1The University of Sydney Page 1
Topic
PRINCE2 Methodology
Dr Peter John Kavalamthara
The University of Sydney
Business School
The University of Sydney Page 2
Agenda
– Roles & responsibilities
– Structure
– Organisation
– Product based planning
– Description
– Breakdown structure
Key features of PRINCE2 (Projects in Controlled Environments)
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– Originally developed for IT projects.
– Was released in 1996 as a generic project
management methodology by the U.K. Office of
Government Commerce (OGC).
– It is the de facto standard in the UK and is used in over
50 countries (www.prince2.com)
– Project: A temporary organisation that is created for
the purpose of delivering one or more business
products according to an agreed Business Case.
PRINCE2
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The University of Sydney Page 4
Product-based Planning: Example
– Product Breakdown Structure (PBS) in the form of an indented list
Conference
1 Venue
1.1 Venue requirements
1.2 Candidate venues
1.3 Venue assessments
1.4 Selected and booked venue
2 Attendees
2.1 Mailing list (external)
2.2 Responses (external)
2.3 Booking arrangements
2.4 Final attendee lists
3 Speakers
3.1 Speaker options
3.2 Speaker invitations
3.3 Booked speakers
4 Publicity
4.1 Mail shot
4.2 Press release
5 Delegate handouts
5.1 Covers
5.2 Printed agenda
5.3 Slides and notes
5.4 Satisfaction survey form
6 Conference logistics
6.1 Selected subject matter (external)
6.2 Agreed date (external)
6.3 Agreed programme
6.4 On-the-day staff
7 Previous conference lesson & materials
(external)
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PRINCE2
– What is PRINCE2
– Method for managing projects
– Customer/Supplier environment
– 6 variables to be controlled
Costs
Timescales
Quality
Scope
Risk
Benefits
Establish tolerances against
each objective; if exceeded
referred to next management
level
The University of Sydney Page 6
PRINCE2: Structure
Four integrated elements:
1. Principles
– Seven guiding obligations and good practices which determine whether
the project is genuinely being managed using PRINCE2
2. Themes
– Seven themes which describe aspects of project management that must
be addressed continually and in parallel through the project
3. Processes
– Describe a step-wise progression through the project lifecycle from
getting started to project closure
4. Tailoring
– PRINCE2 to the project environment i.e. tailoring to the specific context
of the project
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PRINCE2: Structure
The University of Sydney Page 8
Element 1: SEVEN PRINCIPLES
1. Continued business justification
2. Learn from experience
– When starting the project, as it progresses and when closing
3. Defined roles and responsibilities
– Specific roles with specific responsibilities
4. Manage by stages
– High level project plan, detailed stage plan
5. Manage by exception
– Authority is delegated from one management level to the next by
setting tolerances
6. Focus on products
7. Tailor to suit the project environment
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Element 2: SEVEN THEMES
These themes must be addressed continually:
1. Business case
– Develop, verify, maintain, confirm
2. Organization
– Need to manage the interests of the business, user and supplier
3. Quality
4. Plans
– Describe how, when and by who a specific target is to be
achieved. Target includes the project's products, timescales, costs,
quality and benefits
5. Risk
6. Change
7. Progress
– Measure and compare actual progress against target
The University of Sydney Page 10
Element 3: PROCESSES
Pre-project
Initiation
stage
Subsequent delivery
stage(s)
Final delivery stage
Directing
D
ir
e
ct
in
g
M
a
na
g
in
g
D
e
liv
e
ri
ng
SU
SB SB CP
IP Controlling a stage Controlling a stage
Managing product
delivery
Managing product
delivery
Directing a project
SU = Starting up a project
IP = Initiating a project
SB = Managing a stage boundary
CP = Closing a project
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– Need a project structure
– Clear accountability and responsibilities
Organisation Theme
Business
SupplierUsers
The University of Sydney Page 12
Levels of Organisation
Corporate or programme management
Directing – Project Board
Managing – Project Manager
Delivering – Team Manager
P
ro
je
ct
m
a
na
g
e
m
e
nt
t
e
a
m
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Project Organisation Structure
Corporate or Programme Management
Work
package
Senior
user
Senior
supplier
Executive /
Sponsor
Project manager
Project support
Team manager(s)
P
ro
je
ct

a
ss
ur
a
nc
e
Change authority
Project
Stage
Project board
Work
package
The University of Sydney Page 14
Project Board: Duties and Behaviours
The duties of the project board are:
– Be accountable for the project
– Accept and demonstrate ownership
› Provide unified direction
– Reconcile different interests
› Delegate effectively
› Facilitate cross-functional integration
› Commit resources
› Ensure effective decision making
› Support the project manager
› Ensure effective communication
– Internally and externally
Ultimately the Executive sponsor makes the decisions
(supported by input from the Senior user and Senior supplier)
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Contribution of Other Roles
– The senior user is responsible for specifying the needs of those who
will use the project's products
– The senior supplier represents the interests of those designing,
developing, facilitating, procuring and implementing a project’s
products
– Project assurance monitors the performance of the project and its
products independently of the project manager
– Change authority specifies
who is authorised to approve which
changes. Typical order of delegation:
– Corporate management
– Project board
– Change authority
– Project manager
Work
package
The University of Sydney Page 16
Contribution of Other Roles
– The project manager is the single person responsible for the day-to-
day management of the project
– The team manager is responsible for the production of those
products they have been allocated by the project manager
– Project support provides administrative support. Depending on
expertise may also provide advice and guidance on project
management tools and specialist skills in areas such as planning or
risk management
Work
package
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Product-based Planning
Two drivers:
1. Products have to be identified in order to consider what activities
are needed in order to produce them
2. The quality of a product can be measured and therefore planned,
whereas the quality of an activity can only be measured by the
quality of its outcome (the product!)
Three core elements:
1. Product breakdown structure (PBS)
– Replaces activity-based work breakdown structure (WBS)
– A hierarchy of the required products
– Also includes management and quality as products
2. Product descriptions
3. Product flow diagram
The University of Sydney Page 18
Project Product Description
http://www.prince2primer.com/creating-prince2-project-product-description
– Title
This is normally the name of the project.
– Product Purpose
A description of the major products to be delivered by the project. This is normally a list, which defines the
product scope of the project. It may also include key management products such as 3rd party agreements:
– Product Derivation
First you need to think about why this is important. It may be that the derived aspect are predecessors from a
previous stage or project, without which the current project cannot be started. It may a prerequisite.
What are the source products from which this product is derived? Without knowing or referring to them – there is
a risk that you may build the wrong products.
– Customer’s Quality Expectations
A description of the quality expected of the project’s product, overall outputs of the project and the standards
and processes that will need to be applied to achieve that quality. They will impact on every part of the product
development, and thus on time and cost.
The quality expectations are captured during discussions with the customer. Where possible, expectations should
be prioritized. Be careful to solicit all key stakeholders for their quality expectations and priority as there may be
conflicts of opinion and these will need to be agreed by (ultimately) the project board.
– Product Acceptance Criteria
These help to resolve subjective customer quality expectations because ALL acceptance criteria must be
measurable in some way. The project manager must expect to work with the customer to define measurable
product criteria that are derived from the quality expectations.
Such criteria must be contain for each a description, criteria measurement, prioritization, tolerances (remember
them?), the method used to measure and who is responsible for measuring them (and when if appropriate). The
Acceptance criteria document should include who will review and authorize
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The University of Sydney Page 19
Product Description Template
The University of Sydney Page 20
Product-based Planning: Example
– Product Breakdown Structure (PBS) in the form of an indented list
Conference
1 Venue
1.1 Venue requirements
1.2 Candidate venues
1.3 Venue assessments
1.4 Selected and booked venue
2 Attendees
2.1 Mailing list (external)
2.2 Responses (external)
2.3 Booking arrangements
2.4 Final attendee lists
3 Speakers
3.1 Speaker options
3.2 Speaker invitations
3.3 Booked speakers
4 Publicity
4.1 Mail shot
4.2 Press release
5 Delegate handouts
5.1 Covers
5.2 Printed agenda
5.3 Slides and notes
5.4 Satisfaction survey form
6 Conference logistics
6.1 Selected subject matter (external)
6.2 Agreed date (external)
6.3 Agreed programme
6.4 On-the-day staff
7 Previous conference lesson & materials
(external)
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The University of Sydney Page 21
Product-based Planning: Example
– Product flow diagram
6.1
6.2
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2.1
2.2
3.1
3.2
3.3
6.3
5.1 5.3 5.2 5.4
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6.4
Conference
1.1
1.2
1.3
1.4
4.2
2.3
4.1
2.4
The University of Sydney Page 22
Approach to Plans
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– Purpose:
– Answers the question as to whether it is a worthwhile and viable
project
– Objective
– Appoint the project team
– Ensure project aims are known
– Decide on the project approach to deliver a solution
– Define customer expectations
– Results in the project initiation plan and initiation request
Processes: Starting up
The University of Sydney Page 24
The Project Brief contains the outline Business Case with sufficient
information to justify carrying out the initiation stage, creating the
Project Product Description which includes aspects such as the customer’s
quality expectations and acceptance criteria for the end product of the
project.
The Project Brief also contains the Project Approach management
document. It is important to create this in the starting up a project
process as this lays out the approach used by the project to deliver the
end product, for example, basing the design on an existing product or
developing an entirely new design, or whether or not resources used
for the project will be provided internally or by the use of third parties.
The Project Brief can be seen as a refinement of the Project Mandate
and is created in starting up a project, and in a similar way the Project
Brief will be refined further within the initiation stage to become the
Project Initiation Documentation (PID).
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– Purpose
– Enable project board to be accountable for success by making key
decisions and exercising overall control while delegating day-to-day
management to the project manager
– Philosophy of “management by exception”
– Key involvement
– Authorise preparation of project plan and business case
– Approve the project go-ahead
– Check project remains justifiable at key points
Processes: Directing
The University of Sydney Page 26
– Purpose
– Establish solid foundations, enabling the organization to understand the
work that needs to be done to deliver the project’s products before
committing to a significant spend
– Objective
– Common understanding of main aspects of the project
• Reasons, benefits, risks, responsibilities
• How quality will be achieved, baselines established and progress
monitored
Processes: Initiating
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– Purpose
– Assign work to be done, monitor such work, deal with issues, report
progress to the project board and take corrective action to ensure
the stage remains within tolerance
– Ensure no uncontrolled changes
– Risks and issues kept under control
– Ensure products are delivered within tolerances
– Keep business case under review
Processes: Controlling a Stage
The University of Sydney Page 28
– Purpose
– Control the link between the project manager and the team manager(s) by
placing formal requirements on accepting, executing and delivering
project work
– Controls the link between the project manager and the team manager(s)
who coordinate work to deliver products
– Ensures work is authorised and products delivered to expectations
Processes: Managing Product Delivery
Project manager not directly involved in product delivery – managing it
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– Enable the project board to be provided with sufficient information by
the project manager so that it can review the success of the current
stage, approve the next stage plan, review the updated project plan
and confirm continued business justification and acceptability of the
risks
– Prepare stage plan for next stage
– Provide info so Board can assess continued viability
– Record lessons
– Request authorisation for the next stage
Processes: Managing a Stage Boundary
The University of Sydney Page 30
– Purpose – provides a fixed point at which acceptance of the project
product is confirmed and to recognise that the objectives set out have
been achieved (or that the project has nothing more to contribute)
– Verify acceptance
– Review performance and assess benefits realised
Processes: Closing a project
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Tailoring PRINCE2 to the Project Environment
– Tailoring – adapting the method to external factors
– Reasons why include scale of the project, part of a programme,
multi-organisation, commercial customer/supplier environment etc.
– Focus on:
– Adapt the themes
• Incorporate organisations standards and policies e.g. quality, risk
– Apply the organisation’s language e.g. investment case instead of
business case
– Adapt the roles
• Define responsibilities to fit capabilities
– Adapt the processes
• All processes MUST be done but who does them can vary
The University of Sydney Page 32
Key messages
– Essence of PRINCE2
– Focus on products
– Formality of structure and processes
– Roles and responsibilities