PRINCE2 7 Initiating a Project (IP) – Part 2
The PID sets out WHAT the project is intended to achieve, WHY it is needed, HOW the outcome is to be achieved WHEN activities are to happen, and what (WHO) people’s responsibilities are.
It contains a suite of management products sufficient for the level of control needed by the Project Board. The Senior User is responsible for identifying the expected benefits within the Business Case, and the Project Manager creates the Benefits Management Approach – used to define how and when measurement of the benefits will be achieved.
The project is split into a number of management stages; the first stage is called the Initiation Stage.
The minimum number of stages is two. A stage is defined as partitions of the project with management decision points, and at the end of each stage, the Project Board must approve the next stage plan including the resources required before authorizing the Project Manager to control and manage that stage.
Once the PID is signed off by the Project Board, it is now owned by them and encourages their commitment. The PID will be used as a “baseline” against which to monitor and manage control and report throughout the project.
Parts of the PID will be updated at the end of each stage to reflect the latest progress and understanding. It is important that the PID contains a viable Business Case demonstrating that the benefits to be realized are worth the time, effort, cost and risks.
Initiating a project – purpose and reasons
The purpose of the process of initiating a project is to establish solid foundations for the project,
enabling the business to understand the work that needs to be done to deliver the project product
before committing to any significant expenditure or resources.
The objectives of the process of initiating a project are to ensure that there is a common
understanding of:
- the reasons for doing the project, the benefits expected, and the associated risks (documented
in a full business case) - the scope of what is to be done and the products to be delivered
- how and when the products will be delivered and at what cost
- who is to be involved in the project decision-making
- how the quality required will be achieved
- how baselines will be established and controlled
- how risks and issues will be identified, assessed, and controlled
- how progress will be monitored and controlled
- who needs information, in what format, and at what time
- how the project applies business policies, methods, and guidance.
Key Inputs to the Initiating a Project process
You will need to know how the following key documents inputs are used in Initiating a Project:
Daily Log. This is used to review any risks and issues associated with the Risk and Configuration Management Strategy documents.
Lessons Log. This is used to seek lessons to be applied to the Risk, Quality, Configuration, and Communication Management Approach documents.
Project Brief. This is reviewed to understand if any corporate or programme management strategies, standards or practices need to be applied to the Risk, Quality, Configuration, and Communication Management Strategy documents.
Project Product Description. This is reviewed for the Quality Management Strategy document, to understand the customer’s quality expectations and to check that the acceptance criteria are sufficiently defined.
It is also used to determine whether it needs to be updated (possible acceptance criteria?) as a result of planning done in creating the Project Plan.
Outline Business Case. This is updated in the activity Refine the Business Case to reflect the estimated time and costs as defined by the Project Plan plus the aggregated risks from the Risk Register.
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