What has really changed in PRINCE2? 2017?

AXELOS has recently announced the new version of PRINCE2. The final draft will be made available to trainers in a few days, and the public will have access to the official manual in a few months. The exams will be available for both versions until Jan 2018, and then it will be only the new exam. 

So, what has changed in the new version?

The Method vs. the Manual

It’s fair to say that the method is the same, and only the manual has changed. In other words, we’re going to have a better presentation and description of the same old method. 

This is done by:

• improving some parts of the text
• improving some of the management products 
• making the manual politically correct, when it comes to Agile

And most importantly: 

• adding more information about tailoring

Why is tailoring important?

Most people don’t understand PRINCE2 correctly, because they don’t consider the possibilities that come with tailoring. It doesn’t matter that tailoring is one of the principles of PRINCE2, most people ignored it, and therefore, found PRINCE2 too complicated and bureaucratic. A good example of tailoring is the Trello Project by my colleague, Frank Turley, in which he shows how you can run a project by a very simplified form of PRINCE2 that is completely implemented in Trello. 

Now, the new manual practically tells you how to tailor each part of the methodology, instead of just mentioning this principle. It also reminds you of its importance every few pages. It works better, and makes PRINCE2 more practical for normal users.

The notes on tailoring are high-level, generic ones, rather than holistic approaches. So, in my opinion, it’s more about giving you ideas and reminding you of its importance rather than showing you the way. For the latter, still the Integrating PRINCE2 book by Alan Ferguson is the best option, and I strongly recommend it to anyone who wants to understand the methodology and use it. 

Byproduct!

The changes in the manual make it easier and more practical for the audience. Yet, there’s a byproduct too: this change forces the training organizations to update their elearning courses and classroom courses; hopefully along with lessons learned from the period their courses were available to the customers. 

So, let’s wait and see what happens in the community :)

This article was first published in Management Plaza blog.