Key Concept: Stages

A PRINCE2® project must be divided into management stages. Stages are non-overlapping periods of time and authorisation. Each management stage uses a combination of the 8 PRINCE2® processes. There are at a minimum 2 stages: initiation which determines if we have the justification to carry on and one (or more) specialist stages that will produce the products that enable delivery of the benefits described in the (A.2) Business Case.

Management Stages are PRINCE2®’s mechanism for granting the (B.1) Project Board’s authorisation to the (B.5) Project Manager to conduct day to day business within delegated limits and under specified and agreed reporting & escalation procedures.

Stages are one of the very few mandatory elements of PRINCE2® and even these are tailored to suit the project’s specific needs. The very last thing that PRINCE2® is, is overly bureaucratic. An irony because countless writers of corporate standards and perhaps trainers or quality managers have managed a gross misrepresentation.

The PRINCE2® mantra is “how extensively should this element be applied?” and the answer is always “as much and no more than required by the project board to balance their fear of failure with willingness to pay the cost of control given the risk endured by the attraction to the benefits”.

In contrast to management stages the project will use as many specialist stages as are necessary for the technical work within the chosen product development life-cycle. Specialist stages might be better named ‘technical phases’. Phases (technical activities) may overlap, but stages (periods of authorisation) NEVER overlap.

The required number of management stages depends on the willingness of the (B.1) Project Board to pay the price of more control (often the hours of involvement they must personally commit) or take the risk of less control.

Next concept: Management by Exception