As much as we love PRINCE2, we will admit that the PRINCE2 manual can be a bit dry!

We’ve put together a PRINCE2 Crossword to Download to help enliven your revision a bit!

BEFORE YOU COMPLETE THE CROSSWORD: Read through the statements in this PRINCE2 Crossword Revision post.

You can also download the solution to check your answers at the bottom of the revision post (but no cheating please)!!

We’re committed to making learning PRINCE2 as easy and enjoyable as possible – so before you attend one of our PRINCE2 courses we provide a comprehensive pre-course workbook which contains loads of quizzes and guidance to make preparing for the course as interactive as we can.

Why not also try our Interactive PRINCE2 Quiz (you’ll need Flash for this)

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Posted by Alistair Wylie in PRINCE2 Training, Project management on July 15th, 2011 | 2 Comments »

Read (and memorise as many as you can!) all of the following statements about PRINCE2. 

Then DOWNLOAD OUR PRINCE2 CROSSWORD and see how many you’ve remembered!

• A project is a unique series of actions designed to accomplish a unique goal.

• The Project brief is the first key document in PRINCE2’s prescribed method for starting up a project.

• A project is defined as a temporary organisation, created to deliver one or more business products based on and agreed Business Case.

• The Project Manager will spend most of their time on the Controlling a Stage process which describes the day to day monitoring and control activities for the project.

• The Project Initiation document collates most of the documents from the SU (Starting up a Project) and IP (Initiating a Project) processes.

• The Project Initiation Documents, including the Project Plan are part of the Initiating a Project process which examines the justification for the project.

• The pre-project process that gathers the necessary data to start a project is the Start up a Project process.

• The process that provides a controlled way to complete a stage and plan the next one is Managing a Stage Boundary.

• Information is provided to the Project Board at the end of each stage about the current status of a project as part of the Managing a Stage Boundary process.

• The project’s Products are delivered as part of the Managing Product Delivery process.

• There can be up to four outputs from the Managing Product Delivery process.

• Delivery of the products and preparation for project closure are part of the Closing a Project process.

• All the products defined in the Project Plan are listed in order of importance in the Product Breakdown Structure.

• The Team Manager creates a Team Plan to plan the project team’s activities.  This is agreed with the Project Manager.

• Information from upper management, outlining what is required from the project is contained in the Project Mandate.

• The time from the start of the project and the close of the project and acceptance of the product is known as the Project Lifecycle.

• The Project Board must be given an Exception Plan if a stage is expected to go out of the agreed tolerance.

• The method and frequency that information is exchanged is defined in the Communication Management Strategy.

• The Project Board approves the completion of a stage and authorises the start of the next stage during the Directing a Project process.

• The Project Manager creates a regular Highlight Report for the Project Board to provide information on the process of each stage.  This is produced on a time-driven frequency, e.g.: every two weeks.

• The Project Board’s 2nd control point and 2nd activity is Authorising the Project.

• Work Packages are allocated to the Team Leaders by the Project Manager.

• The Team Manager provides Checkpoint Reports to the Project Manager, based on the regular team meetings.

• A grouping of a certain set of techniques used in the development of the product is known as a Technical Stage.

Once you’ve finished the PRINCE2 Crossword download the PRINCE2 Crossword Solution to check your answers.  Remember, no cheating!!

http://www.siliconbeachtraining.co.uk/free-resources/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/PRINCE2-training-crossword.pdf

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Posted by Alistair Wylie in PRINCE2 Training on July 15th, 2011 | 1 Comment »

MS Project Training

Ok, so you’ve defined your project, setup all the tasks and resources but now you need to monitor the progress and check that everything is going to plan (or not as the  case may be!!).

Microsoft Project offers you several ways of viewing the project, depending on the information you need to see, this is done via the ‘View’ menu.  Here we look at how to access the different views.

To learn more about Views, and loads more in MS Project, why not attend our MS Project Training course here in Brighton, Sussex?

Different Ways of Viewing a Project

The VIEW tab on the Ribbon provides different ways of viewing a Project Plan.

A VIEW BAR also appears on the left hand side of the Gantt Chart, enabling you to change to different views.

Yet another way on the TASK TAB on the Ribbon, select the view from the Gantt Chart button.

Views are split into different types, either Task or Resource Views.

Useful Views

• Gantt – Main View used for reporting data on a timescale
• Calendar – Shows every task in the project on a day to day basis in a diary format
• Network Diagram – Shows the tasks as a Flow Chart
• Task Usage – Shows tasks with the list of resources working on them.   Can be used to view working times and costs of tasks
• Resource Usage – Shows resources and the tasks they are working on.  Can be used to view resource working times and availability.
• Resource Graph – Used to identify days when a resource is busy or over allocated
• Resource Sheet – Used to enter information about resources
• Tracking Gantt – Displays the original plan against the actual.  Used for comparison and updating when running the project.

Available Tables

Many views are made up of tables.   The Resource Sheet is a table, the Gantt Chart has a table.   The table that is initially viewed in any view is the ENTRY table.

• To change a table, select the VIEW TAB on the Ribbon
• Select TABLES
• Choose from one of the nine tables

Useful Tables

• Cost – Shows a breakdown of cost – relative to task or resource
• Work – Shows a breakdown of work hours – relative to task or resource
• Entry – The initial data entered for a task or resource
• Summary – Shows work and cost together – relative to task or resource
• Variance – Shows variances between the original plan and the running plan

Note: The Default Table for the Gantt Chart is ENTRY.   A quick way of switching tables is to right click in the square at the top left hand side of the current table.

Keystrokes for moving around Views & Tables

• CTRL+HOME – Goes to the top of a table
• CTRL + END – Goes to the bottom of a table
• ALT+HOME – Shows the Start Date on the Gantt Chart, or in any graphical view
• ALT+END – Shows the End Date on the Gantt Chart, or in any graphical view

Combination Views

More than one view may be shown in the screen at a time.  For example you could have the Gantt Chart showing in the top part of the screen and the Resource Sheet in the bottom.   Thus it is possible to see information about a Resource working on a task without having to switch between views.   A split is created in the screen and the appropriate view displayed in the relative pane.

• Select the VIEW TAB from the RIBBON
• Select The DETAILS box from the SPLIT VIEW options

Initially a Task Form is display in the lower part of the screen.   This can be changed in the drop down box to the right of Details

• To remove the Split, un-tick the Details Box

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Posted by Alistair Wylie in Microsoft Office, Microsoft Project Training, PRINCE2 Training, Project management on June 17th, 2011 | No Comments »

Welcome to the PRINCE2 Training Resources page, here you can find various resources including our PRINCE2 Quiz, PRINCE2 eBook and PRINCE2 Templates. You can use these resources to revise for your PRINCE2 exam or simply learn about PRINCE2 and all its features.

If you would like to learn more about PRINCE2 Training or take a PRINCE2 exam then come along to our PRINCE2 Foundation Training, PRINCE2 Practitioner Training and PRINCE2 Practitioner Conversion Training in Brighton, Sussex.

Read the rest of "PRINCE2 Training Resources – Free Downloads"

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Posted by Andy Trainer in PRINCE2 Training, Project management on November 23rd, 2010 | 2 Comments »

PRINCE2 Training Ebook for your mobile

This is an excellent free PRINCE2 Training revision guide for your mobile.

PRINCE2 is a structured method for effective project management. It is the standard used extensively by the UK Government and is widely recognised and used in the private sector, both in the UK and internationally. Silicon Beach Training provides a range of PRINCE2 Training courses in Brighton, Sussex, including PRINCE2 Practitioner Training and PRINCE2 Foundation Training.

Did you know we also run regular ISTQB / ISEB Software Testing Training, ITIL Training and IOSH Health and Safety Training courses?

PRINCE2, the method, is in the public domain, offering non-proprietary best-practice guidance on project management. PRINCE2 is a registered trademark of the Office of Government Commerce.

This e-Book will take you through the PRINCE2 methods of managing a project from start to finish. A great PRINCE2 revision guide.

Here are your Free PRINCE2 Ebook download options -

EPUB (For iPhone, search the above URL in your iPhone’s Safari Browser and then click on the EPUB link)

or use your iPhone to scan the matrix code below -

.MOBI (For Amazon Zindle) – For Android

LRF (For Sony Reader)

PALM DOC (PDB) (For Palm Reading Devices)

You can also download our free PRINCE2 ebook in the following formats:

HTML (Read online)

Javascript (Read online)

PDF (For PC/ Mac)

RTF (For PC/ Mac)

More eBooks

If you want to download other eBooks by Silicon Beach Training or for more information, go to our eBook page HERE

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Posted by Andy Trainer in ebooks, PRINCE2 Training, Project management on November 18th, 2010 | 4 Comments »

The benefits of taking a PRINCE2 Training Course are:

• PRINCE2 is the most widely recognised project management qualification
• A PRINCE2 Qualification will give you first class project management skills
• Studying PRINCE2 will give you the confidence in managing projects successfully
• Implementing PRINCE2 in your projects will give you common systems, procedures and language
• You will make fewer mistakes, learn from those that you do make, saving time, money and effort
• Being PRINCE2 qualified will greatly improve your employment prospects
• A PRINCE2 qualification is a great asset for your CV
• PRINCE2 is recognised worldwide and is the standard method for project management.

See our course outlines for more information, with PRINCE2 Training in Birmingham as well as Brighton.

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Posted by Alistair Wylie in PRINCE2 Training on October 22nd, 2007 | No Comments »

The following pages give more detail of the processes shown in the diagram below – click the image to open a larger version in a new window

© Crown Copyright 2009. Reproduced under Licence from OGC

Lean more about the PRINCE2 Process Model on our PRINCE2 Courses, with PRINCE2 Training now in Birmingham and Brighton.

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Posted by Alistair Wylie in PRINCE2 Training on October 16th, 2007 | 1 Comment »

PRINCE2 PROCESSES – Starting Up a Project (SU)

The purpose of the Starting up a Project process is to ensure that the prerequisites for Initiating a Project are in place by answering the question: do we have a viable and worthwhile project?

This process is triggered by a mandate and is designed to establish the following:

• There is a business justification for initiating the project (documented in an outline Business Case)
• All the necessary authorities exist for initiating the project
• Sufficient information is available to define and confirm the scope of the project (in the form of a Project Brief)
• The various ways the project can be delivered are evaluated and a project approach selected
• Individuals are appointed who will undertake the work required in project initiation and/or will take significant project management roles in the project
• The work required for project initiation is planned (documented in a Stage Plan)
• Time is not wasted initiating a project based on unsound assumptions regarding the project’s scope, timescales, acceptance criteria and constraints.

Products produced during this process are as follows:

• Role descriptions
• Daily Log
• Lessons Log
• Outline Business Case
• Project Product Description
• Project Approach
• Project Brief
• Stage Plan

The PRINCE2 processes are covered in detail on our PRINCE2 Foundation training and PRINCE2 Practitioner training courses in Brighton, Sussex.

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Posted by Alistair Wylie in PRINCE2 Training on July 12th, 2007 | No Comments »