PRINCE2 Configuration Management

Document Management is a key underpinning activityeight named components. It lays out a classical method
for running a project in line with the PRINCE2 method. Itfor controlling the configuration of a system (the
supports the Configuration Management and Changeproject) that consists of many parts (the
Control components.products).
 This is a concept borrowed from conventional
...so how do you do it?engineering, and latterly software engineering. I have to
Like many aspects of implementation PRINCE2 doesbe honest and say that it is really quite hard to do
not specify how you are to achieve this in practice.properly in a project setting. If you think you are doing it
PRINCE2 tells you the what but not the how. While thiswell, particularly in a small organistion, please write
makes perfect sense, because the method canbecause we are keen to see and learn from
accommodate all kinds of document managementexamples of best practice.
systems from the homespun to the full-blownI believe the difficulty arises from a mix of culture and
corporate knowledge management database, it doeslack of support tools.
leave you with the question:Culture
“How are you going to do the documentCulturally, engineers are brought up thinking about
management?”“configurations” and version control in their plans
This is a common problem particularly for individualsand designs.
promoting PRINCE2 and smaller organisations trying toEven software developers, who often don’t want
adopt a true project culture for the first time. On theto have the discipline imposed on their creativity, are
one hand your team can see the benefits that usingnormally exposed to the version control culture. It is
PRINCE2 will bring – on the other you have theenforced by using a version control system like CVS
question hanging in the air:or Source Safe.
 By contrast, imagine a typical non-technical project
“You mean we are going to have to write all theseteam with a multi-disciplinary crew. They are not doing
new documents and do configuration managementa civil engineering project but, say, a marketing
and do change control on them all?”campaign. The idea of configuration management will
Yes that’s right – and deliver the project to timebe new.
and cost constraints just like before! All of a suddenIt may seem like a good idea right up until the point
PRINCE2 starts to look a bit difficult. Let’s unpickwhen you have to do it in practice.
some of the issues.How PROJECT in a Box can Help
Lots of Document TypesIn a nutshell, PROJECT in a Box is the tool that can
PRINCE2 describes over thirty different managementhelp you bridge the gap between theory and practice
product (document) types that you may or may notin the key PRINCE2 activity of Configuration
use on any given project. In practice you may chooseManagement.
to combine some of these and not use others, butYour team can write Word documents, Excel
there will always be a large core of mandatoryspreadsheets, project plans, drawings just like normal,
documents you will need to employ.and PROJECT in a Box puts them in the PRINCE2
Remember these are the just thirty or so documentproject context - doing your configuration mangement
types. Some of them get repeated in the project or inalong the way.
each stage. That’s a lot of documents. There are(By the way, it also has reporting, portfolios, team
plenty of resources for document templates - OGCsharing - other tools you need run the project.)
being the primary one – but you have to configureFind out more about the free Community Edition or the
them for your team, prescribe which ones to useFull PROJECT in a Box, or please do contact us to
where and when.discuss - we would be delighted to hear your
Configuration Managementexperiences implementing effective document
In PRINCE2 Configuration Management is one of themanagement.