Chapter 16: Initiating a project

Question 1

What is the purpose of the Initiating a project process?

Answer 1

The purpose is to establish solid foundations for the project, enabling the organization to understand the work that needs to be done to deliver the project before committing to a significant spent.

Question 2

What are the objectives of the Initiating a project process?

Answer 2

The objective of initiating a project process is to ensure that there is common understating of:

• The reasons for doing the project, the benefits expected and associated risks
• The scope of what is to be done and the products to be delivered
• How and when the project product will be delivered and at what cost
• Who is to be involved in the project decision-making
• How the quality required will be achieved
• How baselines will be established and controlled
• How risks, issues and changes will be identified, assessed and controlled
• How progress will be monitored and controlled
• Who needs information, in what format and at what time
• How the corporate, program management or customer method will be tailored to suit the
  project.

Question 3

There are 9 activities in the Initiating a project process. Which ones are those?

Answer 3

1. Agree the tailoring requirements
   (i.e., the PM might need to tailor how the project is directed and managed)
2. prepare the risk management approach
   (i.e., the PM defines the goals of applying risk management, the procedure, the roles & responsibilities, the risk tolerances, the timing of risk management activities, the tools & techniques and reporting requirements)
3. prepare the change control approach (i.e., the change control approach defines the format and the composition of the records that need to be maintained)
4. prepare the quality management approach (i.e., the PM writes down how the quality will be managed: processes, procedures,, techniques, standards and responsibilities)
5. prepare the communication management approach (i.e., the PM writes down how the project management team will communicate with internal & external stakeholders)
6. set up project controls (i.e., the PM will define the tolerances, who makes decisions, how the project management team levels communicate with each other etc.)
7. create project plan (i.e., timescales and resource requirements, map the management stages and other major control points; the project plan also shows the major products of a project, when they will be delivered and at what cost)
8. prepare the benefits management approach (i.e., how benefits will be managed, who is responsible, and what actions should be taken to confirm the benefits during and after the project)
9. assemble the PID (i.e., the PM gathers all documentation together with the business case and the team structure and role descriptions and gives to the Board to approve)

Question 4

There are a total of 7 (+1) formal management products that need to be created (or updated) in the Initiating a project process). What are those?

Answer 4

1. Risk management approach
2. Benefits management approach
3. Communication management approach
4. Change management approach
5. Quality management approach
6. Business case
7. Project plan
8. Issue, Risk and Quality Registers

Question 5

What does the Project Plan present?

Answer 5

Presents how and when objectives will be achieved. Provides business case with costs and identifies management stages and other main control points.

Question 6

What does the Communication Management Approach describe?

Answer 6

Describes the means and frequency of internal and external communication.

Question 7

What does the Business case define?

Answer 7

Defines business justification of the project on basis of the benefits, costs, risks, timeframe.

Question 8

What does the Risk Management Approach contain?

Answer 8

How risk will be managed: processes, procedures, techniques, standards, responsibilities

Question 9

What does the Quality Management Approach contain?

Answer 9

How quality will be managed: processes, procedures, techniques, standards, responsibilities

Question 10

What does the Change Management Approach detail?

Answer 10

Details the procedures, techniques and responsibilities for issue management and change control

Question 11

What do the issue, risk and change registers record?

Answer 11

Record issues, risks and quality reviews so they may be properly managed by the project manager. The registers are each formal documents in the project.

Question 12

There is always one project management team role that is in charge of reviewing the formal management products. Who is that?

Answer 12

Project Assurance

Question 13

Who is the project management team role that is in charge of creating management products such as Issue, quality and change registers?

Answer 13

Project Support (that defaults to the PM if the role is not taken by someone else)

Question 14

TRUE or FALSE:
The Quality Management Approach document contains the customer quality expectations.

Answer 14

FALSE

Customer Quality Expectations are part of the Project Product Description.

Question 15

How does the project manager set up project controls?

Answer 15

By defining:
* the frequency and format of communication between the project management levels
* the number of management stages and hence end stage assessments
* mechanisms to capture and analyse issues and changes
* mechanisms to monitor tolerances and escalate exceptions
etc..

Question 16

What is the purpose of the PID?

Answer 16

The purpose of the Project Initiation Document is to define the project and form the basis for its management and assessment of its overall success.

It forms the ‘contract’ between the project manager and project board.

Question 17

Which processes is PID part of? i.e., when is it created, reviewed

Answer 17

In the processes
* Assembled at the end of IP
* Reviewed and updated at stage boundaries (SB)
* Serves as a baseline for progress through-out project and at project closure (CP)

Question 18

Swipe to see the format of the PID

Answer 18

• Project Definition
  -background, objectives & outcomes, scope & exclusions, constraints, users, interfaces
• Project approach
• Business Case
• Project management team structure
• Role descriptions
• Risk management approach
• Quality management approach
• Change control approach
• Communication management approach
• Project Plan
• Project Controls
• Tailoring PRINCE2

Question 19

TRUE or FALSE:
The project manager can assign the creation of the management products to whoever they think is appropriate to the task.

Answer 19

TRUE

But, the PM is ultimately responsible for how the project is run.