PRINCE2 Products/Deliverables and Activities

PRINCE2 provides a set of planning techniques which give structure to the project. The key to PRINCE2 planning is the identification and definition of the Products required. From this comes an analysis of the work (ie the activities) required to generate these products, and the sequencing of the work.

PRINCE2 makes a distinction between management activities, specialist activities and quality activities. This is partly because these are usually the concern of different groups of people, but also to ensure that management activities are not overlooked in planning and estimating.

Management activities are concerned with planning, monitoring and reporting the work of the project, in both normal and exceptional situations. They produce management products in the form of plans, reports and other control documents. Management activities include the planning and control of all specialist activities on the project. Although influenced by the specialist content, there is a similar pattern of management tasks on any PRINCE2 project.

Conversely, the specialist activities undertaken by a project are determined entirely by the scope and objectives of the project. The specialist activities describe the work needed to produce the products required from the project.

The Specialist Products/Deliverables required by the user/customer are identified and defined at the start of the project by the Project Manager and endorsed by the Project Board. Additional Specialist Products may be defined by the strategy appropriate to a particular stage of the project; specialist activities may also be prescribed by an organisation’s own particular technical strategy. PRINCE2 therefore acknowledges the need for flexibility in the definition of specialist activities and the corresponding Products.

Quality activities may be performed by anyone who is able to make a contribution to the Product under review. Individuals within the project and host organisation as well as people external to the organisation are all appropriate. Quality activities must be planned for early in the life of the project.

The PRINCE2 Product planning techniques require every project to be described and defined in terms of its Products or Deliverables. This is a very effective way to ensure full understanding of what is required and to ensure that, as far as possible, all angles are covered.

PRINCE2 TM is a Trademark of the Office of Government Commerce. The PRINCE2 Cityscape logo TM is a Trade Mark of the office of Government Commerce, and is Registered in the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. Diagrams ©Crown Copyright 2005.

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