Pre Project Preparation
There must be a basic business requirement that triggers the project. Indeed before any work is commenced, or resources are committed, there is a requirement to be able to answer the basic question 'Do we have a viable and worthwhile project?' This question must be answered honestly to ensure that resources are not committed and wasted.
Certain base information is needed to make rational decisions about the commissioning of the project.
Nothing can be done in the project until responsibilities are defined and key roles have been filled. Someone has to 'kick-start' the project into being.
Before approval can be given to enter the Initiation Stage, there should be an Initiation Stage Plan.
This is the first process within PROMISE. The project begins once this process has been conducted, and the Project Board has approved commencement. Projects can be identified in a variety of ways and thus have a wide variation in the information available to the Project Management Team at the time of start-up. It is accepted that the Project may be kicked off by anything from a verbal request to a complete Project Directive. The process expects the existence of information explaining the reason for the project and the outcome expected. Pre Project Preparation should be of short duration.
The work of the process is built around the production of three elements:
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Ensuring that the information required for the Project Directive is available |
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Creating the Initiation Stage Plan. |
The objective of the process is to enable a controlled start to the project by ensuring that:
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All the necessary project management authorities exist for undertaking the project |
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Sufficient information is available to formalise the terms of reference for the project |
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Individuals are appointed who will undertake the work required in Project Initiation and / or will take significant project management roles in the project |
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The work required for Project Initiation is planned |
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The organisation that will host the project team is informed of the existence and implications of the new project. |
The process begins by receiving from some external source the definition of a problem or opportunity that the project has to satisfy. The closer the quality of information received can get to the ideal described in the Template for the Project Directive, the easier the start-up process will be.
If the project is part of a programme, the programme should provide the Project Directive and appoint some, if not all, members of the Project Board, thus reducing the work required in this process.
The target work location is informed of the impending project, and requests are made for any appropriate logistical support required to carry out Project Initiation. An additional input that will help with the creation of both the Initiation and Project Plans is the project approach, explaining the way in which it is intended that the end products of the project are to be produced.