Introduction Flashcards
What does PRINCE2 stand for?
PRojects IN Controlled Environments
What are the two competing imperatives in business?
- To maintain business as usual
- To transform business operations
What are projects?
The means by which we introduce change.
What makes projects different?
A project is a temporary organisation created to deliver one or more business products according to a business case.
What are the characteristics of project work that distinguish it from business as usual?
- Change
- Temporary
- Cross-functional
- Unique
- Uncertainty
What is project management?
- The planning, delegating, monitoring and control of all aspects of the project, and
- the motivation of those involved,
- to achieve the project objectives within the expected performance targets for time, cost, quality, scope, benefits and risks.
What are products?
Project deliverables.
What is the purpose of project management?
To keep control over the specialist work required to create the project’s products.
Why is project management a valuable business investment?
Because transformation entails a higher level of risk than other business activity.
What are the six variables controlled by the Project Manager?
- Costs
- Timescales
- Quality
- Scope
- Risk
- Benefits
What are the 4 components of the PRINCE2 structure?
- Principles
- Themes
- Processes
- Tailoring to project environment
What three topic categories are NOT within the scope of PRINCE2?
1. Specialist aspects (engineering models, project lifecycles, organisational change management)
2. Detailed techniques (critical path analysis, earned value analysis)
3. Leadership capability (leadership styles)
Draw the project environment.
What are the 7 PRINCE2 principles?
- Continued business justification
- Learn from experience
- Defined roles and responsibilities
- Manage by stages
- Manage by exception
- Focus on products
- Tailor to suit the project environment
What are the three key aspects of the principle of Continued Business Justification?
- There is a justifiable reason to start it,
- The justification should remain valid throughout the life of the project
- The justification is documented and approved
How is the justification of a project documented?
In a business case
When should the PRINCE2 principle of Learn from Experience be applied?
- When starting a project
- As the project progresses
- As the project closes
In applying the PRINCE2 principle of Defined Roles and Responsibilities, what are the three classes of stakeholders whose needs must be met?
- Business Sponsors
- Users
- Suppliers
What is the role of business sponsors?
- To endorse the objectives and
2 ensure the investment provides value for money
What is the role of users?
Receive the intended benefits by using the product.
What is the role of suppliers?
Provide the required resources and expertise
What is the purpose of the PRINCE2 principle of Manage by Stages?
To give senior managers control points at major intervals throughout the project.
What are the three components for effectively implementing the PRINCE2 principle of Manage by Stages?
- Divide the project into a number of management stages
- Create a high level project plan and a detailed current stage plan
- Plan, delegate, monitor and control the project stage by stage
The PRINCE2 principle of Manage by Stages requires a minimum of two management stages, what are they?
- Initiation stage
- One or more management stages
What are the six objectives against which the PRINCE2 principle or Manage by Exception are measured?
- Time
- Cost
- Quality
- Scope
- Risk
- Benefit
What are the defining attributes of a Product Description
- Purpose
- Composition
- Derivation
- Format
- Quality criteria
- Quality method
What does the Product Description enable?
The means to determine;
1. Effort estimates
2. Resource requirements
3. Dependencies
4. Activity schedules
What does the Product focus support?
Almost every aspect of PRINCE2
1. Planning
2. Responsibilities
3. Status reporting
4. Quality
5. Change control
6. Scope
8. Configuration management
9. Product acceptance
10. Risk management
Without Product Focus what risks is the project exposed to?
- Acceptance disputes
- Rework
- Uncontrolled change (scope creep)
- User dissatisfaction
- Underestimation of acceptance activities
Why is **Focus on Products* a principle of PRINCE2?
Common understanding of the set of agreed products defines the scope of a project, and provides a basis for planning and control.
Describe the PRINCE2 principle Tailor to suit the project environment
PRINCE2 is tailored to suit the projects environment, size, complexity, importance, capability and risk.
What is likely to happen to a project if it is not tailored to the environment?
It may not meet the project management and approach requirements.
It may lead to robotic (method followed without question) project management at one extreme
Or heroic (no method followed) project management
What is the purpose of the PRINCE2 principle of tailoring a project to suit the project environment?
- To ensure the project management method relates to the project’s environment (e.g. aligning the method to the busnness processes that may govern and support the project, such as human resources, finance and procurement)
- To ensure that project controls are based on the project’s scale, complexity, importance, capability and risk (e.g. the reporting and reviewing frequency and formality).
What document states how the method is being tailored for a project.
The Project Initiation document
What is the purpose of the project initiation document?
To ensure that all those involved in the project understand how PRINCE2 is to be used.
