template to a junior team member means they need to know the same rules the senior person knows.

Templates are a starting point. Scope of work software automates the rest.

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RuleDox is a rules-based scope assembly tool that works inside Google Docs.

How it works:

1. You define your scope variables (inputs like project type, complexity, integrations).
2. You define rules that control conditional sections, hours, and pricing.
3. When someone creates a new scope, they answer the variables.
4. RuleDox assembles the scope — including the right sections, calculating the right numbers — directly into a Google Doc.
5. The team reviews and customises the assembled draft.

What RuleDox does well:

• Rules-based conditional sections (include/exclude based on variables)
• Automatic hours and pricing calculation
• Google Docs as the authoring surface (docs stay in your Drive)
• Safe delegation (the rules are in the system, not in someone's head)

What RuleDox does not do:

• E-signatures
• Proposal sending or viewing analytics
• CRM functionality

RuleDox is designed for assembly — the part that comes before sending.

Try the live demo to see scope assembly in action

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	SOW Software (RuleDox)	Proposal Tools (PandaDoc, Proposify)
Focus	Assembling accurate scopes	Sending and signing proposals
Conditional sections	Yes (rules-based)	No (manual)
Hours/pricing calculation	Yes (from variables)	Manual pricing tables
E-signatures	No	Yes
Viewing analytics	No	Yes
Google Docs integration	Yes (native)	No (own editor)
Best for	Complex, variable scopes	Polished sending workflows

Many teams use both: RuleDox to assemble the scope, then a proposal tool to send and sign.

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• Digital agencies (especially Shopify, WordPress, and web development agencies)
• Productised service teams with repeatable but variable deliverables
• Consultancies that scope projects before quoting
• IT services firms that need consistent SOWs for different project types
• Any team where multiple people write scopes and consistency matters

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Is RuleDox the only scope of work software? No. Other tools include ScopeConcierge (automated scope generation for website projects) and Devtimate (technical estimates for software agencies). RuleDox is focused on rules-based assembly inside Google Docs, which makes it unique for teams that already work in Google Docs.

Can I use RuleDox with a proposal tool like PandaDoc? Yes. RuleDox assembles the scope in Google Docs. You can then copy the scope into your proposal tool for sending and signatures. They solve different problems.

How is this different from a Google Docs template? A template gives you a starting structure. RuleDox adds rules: conditional sections that appear or disappear based on project variables, and automatic calculations for hours and pricing. The assembled scope is customised for each project, not a generic starting point.

Does RuleDox work with Word? RuleDox is currently focused on Google Docs. The assembled scope is a Google Doc in your Drive.

How long does it take to set up? Setup depends on your scope complexity. A simple scope structure can be configured in hours. Complex scopes with many variables and rules take longer, but the investment pays off every time a scope is assembled consistently.