INTRODUCTION
What is PRINCE 2?
PRINCE2 is one of the world's most widely used project management methodology. It was at first developed for UK federal government IT jobs, its use has been widened to large tasks of all kinds, and it has been taken up internationally in more countries in both general population and private areas such as police pushes, telecommunication companies, banking institutions, as well as other large commercial organisations and also found in enterprise tool planning implementations.
(Reference point: Taking care of Successful Projects with PRINCE2. 2005 Edition).
PRINCE2 means Projects in Controlled Environment and it was developed at the same time when the UK authorities was outsourcing an increasing amount of its work, and the strategy includes best practice on the integration of inside teams and exterior agencies.
The concentration throughout PRINCE2 is on the business case, which identifies the explanation and business justification for the project.
PRINCE2 takes a process method of project management, installing each process directly into a framework of essential components that require to be applied throughout the job. PRINCE2 centers mainly on the aspects of managing jobs in the lifecycle for job managers in an excellent world, PRINCE2 ensure that each step within the project lifecycle is completed promptly and within the budget with all the right resources.
The approach of PRINCE 2 methods works together with most project management techniques but specifically explains the quality reviews for project documented, output motivated product structured planning and a change control process for agreeing potential changes and fixing faults.
(Reference point: OGC. (13 January 2011) 'PRINCE2')
Benefits of Prince 2
The Prince 2 strategy has many advantages and benefits to it. Lately, large IT tasks and authorities departments have implemented the technique, where it has had a huge profit to the task through using Prince 2. The office of government business (2007) has explained that the Prince 2 technique has guided tasks with the right terminology. It is a constant, reliable and organised method of adapt to a project from the beginning, midsection and end periods. It brings something platform to the job which divides the task into levels making the task very easy to manage. This assist the project team to keep a motivated and focused labor force and being competent to deliver the results expected promptly.
Another gain it brings to project teams is the fact that it improves all communications between users and other stakeholders; this provides the task to be more controlled and team members to work sufficiently with each other without having any problems. It offers stakeholders the opportunity to express their viewpoints when decision making because they are always educated through project studies and regular conferences.
PRINCE2 comprises of proven and proven best practice and governance for job management. It may also be applied to any kind of task and can be easily be carried out in specialised industry models; either construction, executive models, IT, business, financial or development lifecycles. It is because PRINCE2 programs are carefully made to meet up with the needs of the various levels in the management team, improving communication and control. Since it is widely recognized and detailed, it enables good communication stations between all job participants and has an explicit identification of project responsibilities for participants to comprehend each other's functions and needs; with a well defined composition by restricting delegation of government bodies among individuals.
(Guide: OGC. (2009), Managing Successful Assignments with PRINCE2TM, 5th Edition, and London: The Stationary Office)
THE PRINCE 2 PROCESS FRAMEWORK
PRINCE 2 takes a process based method of task management; any project run under this technique will need to address each one of these processes in a few form. You will find seven techniques in PRINCE 2 which give a set of activities to direct, manage and deliver a job successfully.
Setting up a task (SU)
This is the first process in PRINCE 2. It really is a pre project process, designed to ensure that the fundamentals for initiating the job are in place. The process needs the living of a job Mandate that defines in higher level terms the reason for the task and what product is required.
Directing a task (DP)
This process is targeted at the project mother board, the management team representing the sponsors, the users of the ultimate product and the suppliers of the product. The project panel sets the path and makes key decisions throughout the life span of the task, this technique is owned by the task the project mother board and authorisation for work to be carried out and resources to be dedicated.
Initiating a task (IP)
Initiating a job (IP) is targeted at laying the foundations for the fulfilment of the guidelines just explained. It employs the pre- task process "Setting up a task (SU) it is brought about by authorising initiation, causes authorising a job, and invokes the look process to produce the task plan and the managing stage restrictions (SB) process to create the next stage plan.
Managing Stage Boundaries (SB)
During the initiation stage and at the end of each level, this process is used to plan another stage in detail, it reports on the achievements of the existing stage and the effect on the overall task plan and business circumstance and produces the information on which the project plank will need key decisions on whether to continue with the job or not.
Managing a stage (CS)
A project may have many levels. This process identifies the monitoring and control activities of the job manager involved with allocating work, ensuring that a stage keeps on course and reacting to surprising events. The process forms the core of the project manager's work on the job, being the procedure that handles daily management of the job.
Controlling product Delivery (MP)
This is where the key development help the job happens, and where in fact the most resources are consumed. This process focuses on the creation of the specialist products; progress whereby a checkpoint report is provided to the task manager and the quality activities defined in each product explanation are executed and the products approved.
Closing a job (CP)
This process addresses the task manager's work to summary the project by the end; this includes the actions for shutting the project in an orderly way. Acceptance for the task is verified and the assignments products are paid, and any activities necessary to review benefits which may have not yet been realised are noted in the power Review plan. The end project survey is prepared to include a overview of the business case, the projects objectives and team performance.
All these aspects would normally be termed good management. The difference here is the level of composition and documentation that's needed is by the standard.
THEMES
PRINCE 2 has a process based method of task management. The PRINCE2 designs describes areas of project management that need to be continuously addressed, it identifies the management activities to be completed during the job. The strength of PRINCE2 lies in the way that the seven topics are included: they are carefully made to link collectively effectively. The topics are used throughout the procedures to give more in depth guidance on the normal aspects of project management.
All seven themes must be applied but can be designed according to range, nature and complexity of the job worried. The seven PRINCE2 designs are the following:
Business Case
Every project should be driven with a business need. This theme addresses how an idea that could have value for the organisation is known as and progressed into a viable business proposition.
It also talks about how project management should maintain give attention to the business targets throughout the project.
Organisation
The structure of the project management team. This theme identifies the roles and responsibilities and relationships of all staff involved to control the job effectively. These assignments are separate from day to day collection management.
Quality
This theme details how a short idea is developed so that all participants can understand the product quality aspects of the merchandise to be shipped. It also explores how the project managers ensure these shipped the required standards.
Plans
PRINCE2 offers a series of plan levels that may be tailored the scale and needs of any project and a procedure for planning based on products rather than activities. Plan is the concentrate if communication and control as the job proceeds.
Risk
Risk is a major factor to be considered through the life of any project. PRINCE2 defines the key moment when risks should be researched, outlines a procedure for the evaluation and management of risk, and songs these through all the functions.
Change
This theme represents how job management assesses the actual impact on any of the project tolerances of your time, Cost, Quality, Range, Risk and Benefits. These issues could be unanticipated basic problems, demands for change or cases of quality inability.
Progress
This theme talks about your choice making process for approving ideas, the monitoring of performance and the method of escalating events that do not go relating to plan. This enables the project plank to determine whether the project should continue.
(Research: Managing Successful Assignments with PRINCE2, 4th Edition and Handling Successful Projects with PRINCE2TM, 5th Model)
Issues in using PRINCE2 Methodology
CriticismsrelatenottothePRINCE2frameworkormanual, butrathertoorganizationalshortcomingsincludingpoorprojectgovernanceandtheinabilityoforganizations tosuccessfullyintroduceandimplementPRINCE2 oralackofprojectleadership.
PRINCE2 is a structured project management principles and types of procedures with an intension to its application to cover all sorts of jobs. PRINCE2 strength is its wide applicability which is entirely generic but it's been criticised for not been able to provide specialist aspects, complete techniques and leadership capability.
Specialist Aspects
In conditions of specialist aspects, some project experts are required especially industry-specific or type specific to carry out specific specialized part of the job, which PRINCE2 does not cover. Also such aspects of activities that are excluded in PRINCE2 strategy are anatomist models, project lifecycle or specific techniques like organisational change management or procurement while PRINCE2 categorizes each one of these aspects of project work as "specialist". Specialist products needs to be discovered and contained in project range and strategies.
PRINCE2 strategy also excludes some proven techniques of task management in planning and control like the critical avenue analysis in planning control and received value analysis happening control hence, the advice is that many of these techniques could be use in support of the PRINCE2 components or topics.
Leadership
When working with leadership capacity, it is impossible to codify in PRINCE2 methodology the command skills, motivational skills and social skills that happen to be greatly important in taking care of any assignments as all these are deliberately and carefully omitted. PRINCE2 didn't address this aspect of project management straight as leadership styles vary considerably and the style that works in a single situation may be entirely improper in another.
In the look process Prince2 state governments that activities and indecencies should be recognized in which indecencies for the actions are identified however, not for the merchandise. There are so many products within an company which uses Prince2 does not make clear the impact the merchandise have on other products. In this way more work is generated which becomes too much meaning the expenses on the project will increase and huge cost overruns would be the outcome. If not monitored properly consequently to the needs of the job it may become very hard for small assignments to handle.
Risk Management
Another issue is risk management, which established fact as a great risk to project failing. PRINCE2 implies that the sooner the stage is, a lot more important that level is. That is, the project could become more successful if indeed they improve risk management at the project brief level. (Paul Elkington et al, 2000). This demonstrates risk management should be completed as early as possible. In the software development life-cycle for example, its faults and defects are generated in just about every early stages of development. The sooner they are discovered corrected, the less cost and risk the job has. Yet somehow, PRINCE2 does not provide good advice of estimating the job dangers for the task manager. It really is arranged by Bob Hughes in ITNOW interview (2006) that PRINCE does not offer much advice on how problems are settled and how judgements are to be made, when they are identified. When problems aren't settled properly they can result in several consequences, leading to the project to have significantly more risk. As Paul Elkington et al (2000) says that 'eight of the job managers noticed that they could reap the benefits of further trained in risk management, highlighting that the Prince2 method is poor in this area'.
Analysis Requirements
There is not any explicit treatment requirement for analysis; requirements will be the most core degree of forming a task. If there are no requirements, there are no assignments. Also if the wrong requirements, the task will be 'wrong' too. When growing IT systems, two questions are always asked: Are we doing the right product? The first question is immediately related to requirements gathering. If certain requirements are not obtained accurately, the function provided within that system would not meet the requirements specified. PRINCE2 can be an 'implementation methodology, which can lead to projects being implemented on fake premises, and in so doing inevitably lead to failing of the task. ' (Guide: Lau, K. S. S. (2007) 'Troubles and weaknesses of using PRINCE2 Methodology')
Case Study
There is a research study on PFI job where Prudhoe and Northgate NHS Trust are conducting a PFI task for three neurobisability services that includes a new build. George Slater is the Task Administrator; Molly Worts is the Project Administrator. They both have a expression on PRINCE2 technique that positives and negatives are experienced. George emphases that risk are obstacles to delivery, icebergs, which could sink the task. Therefore risk management is important throughout the task. And Risk Log will keep the Project Table an vision on dangers. Highlight report makes the Task Board keep up at this point in a time useful way. Yet sometimes assigning people 'who in and who out' within the Project Table will be quite difficult to decide. Sometimes the Task Board can be too large that conferences become difficult to handle and frustrating. Therefore people management on Job Board is essential. Molloy expresses that Project supervision is very time consuming and repetitious. For instance, an hour of reaching can generate loads of paperwork: typing, which is timing consuming. As heavy workload for Project administrator, it'll become difficult when dealing with immediate issues, or approval of every procedures and stages, which may be stressful. (Reference: 'PRINCE2 Case Study: The National Health Service' by Richard Pharro)
Documentation
Prince2 requires a lot of documentation making the group of its processes difficult to control in terms of keeping track than it how it heading and understanding. Just documenting may become the main concentration in which may lead the job in major trouble. Organisations with the matrix composition it can be a concern for small organisations for the reason that Prince2 recognises four management levels "Corporate or programme management", "Directing a job", owning a job" and "managing product deliverer". So in smaller organisations to hire people with such skills equal to the management level is not easy.
Also PRINCE2 may become a heavy duty procedure for small assignments as it might produce too much work fill, especially on documentary, if the technique is not tailored to the necessity of the task properly.
(Reference: Lau, K. S. S. (2007) 'Issues and weaknesses of using PRINCE2 Technique')
Technology
Prince2 requires to utilize technologies for it cannot focus on it's to meet up with the specific organisational needs and jobs The problem in this is training of staff on such a technology that works together with Prince2 can be calm costly and having such a technology itself.
It is also commonly accepted that certain of the most frequent causes of projects failing to deliver benefits is a overlook of the planning process. You will discover many reasons because of this, one of the most typical being is that there is "virtually no time to plan" as there is usually a temptation to hurry into things so the PRINCE2 business case gets forgotten, instead of having an adequate PRINCE 2 business case the beginning up stage is rushed or completely ignored and the company goes straight into the task initiation stage particularly if there is a deadline to be satisfied. The other aspect of the is where mature management does not recognize the importance of planning and can not make the necessary time available.
Planning
Another issue is the fact projects are often badly designed so they go off keep tabs on, overspend and cannot deliver the designed final results. Organising a project using the prince task management methodology takes a strong project plank but often project boards aren't strong and do not function well. They could disregard issues or avoid taking the key decisions they are there to make and so the project should go off track. Also the right skills aren't identified to ensure the project goes easily or there is absolutely no management commitment so the job just lacks sufficient resources.
PMBOK VS PRINCE2
In PRINCE2 Tasks in Controlled Environments is a major worldwide task management framework, or methodology. It requires a different strategy than the PMIs PMBOK however the goal of both is to improve job performance. While PMBOK is normally well-accepted worldwide, it is by significantly the leading strategy in North America. PRINCE2 on the other hand is strongest in britain, with a strong presence in European countries, Australia, and other typically English-speaking countries outside North America. But both are extending there reach on the frequent basis as the planet eventually "projectizes. "
(Research: PMcrunch (29 February 2008) 'Assessing PRINCE2 and PMBOK - 3 Perspectives')
PRINCE2 is employed extensively by the UK federal and private areas has lead to the strategy often been assessed with other world best project management method or requirements, a good example is that of task management body of knowledge as an internationally recognized. It provides the basics of job management, regardless of the type of project like: structure, software, anatomist or automotive.
PRINCE2 to be described as a structured way for effective job management for all types of task while PMBok on the side is known as Task Management Body of Knowledge is a assortment of processes and knowledge areas generally accepted as best practise within the task management self-control.
There are several dissimilarities between PMBok and PRINCE2 methodologies. According to Wideman (2002, pg3) talks about that "PRINCE2 talks of "phases" rather than "cycle" and areas that while use of stages is required, their amount is flexible corresponding to management dependence on the task. PRINCE2 also differentials between complex periods and management stages where technical periods are determined as a specialist skill while management periods equate to commitment of resources and power to invest. Contrarily the Guide (Pmbok) defines a job stage as 'a collection of logically related job activities usually culminating in the conclusion of a significant deliverable'. It generally does not distinguish between period and phases and in the written text uses either indiscriminately".
The Guide to Task Management Body of Knowledge (Pmbok) is a typical manual for just about any project by Task Management Institute that ought to be project director ethics while PRINCE2 is an implementation methodology.
There is differing meaning of responsibility of the job manager. According to Wideman (2002, pg3) dispute that "the Guide (Pmbok) defines job manager simply as a person responsible for owning a project, while PRINCE2 defines task manager as the person given the specialist and responsibility to control the day-to-day basis to provide the mandatory products within the constraint arranged with the task table. These constraints are referred to as "tolerances" and suggest the ranges of acceptability of every of range, quality, time and cost within that your project administrator must manage".
Under PRINCE2 methods management is performed by the project board and directed by an exec who is mainly in charge of the job; while Pmbok does not recognise either "executive" or "project director" but uses the term "sponsor". Regarding to Wideman (2002, pg4) dispute that "the sponsor is one of the project's stakeholders and it is defined as the average person or group either within or exterior that provides financial resources, in cash or in kind for the task; this shows under Guide (Pmbok) that it's the project supervisor who is solidly in charge".
PRINCE2 and Pmbok takes a very different approach to presentation of these materials which provide different purposes and for that reason not directly equivalent. Regarding to Wideman (2002, pg7) further explains that "the Guide (Pmbok) needs the best methodology for purposes of teaching the topic content of each knowledge area, but it isn't effective when it comes to providing advice for owning a particular job".
Reference: (Wideman, R. M. (2002) 'Evaluating PRINCE2 with PMBoK)
Some other benefits of PRINCE2 there is absolutely no similar PMBOK pre-project process to PRINCE2's 'Starting up a Project' (SU), so there is no discussion of what or who should maintain place at the beginning of a project.
PRINCE2 offers a total change control approach, whereas PMBOK just discussions of the need for this. The PMBOK only talks about a Job Plan, whereas PRINCE2 offers Level and Team Strategies and talks about the advantages of breaking the task Plan down. PRINCE2 offers standard functions for its project management team, were PMBOK only includes the creation of the WBS, and will not compare to the PRINCE2 product-based Planning technique in conditions of the latter's Product Information and Product Stream Diagram. Nor is there any real details in the PMBOK Planning process to take a plan to a network plan and a Gantt or pub chart.
(Guide: (24 January 2002), A comparison of Prince2 against PMBOK)
Despite PRINCE2 has many excellent ideas for project management, some critics sees the approach to quality management process as inappropriate and not very realistic. At the start of any PRINCE2 task you agree with a client in regards to a group of measurable attributes about the products you want to work with for building. These are called "acceptance requirements" that is when you deliver the products later, your client will only signal it off if they conform to the criteria settled previously; this assumes that customer knows what they want. In reality they often times have no idea as project work is a creative process, while sometimes it takes trial and error as well as a specific amount of vision to make something the finish users will eventually be satisfied with.
The methodology problem of PRINCE2 in conditions of making a mountain newspaper takes a communication plan in the job initiation file that is, the main arrange for the job. Communication plan declares how each particular communication will be made. This maybe formal with a notice or memo, by conferences or e-mails or by putting home elevators a job website and also by telephone call. Each one of these creates countless of documents and doc.
In terms of PRINCE2 is only for big jobs is not true because its strategy can be use for small, medium and big jobs and this was already affirmed by many task managers who have applied PRINCE2 in their projects. In fact, area of the skill in by using this methodology is to know how to use it properly to each individual project.
In terms of managing a project and needing to use PRINCE2, you manage a job using PRINCE2 so there is absolutely no cost or little in using the technique to control a project. It is a superb best practise method of course, if use properly it will be a real assistance with the work of planning and controlling a project.
PRINCE2 is unquestionably versatile and unique to make use of. There is nothing at all about this method that you cannot fine-tune. Therefore you can fine tune it to the exact needs of the task. The success of PRINCE2 recovery on applicability and tailoring towards the project with higher flexibility.
(Reference point: Inspirandum (2008) 'PRINCE2 Practitioner Newspaper Common Criticisms of the Method')
CONCLUSION
In conclusion to this report we have discovered the concepts and each individual element of Prince2, highlighting both positive and negative factors and also explaining the periods from learn to finish. After addressing the primary issues of Prince2 we've found that prnce2 doesn't have many specialist, and therefore the duty that should be done will be not be achieved by professionals. This suggests they could stretch the existing PRINCE2 certification to discover practitioners who both understand the platform and can proficiently put it on in managing actual projects. In order that Prince2 can concentrate more on specialists to perform some parts of the projects as this can increase the quality as well as time.
However the methodology does not solve leadership and folks management. This also another floor in Prince2 is the interpersonal skills the market leaders have using their partners/staff. As it is well known to Maslow Inspiration is a very big factor as it pertains to efficiency, so at the original phases of Prince2 leaders should ensure that in addition to the actual task the staff are satisfied, leading to efficiency of the project. As a whole lot of prince2 is based on documentation, this can cause leaders to target mainly on the job and not a lot the people mixed up in task. Prince2 should devise an idea to tackle the main task, but also relating to the people's needs in the plan. This causes the next issue that was resolved, as it was fount that the Prince2 often rushes the original part of the planning level. Planning is vital in project management, as this can determine whether a job is likely to be successful. This advises PRINCE2 should find the time to plan a task properly, as this will improve PRINCE2 significantly.
As well as building the problems in Prince2, there have been also many positive factors and also many contradictions in a few of the criticisms made by theorists. The primary advantages from Prince2 suggest that it isn't robotic, as possible adjust the must your project making this methodology very versatile. Which is very often that professionals and directors need advice when following a project. Prince2 does this perfectly and it also focuses on what the project has to deliver, to whom and why. As a result it is used worldwide among many organisations like the authorities and other large organisations.
