I like to put under dispute the practical engagement of PRINCE2 on SAP projects in the aspect of effective work distribution during the project. That can be especially an issue in BBP stage when all project participants are operating on some kind of green field what creates right environment for "students syndrome". It leads to situations that BBP is to be closed on deadline even if not ready or the BBP phase has to be longer.
My point is to use the time related ("time-boxed") Work Packages as defined in PRINCE2 as the effective method of distribution of work in time and enablement the efficient work from the very beginning.
Please note that PRINCE2 is flexible and assumes that the project is PRINCE2 project “only” if the 7 principles are fulfilled. It means ASAP project may be also 100% PRINCE2 project. Be keeping the 7 principles everybody can tailor the PRINCE2 to suit the individual project’s circumstances.
Of course there may be also some confusions and in particular in ASAP we have work packages defined different than in PRINCE2. ASAP is oriented on breaking down the work into tasks and activities forming the “topics” that are also named work packages. But that shouldn’t be an really issue.
Please note that ASAP usually may be fully sufficient to make successful project, under some circumstances however, like if there is right motivated and organized consulting team that will drive effectively the project work. In some situations however the PM has engage more into organization of product delivery work.
Of course PM has at disposal methods like CPM or CCPM but already the generic project management methodologies like PRINCE2 give the right support - I mean the grid of management stages and work packages defined in PRINCE2 that may be imposed on the ASAP roadmap. I wrote already shortly about it in:
http://scn.sap.com/community/asap-methodology/blog/2014/03/26/prince2-for-sap-erp-implementations
The organization of the work in the form of work packages – for example on weekly basis – has a lot of positive sense. First: enables the work accommodated to the availability in every week and to the tasks in the every week; divides the work in chunks fully controllable by every individual and thus forces the work performed sustainable; week is the physiologically right portion of work for many people and they will love that it ends by the weekends etc. To keep it short: it gives the right amount of work for every person and helps to avoid the “students syndrome”.
Of course it will bring in consequence that many ASAP topics will be delivered at the end of WP in form of partly "produced" what will force to percentage declarations of readiness. After some initial time the project teams will love that. And then it will remain only one step to introduce project effectiveness measurement method like EVA as the side effect.
Please note also that by introducing to ASAP projects the time boxed work packages will make the projects to be close to AGILE methods like SCRUM what can have also some advantages.
To have it clear – it is not about making all of these at once! That is the job of PM to see if in specific project circumstances he/she needs more tools than ASAP ( what is a must on SAP project).
Waiting for your comments
Waldek
