PMBOK

PMBOK Project Management Book of Knowledge or PMBOK comes from the Project Management Institute (PMI) in the USA the world's leading institution for project management certification.

The PMBOK focuses on techniques and some of the soft skills necessary for a project manager. PMI is an independent non-profit organization.

In the above diagram you will see that within a Project Phase such as Initiation, the Project Manager requires to understand two of the 40+ Knowledge Processes.

These are found in the 1st. and 7th. Knowledge Areas - Integration and Communication, respectively.

These 40+ processes tel you the skills required to perform the tasks at each phase of the development.

So the secret, they say, to passing the PMI certification is to understand and memorize the framework on page 40 of the 4th. Edition.

However, to make sense of it you need to read and remember the pattern of knowledge processes under each phase (vertical) - Initiation, Planning, Executing & Controlling, Closing; don't attempt to remember from left to right, i.e. by Knowledge Area!

Prince 2

Prince 2 - is a project management methodology from the Office of Government Commerce OGC in the UK - and popular in Western Europe and Australia.

Prince 2 was designed to 'get the job done' and is a fairly prescriptive and structured approach to successfully undertake a project - step by step...being designed to reduce projects running over time, not delivering what was required viz. functions, benefits and quality, and costing more than was budgeted.
Under the Prince 2 Methodology, there are 5 Broad Phases in the Project Lifecycle and these are covered by 8 processes which document and define what needs to be done at each stage.

Simple but effective.

In the 2009 version of Prince 2 has been made even more straight forward by the isolation of the Planning and Directing Processes.

3 Steps to Understanding Prince 2

Step 1 Compare the the wording in the circular phase diagram to the left to the process 8 processes in the process diagram below.

Step 2 Then rather than re-invent the wheel - I'll let Dave Litten explain how it all works in his excellent video. I suggest you have both the process diagram and the video centered in the scrollable window so that you can see both the process diagram and the video at the same time - you can then pause the video and compare the two .... You'll soon have a grasp of Prince 2!

Tip If you cannot get the process diagram and the video to fit on your screen using the page window scroll bar in combination with the browser scroll bar (outside edge)...then remember you can use the view drop down menu on your browser to zoom out!

Prince 2 introduced some important concepts including a focus on 'products' being delivered, product acceptance criteria, management of stage boundaries, etc.

It has the added benefit that it integrates with a number of other popular methodologies from the OGC, e.g. The IT Infrastructure Library ITIL (IT Service Management), Managing Successful Programs (MSP),Management of Risk, Portfolio, Program and Project Governance, etc.

FAQ

What's the Difference? Both approaches focus on 'best practices'. However, the primary difference is that the OGC's is a methodology in its purest form, whereas PMI's PMBOK is more of a framework - which places greater emphasis on the skils required.

For example, Prince 2 will tell you that you need to estimate the duration of a task, when to do it and track it...whereas the PMBOK focuses more on the techniques and skills necessary to estimate work.

Perhaps the best description of the two approaches compares Prince 2 to a 'Recipe Book' and the PMBOK as a 'Techniques for Cooking Book'.

To take the analogy further a good chef needs to know how to create great dishes - a Recipe Book, and needs to understand the techniques used for cooking the dish.

Certification - Which should I choose? There are a number of considerations:

1. Where will you be working?
The home of Prince 2 is the UK, PMBOK - the USA; however both approaches have gone International reaching Australia and China! You need to check out the latest for your country.

In terms of overall membership around the world the PMBOK has by far the largest numbers.

However, the popularity of the OGC's other methodologies and Prince 2's integration with them, particularly their ITIL methodology (the most used IT Service Management Methodology in the world - used by public and private sector organizations alike)could influence your organization.

2. Do I need certification? No! You do not need to certified to be a good, even great project manager and practice your trade.

   Neither methodology alone will project guarantee success and can if followed as though it was the elixir of life actually be detrimental.

   Used intelligently both will enhance the likelihood of success and in the absence of proven experience as a project manager, many employers are turning to certification as perhaps their only means of judging whether a project manager has the requisite skills and capability.

3. Certification - What sort of project management role will I be in? If for example, you are likely to be a Program Director or run the Program Office in the near future with Program Managers or Project Managers reporting to you; your main focus will be on ensuring that you know technique so that you can coach and mentor your project managers. (Head Chef)...PMI's PMBOK would be the best bet.

   However, if your primary focus is on project control and delivery as a Program Manager, Project Manager or Team Leader; then getting the job done will be your primary focus... Prince 2 maybe the best for you.

5. Certification - Is their any advantage in becoming certified in both? Yes! If you can afford it... and remember you don't need certification to be a good project manager even a great one!

   After all neither of these approaches were around when they built the pyramids or successfully developed the Polaris Nuclear deterrent - on time (actually ahead of time), on budget and exactly what was required, even though many of the technologies simply didn't exist when the requirements were laid down!

   However, for career minded project managers, you won't be wasting your time by being certified in both - Recipes and Techniques.

   But if you have a choice, then the mechanics of getting the job done might lead you to become Prince 2 certified first, adding PMI to round out your education. It's your choice!

6. Convergence Fortunately, there is increasing convergence or alignment between PMBOK and Prince 2 and also with Prince 2's other methodologies.
7. Expense Certification can prove an expensive long-term commitment of both time and money, particularly given the fact that you will need to undertake periodic renewals and re-assessment. But you may recoup some of this cost by the increased employment opportunity.
8. Do I still need Project Management Tools? Yes! Effectively, the bulk of both approaches is paper based, with a few automated tools and templates to help.

   Methodology - for the User

   Clearly, cost-effective tools that closely align with both standards is the best ...Process AND Technique! and can not only enhance an individuals project successes but help them gain certifications too!

   A methodology tools will likely provide a methodology that is aligned to the key Phases, Processes and Tasks you will require, provides in context templates and examples that can ensure you use and understand the templates and techniques required at each stage, helping to train you towards becoming an excellent project manager.

   Methodology - for the Project Office

   The Methodology tool should scalable in a cost effective way and provide consistent easy-to-use navigation to facilitate casual, ad-hoc and study use by project board members, managers, team members, users and other stakeholders.

   Ideally, it should provide effective licensing and the ability to import in-house methodologies, customize the PM Methodology to precisely fit the organizations proven approaches and allow for the building and branding of entirely new methodologies such as change management, business analysis, proven in-house techniques and style...to provide a single repository or one-stop-shop for best practices in your organization!