Plans

• Purpose
• Defined
  • What is a plan?
  • What is planning?
  • Levels of plan
  • The Project Plan
  • Stage Plans
  • Team Plans
  • Exception Plans
• The PRINCE2 approach
  • Philosophy
  • Prerequisites for planning -
    design the plan
  • Define and analyse the products
• Prerequisites for planning
  • Write the Project Product Description
  • Create the product breakdown structure
  • Write the Product Descriptions
  • Create the product flow diagram
• Identify activities and dependencies
  • Activities
  • Dependencies
• Prepare estimates
• Prepare the schedule
  • Overview
  • Define activity sequence
  • Assess resource availability
  • Assign resources
  • Level resource usage
  • Agree control points
  • Define milestones
  • Calculate total resource requirements and costs
• Analyse the risks
• Document the plan
• Responsibilities

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

The PRINCE2® approach

Document the plan

Having completed the schedule satisfactorily, the plan, its costs, the required controls and its supporting text need to be consolidated in accordance with the plan design.

Narrative needs to be added to explain the plan, any constraints on it, external dependencies, assumptions made, any monitoring and control required, the risks identified and their required responses.

It is a good discipline to keep plans as simple as is appropriate.
Consider summary diagrams if the plan is to be presented to the Project Board.

It may be sensible to have one plan format for presentation in submissions seeking approval, and a more detailed format for day-to-day control purposes.
Also consider different levels of presentation of the plan for the different levels of readership.
Most planning software packages offer such options.

See the section covering ‘Product Description outlines’ for the suggested composition of a plan.

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