Getting my Prince2

People working in the Technology Industry will have probably heard the phrase used in conjunction with "Project Management" and that's directly what Prince2 refers to; "Projects In Controlled Environments" - its a framework that has been tried and tested and can be followed to deliver a project in a successful way. The theory is that understanding the themes, principles and processes involved with this framework will mean you have a good understanding of (and are qualified to be) delivering projects to government and international standards.

So for most a Prince2 qualification can be obtained in 3 days to foundation level, and 1 week to Practitioner level. I can tell you from first-hand experience that these few days are intense, thought provoking and a great way to meet like-minded people. The course starts promptly at 9:00am on a Monday and I mean promptly, you have several hundreds of pages of information to take in and your first exam is on Wednesday! Like with most things there is good humoured chit chat flying around initially but the course teacher soon makes it apparent, in no uncertain terms, that you and your newly acquainted colleagues are here to learn and to be tested on what you learn. There is a 30 minute lunch break daily, with a few "smoke breaks" in-between for those that need it, and generally everyone by end of play on Monday is looking "anxious" with respect to the amount of information you have been given and what's expected from you throughout the week, this also includes the expected 3 hours of home revision and exam questions to work through of an evening. When they write "leave the washing up until the end of the week" in the pre-course material they really did mean it!

Immersing yourself in the framework is a good idea and you soon get a clear picture of why it has been so successful and is so commonly used in organisations across the world to deliver projects. The first two days quickly become serious cramming sessions and the "good humoured chit chat" quickly becomes a thing of the past.

So, Wednesday arrives and the test approaches... and then is abruptly over. The examiner can mark everyone's paper in literally 20 minutes! "Right, results are in" - individually coming round I've never seen so many faces change from blank to smiling as the examiner individually whispers your mark and result - Success! Phew, so you have passed the Foundation and don't have to phone up your work and suggest they look for a new Project Manager. What you have to do instead is quickly enjoy the success and get your head back in your books for the Practitioner exam (3 hours) on Friday. This exam is more challenging and often requires more than one answer. You are given a project scenario and have to apply Prince2 to it, to deliver it successfully. I think anyone that says they found this part of the qualification a walk in the park is either exaggerating (considerably) or should be hired immediately!

So that brings me up to today, the day when mid client call I receive an email from my course provider, titled "congratulations" - there's a quick fist in the air and a scan over my results, followed by several other emails from friends made on the course titled "have you passed?". It's a great feeling to have passed, but the real reward comes when you realise that the information has been truly engrained into you. The principles and processes of Prince2 stretch far and wide, far beyond that of purely project management. Obviously they can be applied to be of benefit to your projects and organisation or if you're like me the people you deal with day to day, consulting with clients around strategic project planning and, of course sourcing the best Project Management Professionals - and crucially knowing they're the best not just hoping they are....