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Transcript of APMP for PRINCE2 Practitioners White Paper
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White PaperJanuary 2010
APMP or PRINCE2 Practitioners
Graham Williams, Principle Consultant, GSW Consulting
For Portfolio, Programme, Project,Risk and Service Management
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2 APMP or PRINCE2 Practioners 2009
IntroductionThe main purpose o this White Paper isto explain why any individual who has
the PRINCE2 Practitioner qualication, or
any organization which employs PRINCE2
Practitioners, should consider the merits
o the APMP qualication.
The paper also explains how any
individual who has already studied
or the APMP qualication, or any
organization which has prepared its
project management sta or the APMP
qualication, could also benet rom
using the PRINCE2 method.
To do this, the paper sets out to answer
the ollowing key questions:
What is the APMP? In writing this
paper I am assuming that the majority
o readers will be aware o the
PRINCE2 Practitioner qualication, but
may never have heard o the APMP
qualication
How does the APM Body o
Knowledge compare to the PRINCE2
method? This question needs to
be answered because the APMP
qualication is based on the APM
Body o Knowledge and the PRINCE2
Practitioner Qualication is based on
the PRINCE2 method
How does the APMP qualication
compare to the PRINCE2 Practitioner
qualication? Having addressed the
previous question, it is possible to
compare what is oered by each o
the qualications
How to bring together the APMP
and PRINCE2 qualications? The
answers to the previous two questions
identiy a number o similarities and
dierences between the APM Body
o Knowledge / APMP qualication
and PRINCE2. These are important,
because it is these dierences
and similarities that make the two
compatible with each other
What next? Finally, I consider the steps
that individuals and organizations can
take to actually bring together the
APMP with the PRINCE2 Practitioner.
What is the
APMP?Many PRINCE2 Practitioners have never
even heard o the term APMP. For
example, a training company that I know,
recently sent out a mail shot or their
APMP course to people who had recently
passed the PRINCE2 Practitioner exam.
O those that responded, the most
requently asked question was What is
the APMP?
So this is probably the rst and most
undamental question that needs to
be addressed.
The APMP is a qualication oered by
the Association or Project Management,
who describe it as ollows:
APMP is a knowledge based
qualication. Successul candidates
are able to participate in projects
rom individual assignments through
to large capital projects. APMP is
a qualication recognized both
nationally and internationally that
successul candidates can carry rom
one job to another or rom one
industry to another
And urthermore:
APMP is aimed at project managers
and aspiring project managers who
wish to demonstrate their knowledge
o project management at a
oundation level. APMP covers
37 knowledge areas rom the APM
Body o Knowledge. Knowledge o
these areas is considered
undamental to the proessional
management o projects.
How does the
APM Body oKnowledgecompare withthe PRINCE2Manual?Beore we can compare the APM Body
o Knowledge with the PRINCE2 Manual,
we need to understand what each o
them consists o. First o all I will provide
a description o the APM Body o
Knowledge and will then ollow this with
a description o the PRINCE2 Manual.
The PRINCE2 manual has recently
been rereshed and a new edition was
published in June 2009. My description
o PRINCE2 is based on this new edition,
and will accordingly provide anyone more
amiliar with the previous edition with
an overview o the changes that wereintroduced in 2009.
What is the APM Body oKnowledge?Quoting rom the publication, The APM
Body o Knowledge is a well-established
collection o project management
knowledgeit provides introductions
and common guides to those areas
considered essential to the discipline
o managing projects, and it is clearly
structured with denitions, explanationsand suggested urther reading material.
This inormation will direct and assist
those interested in project management
in their work, studies and learning or
recognized qualications.
Extract from the APM Body of Knowledge 5thEdition, reproduced with the permission of the
Association for Project Management.
What does the APM Bodyo Knowledge consist o?The knowledge reerred to above, is
structured into seven sections, with each
section covering a number o separate
topics. In total there are 52 topics, as
listed on the next page:
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APMP or PRINCE2 Practioners 2009 3
Project management in context
Project management*
Programme management*
Portolio management *
Project context*
Project sponsorship*
Project oce*
Planning the strategy
Project success and benets
management*
Stakeholder management*
Value management
Project management plan*
Project risk management*
Project quality management*
Health, saety and environmentmanagement*
Executing the strategy
Scope management*
Scheduling*
Resource management*
Budgeting and cost management*
Change control*
Earned value management*
Inormation management and
reporting*
Issue management*
Techniques
Requirements management*
Development
Estimating*
Technology management
Value engineering
Modelling and testing
Conguration management*
Business and commercial
Business case*
Marketing and sales
Project nancing and unding
Procurement*
Legal awareness
Organization and governance
Project lie cycles*
Concept
Denition
Implementation
Handover and closeout*
Project reviews*
Organization structure*
Organizational roles*
Methods and procedures*
Governance o project
management*People and the proession
Communication*
Teamwork*
Leadership*
Confict management*
Negotiation*
Human resource management
Behavioural characteristics
Learning and development
Proessionalism and ethics.
In addition to the above, the Body o
Knowledge also includes a Glossary o
project management terms and a list o
project management acronyms.
(*These topics orm part o the APMP
syllabus more on that to ollow later).
What is PRINCE2?Again, quoting rom the manual,
PRINCE2 is a structured project
management method based on
experience drawn rom thousands o
projects and rom the contributions
o countless project sponsors, project
managers, project teams, academics,
trainer and consultants.
What does PRINCE2consist o?The PRINCE2 method is made up o our
integrated elements:
Principles . These are the guiding
obligations and good practices which
determine whether the project is
genuinely being managed using
PRINCE2. There are seven principles
and unless all o them are applied, it
is not a PRINCE2 project. The seven
principles are:
Continued business justication
Learn rom experience
Dened roles and responsibilities
Manage by stages
Manage by exception
Focus on products
Tailor to suit the project environment.
(The 2009 edition was the rst to state
these principles so overtly, but there
is nothing in this list that cannot be
recognized rom the earlier editions o
PRINCE2).
Themes . These describe aspects o
project management that must be
addressed continually and in parallel
throughout the project. The seven
themes explain the specic treatment
required by PRINCE2 or various
project management disciplines and
why they are necessary. The seven
themes are:
Business Case
Organization
Quality
Plans
Risk
Change
Progress.
(These used to be called Components.
A couple o them have unamiliar
names and Conguration Management
is no longer listed. They are no longer
called components, because a set o
components make up the whole, but
these do not make up the whole o
PRINCE2, and they certainly dont cover
the whole o project management. Most
o the name changes have been made
to make them single word titles (apartrom Business Case that is), and Progress
replaces the old Controls component.
Conguration Management is now part
o the Change theme, because, as the
previous editions o PRINCE2 made clear,
there must be a close liaison between
conguration management and change
control).
Processes . These describe the step-
wise progression through the project
liecycle, rom getting started to
project closure. Each process provides
checklists o recommended activities,
products and related responsibilities.
There are seven processes which are:
Starting up a Project
Directing a Project
Initiating a Project
Controlling a Stage
Managing Product Delivery
Managing a Stage Boundary
Closing a Project.
(In the previous editions o PRINCE2
there were eight processes. The old
Planning process is now covered by the
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APM Body o Knowledgeand PRINCE2 Compared
There are many similarities that can beound when comparing the APM Body o
Knowledge with PRINCE2. For example,
they both:
Describe generic approaches to project
management that can be applied
regardless o the type o project
Can be applied across geographical
and cultural boundaries, even
though they both originate within
the United Kingdom
Recognize that they cannot provide
a one-size-ts-all ormula to
project success
Cover the topics o Business Case,
Organizational Roles, Quality
Management, Risk Management,
Change Control, Issue Management,
Conguration Management,
and aspects o Planning and o
Progress Control.
The key dierences between the APM
Body o Knowledge and PRINCE2 are
summarized in Figure 1 below.
Taking each o these dierences in turn:
Body o Knowledge versus
MethodBody o Knowledge is the term used to
describe the denition o the current best
practice in a proession. In the case o
the APM Body o Knowledge, it describes
some 52 topics, which together make up
the discipline o project management.
In contrast, Method is the term used
to describe a documented approach or
the management o projects, consisting
o processes, procedures and dened
roles and responsibilities. A method
provides a consistent ramework within
which project management is perormed.
Plans theme. PRINCE2 also no longer
has a separate section on techniques.
Product-based planning is covered by the
Plans theme, so everything you need to
know about plans and planning is in the
one chapter. Quality Review is covered by
the Quality theme, so again, all quality-
related topics are in the same chapter.
And the Change Control technique can
now be ound in the Change theme, or
the same reason).
Tailoring . Or to give it its ull title
Tailoring PRINCE2 to the project
environment. This chapter addresses
the need to tailor PRINCE2 to thespecic context o the project.
PRINCE2 is not a one-size-ts-all
solution; it is a fexible ramework that
can readily be tailored to any type or
size o project.
(This may sound like a brand new
chapter, and it is. But much o the
content has been carried over rom
the Scalability and Hints and Tips
sections that permeated much o the
earlier editions o PRINCE2. The real
improvement is that these are nowpresented in a much more structured and
accessible ashion).
In addition, PRINCE2 also has a set
o Appendices that provide Product
Description outlines (or what PRINCE2
calls its management products) and
detailed Roles and Responsibilities
(or the various roles described in the
Organization theme). It also contains
quite an extensive Glossary (o terms
used throughout the manual).
The key point here is that PRINCE2
provides a structured ramework or
the successul management o projects,
however, a PRINCE2 project is more likely
to be successul i those responsible or
the management o the project also have
sound project management knowledge.
Broad Discipline-based versus
Narrow Process-basedBroad discipline-based reers to the
act that the APM Body o Knowledge
describes 52 project management
knowledge areas and organizes these
into sections within which, each topic
is closely related to the others withinthat section.
Narrow process-based reers to the act
that the PRINCE2 method describes
the application o just seven themes
according to where the project is
within its liecycle, and which level o
management is involved.
The key point here is that whilst PRINCE2
provides a step-wise ramework within
which its themes are applied, it does not
describe the detailed techniques andleadership capabilities that will need to
be applied during the project liecycle
or the project to be successul. Also,
whereas PRINCE2 explains what needs to
be done, the APM Body o Knowledge
provides more guidance to how it is
done.
The nature o these similarities and
dierences means that the APM Body
o Knowledge and PRINCE2 make ideal
partners. They have sucient similarities
to make them compatible, and they have
sucient dierences or each to benet
rom the strengths o the other.
APM Body o Knowledge PRINCE2
Is a body o project management knowledge Is a structured project management method
Provides descriptions and explanations o a broad range o
project management topics
And
Takes a discipline-based approach to project management
Provides detailed descriptions o specic approaches that
PRINCE2 has or a airly narrow range o project management
topics
And
Takes a process-based approach to project management
Figure 1 - Key dierences between the APM Body o Knowledge and PRINCE2.
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APMP or PRINCE2 Practioners 2009 5
There are also a number o similarities,
or example:
The pass mark or both exams is 55%
Courses leading to both exams are
provided by accredited organizations
(PRINCE2 Accredited Training
Organizations; APMP Accredited
Providers)
Open exams are available or those
who wish to sel-study.
Bringing together
the APMPand PRINCE2QualicationsThe simplest way o thinking about
bringing together APMP with PRINCE2
is that the APMP knowledge enables
a PRINCE2 Practitioner to do the
things that are not covered by the
PRINCE2 manual.
There are a number o questions that
PRINCE2 leaves unanswered,
or example:
PRINCE2 tells me that I need to include
an Investment Appraisal within my
Business Case, but how do I undertake
an Investment Appraisal?
APMP assesses whether the candidate
has the requisite project management
knowledge
PRINCE2 covers what needs to be
done (the Themes), when it needs to
be done during the project liecycle
(the Processes), and how this may
vary depending on the nature o the
project (Tailoring); whereas APMP
includes a ar greater coverage o how
the things that need to be done are
actually done.
By way o illustration, PRINCE2:
Explains what plans are required
Describes a planning process
Lists the composition o a typical plan
States when during the processes
plans are created and updated.
However, PRINCE2 does not explain:
How to produce a schedule
How to allocate resources to
this schedule
How to produce a budget and apply
cost management
How to estimate the time and cost
associated with the plan.
All o these topics are, however, covered
as part o the APMP qualifcation.
There are a number o dierences in the
exams (see Figure 2 below).
How does
the APMPqualicationcompare withthe PRINCE2Practitionerqualication?So ar I have concentrated on describing
the dierences between the APM
Body o Knowledge and PRINCE2, but
the main topic o this paper is the
APMP. So how do these two
qualications compare?
In the same way that the PRINCE2
Practitioner qualication requires a
candidate to have a good understanding
o the PRINCE2 Manual, so the
APMP qualication requires a good
understanding o 37 topics o the APMBody o Knowledge (marked with an
asterisk in the list on page 3).
The most signicant dierences though,
are that:
PRINCE2 assesses whether a candidate
is able to apply the method; whereas
APMP PRINCE2
The APMP syllabus addresses 37 o the 52 topics included in
the AMP Body o Knowledge
The PRINCE2 syllabus covers all o the Principles, Themes,
Processes and the Tailoring o PRINCE2Assesses the candidates breadth o knowledge in all areas
o project management, rom the strategic and commercial
implications o their role, to the technical, commercial,
organizational and people management skills required to
successully participate in a project team
Assesses whether the candidate could apply PRINCE2 to the
running and managing o a non-complex project within an
environment supporting PRINCE2
Lasts three hours, in which the candidate must answer ten
questions rom a selection o sixteen
Lasts two and a hal hours, in which the candidate must
answer all nine question
The exam is closed book The exam is open book, i.e. the candidate is allowed access to
their own copy o the PRINCE2 manual
The questions require essay-based answers, providing either
lists, descriptions, explanations or calculations
Uses objective test questions which require a candidate to
choose a response to a question rom a set o choices, only
one o which is correct
Figure 2 - Key dierences between the exams.
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6 APMP or PRINCE2 Practioners 2009
It also describes the PRINCE2 quality
review technique.
APMPIn addition to the above, explains
several additional quality techniques
and also describes the related topic o
requirements management and explains
the importance o this topic.
PlansPRINCE2Explains the levels o plan required or a
project (project, stage and team). Then
describes the PRINCE2 approach to
producing these plans, rom dening and
analyzing products (using the product-
based planning technique), through to
identiying activities and dependencies,
preparing estimates, preparing the
schedule and documenting the plan,
whilst analyzing risks throughout
these steps.
APMPProvides a how-to approach to each step
o the above approach, explains scope
management and describes the ProductBreakdown Structure (PBS), the Work
Breakdown Structure (WBS), the Cost
Breakdown Structure (CBS), and the
Organization Breakdown Structure (OBS),
and explains the reasons or using a
Responsibility Assignment Matrix (RAM).
Explains how a project schedule is
created and maintained by using
techniques such as precedence
diagramming, critical path analysis,
Gantt charts, the Program Evaluation
Review Technique (PERT) and milestone
progress charts. Also explains the
advantages and disadvantages o using
sotware tools or scheduling.
Describes resource management,
distinguishing between resource
smoothing and resource levelling,
and demonstrates the use o dierent
resource management techniques
such as resource histograms and
cumulative S-curves.
Explains budgeting and cost
management and the benets o
this topic.
APMPIn addition to the above, explains how
dierent types o investment appraisalcan be used to analyze, in quantitative
terms, the value o the investment to
be made in the project. In particular, it
explains the use o payback, Internal Rate
o Return (IRR) and Net Present Value
(NPV) as investment appraisal techniques.
PRINCE2 identies Investment Appraisal
as one section o the Business Case, lists
a range o techniques that are available,
but does not explain how to use any o
these techniques.
OrganizationPRINCE2Describes the roles and responsibilities
within the three levels o the PRINCE2
project management team that are
responsible or directing, managing
and delivering aspects o the project. It
puts the project management team into
context with corporate or programme
management and with the customer/
supplier environment.
It also introduces some o the challenges
aced in working with the project team,
with the corporate organization and with
stakeholders. In particular, it describes
a stakeholder engagement procedure.
This includes the creation o the
Communication Management Strategy
or the project.
APMPIn addition to the above, distinguishes
between unctional, matrix and
project organizations and explains the
advantages and disadvantages o each.
It also explains the governance o project
management and describes the principles
o governance o project management.
QualityPRINCE2Describes the PRINCE2 approach to
quality planning and quality control, and
explains the role o quality assurance.
This includes establishing a QualityManagement Strategy and Quality
Register or the project.
PRINCE2 describes the structure, roles
and responsibilities involved in the
Project Management Team, but how
do they relate to the organizations
own structure, roles and responsibilities?
PRINCE2 insists that the Project Board
manage by exception and set
tolerances or the project, but how can
I orecast whether or not these
tolerances are going to be exceeded?
PRINCE2 describes a risk management
procedure, but what about other areas
o risk such as health and saety?
PRINCE2 tells me how to plan and
control quality, but are there anytechniques that I could use other than
the Quality Review Technique?
In the sections that ollow, I describe
What PRINCE2 provides within each o
its seven themes, and then identiy the
added value that the APMP
qualifcation would provide to a
PRINCE2 Practitioner
How the PRINCE2 processes align to
the APMP view o the project liecycle
The additional project management
topics that are only addressed by
the APMP.
ThemesBusiness CasePRINCE2Describes the purpose o the Business
Case, outlines the typical content o a
PRINCE2 Business Case, explains howthe Business Case is developed, veried,
maintained and conrmed during the
project liecycle, and lists the roles
and responsibilities in respect o the
Business Case.
It also explains the dierence between
a projects output (any o the projects
specialist products), an outcome (the
result o change derived rom using the
output) and a benet (the measurable
improvement rom an outcome).
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and explains the typical barriers to
communication and how they may
be overcome.
ProcurementWhilst PRINCE2 suggests that
procurement may be one o the
approaches taken by the project, the
APMP also:
Describes procurement, explains the
typical contents o a procurement
strategy, explains a supplier selection
process, and distinguishes between
dierent methods o supplier
reimbursement and dierent
contractual relationships
Describes a negotiation process
and explains each stage within
this process.
People ManagementWhilst PRINCE2 identies the roles and
responsibilities o those people involved
in the direction, management and
delivery o the project, the APMP also:
Describes typical leadership qualities,
explains the principles and importance
o motivation, and describes a
situational leadership model
Explains the importance o team
development and describes both a
team development model, and a social
roles model
Explains sources o confict in the
project liecycle and explains a confict
resolution model.
What Next?By now, I hope that any PRINCE2Practitioners, who do not already have
the APMP qualication, will be seriously
considering extending their studies.
Health WarningHowever, beore I describe what that
might involve, it's time or the health
warning. I did mention earlier that APMP
and PRINCE2 are suciently compatible
to be considered ideal partners. But no
partner is ever totally compatible withthe other, and this is true o APMP and
PRINCE2.
ProgressPRINCE2
Explains the purpose o progress and theconcepts o tolerance and exceptions.
Then describes the PRINCE2 approach
to progress, which includes delegating
authority, the use o management
stages, event-driven and time-driven
controls, and raising exceptions.
APMPIn addition to the above, describes
Earned Value Management (EVM) as a
means o progress monitoring, explains
the advantages and disadvantages oEVM, and explains how to perorm earn
value calculations and interpret earned
value data.
Also explains inormation management
systems covering the collection, storage,
dissemination, archiving, and appropriate
destruction o inormation.
ProcessesWhereas PRINCE2 describes theproject liecycle using its process
model, the APM Body o Knowledge
describes dierent phases o the project
liecycle. These dierent approaches are
broadly compatible as is shown in
Figure 3 overlea.
Project ManagementTopics only covered bythe APMPPRINCE2 does not address any o the
ollowing topics:
Stakeholder Management and
CommunicationWhilst PRINCE2 mentions the importance
o engaging with stakeholders, provides
an example o a stakeholder engagement
procedure and explains the content o
a typical Communication Management
Strategy, the APMP also:
Describes a stakeholder process in
more detail, or example by explaining
tools and techniques that can be used
in stakeholder analysis
Explains the importance o eective
communication in project management
Describes the practical problems o
estimating across the project liecycle
and explains bottom-up, comparative,
parametric and three-point estimating.
RiskPRINCE2Explains what a risk is (threat or
opportunity), and what is at risk?
Then describes the PRINCE2 approach
to the management o risk. This includes
establishing a Risk Management
Strategy and Risk Register or the
project, and ollowing a ve step risk
management procedure which consisto Identiy, Assess, Plan, Implement
and Communicate.
APMPIn addition to the above, covers tools
and techniques or risk identication and
the use o a probability and impact grid
(matrix) to assess risks.
Also explains the importance o health,
saety and environmental management,
as these can be considered as specialist
aspects o risk management. This
includes topics such as the purpose o
regulations, the duty o care or and
responsibilities o a Project Manager.
ChangePRINCE2Explains the need or a systematic
and common approach to issue and
change control that incorporates
conguration management.
Then describes the PRINCE2 approachto issue and change control. This
includes establishing a Conguration
Management Strategy or the project
and the necessary records and reports
required by the PRINCE2 conguration
management procedure and its issue and
change control procedure.
APMPDoes not include anything in addition.
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8 APMP or PRINCE2 Practioners 2009
concerns. In the APM Body o
Knowledge, there are dierent
approaches taken to each o these
three topics.
None o these challenges should,however, cause any real problems.
Indeed, PRINCE2 itsel suggests that
the tailoring o PRINCE2, where an
organization is aligned to any particular
body o knowledge, should include:
Agreeing a single set o terms to apply
Aligning PRINCE2s management
products with any management
products recommended by the body
o knowledge.
So, back to the main question o thissection what next?
You should, thereore, be warned o
some o the challenges that you may
ace in applying APMP to your PRINCE2
environment. The most notable amongst
these is:Language . The APM Body o
Knowledge and PRINCE2 have been
developed by people with dierent
backgrounds, and as a result there are
dierences in some o the language
used. For example:
PRINCE2 reers to its Project
Initiation Documentation; the
equivalent in the APM Body o
Knowledge is the Project
Management Plan
PRINCE2 reers to a post-project benefts review, which
sounds very similar to what the
APM Body o Knowledge reers to
as a post-project review. However,
the post-project benets review is
held some time ater the project
has been closed, whereas the
post-project review is held ater theproject deliverables have been
handed over but beore the project
is closed
Business Case composition , The
PRINCE2 and APM Body o
Knowledge Business Cases include
much o the same inormation, but
the APM Body o Knowledge also
includes much o what PRINCE2
calls the Project Denition part
o the Project Brie and Project
Initiation Documentation
Issue Handling , In PRINCE2 there
is a common approach to issues,
requests or change and problems/
Figure 3 - Descriptions o Liecycle Phases
APM Liecycle Phase Description Alignment to PRINCE2 processes
Concept During this phase the need, opportunity
or problem is conrmed, the overall
easibility o the project is considered and
a preerred solution identied
Starting up a Project
Output: Business Case Output: Project Brie (which includes an
outline Business Case)
Defnition During this phase the preerred solution
is urther evaluated and optimized. Oten
an iterative process, denition can eect
requirements and the projects scope,
time, cost and quality objectives.
Initiating a Project
Output: Project Management Plan Output: Project initiationDocumentation
Implementation Where the Project Management Plan
is executed, monitored and controlled.
During this phase the design is nalized
and used to build the deliverables.
Controlling a Stage, Managing Product
Delivery, and Managing a Stage
Boundary
Output: Deliverables Output: Specialist Products
Handover and Closeout During this phase the nal project
deliverables are handed over to the
sponsor and user. Closeout is the process
o nalizing all project matters, carrying
out nal project reviews, archiving projectinormation and redeploying the project
team.
Closing a Project
Output: Post-Project Review Output: End Project Report
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Trademarks and
Acknowledgements
Sourced by TSO and published on
www.best-management-practice.com
Our White Paper series should not be
taken as constituting advice o any sort
and no liability is accepted or any loss
resulting rom use o or reliance on its
content. While every eort is made to
ensure the accuracy and reliability o
the inormation, TSO cannot accept
responsibility or errors, omissions
or inaccuracies.
PRINCE2 is a Registered Trade Mark o
the Oce o Government Commerce in
the United Kingdom and other countries"
Content, diagrams, logos and jackets are
correct at time o going to press but may
be subject to change without notice.
Copyright TSO and Graham Williams
Reproduction in ull or part is prohibited
without prior consent rom the author.
OrganizationsAs an organization looking to adopt the
APMP qualication alongside PRINCE2,all o the above options would be
available to your sta.
However, in addition, you would also
need to make some decisions regarding
how best to integrate the APM Body o
Knowledge with your implementation o
the PRINCE2 method.
Summary and
ConclusionsYou should now appreciate the
dierences between the APMP
qualication (based on the APM Body
o Knowledge) and the PRINCE2
Practitioner qualication (based on
the PRINCE2 manual). You should also
recognize the complementary nature o
these two qualications. And hopeully,
i you are a PRINCE2 Practitioners, you
will be seriously considering improving
your project management knowledgeby studying or the APMP. And i
you work in an organization that has
adopted PRINCE2 as its chosen project
management method, you will be
thinking about how to incorporate the
APMP knowledge into your application
o the PRINCE2 method.
The answer to this question will depend
on whether you are looking or an
answer rom an individual perspective or
rom an organizational perspective.
IndividualsAs an individual looking to study or and
take the APMP examination, you have a
number o options:
Enrol or an APMP course run by one
o the Accredited Providers. There are
around 30 organizations listed on the
Association or Project Management
(APM) web site www.apm.org.uk.
You may be amiliar with some o
these, as several o them also deliver
PRINCE2 Practitioner courses. It is
usual or delegates to take the APMP
exam in the same week as the course,
with everything arranged or you in
this respect
Prepare yoursel or the exam by
undertaking private study. The easiest
way to do this would be to buy the
TSO publication APMP or PRINCE2
Practitioners. The purpose o this
publication is to provide a study guide
or PRINCE2 Practitioners to prepareor the APMP examination. It describes
and explains the APMP topics in the
context o PRINCE2, and at the end o
each chapter there are several sample
questions to help you prepare or the
APMP examination. I you chose to
sel-study, you would have to arrange
to take the exam at one o the open
examinations, which are run once a
quarter. Again, more details can be
ound at www.apm.org.uk
Alternatively, you could enrol or the
Open Universitys project
management short course M865.
This covers much o the APMP
syllabus, but enables you to study
over an extended period o time
and anywhere in the world. But,
as with the sel-study option, you
would need to arrange your own
APMP examination.
AuthorGraham Williams
Principal Consultant
GSW Consulting