Starting up a project

• Purpose
• Objective
• Context
• Activities
  • Overview
  • Appoint the Executive and the Project Manager
  • Capture previous lessons
  • Design and appoint the project management team
  • Prepare the outline Business Case
  • Select the project approach and assemble the Project Brief
  • Plan the initiation stage

Key sections

• Introduction
• Business case
• Organization
• Quality
• Plans
• Risk
• Change
• Progress
• Introduction to processes
• Starting up a projectDirecting a project
• Initiating a project
• Controlling a stage
• Managing Product Delivery
• Managing a Stage Boundary
• Closing a Project
• Tailoring PRINCE2 to the project environment
• Directing Projects with PRINCE2

Activities

Plan the initiation stage

Initiating a Project takes time and consumes resources.
The work should be planned and approved like any other project work.
This also ensures that initiation is not aimless and unstructured.

If the project is part of a programme, the end date for the initiation stage should be checked against that held in the programme’s plans.
The Stage Plan for the initiation stage will also give the programme management team warning of any requirements from the programme.

The application of PRINCE2® processes during Initiating a Project needs to be considered as part of the Starting up a Project process.
For example, the project may choose to apply the Controlling a Stage and Managing Product Delivery processes during the Initiating a Project process.

Diagram 1 shows the inputs to, and outputs from, this activity.
For more details on planning, see the section covering ‘Plans’.

© Crown copyright 2005 Reproduced under licence from OGC

Diagram 1

PRINCE2 recommends the following actions:

• Based on the project approach, decide upon suitable management controls for the project sufficient for it to be initiated:
• Review the Lessons Log for lessons related to project controls
• Define the reporting and control arrangements for the initiation stage
• Identify any constraints on time and costs for the initiation stage and produce the Stage Plan for this stage according to the principles and techniques in the section covering ‘Plans’
• Review any risks in the Daily Log and assess their impact on the Stage Plan for the initiation stage
• If any new risks are identified (or existing ones have changed), update the Daily Log
• Request authorization to initiate the project.

Diagram 2 shows the responsibilities for this activity.

© Crown copyright 2005 Reproduced under licence from OGC

Diagram 2

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