The widespread use of IT programs and packages during the past 30 years or so has revolutionised the way in which project managers work. Systems such as
• PRINCE2™,
• PRIME,
• Microsoft Project, and
• DefinIT.
are now widely used and the increasing adoption of building information mod-elling (BIM) helps the project manager work more efficiently and effectively.
PRINCE2™
PRINCE2™ (or PRojects IN a Controlled Environment) is a project meth-odology developed by the private sector and adapted for use in the public
sector, originally for IT projects. The system can be used on a range of pro-jects from small individual ones to mega propro-jects. Although not in itself a software package there are over 50 tools supporting the methodology.
However, it is not a standard approach and needs to be customised for each project. PRINCE is open access – that is to say, free – and is used throughout the UK as well as internationally, although it will be necessary to invest in training to get the most out of the system or at least to buy the official PRINCE2™ book bundle from the OGC / Cabinet Office for about £150 from www.itgovernance.co.uk/prince2.aspx
At the last count there were more than 250,000 certified project manag-ers worldwide who had passed the PRINCE2™ practitionmanag-ers’ examination.
As Figure 1.7 illustrates, PRINCE2™ is an integrated framework of processes and themes that addresses the planning delegation, monitoring and control of six aspects of project management. PRINCE2™ uses four integrated ele-ments, as listed opposite.
Figure 1.7 PRINCE2™ integrated framework Source: APM Group Ltd.
1 Seven principles – best practice and good characteristics:
• continued business justification,
• learn from experience – previous projects,
• defined roles and responsibilities – accountability and responsibility,
• manage by stages – break big projects into smaller chunks,
• manage by exception – authority delegation technique,
• focus on projects – define product before development, and
• tailor PRINCE2™ to suit the project – customising.
2 Themes – items that need to be continually assessed during the project and customised to suit the project:
• business case – one of the main drivers,
• organisation – who, responsibilities, communication,
• quality – define level of quality, controlling quality,
• plans – approach, resources,
• risk – what if…?
• change – what is the impact of change?
• progress – where are we now, where are we going, should we continue?
3 Processes:
• starting a project – feasibility, sketching out and looking at the project to decide whether it will work,
• initiating a project – the business case, risk register and sensitivity analysis / resources / security / legal – compliance / technology,
• directing a project – setting key decision points,
• controlling a stage – day-to-day activities controlled by the project manager,
• managing product delivery,
• managing a stage boundary – reporting on stage and planning next one, and
• closing a project.
4 Tailoring PRINCE2™:
• PRINCE2™ should be customised to individual projects.
PRINCE2™ identifies six project variables or performance targets:
• Time – when will the project finish?
• Cost – are we within budget?
• Quality – is it fit for purpose?
• Scope – avoid scope creep / uncontrolled change.
• Benefits – why are we doing this project?
• Risk – risk management / what happens if…?
Another feature of the system is the facility to set targets for these vari-ables. These targets are set at the planning stage and regularly checked by the project manager during the project.
Some benefits of using PRINCE2™
• Proven best practice – used for over 30 years.
• Is flexible and can be applied to any project.
• Recognises project responsibilities, accountability, roles.
• Product focus is well defined at the outset.
• Brings in managers at key moments.
• Viability of the business case is constantly reviewed.
• Integrates risk management into routine project management.
PRIME
Unlike PRINCE2™, PRIME® is ISO 21500 compliant and accessed by buying a licence at a cost of approximately £1,900 per annum for an organi-sation of up to 50 employees, increasing with the size of the organiorgani-sation.
Also unlike PRINCE it is more reliant on web-based applications, and a number of compatible add-ons are available to use with the system. It is also claimed that no training is necessary.
The core of PRIME is said to be a structured progression through a project as follows:
1 Idea and recommendation – fast start
• Put forward an ‘idea’ and then make a ‘recommendation’ on whether one should continue with a high-level project plan or not.
Besides building that important ‘go or no-go’ decision, PRIME also helps you check to see if you really need a project to do the work.
Not everything is a project and there is an option to stop PRIME and do the work as part of day-to-day business.
2 Outlining and planning – prepare delivery
• In outlining, a high-level ‘sketch’ of the project is produced, stating what the project is and showing how the work is justified.
• Then there is a checkpoint – a quick check – to decide if the project is viable and whether or not to go ahead with full planning.
• Full planning marks the start of the project itself; here the project is not only set down in more detail but decisions are also made on how it will be controlled.
3 Delivery stage(s) – get the job done
• The delivery stage(s) is / are simple in concept but busy in practice.
In short this part of PRIME covers:
° building products allocated for that stage (deliverables),
° managing the project,
° making adjustments to keep the stage and the project on track, and
° checking and reporting progress, quality, budgets and resources utilisation.
4 Closing and evaluating – measure benefits
• This stage is in two parts with a checkpoint in between:
° The first part covers the work of closing the project.
° The second part covers evaluating the benefits and whether the project achieved its objectives.
Microsoft Project
Microsoft Project (2013) is a project management software program devel-oped and sold by Microsoft, which is designed to assist a project manager in developing a plan, assigning resources to tasks, tracking progress, managing the budget and analysing workloads. Microsoft Project was the company’s third Windows-based application, and within a couple of years of its intro-duction became the dominant PC-based project management software.
DefinIT
DefinIT facilitates the assembly of contract schedules of services based on the CIC Scope of Services for consultants, specialists and contractors. A web-based product, a 30-day evaluation copy can be obtained from www.
oasys.com or www.cicservices.org.uk
The CIC Scope of Services Handbook lists and defines the tasks which are, or may be required on all projects and allows them to be tailored to specific projects. Similar to the RIBA Plan of Work and OGC Gateway Process, its purpose is to lead the project team through the management and co-ordination of a project. Although not a total project management tool, DefinIT allows the project manager to set up the services required for the project, defining and agreeing contracts, going out to tender or negotiating contracts with participants. The system can produce a wide range of outputs in draft form, allowing the project manager to track progress, circulate drafts and produce a full draft schedule of services.
The CIC Scope of Services is broken down into six stages as follows:
• Stage 1 – Preparation.
• Stage 2 – Concept.
• Stage 3 – Design development.
• Stage 4 – Production information.
• Stage 5 – Manufacture, installation and construction information.
• Stage 6 – Post practical completion.
There is no stage for construction / site operations and the system is used for defining and allocating personnel and roles during a project. The project lead role is one that may be undertaken by the project manager.
Newforma
In addition to project management frameworks there are also a number of other solutions to enable both greater efficiency and collaboration between members of the project team. One such solution is Newforma.
Newforma is a system that facilitates project collaboration using the Project Cloud, a web-hosted construction collaboration software that integrates infor-mation from the design, construction and owner’s team that can be accessed from portable mobile devices. There are many add-ins for the system including Revit, a module for building information modelling (BIM). Given that BIM allows for the project team to share project information, how is this sharing to be managed? Project information management (PIM) addresses the basic needs of organising, finding, tracking, sharing monitoring and reusing tech-nical project information and communications in a way that is completely aligned with the people and processes that need the information.