Principles provide a framework of good project practice for those involved in a project.


Continued Business Justification

The continued business justification principle supports the need for a documented and approved justification at the start and during the project.

The Business Case provides:

  • Start with developments of new solutions & products - where adaptability is important.
  • Use committed (= full-time) teams.
  • Make sure a professional coach is available.

Focus on Products

A PRINCE2 project focuses on the definition and delivery of products, in particular, their quality requirements.

The Focus on Products principle states that a Product Description should be written as soon and as clear as possible in the project, so that all stakeholders will have a clear idea of what to expect.

A detailed Product Description will:

  • Guide the project.
  • Build correct expectations.
  • Help to deliver the required products.

A good Product Description provides clarity, as it defines the product’s purpose, composition, derivation, format, quality criteria and quality method


Defined Roles & Responsibilities

A project should have defined and agreed roles and responsibilities within an organisation structure that engages the Business, User and Supplier Stakeholder interests.

So provide a clear team structure where the three primary stakeholders must be represented:

  • Business sponsors are those who make sure the project delivers value for money.
  • Users will use the products once created, so they receive the benefits.
  • Suppliers provide the resources and expertise to the project and produce the products.

A good Project Management structure answers the questions:

  • 'What is expected of me?'
  • 'What can I expect from others?'
  • 'Who makes what decisions?'

Manage by Stages

A PRINCE2 Project is planned, monitored and controlled on a stage-by-stage basis. These Management Stages are separated by Decision Points (also known as “Control Points”) by the Project Board.

Advantages:

  • Allow the project to be divided into a number of manageable chunks.
  • Have a high-level Project Plan for the whole project and very detailed Stage Plans.
  • Solves the planning horizon issue.
  • Make sure that plans for future stages can learn from previous stages.

At the end of each stage, the Project Board assesses the performance of the last stage, the Business Case and the plan for next stage, and decides whether to proceed with the next stage.


Manage by Exception

A PRINCE2 project has defined tolerances for each project objective to establish limits.
Manage by Exception is used by each level in the Project Organization to manage the level below.

The layer below should only notify the above management layer if there is a big issue that is outside their tolerance. The PRINCE2 name for a big issue is Exception, which means the issue is outside the agreed tolerance.

PRINCE2 lists 6 tolerances that can be set. These are:

  • Benefit
  • Cost
  • Quality
  • Risk
  • Scope
  • Time

Learn from Experience

A characteristic of a project is that it is (at least partly) unique. This uniqueness leads to risks and challenges. Therefore every PRINCE2 project team must seek lessons learned from previous experience. Lessons are sought, recorded and acted upon during the lifetime of the project.

  • 'Learn from experience' covers the full lifetime of the project, from Starting Up a Project, as the project progresses until the Project Closes. Any lesson learned during the project should be documented. Documented lessons should be passed on so they are available for future projects.
  • It is the responsibility of everyone involved with the project to seek lessons learned rather than waiting for someone else to provide them.

Tailor to suit the Project Environment

PRINCE2 can be applied to any project.

A PRINCE2 project should be tailored to suit the project’s …

  • Size, Environment, Complexity, Importance, Capability, Risk.

The purpose of tailoring is to:

  • Ensure that the Project Method relates to the project’s environment.
  • Ensure that the project’s controls are based on the project’s scale, complexity, importance, capability and risk.
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