Introduction

• Forewood
• Introduction
  • Introduction part 1
  • Introduction part 2a
  • Introduction part 2b
  • Introduction part 2c
  • Introduction part 3
• Principles
  • Principles
  • Continued business justification
  • Learn from experience
  • Defined roles and responsibilities
  • Manage by stages
  • Manage by exception
  • Focus on products
  • Tailor to suit the project environment
• Themes
  • What are the themes?
  • Applying the themes

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

Continued business justification

A PRINCE2® project has continued business justification.

A requirement for a PRINCE2 project is that:

• There is a justifiable reason to start it
• The justification should remain valid throughout the life of the project
• The justification is documented and approved.

In PRINCE2, the justification is documented in a Business Case.

As a project is inextricably linked to its business justification, it drives the decision-making processes to ensure that the project remains aligned to the business objectives and benefits being sought.

Organizations that lack rigour in developing Business Cases may find that some projects proceed even where there are few real benefits or where a project has only tentative associations with corporate strategy. Poor alignment with corporate strategies can also result in organizations having a portfolio of projects that have mutually inconsistent or duplicated objectives.

Even projects that are compulsory (for example, to comply with new legislation) require justification of the option chosen, as there may be several options available that yield different costs, benefits and risks.

Although the justification should remain valid, it may change.
It is therefore important that the project and evolving justification remain consistent.

If, for whatever reason, the project can no longer be justified, the project should be stopped.
Stopping a project in these circumstances is a positive contribution to an organization as its funds and resources can be reinvested in other more worthwhile projects.

This aspect is covered in greater detail in the Business Case theme.
The purpose of the Business Case theme is to establish mechanisms to judge whether the project is (and remains) desirable, viable and achievable as a means to support decision making in its (continued) investment.
It is a PRINCE2 principle that a project must have continued business justification.
The business justification is the reason for the project.
Without it no project should start.
If business justification is valid at the start of a project, but disappears once it is under way, the project should be stopped or changed.
[see Business case - Purpose]

PRINCE2® is a Registered Trade Mark of the Office of Government Commerce in the United Kingdom and other countries.