Prince 2 framework

Question 1

What is the PM structure/ project organisation?

Answer 1

It is the four levels of a PM structure (project organisation).

Question 2

How many levels does the PM team have and what are they?

Answer 2

Three level.
Top level = project board level
Middle level = PM
Lower level = team manager level

The project team is temporary and is disbanded once the project is complete.

Question 3

Who comes under the project board?

Answer 3

Senior user
Executive
Senior supplier

^ Project board is part of the project management team and is above PM and team manager.

Question 4

What is the highest within the PM structure?

Answer 4

At the top of the PM structure you have the corporate or programme management level. This level is outside the project and so do not participate in the project and so aren’t part of the project team.

Question 5

What is the project board responsible for?

Answer 5

Responsible for the success of the project and has the necessary authority to take decisions and approve all major plans. They approve the completion of each stage and authorise the start of the next (is called directing a project).

Question 6

What is a programme?

Answer 6

A temporary flexible organisation structure created to coordinate, direct and oversee the implementation of a set of related projects and activities in order to deliver outcomes and benefits related to the organisations strategic objectives.

It is a group of related projects in an organisation.

Question 7

What is the highest level if there is no programme?

Answer 7

Corporate management would be the top layer (PRINCE2 term for the higher level of management in a company).

Question 8

What is the executive role?

Answer 8

The main person responsible for the project, they are supported by the senior user and senior supplier.
They represent the business interests of the project and own the business case.
The role gives a single point of accountability for the project.

Question 9

What is the executive responsible for?

Answer 9

Designing and appointing the PM team, including the rest of the project board and project manager.

Question 10

What is the senior user role?

Answer 10

They represent the user interests and is responsible for the specification. They specify the needs of the users and check that the final products meet the required specification.
Their main concern is ‘Will it work?’.
Senior users also specify the expected benefits at the start of the project and reports to the project board on the benefits that are being realised during the project.

Question 11

What is the senior supplier role?

Answer 11

They represent the interests of those designing, developing, facilitating and implementing the project’s products.
Their main concern is ‘Can it be done?’ and whether it can be done within the agreed time, cost and quality requirements.

Question 12

What is the PM role?

Answer 12

PM is appointed by the executive with approval from corporate or project management. PM runs the project on behalf of the project board on a day-to-day basis and has the responsibility to produce the required products to the required quality within the specified time and cost.

Question 13

What is the team manager role?

Answer 13

They have the responsibility to produce the products that were assigned in work packages by the PM and to provide regular status reports on their progress. Allows the PM to monitor their work. Team managers create their own team plans to manage the development of the assigned products.

Question 14

What are the four management levels? Where are they shown?

Answer 14

The process model shows four management levels.
Level 1 = Corporate or programme management
Level 2 = Direction
Level 3 = Management
Level 4 = Delivery

Question 15

What is level 1 of the management levels?

Answer 15

Corporate or programme management

This is the top level, the only thing created in this level is the project mandate.

Question 16

What is level 2 of the management level?

Answer 16

Direction

This is where the project board works. They interface often with the management level and provide level 1 with notifications. The are three notifications in the process model.

Question 17

What is level 3 of the management level?

Answer 17

Management

This is where the PM works. It contains most of the activities and processes (Initiating a project and controlling a stage).

Question 18

What is level 4 of the management level?

Answer 18

Delivery

This is where the project’s products are created. These products are what users want from the project and are the reason why the project was started and are known as specialist products.

Question 19

What are management products?

Answer 19

These are products created just to manage the project (project plan, project brief).

Question 20

What are specialist products?

Answer 20

All the products created in the delivery level by the teams, these are what users want from the project. These are why the project was started.

Question 21

What are the 7 processes within the process model?

Answer 21

-Directing a project
-Start up a project
-Initiating a project
-Controlling a stage
-Managing a stage boundary
-Managing product delivery
-Closing a project

Question 22

What are brief descriptions of the 7 processes of the process model?

Answer 22

DP = senior management controlling the project
SU = pre-project gathering data to start the project
IP = examines the justification and creates project initiation documents
CS = PM’s monitoring and controlling activities
SB = controlling and completing a stage and planning the next one
MP = delivery of the products that the users will use
CP = confirms delivery of the products and PM prepares to close

Question 23

What is it that happens before the project begins?

Answer 23

This is the pre project/ project mandate.
The project mandate comes from a senior person, can be called the project request or project proposal or project mandate.

Question 24

What is the project mandate?

Answer 24

It provides the input to ‘starting up a project’ and is created before the project starts, outside of the project.
It provides the trigger to start the project.

*within a programme majority of the prep is already done and is supplied by the programme.

Question 25

What are some contents of the project mandate?

Answer 25

It should identify the executive and the PM.
-Main objective
-Business case (reasoning for)
-Project scope in high level terms
-Customer quality expectations
-Info about customer
-Info about related projects that can provide feedback.

Question 26

What comes after the project mandate?

Answer 26

Once the project mandate is ready the Starting up a project (SU) process begins.

Question 27

What are the three deliverables of the starting up a project process?

Answer 27

1. Project brief (outline of business case)
2. Design and appointing of PM team
3. Initiation stage plan

Question 28

What is the purpose of the starting up a project process?

Answer 28

Goal is to provide structure to get the project off to a good start, it is made up of 6 activities.

Question 29

What are the 6 activities of the starting up a project process?

Answer 29

1. Appoint executive and PM
2. Capture previous lessons from other projects
3. Appoint PM team
4. Create outline of business case
5. Select project approach and assemble project brief
6. Create plan for initiation stage

Question 30

Who appoints the executive and the PM?

Answer 30

Corporate or programme management.

Question 31

Who appoints the PM team?

Answer 31

PM creates the roles and responsibilities including estimated effort required but the executive appoints the people.

Question 32

Who outlines the business case?

Answer 32

The executive creates the outline for the business case, they address the value for the business, company objectives, funding and risk information. The PM will create the project product description to describe main output of the project.

Question 33

Who assembles the project brief and approach?

Answer 33

PM examines how to approach the project and assembles project brief document.

Question 34

Who plans for the initiation stage?

Answer 34

PM creates the plan for the initiation stage, the first stage of the project. Includes info like the objectives, deliverables, cost and time.