9 : Change

Question 1

What is the purpose of the Change Theme? What information does the Change theme contains? Answer in your own words. (Tip: The Change Theme covers two main parts: looking after products and issues which include change control.)

Answer 1

Do not worry if your answer is not the same as mine. If your answer was just that the Change Theme provides knowledge on how to do Configuration Management, Issue and Control Management, then this answer is good.

The purpose of the change theme is to provide information to help you identify, assess and control any changes to products that have already been approved and baselined. The Change theme is not just about handling change request, but also handling issues that arise during the project. This is known as Issue and Change Control or Issue and Change Management. You can also say that the Change Theme provides a common approach to issue and change management.
The Change Theme also provides information on Configuration Management which describes how you should look after the products created and used by the project, so you can identify products, collect information to track them, audit to check whether the correct versions are in the right place and so on.

Question 2

Should the Project Manager try to prevent change so that they can run a smoother project and meet the original project plan?

Answer 2

This is a nice idea but changes are inevitable, as 100% of the requirements are not known up front and even if they are, new ideas can still be suggested to improve products. So the objective is not to prevent changes but to allow changes to be assessed and then if agreed, they can be accepted and implemented.

Question 3

When is issue and change control done in a project? This is the same as asking when issues and change requests can arise in the project.

Answer 3

Issue and change control happen during the full life cycle of a project. So this can happen anytime.

Question 4

What is the name of the technical and administrative activity concerned with the creation, maintenance and controlled change of a product? This is also referred to as tracking products or the activity of looking after products.

Answer 4

This is configuration management. Configuration management is the activity concerned with the creation, maintenance and controlled change of a product during the lifecycle of a project.

Question 5

From a PRINCE2 point of view, what is a release? Answer in your own words. (Tip: Try to use the words “single entity” in your answer and give an example, using a laptop PC.)

Answer 5

A release is a complete and consistent set of products that are managed, tested and deployed as a single entity to be handed over to the users. I think the important points here are the set of products deployed as a single entity. So a laptop PC will have a release number e.g.: 1.2, with certain build of OS, version of bios, list of components with their own version numbers.

Question 6

In PRINCE2 specific term, what is the name given to the entity (or item) that is managed by configuration management? This entity can be a product, a component of a product or it can be a release. (Tip: Two words first starting with C and the second word is Item.)

Answer 6

Configuration Item is the name used by PRINCE2 and each of these items can have its own Configuration Item Record. So a Configuration Item can refer to a product, a component of a product or a release.

Question 7

According to PRINCE2 what are issues, when can they be raised and who can raise them?

Answer 7

PRINCE2 uses the term issue to cover any relevant event that has happened, which was not planned and which requires some management action. E.g.: a question, a problem or a change request. Issues can be raised at any time during the project and by anybody with an interest in the project.

Question 8

Name the three types of issues and give an example. Answer in your own words.

Answer 8

The 3 types of issues are: 1) Request for change, 2) Off-Specification 3) Problem /Concern
• Request for Change:
◦ Definition: A proposal for a change to a baseline document
◦ Example: A future user requests to support a new language
• Off-Specification:
◦ Definition: This is something that was agreed to be done but is not provided by the supplier or forecasted not to be provided
◦ Example: The supplier could not complete the automated forget password feature, therefore password will have to be set manually by the central administrator which will increase the cost of support
• Problem/Concern:
◦ Definition: Any other issue that the Project Manager needs to resolve or escalate
◦ Example: One of the teams was taken off the project for two weeks

Question 9

When will it be decided in the project how the project will control issues, changes and change management, and which document contains this information?

Answer 9

The way that the project will control issues, changes and change management will be decided early in the project in the IP Stage and this information will be placed in the Configuration Management Strategy. This strategy can be reviewed during each Managing a Stage Boundary process.

Question 10

PRINCE2 uses 6 management products to control issues, changes and configuration management. The Configuration Management Strategy document is used to establish the project controls and the rest of the documents help to maintain the project controls. Name two of the other management products. (Tip: Where are formal and informal issues noted? Which reports are used to communicate issues and which document contains metadata for each product in the project?)

Answer 10

The other five of the 6 management products besides the Configuration Management Strategy are 1) Configuration Items Records, 2) Product Status Account, 3) Daily Log, 4) Issue Register and 5) Issue Reports.

1. Configuration Items Records: To provide a set of data for each products used in the project. See this as metadata for each product. E.g.: think of a library card for each book
2. Product Status Account: A report on the status of products.
3. Daily Log: Used by the project manager as a diary for all informal information.
4. Issue Register: Imagine a spreadsheet with a number of columns to capture and maintain issues.
5. Issue Report: A report description of an issue, which of course can be request for change, specification or problem/concern.

Question 11

What is one of the first questions that the Project Manager should ask when thinking about the Configuration Management strategy? (Tip: This will affect the amount of work one has to do to create the Configuration Management Strategy document.)

Answer 11

One of the first questions the Project Manager should ask is: What are the existing standards for issue and change control in the company? Then they can incorporate these into the Configuration Management Strategy document. If there is a Programme in place, then there will usually be such guidelines; if not, the Project Manager must ask a number of questions so one can create a Configuration Management Strategy document.

Question 12

What is the name of the technique that PRINCE2 suggests to help prioritize change requests and what does it stand for? Please explain. These are questions whose answers you must know for the exam.

Answer 12

PRINCE2 suggests using the MoSCoW technique, which is a great technique to prioritize change requests; it is easy to use and easy for the requesters to understand. MoSCoW stands for: Must have, Should Have, Could Have and Wont have for now.
• Must have: The change is essential for the viability of the project and its absence will affect the project objectives, so it should be included.
• Should have: The change is important & its absence will weaken the business case. However the project still meets project objectives.
• Could have: Also known as nice to have. The change is useful but its absence does not weaken the business case.
• Won’t have for now: The change is not essential or important, so it can wait.

Question 13

What is the Change Authority? What is the purpose, who do they report to, and can they deal with change requests only or both change requests and off-specification?

Answer 13

Change Authority is a person or group who consider requests for change and off-specifications. It is the responsibility of the Project Board but they can assign this to other persons or the Project Board can choose to do this themselves, which is more common where few changes are expected.

Question 14

Where does the Change Authority get money from to make changes and when is this decided?

Answer 14

The Change Authority will have a Change Budget, this is a sum of money that the customer and supplier agree will be used to fund the cost of requests for change. This is decided during the Initiation stage and will be documented in the Configuration Management Strategy document. It is advisable to always have a change budget for each project unless you are sure there will be very few of no change requests.

Question 15

What kind of control can the Project Board exert on how the change budget can be used and therefore control how the Change Authority works?

Answer 15

The Project Board can exert control by putting a limit on the on the cost of a single change or the amount to be spent in any one stage and of course the total amount of money in the change budget.

Question 16

What is the purpose of Configuration Item Records and give an example and who creates and maintains these?

Answer 16

The purpose of Configuration Items Records is to provide a set of records that describe the products in a project. This information can be like the status, version, type, short description, owner, current location, relationships with other products, etc. I like to use the example of a library card that will provide metadata for each book in the Library. Look at Configuration Item Records from the perspective of a record that describes a product. They are most likely created by the Project Manager role and maintained by the Product Support role. For small projects this can be the same person.

Question 17

What is Product Status Accounting? When is this done and who does it?

Answer 17

The purpose of the Product Status Account is to provide information about the status of products. This can be a report on one product, a group of products, or all products created during a stage. So Product Status Accounting produces a report on the status of products. Some of the information checked will be: product id number, version, status, location, users, and copy holders. The data is usually compared with the data in the Configuration Item Records.
A Product Status Account can happen at any time in the project; however at the end of a stage or end of a project is a good time to do this. E.g.: At the end of a stage you wish to ensure that all the latest versions of certain products are being used and users are not using older outdated versions. This is done by the role Project Support. Another way to look at this, Product Status Accounting helps to ensure that the right products are in the right place and being used by the right persons.

Question 18

What is the Daily Log and who creates it and updates it?

Answer 18

The daily log is used to record informal issues, required actions or significant events that are not captured in other project documents at that time. See it as a diary for the Project Manager in a word document with a number of columns such as date, comment, person responsible, date of any follow up if needed.
The Daily Log is first created in the Starting Up a Project process by the Project Manager and is updating during the project by the Project Manager. Any person can raise an informal issue but only the Project Manager can add this to the Daily Log. In my last two projects I used a Work Document and a Folder in my email system as my Daily Log.

Question 19

What is purpose of the Issue Register and who maintains it?

Answer 19

The purpose of the issue register is to capture and maintain information on the issues raised in the project. It is created and maintained by the Project Manager. The format and scales used are documented in the Configuration Management Strategy document. Product Support can also support the Project Manager in maintaining the Issue Register.

Question 20

Comment on the format of the Issue Register and list 3 to 4 types of information that is gathered on each issue.

Answer 20

The Issue Register is mostly a spreadsheet with a number of columns and one row for each issue. Some of these columns will be: issue identifier, issue type (request for change, off specification or concern), priority, severity, date raised, raised by, description, status and closure date.

Question 21

What is an Issue Report? Who creates them and who are they given to?

Answer 21

An Issue Report is a description of an issue, which can be a request for change, off specification or problem/concern. It also contains an impact assessment of these issues, therefore providing detailed information on how the issue affects the project. Issue Reports are created by the Project Manager and will be given to the Project Board, Change Authority and other stakeholders if necessary. E.g.: If an issue will take the stage out of tolerance, then the Project Board would like to see the Issue Report for that issue.

Question 22

When are Issue Reports created? When are they updated and what do you think would be the last update?

Answer 22

The Issue Report is usually created when the issue is first registered in the Risk Register. So basic information such as identifier, issue type, dates raised and raised by can be added. It can then be updated again after the issue has been examined, proposed solutions, choose solution. The final update that is done to an Issue Report document may be to change the status to closed and add the closed date.

Question 23

What is the name given to the activities that control, maintain and control changes for each product throughout the project lifecycle or in other words looking after the products in the project?

Answer 23

This is Configuration Management. Configuration Management is about looking after the project products.

Question 24

PRINCE2 suggests five activities to follow to do configuration management. These are: 1) Planning, 2) Identification, 3) Control, 4) Status Accounting and 5) Verification and audit. What happens in Planning and give an example in your own words? (Tip: level of configuration management.)

Answer 24

Planning is to do with deciding the level of configuration management that will be required so that the question asked by the Project Manager is “to what level do we need to do configuration management?”
• E.g.: If we are designing a new laptop PC we might decide do configuration management for all major products that make up the laptop but to worry about the internal components in these component products like motor used in the hard-disk. So the project will have a configuration item record and product description for the Hard-disk and not for any internal components in the hard-disk.
• What is the level of configuration management for this laptop project? We can say that the level of configuration for this project is the main components of the laptop PC.

Question 25

The 2nd Configuration Management activity is identification. What happens in this activity?

Answer 25

Identification is about identifying all products that will be used in the project and establish a coding system so that each product can be given a unique identifier. This can include information such as project name, product title, version number and initials of owner. For example, this document where I have written out these questions and answers is called P2F-LTQ-MP-FT-v1-1-date.doc. P2F stands for PRINCE2 Foundation, LTQ is short for Learn Thru Questions, BA stands for Management Plaza, FT are my initials & so on.

Question 26

Which of the 5 configuration management activities are discussed here? This activity is about managing the changes to the products during the life of the project. E.g.: When a product is baselined, it cannot be updated again. Instead a new version will have to be created. This activity also deals with the storing, distribution of copies, access control and archiving for both management and specialist products. Choose from: Planning, Identification, Control, Status Accounting and lastly Verification and audit.

Answer 26

This is Control activity and it is about controlling changes to products during the project. In fact the PRINCE2 manual says “once a product is approved nothing moves and nothing changes without authorization”. Baselined products are also used to compare the current situation with the previous objectives. E.g.: At the end of the project the current updated project plan is compared to the original plan to see how the project went compared to the original objectives.

Question 27

Which of the 5 configuration management activities are discussed here? This activity is to do with the reporting of current and historical data for one or more products in the form of a Product Status Account so that it is possible to see how a product has changed in each version and also its current status (also known as history data). Choose from: Planning, Identification, Control, Status Accounting and lastly Verification and audit.

Answer 27

This is Status Accounting. The Project Manager can call for a Product Status account at any time in the project but this mostly can happen at the end of the stage or end of the project. This will be carried out by Project Support for the Project Manager. This can focus on just one product or a group of products. The Product Status Account can look at the following status information for each product it looks at: Identifier, version, last update, current status, owner, changes since last update, list of users, date of next baseline, and related items.

Question 28

Which of the five activities in Configuration Management verify the products are in line with the data in the Configuration Item Records? Just imagine a Project Support picking up a Configuration Item Record and going off to check that all the data in the Configuration Item is correct. Choose answer from the 5 activities: from Planning, Identification, Control, Status Accounting, and Verification and audit.

Answer 28

This is Verification & Audit. In the example just given the Project Support person might check things like: Do certain users have access to the correct product versions, are products where they are supposed to be, do they have the correct identification numbers, are products secure and so on. Verification and audit also checks that the configuration management procedure outlined in the Configuration Management Strategy document is being followed correctly.

Question 29

Does PRINCE2 offer two different procedures for Issues and Change Control in the Change theme or does it offer a joint procedure for both?

Answer 29

It is the same procedure. The Issue and Change Control Produce is the procedure for handling issues and change requests, so that one procedure does both. This is important to remember and makes the change theme easy to understand if you know this.

Question 30

The Issue and Change Control Produce is the procedure for handling issues and change requests. What is the other Procedure in the Change Theme and what does it do?

Answer 30

The other procedure is the Configuration Management Procedure, which is about looking after the projects products.

Question 31

The Issue and Change Control procedure has five steps. Name two of the steps in the Issue and Change Control Procedure. (Tip: I use the memory aid CEPDI, spelt C.E.P.D.I to make it easy to recall)

Answer 31

The five steps in the Issue and Change Control Procedure are as follows: Capture, Examine, Propose, Decide and Implement. I hope CEPDI helped to recall this.
• Capture: Determine the type of issue, formal, informal, request for changes, and off-specification
• Examine: Assess the impact of the issue on the project objectives
• Propose: Propose actions to take, so Identify the options, evaluate and recommend
• Decide: Decide whether to approve, reject or defer the recommend solution
• Implement: Take corrective action, update Work Package or create Exception Plan

Question 32

What do you think happens in the Capture step of the Issue and Change Control process? What do you think is the main objective (tip: type of issue), how many types of issues are there and where is the information stored?

Answer 32

The objective is to determine the type of issue (change request, off-specification, problem/concern), then determine how serious it is, in other words the severity and if needs to be treated formally and then add it to the Issue Register. If the issue does not need to be handled formally, then it can be noted in the Daily Log.

Question 33

When can Capture issues happen? Who can report and capture issues?

Answer 33

Issues can be reported by anyone connected to the project. So the capturing issue can be done at any time. The Project Manager should plan some time into their daily/weekly schedule to deal with new issues.

Question 34

Give an example of an issue that a Project Manager would solve immediately and will not register in the Issue Register but the Daily Log.

Answer 34

Any kind of simple issue is good as an example. For example, a team member needs access to an application; or the need access to a network, or needs an email account. The Project Manager can handle all of these issues quickly and informally. So this does not need to be handled formally and the Project Manager can just make note in their Daily Log that they acted on a certain issue on a certain date.

Question 35

An issue that needs to be handled formally is registered in the Issue Register. When does the Issue Report need to first created? (Tip: I am only asking when the Issue Report needs to be created, not all the information filled in)

Answer 35

An Issue Report should be created at the same time as the entry is made in the Issue Register so that the Project Manager can start to add the information as they investigate the issue. The Issue Register then acts as an overview to all the issues. It is possible to see at any time how many issues are open and the status of each issue. On the other hand, the Issue Report is focused on one issue only.

Question 36

Which step of the Issue and Change Control procedure am I referring to from here? The step is to examine the issue by doing an impact analysis, which is a nice way of saying, looking at what effect the issue will have on the project objectives. The keyword here is impact analysis. Which of the 5 steps is this? Choose from Capture, Examine, Propose, Decide and Implement.

Answer 36

This is the Examine step. It’s the 2nd step in the Issue and Change Control procedure. The impact analysis should consider the impact the issue has on the Project objectives. This work is generally done by the Project Manager and they will decide how detailed the analysis should be as there is no point spending many hours on doing this if it can be solved in less time than it takes to do an Impact Analysis.

Question 37

The impact analysis looks at the possible impact the issue will have on different parts of the project. Name some things that are considered here. (Tip: The Project Manager will ask themselves “what effect will the issue have on ….”)

Answer 37

During the impact analysis, the Project Manager will consider the impact the issue has on:
• The project performance targets – remember the project variables, time cost, quality and scope
• The project business case especially in terms of the impact on benefits
• The project’s exposure to risk
Summary: For each issue the Project Manager will look at the impact of the Risk on the six project variables, the business case and risk.

Question 38

Which two documents may the Project Manager update after doing an impact analysis?

Answer 38

The Project Manager may update the Issue Register as the severity and priority of the issue may have changed or to show that an impact analysis has taken place. The other document will be the Issue Report which will normally include a good deal of information from the impact analysis.

Question 39

Which step of the Issue and Change Control procedure am I referring to here? After the impact analysis and examining the issue, the Project Manager will now consider different options to take address the issue and make a recommendation. (TIP: think CEPDI)

Answer 39

This is the Propose Step and is one of the 3 steps in Issue & Change Control procedure and the objective is to propose different options to take. These different options must also balance the cost with the advantage gained by doing a certain action and also look at the effect of each option on the project objectives which are: time, cost, quality, scope, benefits and risk.

Question 40

What is the next step in the Issue and Change Control procedure after the Project Manager proposes different options for dealing with the issue? The exact name is not important but what happens is.

Answer 40

Decide is the 4th step in the Issue and change control procedure. It is where certain roles in the project can decide which of the proposed solutions will be selected.

Question 41

Name two of the roles that can decide which of the proposed solutions will be chosen. (Tip: think about the types of issues, you have off specifications, change request and problem concerns.)

Answer 41

Depending on the issue the Project Manager, Project Board or the Change Authority decides if any action should be taken. The Project Manager might look after issues of Severity 1, the Change Authority could look after Severity 2, the Project Board could look after Severity 3 and the Corporate/Program Management could look after Severity 4. This is also decided at the start of the project and documented in the Configuration Management Strategy.

Question 42

Which document do you think defines the situations when the Project Manager can decide on issues? (Tip: This is one of the strategy documents that is created in the Initiation Stage.)

Answer 42

This is the Configuration Management Strategy document. It details how Configuration Management and Issue & Change Control Management will be done.

Question 43

Implement is the 5th step in the Issue and Change Control Procedure. What happens here and who takes the action?

Answer 43

Implement is for the Project Manager. They will either:
• Take the corrective action such as updating a work package, or issuing a new work package. The project manager can do this when the stage does not go out of tolerance and they can work within their define tolerances.
• If the chosen proposal does bring the stage or project out of tolerance then the Project Board will request an Exception Plan which again will have to be approved by the Project Board or the level above. If the Exception Plan is approved the Project Manager can implement the chosen solution.

Question 44

Does the Project Manager need to update the Issue Register and Issue Report during this step “Implement”?

Answer 44

Yes. The Project Manager needs to update both to show what has happened and the current status. For example, with the Issue Register, it may change the current status to Closed. The Issue Report will also be updated to show what actions have been taken in the Implement step and the current status.

Question 45

Who is responsible for the following in the Change theme?
• Manage the configuration management procedure
• Manage the issues and change control procedures
• Create and maintain the Issue Register
• Implement corrective actions

Answer 45

This is the Project Manager.

Question 46

Who is responsible for the following in the Change theme?
• Main role is to administer configuration management, so look after the project products and do the admin tasks for the issue and change control procedures
• Maintain the configuration items records for the products
• Assist the Project Manager to maintain the Issue Register

Answer 46

This is the Project Support.

Question 47

Who is responsible for the following in the Change theme?
• They provide advice on examining and resolving issues and check that the procedures in the Configuration Management Strategy documents are being followed

Answer 47

Project Assurance.

Question 48

Who is responsible for the following in the Change theme?
• Determine the Change Authority and change budget
• Set the scale for severity rating, issues & priority ratings: e.g.: 1-5 or low, medium, high
• Respond to requests for advice from the Project Manager during the project
• Make decisions on issues that are escalated by the Project Manager

Answer 48

This is the Executive. The Project Board is also responsible for most of these.

Question 49

Who is responsible for the following in the Change theme?

• Implement corrective actions that were assign by the Project Manager

Answer 49

This is the Team Manager.