7 principles of the PRINCE2 project management method

Project management methods are a set of inter-related phases, activities and tasks that define a project process from start to finish.

In the UK, one of the most widely known and established project management approaches is PRINCE2^®.

PRINCE2 deals with the organisation, management and control of projects.

7 principles of PRINCE2

There are seven principles that should be met in a PRINCE2 project:

1. Continued business justification – a project should be justified in its original expenditure commitment and the reasons should remain valid throughout the entire expenditure.
2. Learn from experience – take time to review and reflect on past experiences to make future ones easier, faster and better.
3. Defined roles and responsibilities – assign the right task to the role and the right role to the right person or group of people.
4. Manage by stages – anticipate the details of the near future and provide a broad, best-guess picture of the long-term future.
5. Manage by exception – delegate power to the project manager in the form of change authority (delegated responsibility for the consideration of changes) and tolerances (permissible deviances from a plan’s target).
6. Focus on products – attention must be given to products every step of the way to prevent losing sight of what is important and getting caught up in politics, obstacles and unnecessary details of the result.
7. Tailor to suit the project – consider the special characteristics of each project and tailor PRINCE2 to fit its needs, rather than force the project to fit PRINCE2.

Benefits of adopting PRINCE2

Adopting PRINCE2 methodology for your next project will bring a host of benefits:

• Helps deliver projects on time and on budget.
• Increases return on investment.
• Enables business change and continual improvement.
• Helps you deliver what the business and your customers need.
• Helps manage risks in line with your risk appetite.

Step-by-step PRINCE2 guidance

Now available to pre-order, PRINCE2 in Action provides step-by-step guidance and clearly defines the underlying principles that should be applied to every project.

Written by an experienced PRINCE2 practitioner and trainer, this guide:

• Explains PRINCE2’s principles in straightforward, manageable chunks;
• Gives clear explanations and practical illustrations throughout;
• Explains how to effectively apply PRINCE2’s principles, themes and processes to your projects; and
• Is fully up to date for PRINCE2 2017.

Pre-order now to save 10% >>