The popularity of PRINCE2 training shows no sign of abating, esepcially with the PRINCE2:2009 update. There's no doubt that attaining the PRINCE2 Practitioner Certification will increse your job prospects and the number of contracts that independent consultants can put themselves forward for.

But what exactly is the role of a PRINCE2 Project Manager? This article tackles that question. For a more in depth overview of PRINCE2 2009 and its Processes and Themes, visit Silicon Beach Training's free PRINCE2 resources pages.

A PRINCE2 Project Manager is not there to tell the techies how to do their job (unless he’s also the Team Manager, of course, but this is a case of wearing two hats). Nor, particularly, is it his job to kick butts; if a kicking is required, it is more likely to come from the Senior Supplier. The Project Manager is also not responsible for delivering the benefits of the project, merely “delivering an outcome that is capable of achieving the benefits” (Managing Successful Projects PRINCE2, P 212, my emphasis).

It is the Project Executive who is “ultimately accountable for the project” and who is the “key decision maker”. I hate to break it to you guys, but the PRINCE2 Project Manager is really just the Project Executive’s bitch, who’s job it is to draft the plans (for the Board’s approval), parcel up the Work Packages for the techies, and then monitor progress and go crying to the Board when anything goes wrong. More admin boy than international troubleshooter; the general implication is that the Project Manager doesn’t even have any line management responsibility. In real life, this is quite likely – the Project Manager may be a contractor with a virtual team made up of slices of peoples’ time (been there, done that), or he may be responsible for an outsourced development happening on the other side of the world.

Tolerance, therefore, is a key PRINCE2 concept. The Project Manager hands out Work Packages to the Team Manager (or, directly to the techies), telling them what to do and when it must be done by – with a tolerance level beyond which they are not permitted to proceed. In turn, the Project Manager has been granted (by the Project Board) a budget for a particular project stage (consisting of lots of Work Packages), with a level of tolerance beyond which he must not proceed. One level above that, and the Project Board have been given a budget for the whole project (by corporate or programme management), with a tolerance level which they must not exceed.