PRINCE2 2009 - Directing Projects with PRINCE2 part 19
of the Cabinet Office under delegated authority from the Controller of HMSO.
Starting up a Project
Capture previous lessons
There may be a number of significant and relevant lessons derived from earlier projects of a similar type - whether within organizations involved in the project or from other organizations.
It is much better to learn by other people’s mistakes or successes.
Lessons about weaknesses or strengths of the processes, methods, techniques and tools used previously should be reviewed, wherever possible, to see if there is anything of value that could be used on the project.
At this point, it may be a cursory, high-level consideration of lessons, making the way for a more detailed review by the Project Manager during the initiation stage.
Example of learning from lessons from external sourcesA city council wanted to reduce the costs of administering taxi cab licences while making it easier for taxi drivers to apply for or renew their licences on-line.
The Project Manager found useful lessons from two sources outside the organization.
Another city council explained that its take-up of similar on-line applications was very low because most taxi cab drivers were from disadvantaged areas and did not have internet access or the inclination to use it.
However, a charity provided valuable advice on encouraging disadvantaged users to get engaged and use the internet.
This guidance was successfully incorporated into the project.
All references above are in Directing Successful Projects with PRINCE2® unless stated otherwise.
PRINCE2® is a Registered Trade Mark of the Office of Government Commerce in the United Kingdom and other countries.
Managing Successful Projects with PRINCE2 - 2005 edition
Managing successful Projects with PRINCE2 – 2009 edition
Directing Projects with PRINCE2.
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