The PRINCE2 Approach to Change
The Issues Practice and the Change Management approach will be decided early in the project (IP stage), which is the first stage. This can be reviewed at the end of each stage in the Stage Boundary Process.
PRINCE2 has 6 management products that are used to control issues, changes and Configuration Management. The Change Control Approach document is used to establish the project controls and the rest of the documents help to maintain the project controls.
The other five management products are:
- Configuration Items Records
- Product Status Account
- Daily Log
- Issue Register
- Issue Reports
Here is a quick introduction of these 6 management products:
Configuration Items Records:
They provide a set of data for each product used in the project (like meta data). E.g. The central desk of library would have card for each book with specific information including location, classification, ISBN number, etc…
Product Status Account:
This is a report on the status of products. E.g. List status of all products produced by Supplier X in stage 3.
Daily Log:
This log is used by the Project Manager as a diary for all informal information. Formal information is placed in a register (Issue or Risk).
Issue Register:
Imagine a spreadsheet to capture and maintain issues.
Issue Report:
This report describes an issue and according to PRINCE2 an issue can be:
- Request for Change
- Off-Specification
- problem/concern.
Change Control Approach
The Change Control Approach document contains the strategy of how issues and changes will be handled in the project. E.g. how to identify products, how to control products and how to do status accounting and verification. One of the first questions the Project Manager should ask is: What are the existing standards for Issue and Change Control in the company?
They could then incorporate them into the Change Control Approach document.
If there is a program environment in place, there will usually be guidelines available to all Project Managers. If not, the Project Manager must ask a number of questions so that they can create a Change Control Approach document.
- Q1: How should products be planned, identified, controlled and verified? (This is Configuration Management)
- Q2: How are Issues and Changes? (E.g. Capture, Examine, Propose, Decision, & Implement
- Q3: What tools will be used to help track Issues and Product Information (e.g., SharePoint, Niku Clarity, Shared Drive, a spreadsheet)?
- Q4: What data should be kept for each product (e.g., Product Description, Configuration Item Record, etc.)?
- Q5: How often will the Project Manager consider Issue & Change Control (e.g., once a week, twice a month, etc.)?
- Q6: Who will be responsible for what? In other words, what will be the Roles and Responsibilities? (For example, who has the role of Change Authority?)
- Q7: How are issues and changes prioritized? What scale will be used to prioritize issues?
- Q8: What scale will be used for rating the severity of issues (e.g., 1 to 4, 1 for minor and 4 for critical…)?
- Q9: Which management levels will deal with different severity issues? (For example, Severity 1 issue can be decided upon by the Project Manager and Severity 3 & 4 has to go to the Change Authority.)
This Change Control Approach document is created in the IP stage by the Project Manager and will be approved by Project Board
How to prioritize issues & track severity
Remember, again, that Issues are Change Requests, off-specifications or problems/concerns. There are many ways to prioritize a change request and PRINCE2 introduces the MoSCoW technique to help with this.
MoSCoW is written with big M, S, C and W which stand for Must have, Should have, Could have and Won’t have for now.
- Must have: The change is essential for the viability of the project and its absence would affect the project objectives. E.g. The end product may not work as required
- Should have: The change is important and its absence would weaken the Business Case; the project would still meet its objectives, however
- Could have (also known as nice to have): The change is useful but its absence does not weaken the Business Case
- Won’t have for now: The change is not essential or important, so it can wait.
Good questions to ask to prioritize the Issue and Change Request
- Must have: Will the end product work if not resolved? (Yes)
- Should have: Does it affect the Business Case (Yes)
- Could have: Does it affect the Business Case (No)
- Won’t have for now Is change essential or important (Yes)
Priority & Severity
So MoSCoW is good for prioritizing but what about rating the severity of an issue?
Example: You can use a scale of 1-5 or words such as minor, significant, major & critical.
You can link a severity level of an issue by linking a severity with a role.
- Severity Minor: Project Manager
- Severity Significant Change Authority
- Severity Major Project Board
- Severity Critical Program Management (e.g. project out of tolerance)
Change Authority and Change Budget
The Change Authority is a person or a group who consider requests for change and off-specifications. It is the responsibility of the Project Board, so they can do it themselves, which is more common where few changes are expected, or they can assign this to other persons.
If a lot of changes are expected then this will take up too much time from the Project Board and it is better to give the authority to another person or group of persons.
What kind of persons can take on this role?
This all depends on the size and value of the project, the change budget, the amount that the Change Authority can spend on each change and other such factors. So this could be the secretary of the Executive, one of the board, a financial person or any other competent person.
The Change Authority will then act on the instructions from the Project Board.
The Change Authority will have a change budget, which is a sum of money that the customer and supplier agree to use to fund the cost of Requests for Change. It is advisable to always have a change budget for each project unless you are sure there will be very few or no change requests. The Project Board can still exert control, as they can put a limit on the cost of a single change or the amount to be spent in any one stage.
The Change Control process is a very important tool for the Project Manager. Let me give you an example. You have senior members of the organization asking for changes and you don’t want to appear as negative or be forced to add something new that will put the project in jeopardy. So when asked to add something new to the project, you can start by saying “Sure.
This is our change request process and here is our Change Request form. I can explain this to you or help you to fill this in.” You can then pass the Change Request to the Change Authority and you never have to say no while you keep the project on track.
Management Products used by the Change Theme
Configuration Item Records (CIR):
The purpose of Configuration Items Records is to provide a set of records that describe the products of a project. The best way to explain this is by using the example of a library card that will provide metadata for each book in the library or MP3 TAG information for a song.
Here is an example of an CIR for a Elevator product in a new apartment building project:
Configuration Item Record
Product Status Accounting
The purpose of the Product Status Account is to provide information about the status of products during the project. This can be a report on one product, a group of products, or all products created during a stage. Look at it as ensuring that the right product is in the right place and being used by the right persons.
It is very helpful to the Project Manager. For instance, imagine that you are trying to organize a business event and an older version of the registered users is sent to the taxi company that will pick up these persons at the airport. So it is very important that the correct persons are using the correct products.
Daily Log
The Daily Log is used to record informal issues, notes, etc… that are not captured in other project documents at that time. It is like a diary for the Project Manager in a Word document with a number of columns such as Date, Comment, Person Responsible, and Date of Follow-Up if needed.
Example: A stakeholder sent an email saying they would like to sit in a Quality Review meeting for a specific product, or a stakeholder has asked you to resend the information
Let me give you an example of the type of data you would store: When you first hear of an issue, you may not have too much information or it may not be very serious, so you decide to enter this into the Daily Log. If the issue becomes more serious and requires follow-up action, then it can be inserted in the Issue Register
Tips for using the Daily Log
- Use Excel, as it easier to sort via target date so you know what to follow-up on next
- Keep the Daily Log open on your PC, so it is easy to add new information and check if you have any tasks to complete for that day.
Issue Register
The purpose of the Issue Register is to capture and maintain information on the issues raised in the project.
See this as a spreadsheet with a number of columns like Issue Identifier, Issue Type (Request For Change, Off-Specification or Concern), Priority, Severity, Date on Which Issue Was Raised, Raised By, Description, Status and Closure Date.
Issue Reports
An Issue Report is a description of an issue, which could be:
- Request for Change
- Off- Specification
- A Problem/Concern
It also contains an impact assessment of the issue(s). The report is usually created when the issue is first registered in the Risk Register. Basic information can be added like Identifier, Issue Type, Date on Which it Was Raised and Raised By.
It can then be updated again after the issue has been examined, solutions proposed, and a solution chosen. The final update that is done to an Issue Report document may be to change the status to “closed” and add the closed date.
Pass Your PRINCE2 Exams at First Try HERE!
PRINCE2® 7 Foundation and Practitioner
Learn PRINCE2® 7 Foundation and Practitioner Online
** Enhance your PRINCE2 career now **
PRINCE2® Masterclass gives you the skills necessary to manage projects effectively and achieve your objectives.
Get 7 days a week 12 months one to one coaching with ex PRINCE2 examiner Dave Litten.
PRINCE2® is a globally recognized project management framework. By completing both the Foundation and Practitioner courses through our self-paced e-learning, you will develop an understanding of the methodology and learn how to effectively adapt it to any project.
The PRINCE2® 7 Foundation and Practitioner Masterclass is PeopleCert Accredited and guarantees to take you from PRINCE2 Novice to PRINCE2 Practitioner with our famous video learning, study guides and practice exams.
What Does the Masterclass Cover?
The PRINCE2 Foundation examination assesses your knowledge and comprehension of the PRINCE2 project management methodology as detailed in the syllabus. The PRINCE2 Practitioner examination, on the other hand, gauges your ability to apply and tailor the PRINCE2 method. Candidates who pass the Practitioner exam should be able to start implementing the method on an actual project with some guidance. However, their effectiveness may differ based on their experience in project management, the complexity of the project, and the level of support they receive in their work environment.
