Bourbeau
Introduction
For a very long time, people have been doing projects, and for a very long time some people have been messing up their projects. Good approaches and techniques are 'out there' but some people just don't know they're there.
PRINCE2 is a structured method that gives a clear but very flexible approach to running projects and builds in the things that work well. PRINCE2 helps you do the job of running a project, and also helps you avoid messing up. Whether you're very experienced in running projects, or absolutely new to it, you'll find PRINCE2 very powerful and may go on to become a PRINCE2 fanatic like me. Well, hopefully not as fanatical, but certainly enthusiastic! Enthusiastic because this stuff really works.
You may have heard some bad things about PRINCE2; that PRINCE2 makes a mountain of paper, that it's only for very big projects, that it only fits very formal projects. None of that is right and when you read this book, you'll soon see why.
If you see poor PRINCE2 projects, don't make the mistake that so many people do and confuse the result with the tool. If you don't use a tool properly, you can't blame the results on the tool! Used well, PRINCE2 – with its 30 years of project experience – is amazing, and it really earns its keep.
About This Book
This book is based very much on practicality. You'll find a fair bit of technical content here, but that takes a back seat to understanding the logic and thrust of PRINCE2. Once you have the logic clear, the technical bits become straightforward. For the fine detail of all of the PRINCE2 documents, consult the PRINCE2 manual – Managing Successful Projects with PRINCE2 by the Office of Government Commerce (published by The Stationery Office). PRINCE2 For Dummies isn't intended as a complete replacement for the manual but rather as a practical commentary. I hope that the explanations in this book give you the thrust of the method with practical information on how to apply it well and productively, whereas like most manuals, the PRINCE2 manual can seem a bit fragmented and dry, and even rather theoretical.
PRINCE2 is a process-driven method and the processes cover from just before the start of the project until project closure. The Part II chapters that cover these processes each have a diagram – a process model. Just to warn you up front, these diagrams can look complicated but the trick is not to get too focused on them at first. Just have a quick glance to get the overall idea, then read the chapter. At the end of the chapter, have another look at the process model and you'll see it as a simple roadmap for that part of the project. Everything falls into place!
PRINCE2 expects you to be using a particularly effective way of doing planning in the project, called Product-led or Product-based planning. If you haven't had much project experience, be happy, because you'll probably take to this way of working like a duck to water. But if you've done a lot of project planning using the more traditional start point of activity planning, you might find the product approach a bit more difficult. Don't give up, though, because it'll suddenly click into place. It took me a while to get my head round this way of planning when I first came across it – but it's really easy now. So stick with it. Product planning is very, very powerful and it's worth a bit of perseverance to understand it.
Foolish Assumptions
I assume that you:
Don't know anything about PRINCE2 at all yet. If you do know a bit, that's a bonus.
Want a project method to help you in your drive towards a successful project outcome – not to bury you under a pile of paper.
Are practical and pragmatic, and prepared to be flexible to get the job done.
Really want to use the method intelligently to get the maximum possible power from it.
How This Book Is Organised
This book broadly follows the structure of the PRINCE2 method with processes and themes. It looks first at the processes (when you do things), followed by the themes (what you do).
This section gives you an idea of what lies ahead.
Part I: How PRINCE2 Can Help You
In case you're not too sure about methods, this section sets the scene and shows you that you already use methods, and even that you quite like them. Part 1 also covers how to get the power out of PRINCE2, so it's a good dipping section.
Part II: Working Through Your Project
Part II is all about the processes, and it works through the project from start up right through to project closure. The processes in this part are the suggested when you do stuff. It also has a chapter on running Project Boards well.
Part III: Help with PRINCE2 Project Management
Part III covers what are known as the PRINCE2 components themes. These are about what you do – such as risk management. This Part also covers planning including the powerful product-based approach.
Part IV: The Part of Tens
Here you find some handy lists giving condensed advice on making PRINCE2 work well, writing sensible Business Cases, and doing Project Assurance (project auditing) really well. You can find even more advice free on the Dummies website, so point your browser at www.dummies.com.
Part V: Appendices
Here you find a bit about the PRINCE2 qualifications and also a useful glossary of the main PRINCE2 terms to give you a handy look-up when someone uses a term that you can't quite remember the meaning of. Of course, you can learn the terms by heart and impress people at dinner parties with your grasp of technical language.
Icons Used in This Book
To help you navigate through the book, these icons highlight some of the key points:
The information next to this icon helps you understand a point, often using a real project.
The method has seven principles such as the 'continued business justification' of the project, and this icon shows significant points where the principle is worked into the method.
The key points are things that are really core to your understanding of the method, so make sure that these snippets really stick in your mind.
These are clear explanations of PRINCE2 terms (you can also find help in the glossary at the back of the book).
This icon draws your attention to an important pointer to bear in mind.
These snippets are all about stuff to steer clear of. They tell you how things can get really messed up, sometimes with details of how other people have done exactly that. Laugh at them, but don't fall into the same trap!
Important things to keep in mind as you apply the techniques and approaches discussed.
Where to Go from Here
The great thing about For Dummies books is that you don't have to read them all the way through. You can simply turn to the bit you want. The Table of Contents and the Index help you out. Of course, as a structured method, PRINCE2 has a structure, but even that won't stop you moving in and out of chapters. When you're starting up the project you may want to read Chapter 4 on checking out the project idea which covers that start up work. But then you may go off to look at the theme chapters for the Business Case (Chapter 11) and risk management (Chapter 15) to help you do that work.
Part I
How PRINCE2 Can Help You
In this part . . .
Why use a method? Some people really hate the idea and the very word is enough to send them speeding away like Road Runner until they're a dot on the horizon. But methods are really helpful and in fact you already use them.
In this part I set out the idea of a method and how the PRINCE2 method can really help you plan and control your projects. Method isn't an extra overhead, it's a powerhouse. I also show how the different bits of the method fit together – the structure – and how to apply it so that it works for you every time, no matter what type or size of project you happen to be working on this time around.
Chapter 1
So What's a Project Method and Why Do I Need to Use One?
In This Chapter
Exploring what a project method is and how it works
Establishing how PRINCE2 can help you run a project successfully
Knowing what a method's about – and that using one isn't difficult
Explaining how PRINCE2 gets a bad name when used wrongly
You must have seen newspaper reports of projects that have gone wrong, resulting in a waste of money, lost opportunities and disappointed people. The big question is: 'Do projects have to be like this?' The short answer is a resounding, 'NO!' That's a pretty bold statement given the scale and complexity of some projects. But the fact remains that the underlying causes of project failure are generally very well known – and, interestingly, so are strategies to prevent those problems and to help plan and control projects more effectively.
Now if only somebody would get all that information together from the huge pool of experience of planning and controlling projects. If only they'd package it up in a form that's really usable and walk you through a project in a way that avoids the known pitfalls and builds in things that are really useful to help you, based on those years of experience of what works and what doesn't work. If only. Well, read on – because between the covers of this book is some extremely good news for you.
Chapter 2 explains the overall structure of PRINCE2 but this chapter gives some context and looks at why a method such as PRINCE2 can be a very real help to you on your projects. To start with, we pick up the point mentioned at the beginning of the chapter and think about some project problems and what you can do to avoid them.
Getting the Low-Down on PRINCE2
PRINCE2 actually stands for PRojects IN a Controlled Environment, but don't worry too much about that; they had to call it something. PRINCE2 is currently on Version 2, hence PRINCE2. Small changes and developments are made from time to time and are released in new editions of the PRINCE2 manual.
PRINCE2 is a project method and it happens to be rather a good one, as PRINCE2 is the result of many years of hard work by many people feeding in practical ideas. You can use PRINCE2 on just about any type of project and of any size, from the very big down to the really small.
If the word 'method' spooks you, that's understandable. The very mention of a method makes some people break out in a cold sweat, reminding them of their worst nightmares, fighting through a mesh of never-ending administrative procedures and struggling up a mountain of paper. One senior manager in a large organisation asked us about PRINCE2 because she'd heard the name and wondered what it was. But as soon as she heard PRINCE2 is a method she flatly refused to hear anything more about it.
But methods don't have to be bureaucratic nightmares. Used properly, methods are sensible, helpful, productive and simple. In fact, you already use them – and you like them.
No doubt you've done a jigsaw puzzle. How do you like to set about a jigsaw? Do you start with the edges or do you go for the corners first? Perhaps you begin by putting together those bits of the puzzle where you can see that the pattern is the same. Or maybe you prefer to start with the sky. Either way, you have . . . well, a method. A method is an approach that helps give a bit of structure to what you're doing and then helps you do the job.
The difference with project methods is that they aren't just one person's approach: Lots of people have an input into setting down a good way of doing things. If a lot of experienced people think a particular approach is a good way of doing something – which is the case with PRINCE2 – then you can expect it to help you too.
Giving You Some Facts about Projects
The reason that PRINCE2 works well with all types of projects is that some parts of planning and control are common to every project. Many, or even most, project problems are common too and the rest of this section looks at those problems and how you can use PRINCE2 to overcome them.
Fact 1: A lot of projects go wrong
Project failures are common. A failure can be the loss of the entire project or something can go wrong in one or more aspects. The things that bother most people are time and money, though they need to bother about rather more than this – notably quality. But sticking to the most common concerns, projects are often late and almost always overspent. Sad though this is, many organisations expect nothing else.
One PRINCE2 project manager caused a big problem when he delivered his project on the day he had specified. The part of the business responsible for taking over the project deliverables for operational use was not ready. The project manager questioned this because he had confirmed the project's scheduled end, and the senior manager responsible for the operational area replied that they had not believed the date because projects were always late.
Now there's a lot of debate about 'failure'. If a project is just five per cent over budget but does everything that's required, is the project really a failure? Even more attention is given to deciding whose fault the failure is. When a periodical for the IT market published an article suggesting that IT staff who failed to deliver the goods should be fired, IT professionals reacted strongly, saying that project failure wasn't just down to them. They were right, because an IT project relies on much more than merely the competence of IT staff. If business areas don't supply knowledgeable staff to tell the IT people what they want in a new computer system, they shouldn't fall over in shock when the delivered system doesn't work as required.
This book is concerned with what can help avoid a failure, whether in IT projects where failure does tend to be measured to some degree, or in business projects where the failure goes largely unreported. But along with the method, the book goes further than just avoiding failure and gives you powerful tools that make your life easier in planning and control and help you speed the project forward.
After a large survey that revealed substantial failure in IT projects, Bryan Cruickshank, UK head of information risk management at KPMG, was reported as saying: 'Blind application of methodologies doesn't tend to work very well and it's certainly not something you can do straight out of university.'
I very much agree. Such 'blind application' is frighteningly common and often results from people just following the manual page by page as if every project were the same, or attending poor-quality training courses that only teach the 'what' of PRINCE2 and how to pass the PRINCE2 exams.
In PRINCE2 For Dummies the focus is on explaining the method in a practical way, with the 'how' and 'why' as well as the 'what'. It helps you apply the method well, with understanding, and therefore successfully. For the precise and full detail of the 'what', you can invest in a PRINCE2 manual. For explanations of how to make PRINCE2 work really well and productively on your projects, keep reading.
Fact 2: We know why projects go wrong
Here are some of the main causes of project failure. As you can see, the list is fairly predictable. Please note the kindness of using the word 'they' and not 'you' – because you don't face any of these problems in your organisation, do you?
No clear objectives: They weren't really sure what the project was about.
Unrealistic finance: They were never going to be able to do a project of that size on such a low budget.
Unrealistic staffing: They were never going to be able to do a project of that size with so few staff. Or perhaps they have enough staff, but what they didn't take on board was that all the people had other responsibilities and were only available to the project for 10 per cent of their time; the project team was only one-tenth of the size they thought it was.
Poor communications: Nobody knew what they were supposed to be doing or what anybody else was supposed to be doing, and people were unsure who they should report to and who could make decisions.
Poor planning: Actually that's a kind way to put it. No planning at all is actually the problem in many projects. Then they hit problems in the project that they could have found and solved, during planning.
No effective progress monitoring: The project was going off track but nobody even noticed, much less did anything about it.
Unclear scope: Nobody was really sure what was in and what was out of the project. When they discovered essential things that nobody had talked about before, they had to include them. As they weren't in the original plan, the project went over time and over budget.
No change control: They added in all sorts of things with no attempt to check if they were sensible or affordable, or worth the effort or cost. This is known as 'scope creep'. Sometimes the cumulative impact of a lot of uncontrolled small changes overwhelms and kills the project.
No risk management: The project got killed by something that they clearly could have foreseen, controlled, or even prevented.
The project was not actually sensible: A manager said that he wanted it, but nobody realised that it would cost considerably more than it would save.
Fact 3: We know good ways of preventing a lot of those things
The sad thing – or the good thing if you take a PRINCE2 perspective – is that most of the ways of preventing problems are straightforward. That suggests in turn that PRINCE2 is pretty straightforward, and actually it is. It contains a lot of detail in places because the method can tackle some pretty big stuff, but nothing is difficult. You may say, 'If everything is so easy, how come nobody did it before?' Good question. But happily someone has done it now.
You can accuse me of being simplistic here, but if that's the worst insult I ever have to face I'll have an easy life indeed. Most of the problems have obvious solutions.
Lack of planning: Do some planning. PRINCE2 has a rather different but really powerful approach to this. You can look forward to some real help when you look at the planning chapter, Chapter 14.
Lack of clear objectives: Set down clear objectives. And following on from this point, don't allow the project to start until the objectives are both clear and agreed.
Lack of risk management: Do some risk management. Again, the method incorporates some really helpful and simple stuff. You may need rather more risk management than the method provides, but that doesn't take away from the fact that it gives a great foundation.
Lack of a business case or project justification: Don't start the project until the business case demonstrates clearly that it's worth doing. Oh yes, and do actually produce a business case.
Lack of change control: Do some change control . . . Okay, you get the picture.
The problem is that although most people can come up with most of the answers for themselves, they seem to think they don't need to apply these sorts of project disciplines on 'this project'. On 'this project' we can get away with it. Wrong, because obviously all failed projects were 'this project' to somebody. To have the best chance of project success, taking these actions has to become automatic, the way the organisation does projects.
By adopting PRINCE2 as a method and using it sensibly, it becomes standard practice – and with that comes the inherent protection of an approach that avoids known project problems. One objection may be that the method takes up too much time and time is at a premium in 'this project'. Don't let that put you off. You can use PRINCE2 in a very rapid way indeed once you see how the method works and how to apply it flexibly.
Fact 4: PRINCE2 is free to use
An amazing number of organisations say that they have their own standard for planning and controlling projects. But why reinvent the wheel? Why make up a project standard if a well-proven one already exists? The really good news is that PRINCE2 is basically free. You may want to buy a manual and go on a (good) training course, but you don't have to pay to use the method. You don't need to ask anybody's permission or pay any fees to use PRINCE2, you just use it. There are restrictions on using the name and logo though, or taking core bits of the method and including them in other things – the legal minefield of intellectual property and copyright – so be careful out there.
Making Your Life Easier with PRINCE2
I teach PRINCE2 to a lot of people on training courses. One of the things I often say at the beginning of a course is: 'If PRINCE2 doesn't help you plan and control projects better, faster and more easily, then why bother? Just do whatever else you'd do if you weren't using PRINCE2.'
And that's the point. Any method has to earn its keep – used with understanding and intelligence, this one does. PRINCE2 can make your life easier for lots of reasons, many of which this book unpacks later on. But here are some to start with.
PRINCE2 can be a real help in project planning and control because it . . .
Provides a 'checklist' approach to help make sure that you've thought about everything you need to think about at this point in the project
Takes a powerful and logical approach to planning that helps make sure that you don't miss anything out – that the plan is complete
Sets down really clear roles and responsibilities, which goes a long way in helping prevent misunderstanding and communication problems
Brings in managers at key points to make clear decisions about the project, such as if it should continue
Builds in conscious decisions to carry on with the project at control points, so you don't just carry on by default even if things are going wrong
Provides one of the most effective progress-monitoring controls seen in projects and one based on fact, not on estimates of percentage completion of activities
Integrates risk management into the routine of project management so that you don't forget it
Makes sure that an approved business case with measurable benefits drives the project
Includes regular reviews of the business case, so if circumstances change, you re-evaluate and perhaps even stop the project
Makes sure that all parties with an interest in the project are involved with the management of it, so it includes the users but also the suppliers – those doing the project work
Makes sure that one person is ultimately in charge of the project so that things happen and decisions are not fudged
Builds in auditing of the project to make quite sure that everything is running well and that management information about the project is accurate
Links quality management to deliverables to keep it specific and measurable
Is hugely flexible and adaptable to fit different sizes of project, different types of project and different project environments – it's not a 'standard approach' because projects themselves are not standard
The list can go on and on. But, in short, PRINCE2 can really help you on your project, whether big, small or something in between. PRINCE2 is really powerful and really helps you do the job when you use it properly. And using it needn't cost you much more than the price of this book, so that saves you the work of writing your own method!
In fact, in all the years of teaching PRINCE2, including to many project staff with a lot of experience as well as people with none, I've only ever found one person who claimed not to find it helpful. Well, you can't win them all, and we work hard to focus our courses on real, practical, productive PRINCE2 use.
Clearing Up Some Misunderstandings about PRINCE2
When organisations do still make up their own project method, this can be because of misunderstandings about PRINCE2. Here are a few of them.
PRINCE2 is for big projects only: No, actually it zips down to a very small size and you can use it on very small projects. For example, its design allows for very informal use, so while it has a number of reports, these reports can be verbal.
PRINCE2 is a method designed by government for government projects: That in itself doesn't mean that you can't use the method for non-government projects, but actually the statement is untrue. PRINCE2 started out as a method designed by a private company and then the UK government purchased it for use on its projects. And most of the development of PRINCE2 was by private companies, although the government made sure that it stayed suitable for their projects as well as private-sector ones.
PRINCE2 has huge overheads and is very bureaucratic: No it doesn't and no it isn't. Unless, that is, you use it wrongly. In fact, one of the first signs of the method being used badly is that people on the project describe it as 'bureaucratic'. If you're on a project and you hear the words 'PRINCE2' and 'bureaucracy' in the same sentence, then worry.
We don't have time for PRINCE2: Yes, you do. You can always find time to project manage, unless you want to fail. People who say this just don't know how to use the method rapidly.
Working Through Your Project
Just like having a method for doing a jigsaw helps you to get started and work through the problem of completing the puzzle, so having a method for doing a project 'walks' you through the project and helps by pointing out what to think about at each point. PRINCE2 does this, from a point even before the project begins right through to the end. PRINCE2 uses seven processes, which form helpful checklists of what to do (these are covered in Part II, with the Planning theme covered in Chapter 14). This is really helpful, provided that you bear in mind something that this book reinforces again and again in different areas: A checklist doesn't mean that you have to do everything. Mostly you will, but if you don't need something on a particular project, then for goodness sake keep your brain in gear and don't do it.
Chapter 2
Outlining the Structure of PRINCE2
In This Chapter
Introducing the main structure – the processes
Outlining the themes
Setting down the principles
Explaining where project techniques fit in
The PRINCE2 method can seem a bit fragmented at first, especially in the 2009 edition of the PRINCE2 manual which doesn't help too much. But when you see how all the parts fit together as you read this edition of PRINCE2 For Dummies then it'll make sense. Parts II and III of this book look at the various elements of the method, but this chapter ranges across the whole of PRINCE2 at a higher level so that you can see how it all slots together.
You may need a little while to get to grips with all the detail, but the framework in this chapter is to help speed up that process by giving you a sort of map. PRINCE2 is very logical, so if you have any experience in projects at all, even limited experience, you'll find you can predict to some degree what will be in the different parts of the method.
When you have the structure of PRINCE2 clear and then hang on the detail, it just becomes the way you run projects. You find that your concentration turns away from what the method is and on to how you're going to use it on your next project (or if you react like some of the delegates on my courses, how you wish you'd run your last one!). And even if you have a lot of project management experience, you may still find the framework in this chapter helpful before you get into the detail.
A brief history of PRINCE2
PRINCE2 isn't new and in fact its track record is quite impressive. It started out more than 30 years ago as a method called PROMPT II (PRoject Organisation, Management and Planning Technique) and was developed by a private company. The UK government bought the rights to it for computer projects. A new government version took on board suggestions for improvements and was renamed PRINCE2 (PRojects IN Controlled Environments) to make it distinct, but it was just PROMPT II with some changes and was still very much geared to computer projects.
The UK government decided to make PRINCE2 publicly available without charging for its use, and it spread out through different types of organisation and through different countries. But something interesting happened. Although PRINCE2, like PROMPT II, was aimed solely at computer projects – and the manual was written that way – people took the principles of PRINCE2 and applied it to business projects that had absolutely nothing to do with computers. And it worked. Looking back, that's not particularly surprising because the principles of planning and control are much the same across most projects. This wider use was recognised and in Version 2 the method was given a new structure that made it very much easier to use but, importantly, the IT terminology was taken out. When PRINCE2 was launched in 1996 it was as a business project management method, suitable for all projects and not only IT ones. The result was an astounding success and PRINCE2 continues to grow in use worldwide.
Getting to Know the Process Model
The main part of PRINCE2's structure is the process model, shown in Figure 2-1.
This model takes you through your project from the part before the project, known as Start Up or, to use the full PRINCE2 name, Starting Up a Project, through to closure. Seven processes walk you through the project and set down what you need to think about and do at each key point. The processes represent the chronology or time span of the project. You can think of the processes as the suggested 'when' of PRINCE2.
Processes, activities and actions. The seven main blocks are the processes that take you through the project and some run in parallel. Each of these has activities that give more detail on what's going on. This is where some people start to draw back and think: 'Oh no. My worst fears confirmed. You have to go through loads of steps.' But when you use it intelligently, PRINCE2 just isn't like that at all. Then at a third and final level below are the recommended actions for each of the activities.
Figure 2-1:The PRINCE2 process model.
Based on OGC PRINCE2 material. Reproduced under licence from OGC.
Beware of people who say you have to do absolutely everything on every project because PRINCE2 is a standard approach to projects. You don't and it isn't. Just pretend that you didn't hear them and read on.
You can think of the activities within each process as a helpful checklist. When you do, suddenly the whole method comes alive. Just because something is on a checklist doesn't mean that you have to do it. In fact, a checklist can be really helpful to show you what you don't need to do as well as what you do need to do. You may be starting to see how PRINCE2 really can help you on your projects. The activities help you think through very rapidly indeed what you need to do, and so speed you up and bring clarity.
The processes set down the main progression through PRINCE2. But they aren't linear, because you'll use some in parallel and one set repeats. The repeating block is to do with the control of delivery stages and these cycle round for as many stages as you have in your project. Later chapters in the book go into detail on each of these processes.
Getting things going
The first two processes, and part of a third, are to do with getting the project under way, taking decisions about it (the work of the Project Board) and planning at three different levels of detail.
Starting up a Project
This is the part of PRINCE2 that comes before the project. It covers sketching out what the project is about in order to make a decision on whether going forward into full planning would be worthwhile. Sometimes a quick look at an idea reveals that it's not so good after all and that the right thing to do is to stop immediately. Start Up also looks at roles and responsibilities, and normally you put the Project Organisation in place now. This includes the Project Board: the group of managers with oversight of the project, who decide if they should start the project and take it on into full planning. Start Up has six activities and Chapter 4 explains how they work.
Initiating a Project
This process drives the first stage of the project, the Initiation Stage, which is for project planning. The work covers the production of the project plans – in the broadest sense – which together form the Project Initiation Document (PID). This is not simply an activity plan. The PID includes elements such as the Quality Management Strategy, the Risk Register with the risk actions, and the whole package of things that define what the project is and how you're going to control it. Chapter 5 explains all about it.
Directing a Project
Figure 2-1, the process model, shows that the process Directing a Project runs right through PRINCE2, from initiation to project closure. It covers the work of the Project Board, which in turn breaks down into two broad areas. The first covers the key decision points. I mentioned the first in the section 'Starting up a Project. The board decides if the Project Brief looks promising and whether to start the project and do the detailed project planning – the Initiation Stage. But another activity runs right through the delivery stages and that's giving 'ad-hoc direction', or advising the Project Manager whenever necessary. Chapter 10 tells you what you need to know about ad hoc direction, but briefly it's where the Project Board functions as the Project Manager's boss. Just like you may need to go and talk to your boss about something, so the board must be available to the Project Manager to give direction when needed.
Repeating as necessary
The next three processes repeat for as many delivery stages as you have in your project. The only exception is in the last stage of the project, where you trigger project closure (see the later section 'Closing a Project') instead of the Stage Boundary process to prepare for the next stage.
Managing a Stage Boundary
In PRINCE2 the stages are an extremely important control feature and the stage boundaries mark important decision points. At the end of each stage the Project Board has to decide whether to authorise the next stage and allow the project to continue, or shut the project down. The activities in the Stage Boundary process cover the work of the Project Manager in getting information ready for the Project Board so that it can make that decision. For example, the processes cover things such as getting the plan ready for the next stage and updating the Business Case to reflect the very latest information and projections of benefits.
You use the Stage Boundary process at the end of every stage in the project, including the Initiation Stage – the one where you plan the project in detail. The only exception is with the last stage because at the end of that you close the project down instead. For more information on the Stage Boundary work, dash ahead to Chapter 6.
Controlling a Stage
Although Controlling a Stage is the busiest process in terms of activities – it contains eight – it isn't difficult to understand. The process represents the Project Manager's day-to-day work during a stage (except for the final work of the stage to prepare the next one, because the process Managing a Stage Boundary covers that bit). The eight activities involve actions such as giving out work to Team Managers, checking progress and reporting to the Project Board at set intervals. Chapter 7 has more detail.
Managing Product Delivery
Managing Product Delivery is a small PRINCE2 process with just three activities, but a huge process in terms of project work. This is where all the specialist work to build the deliverables – or products – is done and also the testing. The process represents the work of the Team Manager in receiving instructions on a work assignment or Work Package, building the relevant products and handing the products back again. Each Team Manager works through a series of Work Packages within each stage, so the process cycles round a lot of times. Full information on the activities is in Chapter 8.
Shutting down: Closing a Project
The last of the seven processes covers closing down the project. This can be the planned close or an early or premature close. You may shut down early if, for example, business circumstances change and you no longer require the project.
The Closing a Project process includes reporting back to the Project Board for the board to confirm the closure. The activities cover things like checking that everything is done, making sure that products can move smoothly through into their working life and producing an End Project Report.
If the project is shutting down early, then you don't need to make sure that everything is complete, because it won't be. Instead, you check to make sure that you identify any usable stuff from the project to minimise waste. Chapter 9 covers closing a project.
Introducing the Themes
The second model shows the seven themes, which you can see in Figure 2-2. The themes are the suggested 'what' of PRINCE2 and are effectively project disciplines, or subject areas. You use them right through the project.
Figure 2-2: The PRINCE2 themes.
Based on OGC PRINCE2 material. Reproduced under licence from OGC
Understanding the themes
Posted by: leroyharmene017709.blogspot.com
Source: https://www.scribd.com/book/29780371/PRINCE2-For-Dummies
