An Introduction to PRINCE2: Managing and Directing Successful Projects

An Introduction to PRINCE2™:

Managing and Directing Successful Projects

London: TSO

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First published 2009

ISBN 9780113311880

Printed in the United Kingdom for The Stationery Office

N6162229   c10   07/09

Contents

List of figures

List of tables

Foreword

Acknowledgements

1    Introduction

1.1    Purpose of this guide

1.2    Where do projects fit in?

1.3    What is a project?

1.4    What is project management?

1.5    What is PRINCE2?

1.6    PRINCE2 in context

1.7    Structure of this guide

1.8    Related OGC guidance

2    The PRINCE2 principles

2.1    Continued business justification

2.2    Learn from experience

2.3    Defined roles and responsibilities

2.4    Manage by stages

2.5    Manage by exception

2.6    Focus on products

2.7    Tailor to suit the project environment

3    Themes

3.1    Business Case

3.2    Organization

3.3    Quality

3.4    Plans

3.5    Risk

3.6    Change

3.7    Progress

4    Processes

4.1    The PRINCE2 journey

4.2    Starting up a Project

4.3    Initiating a Project

4.4    Controlling a Stage/Managing Product Delivery

4.5    Managing a Stage Boundary

4.6    Closing a Project

5    Project Board duties and behaviours

5.1    The role of senior management in PRINCE2

5.2    Be accountable for the project

5.3    Provide unified direction

5.4    Delegate effectively

5.5    Facilitate cross-functional integration

5.6    Commit resources

5.7    Ensure effective decision making

5.8    Support the Project Manager

5.9    Ensure effective communication

6    Tailoring PRINCE2 to the project environment

6.1    Tailoring PRINCE2 for projects in a programme environment

6.2    Tailoring PRINCE2 according to project scale

Appendix A: Product Description outlines

A.1    Benefits Review Plan

A.2    Business Case

A.3    Checkpoint Report

A.8    End Project Report

A.9    End Stage Report

A.10  Exception Report

A.11  Highlight Report

A.13  Issue Report

A.15  Lessons Report

A.16  Plan

A.17  Product Description

A.19  Project Brief

A.20  Project Initiation Documentation

A.21  Project Product Description

A.26  Work Package

Further information

Glossary

Index

List of figures

Figure 1.1    The structure of PRINCE2

Figure 1.2    OGC best-practice guidance

Figure 3.1    The development path of the Business Case

Figure 3.2    The three project interests

Figure 3.3    Project management team structure

Figure 3.4    The quality audit trail

Figure 3.5    PRINCE2’s planning levels

Figure 3.6    The PRINCE2 approach to plans

Figure 3.7    The risk management procedure

Figure 3.8    Issue and change control procedure

Figure 3.9    Delegating tolerance and reporting actual and forecast progress

Figure 4.1    The PRINCE2 processes

Figure 4.2    Where does Starting up a Project fit?

Figure 4.3    Where does Initiating a Project fit?

Figure 4.4    Where does Controlling a Stage/Managing Product Delivery fit?

Figure 4.5    Where does Managing a Stage Boundary fit?

Figure 4.6    Where does Closing a Project fit?

Figure 6.1    Influences on the tailoring requirement

List of tables

Table 3.1    Types of issue

Table 4.1    Starting up a Project: roles

Table 4.2    Initiating a Project: roles

Table 4.3    Controlling a Stage/Managing Product Delivery: roles

Table 4.4    Managing a Stage Boundary: roles

Table 4.5    Closing a Project: roles

Table 6.1    Embedding and tailoring

Table 6.2    Examples of projects of different scales

Foreword

The old adage that ‘Nothing in this world can be said to be certain, except death and taxes’ needs updating to ‘Nothing in this world can be said to be certain, except death, taxes and change’! Change has become a way of life as organizations strive to remain competitive and effective. Successful management of business change is therefore a priority in today’s highly competitive world. It is against this backdrop that the Office of Government Commerce (OGC) has revised its project management method known as PRINCE2™ (PRojects IN Controlled Environments).

The most noticeable change to PRINCE2 is that there are now two guides: Managing Successful Projects with PRINCE2 (TSO, 2009) and Directing Successful Projects with PRINCE2 (TSO, 2009). Together these two publications cover the principles and processes of PRINCE2 but also address the duties and behaviours of those leading project delivery.

This publication, as the title suggests, offers a simple and direct introduction to what PRINCE2 is all about. It is an invaluable guide for both experienced project managers and those new to a PRINCE2 environment. It will be indispensable to those who are just starting in project management, and will serve as an opening to the complexities of project management for the project executive.

An Introduction to PRINCE2 will allow you to understand the basic concepts of project management before tackling the detail contained in the two main guides mentioned above. So whether you are looking for a quick introduction to project management, a short refresher or a handy reference guide, this is the one for you. I can’t think of a better place to start.

Jonathan Shebioba

Director

Best Management Practice

Office of Government Commerce

Acknowledgements

The Office of Government Commerce (OGC) acknowledges with thanks the contribution of Sue Taylor (APMG PRINCE2 examiner) in the construction of this guide. In addition, OGC recognizes the contribution of the following individuals who acted as reviewers:

Particular thanks also go to Jens Wandel, Naoto Yamamoto and John Patterson from the United Nations Development Programme, and Lynne Curran from the Australian Department of Families, Housing, Community Services and Indigenous Affairs, who donated their practical experience to help provide some of the case studies.

OGC would also like to express its gratitude to the Best Practice User Group (BPUG) for their help in coordinating the review.

1   Introduction

1.1    PURPOSE OF THIS GUIDE

Organizations, whatever their size or market sector, face the continuing challenge of how to transform good ideas into beneficial and tangible outcomes. This guide looks at how projects can help organizations to deliver outcomes which lead to business change, and how effective management of projects is crucial to the delivery of real, measurable benefits. It challenges a common misconception that project management methods are a bureaucratic barrier to achieving change by illustrating how properly applied project management principles can be used to improve the chances of successful delivery.

This guide has been written to introduce the key concepts and elements of the PRINCE2 project management method, which is widely recognized as the industry standard and best practice in project management. PRINCE® stands for ‘PRojects IN Controlled Environments’. Based on the original PRINCE method, PRINCE2 was introduced in 1996 in response to user requirements for improved guidance on project management for all projects. It has also been updated in 2009 to ensure it continues to reflect best practice in project management.

This guide provides an overview of the updated PRINCE2 method as documented in the two publications Managing Successful Projects with PRINCE2 (TSO, 2009) and Directing Successful Projects with PRINCE2 (TSO, 2009). It introduces the principles, processes and themes, and gives practical examples of applying the method in different situations. It is designed for anyone involved in the management of projects who would like an introduction to and overview of PRINCE2 and how it can be used in practice.

1.2    WHERE DO PROJECTS FIT IN?

Organizations today must be able to balance two different aspects of business: maintaining their current business operations, such as profitability, customer relationships and productivity (business as usual); and changing their business operations in order to survive and compete in the future.

Most organizations have a defined or implied purpose, often articulated in the form of a vision statement, which states the organization’s values and goals. These are then broken down into more manageable objectives, each of which will contribute in some way to achieving the overall goals. The objectives will be cascaded throughout the business, measured to assess their success, and their progress regularly reviewed. Projects are not normally undertaken in isolation but will form part of the overall strategy to achieve these organizational objectives and goals.

Depending on the specific environment, projects could be grouped into programmes. These are sets of related projects and activities that together achieve outcomes and realize benefits related to the strategic objectives. Programmes help organizations do the right projects in the right sequence so that the right benefits are achieved in the desired timeframe. Programmes are about realizing the benefits or delivering strategic goals; projects are about delivering products and services that enable the benefits