Purpose
To provide a framework to design, develop and maintain the Project Plans which are the Project Plan, Stage Plan, Exception Plan and Team Plan.
Facilitate communication and control by defining the means of delivering the products (where and how, by whom and estimating the when and how much)
Definitions
A Plan describes the how, when and by whom a specific target or set of targets will be achieved. Targets include the project’s products, but also the six project variables.
Planning is the act of creating and maintaining the plan.
Levels of plan
- Level 1 is the Project Plan, mainly used in the Directing a Project process by the Project Board.
- Level 2 are the Stage Plans, mainly used by the Project Manager for day to day management of the project.
- Level 3 are the Team Plans, mainly used by the Team Managers to execute the Work Packages.
Approach to Plans
Design the plan
When designing the plan(s), their layout and presentation, keep in mind your audience. - How will they use the plans?
What tools will be used? Planning tools are not obligatory, but can save lots of time
Define and analyse the products
Identify products and their interdependencies, clearly showing what the project involves.
Involve the users in this process, thereby improving communications. Gain a clear agreement in order to avoid “scope creep”.
The core technique used in PRINCE2 is the Product Based Planning technique.
- First a high level description of the Project Product is written, including quality requirements and acceptance criteria.
- A diagrammatic overview/breakdown of the major products to be created during the project.
- Write a Product Description for all required major products and include quality information.
- The product flow diagram shows the sequence in which the products of the plan will be developed and also identifies dependencies.
There are 2 types of products:
- Management products are used to manage the project, e.g. Business Case, Plans, Strategy documents, Product descriptions and work packages. A baseline producct is a product that can be signed of. Records are used to log or register events during the project. Reports are created to communicate to stakeholders. Management products are in fact merely by-products from the project.
- Specialist products are the product the users will use from the project; the project was setup to create these products in the first place.
Identify activities and dependencies
Use the product descriptions and the Product Breakdown Structure to identify the activities and dependencies.
Prepare estimates
Use input from experts to prepare the estimates.
Prepare the schedule
Define the activity sequence and assign resources to each activity.
Document the plan
Document all assumptions, constraints, risks and external dependencies. Use clear descriptive text.