Manage a PRINCE2 Project and Stage To Deliver Benefit

The PRINCE2 Process Flow

The project board sets direction and makes key decisions throughout the life of the project. The project board's activities are covered by the directing a project process, which runs from pre-project through to, and including, the final management stage.

PRINCE2 Pre-project
In the beginning, someone has an idea or a need. The trigger for the PRINCE2 project may come from new business objectives, responding to competitive pressures, changes in legislation or a recommendation in a report or an audit.

In PRINCE2, this trigger is called a project mandate. The project mandate is provided by the commissioning organization (corporate, programme management or the customer) and can vary in form from a verbal instruction to a well-defined and justified project definition.

Prior to the activity to scope the project fully, it is important to verify that the project is worthwhile and viable. Such activities are covered by the starting up a project process, which culminates in the production of a project brief and a stage plan for project initiation.

The project board reviews the project brief and decides whether to initiate the project and states the levels of authority to be delegated to the project manager for the initiation stage.

PRINCE2 Initiation stage
When a decision has been made to go ahead with the PRINCE2 project, it needs to be planned at an appropriate level of detail. Funding needs to be obtained and appropriate controls should be defined to ensure that the project proceeds in accordance with the wishes of those people paying for the project and those who will make use of what the project delivers.

The planning, establishment of the PRINCE2 project management approaches and controls, development of a robust business case and a means of reviewing benefits are covered by the initiating a project process. Also, during the initiation stage, the managing a stage boundary process is used to plan the next management stage in detail.

The PRINCE2 initiation stage culminates in the production of the Project Initiation Documentation (PID), which is reviewed by the project board to decide whether to authorize the project. As the contents of the PlD are likely to change throughout the project (under change control), this version of the PID is preserved as input for later performance reviews.

Subsequent PRINCE2 stages

The project board delegates day-to-day control to the project manager on a management-stage-by-management stage basis. The project manager needs to assign work to be done, ensure that the outputs of such work (products) meet relevant specifications, and gain suitable approval where appropriate.

At this point, products may be transitioned into operational use by corporate, programme management or the customer.

The project manager also needs to ensure that progress is in line with the approved plan and that the forecasts for the project's performance targets are within agreed tolerances.

The PRINCE2 project manager ensures that a set of project records are maintained to assist with progress control. The project manager informs the project board of progress through regular highlight reports. The activities to control each management stage are covered by the controlling a stage process.

In the managing product delivery process, the team manager(s) or team members execute assigned work packages (that will deliver one or more products) and keep the project manager appraised of progress via checkpoint reports.

Towards the end of each PRINCE2 management stage, the project manager requests permission to proceed to the next management stage by reporting how the management stage performed, providing an update to the business case and planning the next management stage in detail.

The project manager provides the information needed by the project board for it to assess the continuing viability of the project and to decide to authorize the next management stage.

At all times, the project board must ensure that the project remains aligned with the strategy of corporate, programme management or the customer. The activities to manage each management stage boundary are covered in the managing a stage boundary process

The Final PRINCE2 stage

As a project is a temporary undertaking, towards the end of the final management stage (when the project manager has gained approval for all the project's products) it is time to start the closing a project process.

The project board needs to be satisfied that the recipients of the project's products can own and use them on an ongoing basis. Should this be the case, the products can be transitioned into operational use and the project can close.

The project documentation should be tidied up and archived, the project should be assessed for performance against its original plan and the resources assigned to the project need to be released.

PRINCE2 closure activities include planning post-project benefits reviews to take place for those benefits that can only be assessed after the products have been in use (and therefore after the project has closed). The activities to decommission a project are covered by the closing a project process

PRINCE2 Post-project

The PRINCE2 project is typically contributing towards the benefits defined by corporate, programme management or the customer. Even though some of these benefits may be realized during the project, it is likely that many or all the benefits will be realized post-project.

Corporate, programme management or the customer therefore needs to be satisfied that the project has contributed towards benefits realization and is therefore likely to hold one or more post-project benefits reviews.

The reviews will be signposted in the PRINCE2 project's benefits management approach. If the project is part of a programme, then the post-project benefits reviews need to be covered by the programme's benefits management activities.

A post-project benefits review will focus on: