PRINCE2 and Product Based Planning
At Terrabase we now offer PRINCE2:2009 Project Management in isolation of software development, meaning we will offer management of anything from house builds to the development of an international software solution.
In our newsletter, in order to give a brief example of a PRINCE2 principle, we gave this overview of Product Based Planning. Let us know if you have any comments:
1. Identify the products your project is going to make.
For example, if you are building a house, you may want some solar panels however you could split the ‘Product’ into three smaller products (e.g. List of Solar Panel suppliers, Delivered Solar Panels, Solar Panels fitted to house) which makes it easier to plan.
2. Work out the order you need to make your products.
In our example we would create ‘List of Solar Panel Suppliers’ first, then ‘Delivered Solar Panels’ then ‘Fitted Solar Panels’
3. Then you work out the activites required to create each product.
To make the ‘List of Solar Panel Suppliers’ you may do a web search and make some phone calls.
Using this approach of ‘Product Based Planning’ you can quickly work out what you need to make, how to split larger tasks into smaller ones, what order things need to be done in and what needs to be done to complete your project.
Included in your plans you should end up with two diagrams; a Product Breakdown Structure, and a Product Flow Diagram. Search for these terms online and you’ll find plenty more about them.