PRINCE2 – Tailoring Controlling a Stage Part 1
The Controlling a Stage process is where much of the PRINCE2 tailoring occurs, and so the project manager would want to continuously monitor the effectiveness of the procedures and controls used. When it comes to Tailoring Controlling a Stage this is a task for the project manager.
If necessary, the project manager should take corrective action, which might entail further tailoring and an update to the project initiation documentation.
As an example, here, it may be found that the summary risk profile matrix, categorizes all risks as high, when they are clearly not. In such a situation, the project manager would want to take into either the risk profile matrix used itself, all to complement it with another tool.
The PRINCE2 Work Packages are fundamentally important to the Controlling a Stage process as they relate to the PRINCE2 principle to focus on products.
PRINCE2 Work Packages Tailoring
Work Packages can take many forms as specialist disciplines often have their own practices for defining their specialist deliverables. Work Packages are highly likely to be different if the work is done internally rather than contracted to a supplier.
The project manager should use the Work Package outline simply as a checklist to ensure that the relevant content is present, even if the Work Package does not exist as a single entity and contained within the document format.
Highlight Report Tailoring
The frequency of Highlight Reporting may need to change to suit the risk profile and output being created. This should be clearly documented within the communication management approach contained within the project initiation documentation.
Highlight Reports may be in the form of wall charts, Kanban boards or other information radiators. Additional information such as KPI’s may be added or referenced if they provide extra value or clarity.
Issue Report Tailoring
An issue report is simply a view of the issue register with additional information covering an impact analysis, recommendation and decision on the issue concerned. If this additional information is added to the issue register itself, then there is no need for a separate, formally documented issue report.
Exception Report Tailoring
It is the project board members who receive an exception report if it is raised, and so this report may be in any format acceptable to the project board if it includes the information the project board requires to decide on what to do next.
PRINCE2 – tailoring roles in the Controlling a Stage process
Although the project manager is responsible for the creation of or new management products within the Controlling a Stage process, they may delegate this to others, while retaining accountability.
If the project manager does not have sufficient specialist experience or skills to define the specialist products, then the project manager should focus on checking that the Work Packages are defined and reviewed rigorously.
Controlling a Stage for a simple project
For a simple project, it may be that the project manager also acts as the team manager. In such a situation, the project manager may choose to use Work Packages as a control for individual team members, and is likely to undertake the project support role personally.
Controlling a Stage when using an agile approach in PRINCE2
Be aware, that during a project, it is not always the case that the whole project should be run as agile, but rather only certain aspects – for example, a particular stage.
When Controlling a Stage that is using an agile approach, the project manager should empower the teams to deliver in the best way possible rather than using the traditional project management command and control approach.
This means being collaborative with work assignments based around the number of requirements to be delivered, for example in the form of features, and making full use of the most effective visual communication channels.
In support of this, the use of regular reviews and retrospectives along with setting the appropriate tolerances creates an environment where creativity and responding to change exists to best address the customer’s needs.
With regards to tolerances, the should be based primarily around scope and quality criteria, since it is expected that the agile approach will use Timeboxes or time controlled sprints.
Another aspect to consider here is that the product owner, who represents the customer, sits within the specialist delivery team. As such, team members typically plan their work according to the priority order decided by the customer.
As you can see from the diagram below, it is the product backlog that drives the creation of products either within a Work Package or within a particular stage:
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