The PRINCE2 Change Theme
The PRINCE2 change theme actually covers far more than the name infers as it covers:
- Change management
- Configuration management
- Issue handling
- Scope creep
The main target of change controlled in any approach to project management is to tackle scope creep, a major project killer.
Scope creep is unauthorized change with someone asks for “just” this little thing to be added in, and then another little thing, and then another, but without the extra allowance of time or resource’s allocated within the project.
The several changes are supposed to be absorbed somehow. The problem is that a large number of changes build up, cumulatively representing considerable change, and so damage or even killed a project which cannot now deliver within its allocated time and budget.
The main thrust of change control then is exactly that, to controlled change. It is important to understand that PRINCE2 change control does not mean stopping or reducing the number of change requests.
PRINCE2 allows for change in the project, even very considerable change. It is just that change is done in a controlled way, and with extra time and resource being given to do the work.
PRINCE2 Change Theme – configuration management
Configuration management is basically version control, all versioning.
It is important to take on board that configuration management is closely connected to change management because, if the changes made to a product, it is likely to be given a new version number and the details of the change recorded.
However, PRINCE2 configuration management is not exactly the same as change management, because if under change control the change is refused, then there isn’t going to be any change of version.
Issues are also covered within the PRINCE2 change theme, and issues can be about anything at all. A particular issue may be to ask for a change –a request for change (RFC), but it may be about something else such as to report a new risk, put forward a good idea, or to ask the question.
This is where the PRINCE2 change theme covers rather more than just change management.
The PRINCE2 change authority
It is easy to get confused with the change authority within the PRINCE2 organization structure. Not for the first time, the PRINCE2 is of terms in business and common practice within projects.
The PRINCE2 Manual states that the project board should deal with all requests for change and all off specifications. However, if the project board members do not want to do that, they can delegate their authority to make such changes by those at a lower level.
The project board will have authorize the stage plan for a stage, but is someone them answer change, by definition it is not going to be on the plan and therefore will not have been approved by the project board.
Unless the project manager is to go back to the project board for every change, no matter how trivial, it makes sense to delegate some authority to the project manager to make decisions.
Only if the change is more substantial or an accumulation of smaller changes it’s the change budget limit, will the project manager then need to go back to the project board for approval.
If the project board members anticipate a considerable number of changes above the level that they are willing to delegate to the project manager, then a change authority can be considered with an intermediate level of authority.
The change authority as a separate body is set up where the project board does not want to, or does not have time to, deal with all of the changes that will be heading its way.
The structure which has the change authority has a separate body place between the project board and project manager is shown in the organization diagram of the roles within the PRINCE2 Manual.
The change authority for function is then reinforced by having a description of the authority as a separate role within appendix C of the PRINCE2 Manual. And that is exactly how many organisations use it.
Things get complicated and confusing for many people trying to learn PRINCE2 where the Manual describes giving authority to the project manager to decide to some changes. The Manual says such delegation makes the project manager a part, or all, of the change authority.
That description is at odds with the organization diagram and the odds with how many people setup change authority is within their projects and organisations.
Giving the project manager some discretion to agree changes is not normally thought of as the project manager being a change authority – it is just a standard management arrangements that is similar to normal business management.
In summary then, the PRINCE2 view is that the fall project board should decide on all requests for change and off-specifications. However, if the members don’t want to do that, perhaps because of the number of changes anticipated, they could use they wish:
- Appoint one or more members of the project board to function as change authority is so that decisions will just be made by that subset, not by the whole board
- Recruit different people into the project to act as a change authority
- Delegate authority to the project manager to decide on changes, which then makes the project manager the change authority
- A combination of all three above, which then spreads out the change authority between the management levels
PRINCE2 types of change authority
The authority levels are often driven by cost, but they can also be defined by time or organizational authority. For example, any changes that would add more than two days to the stage may need to be referred upwards for approval.
Or any changes that would have an impact outside the department where the project is being run, no matter how faster or cheap it is to implement.
Understanding PRINCE2 Change Theme issues
You need to be familiar with the three types of issue and the circumstances under which each one is used.
Requests for change, off specifications and problems/concerns are simply types of issue and are recorded in the same way either using the daily log for informal control, or an issue report and the issue register for formal control.
Do not get confused by the third type of issue called problem/or concern.
This is badly named, because the word concern is used negatively in day to day language. If someone has a concern, the normal interpretation is that the person is worried about something.
However, as the text of the Manual makes clear, this third type really means “other” and can include good things such as a team member putting forward a great idea for improving the product without increasing project costs. So a concern is not just about bad things.
The PRINCE2 off-specification
It is not the case that every time something fails to meet the requirements set down in its product description, is called an off-specification.
Many products failed tests for one reason or another during their development, and if they didn’t, they would still need to be tested.
If a product does viola test, the team simply works on it again to put the error right and then puts the product through the test again, hopefully successfully the second time around.
If every minor test failure resulted in an off-specification being sent to the project manager, the project manager would have a full time job just reading them all. An off specification occur as if something does not meet its product description requirements, or it can be seen in advance that it is not going to and this cannot be easily corrected.
In that event, there are a use the wider implications such as timing, cost or change a specification, and a decision needs to be made on how to handle it. That makes the matter something which should be recorded as an issue, and specifically as an off specification.
PRINCE2 change budgets and exception plans
PRINCE2 Change Theme can deal with change in two ways which you need to fully understand.
The first way is to use a change budget. Some of this change budget can be delegated to the project manager, so that they can decide on low level change without having to consult the project board every time.
If the required change is substantial and means that the stage, or even the whole project, needs to be re-planned, then PRINCE2 can handle that too. It is like going into exception deliberately. As always, the key point is to check that this level of work is justified.
Here is an example to demonstrate the above point:
Suppose a team member has a good idea that would cost 10,000 pounds to implement and add 200 staff hours and three weeks duration to the stage, and the project manager only has a change budget of 5000 pounds.
Upon investigation, a conservative estimate is that this idea would save the company 100,000 pounds every month and this saving could start even before the project ends.
Because the project manager does not have the authority to approve the change, the decision must be escalated to the project board, who happily agree to provide the money and staff resource’s as well as extend the stage to include a new work.
The existing stage plan is not any good now because things are going to be done differently. So the project board instruct the project manager to force a stage boundary, produce an exception plan showing the additional work effort and time, and bring the plan back to them for approval.
The PRINCE2 mechanism then, for accommodating large scale change is exactly the same as for an ordinary exception caused by a problem: escalation of the issue and then exception planning.
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