FAQ's on PRINCE2

o What are the PRINCE2 qualifications and what will they teach me?

There are two PRINCE2 qualification levels: PRINCE2 Foundation and PRINCE2 Practitioner.

A PRINCE2 Foundation qualification will teach you the PRINCE2 principles, terminology and when qualified you will be able to act as an informed member of a project management team using the PRINCE2 methodology within a project environment supporting PRINCE2.

A PRINCE2 Practitioner qualification is the highest level of PRINCE2 qualification and will teach you to apply PRINCE2 to the running and managing of a project within an environment supporting PRINCE2. Once qualified you will be able to apply and tune PRINCE2 to address the needs and problems of a specific project scenario. You will have a comprehensive knowledge of the relationships between the PRINCE2 principles, themes and processes and PRINCE2 products and will understand these elements.

o What will a PRINCE2 qualification do for me?

The PRINCE2 project management methodology is the de-facto standard for project management in the UK and is practiced worldwide. It covers the management, control and organisation of a project.

A qualification in PRINCE2 will not only boost your skills and confidence when managing projects but will greatly improve your employment prospects. Many organisations, both private and public, mandate the use of PRINCE2 and therefore require their staff to be competent and qualified to practice the method.

o What is the origin of the name PRINCE?

PRINCE is an acronym derived from Projects IN Controlled Environments.

o What is PRINCE2?

It is a method for managing projects, there is no Hardware or Software (apart from supporting tools) just a best practice approach to running Projects in a consistent and referenceable framework.

PRINCE2 is flexible, adaptable and as much as a Project method can be, friendly.

PRINCE2 may be similar to what you currently use, but what it does best is pull together common names and descriptions into a structure that anyone familiar with PRINCE2 can understand, regardless of background and Industry.

o How do I get recognised in PRINCE2?

It depends on if you are an individual or company. To get recognised in PRINCE2 as an individual you need to achieve certification at either Foundation or Practitioner level. As a very rough guideline if you are involved in Projects in a supporting role (you may be in a marketing, administration or technical job), Foundation level may be suffice. If generally you are leading projects then Practitioner is the level you should aim at.

For companies wishing to adopt PRINCE2, the route tends to be slightly different. The biggest decision is decide if PRINCE2 is right for you, and that requires an investment of time, collecting and reviewing information from the marketplace.

You could just take the view that with over 30,000 people having taken the PRINCE2 exams so far, it must be pretty proven and successful, otherwise it would not have the worldwide take-up it does.

Once you have decided to implement PRINCE2, then you need to plan an adoption strategy. The most common approach is to train an initial group of people, then run a PRINCE2 project to decide if PRINCE2 is right for you, or run a pilot PRINCE2 project. Remember that PRINCE2 is configurable, so from the initial Project you can start to look at what parts of PRINCE2 you may or may not use.

o Why do I need a PRINCE2 qualification?

Individual

The majority of people that consider PRINCE2 as a qualification do so for career and personal development reasons. Often this is driven by a change of job or career, where you notice that to get to the top of the CV pile, you need to have an extra qualification like PRINCE2 (even if you have been managing Projects successfully for many years without it). In many advertised positions PRINCE2 has become a prerequisite, particularly in Public Sector jobs.

Company

The majority of companies that implement PRINCE2 also encourage their employees to take the exams. If your staff have accredited PRINCE2 qualifications, then you can present your company as using PRINCE2. This works particularly well where you tender for or supply to any Public Sector companies, such as Police, NHS, local and central government.

o What do PRINCE2 qualifications consist of?

This is fairly straightforward! The two levels of qualification are Foundation and Practitioner. Foundation confirms your understanding of what PRINCE2 is, Practitioner shows your knowledge in the application of PRINCE2.

If your role is one of being on the periphery of Projects, perhaps Project Administration, sponsor or on secondment, then Foundation level may be suffice. It tells people that you can work within a PRINCE2 project effectively.

If you are a contractor or Project Manager, then chances are Practitioner level is the right certification, as it demonstrates the ability to run PRINCE2 projects.

For individuals, we would say that the majority do eventually go to Practitioner level, some in stages, others in one go.

Most companies generally train everyone involved in the project to Foundation Level, with a core of Project Managers to Practitioner Level.

o How big does a project have to be before PRINCE2 can be used?

PRINCE2 can be applied to all sorts of projects, from the very small to the very large. Even projects lasting only a few days will benefit from selective application of PRINCE2 guidelines. The key to success with PRINCE2 is to remember it is highly configurable, and so can be adapted for all project types regardless of industry and marketplace.

o Is PRINCE2 aimed at any particular type of project?

PRINCE2 is designed to be applied generally to all types of project, be they construction, engineering, IT, business, financial or whatever. In the past, it has been aimed at IT projects, and so it is still well used in this area however there has been significant growth recently in other industries, especially Telecoms and Finance.

o Do I need a computer based planning tool to implement PRINCE2?

No! PRINCE2 makes no recommendation on which tools you should use to assist you manage your projects but it does recognise that such tools are widely used. PRINCE2 will sit quite happily alongside a paper-based planning system or any other tool which you find to be effective in your environment.

o Is PRINCE2 suitable for non-IT projects?

Yes! Unlike the first version of PRINCE, PRINCE2 is designed to be generic and can be used for projects of any nature.

o Does PRINCE2 guarantee a successful outcome to projects?

No! but applied sensibly it will increase the chances of your projects being successful.

o Who owns/sells PRINCE2?

The copyright of PRINCE2 belongs to the UK Cabinet Office, the material itself is therefore Crown Copyright. The marketing of the manuals is carried out by The Stationery Office (formerly known as HMSO).

o How many exams would I need to take?

You need to take two exams to become fully qualified, PRINCE2 Foundation and PRINCE2 Practitioner.

Read more about the PRINCE2 Foundation exam .

Read more about the PRINCE2 Practitioner exam.

o When can I expect the results of my PRINCE2 Examinations?

PRINCE2 foundation examinations can be marked on location with provisional results provided

immediately after marking. Practitioner answer sheets are marked at APMG-International offices and

results released soon after.

If you have taken your exam via an ATO, practitioner results are sent by the relevant APMG-

International office directly to ATOs within 48 hours. Your ATO should notify you of your results so

please contact them for further details regarding this.

If you did not take your exam through an ATO, your results will be sent directly to you via the relevant

APMG-International office approximately 7-10 days after the date of your exam.

o When will I receive my certificate?

A foundation certificate will be dispatched to you approximately 2 weeks after we have received your

exam paper back into our offices, if you only took the foundation exam.

If you sat a practitioner or both exams, a practitioner certificate will be dispatched 2 weeks after the

practitioner results have been released.

Please note that if you have taken your examinations via an ATO, certificates are dispatched to ATOs.

Therefore if you have not received your certificate shortly after the above time frames please contact

your ATO directly.

o What are the pass marks for the PRINCE2 examinations?

Pass marks for the PRINCE2 examinations are as follows:

o Foundation: You will need to score 35/70 to pass the Foundation exam.o Practitioner: You will need to score 59/108 to pass the Practitioner exam.o Re-Registration: You will need to score 20/36 to pass the Re-Registration exam.

o How can I advertise myself as PRINCE2 qualified on my business card?

Candidates who have passed the PRINCE2 Practitioner examination can put “PRINCE2® Practitioner” on their business cards. You can also include a web address on your business card (www.p2registeredpractitioner.com) which takes you to an online list of all PRINCE2 Registered Practitioners.

o Can I use the PRINCE2 logo?

Only organizations licensed to do so are allowed to use the PRINCE2 logo. Such organizations include

PRINCE2 ATOs (Accredited Training Organizations) and PRINCE2 ACOs (Accredited Consulting

Organizations) accredited by APMG-International. The PRINCE2 logo is a registered trademark of the

Cabinet Office and must not be used without their permission or appropriate license.

Due to data protection laws, we are unable to quote organizations that use PRINCE2 without prior

consent. However we can confirm that PRINCE2 is used by a wide variety of organizations in various

industries, both public and private. The method is extremely popular amongst local and central

government departments and is also adopted by a number of multi-national, blue-chip organizations.

FAQ's on ITIL

What is ITIL?

ITIL is the most widely adopted framework for IT Service Management in the world. It is a practical, no-

nonsense approach to the identification, planning, delivery and support of IT services to the business.

ITIL principles are used by a number of organizations in both the public and private sectors such as

NASA, the NHS, HSBC bank, Disney™ and L'Oreal. ITIL is also supported by quality services from a

wide range of providers including consultancies, software and tool vendors and well known service

providers such as IBM, Telefonica, HP and British telecom (BT).

Developed by the Cabinet Office, the ITIL best practices are detailed within five core guidance

publications outlining the fundamental ITIL principles, and core-derived publications, which focus on

other specific applications or areas within the service management discipline.

There is also an easily accessible, yet comprehensive qualifications scheme, offering a range of

personal training courses and certifications covering specific or clustered ITIL Service Lifecycle phases

and processes. These are offered through a network of accredited Examination Institutes and Training

Organizations.

ITIL Best Practices also underpin the foundations of ISO/IEC 20000 (previously BS15000), the

International Service Management Standard for organizational certification and compliance.

Organizations can therefore implement ITIL principles in order to meet the requirements within the

standards, to achieve organizational certification.

Can I become a member of ITIL®?

There is no direct membership offered for ITIL, as ITIL is a guidance framework, however there are a

number of international membership groups, institutes and forums for IT Service Management principles

and practices.

The most widely known and accepted membership forum in the IT Service Management space is

provided by the itSMF - the IT Service Management Forum, who have over 50 international chapters.

Can I use the ITIL® Accreditation Marks?

The ITIL logo appears in a number of accreditation marks, which can only be used by certain

organizations who are accredited for specific ITIL services or products, and have entered into a

licensing agreement with APM Group-The Accreditor.

The "ITIL Accredited Examination Institute" mark which includes the ITIL logo and the text "Accredited

Examination Institute" is restricted to use by Licensed and Accredited ITIL Examination Institutes only.

The "ITIL Accredited by" mark, which includes the ITIL logo and individual EI logo's with the text

"Accredited By" is restricted to use by Licensed and Accredited Training Organizations only, and only in

the context of their ITIL training, consulting and marketing activities.

The "ITIL Licensed Affiliate" mark which includes the ITIL logo and the text "Licensed Affiliate" is

restricted to use by Licensed Affiliates only, in the context of the ITIL training, consulting and marketing

activities they conduct in conjunction with a Licensed and Accredited Training Organization.

For examples of these marks, please see the following page:

http://www.itil-officialsite.com/IntellectualPropertyRights/UseofLogos.aspx

How many people have taken the ITIL® qualifications worldwide?

Unfortunately, the APM Group-The Accreditor is unable to share this information with the general public

at this time, as this information is only shared with members of the ITIL Qualifications Board, the

Licensed examination institutes and the ATO community.

However, we are establishing a process for making this information available on the ITIL Official website

sometime in the future.

How can I appeal my examination/accreditation decision?

All EIs will have their own individual process for appeals against accreditation or certification decisions.

Individuals should use this procedure in the first instance.

However, if a candidate is dissatisfied by the processing or result of an appeal or complaint made

through the EI, they have the right to escalate this to the Cabinet Office's Official Accreditor, The APM

Group Ltd.

If necessary, the APM Group may take the appeal or complaint to the ITIL Qualifications Board for

consideration and resolution. In this instance APM Group will submit the issue or complaint to the next

meeting of the ITIL Qualifications Board and ensure feedback is provided in a timely fashion after the

meeting.

Can my organisation achieve ITIL® certification or compliance?

ITIL certification or compliance is not achievable, because ITIL is a framework of guidance and not a

standard; however, an organisation can achieve ISO/IEC 20000 certification, the standard for IT Service

Management, which is underpinned by ITIL best practices.

If implemented effectively, ITIL principles can help organizations to meet the requirements and can help

an organization achieve certification when audited by a registered certification body.

For more information, please see http://www.iso.org.

What are the Intellectual Property rules and permissions for ITIL®?

The APM Group has delegated authority to issue Trade Mark Licences for the re-use of the Cabinet

Office's Trade Marks.

APM Group also have the authority to issue Trade Mark and Crown copyright licences to those who

wish to reproduce content from official publications produced by the Cabinet Office relating to those

trademarks.

The rules and permissions around the use of Intellectual Property subsisting in ITIL are varied,

depending on the user, so for full and detailed information, please see:

http://www.itil-officialsite.com/IntellectualPropertyRights/IntellectualPropertyRights.aspx

Can I use the ITIL® logo?

The ITIL logo is the Best Practice swirl followed by the word ITIL®. This specific logo can only be used

by the Cabinet Office, TSO and APM Group-The Accreditor.

If you wish to use the logo for any reason you will need to obtain prior permission from the Cabinet

Office. Please contact the Cabinet Office at:

ServiceDesk@ogc.gsi.gov.uk

May I use the ITIL® diamond device?

The ITIL "diamond device" has a four quadrant pattern. It comes in various colours, is a lapel pin and

may appear on ITIL certificates or some itSMF publications. The Cabinet Office does not own this logo.

If you wish to reuse the diamond device you need to contact itSMF for permission.

For more information, please see www.itsmfi.org.

Can I advertise myself as ITIL® qualified on my business card?

Currently, there are no post-nominals for ITIL certified individuals. Any individual who would like to

include information on their ITIL certification on a business card needs to take note of the following:

A Cabinet Office Trade Mark logo (e.g. the ITIL Swirl) cannot be used on business cards as they

advertise a person/company and not the associated product.

A Cabinet Office word mark can (e.g. ITIL) be used on a business card as long as the correct

symbology is used. For example:

Joe Bloggs

ITIL® Accredited Trainer

Where practical (if it can be included legibly) the Trade Mark acknowledgement statement should also

be shown. For example:

Joe Bloggs

ITIL® Accredited Trainer

ITIL® is a Registered Trade Mark of the Office of Government Commerce, in the United Kingdom and

other countries.

When will my name appear on the Global Successful Candidate Register on the ITIL® Official Site?

The name and examination details of all successful ITIL examination candidates who have given

permission will be added to the Global Successful Candidate Register at:

http://www.itil-officialsite.com/ITILEISCRquery.aspx

This website is updated by each Licensed Examination Institute directly. If your details do not appear on

the website 6 weeks following confirmation of your examination result, contact the Examination Institute

you gained your qualification through. Examination Institute details can be found on the following

webpage:

http://www.itil-officialsite.com/ExaminationInstitutes/ExamInstitutes.aspx

If you are not aware of which EI this was you should contact your course provider.

I have passed an ITIL® examination. Will I receive an ITIL Pin?

ITIL examination candidates should obtain their pin from their Examination Institute upon successful

completion of their examination.

The Examination Institutes administer the pin scheme on behalf of the itSMF (www.itsmfi.org) who offer

pins to successful candidates in exchange for contact information for Service Management related

marketing and information purposes.

Your pin will either be sent directly to you with your certificate or you will be advised of the application

process for receipt of the pin, which will involve providing your express permission to share your

information with the itSMF.

If you have passed an examination but have not yet received your pin, please contact your Examination

Institute listed on the following webpage:

http://www.itil-officialsite.com/ExaminationInstitutes/ExamInstitutes.aspx

If you are not aware of which EI this was you should contact your course provider.

How do I obtain a replacement ITIL® pin or certificate?

To get a replacement certificate or ITIL pin you should contact the Examination Institute through which

you gained your qualification listed on the following webpage:

http://www.itil-officialsite.com/ExaminationInstitutes/ExamInstitutes.aspx

If you are not aware of which EI this was you should contact your course provider.

I have passed an ITIL® examination. Can I have the actual score that I achieved in my examination?

If you have had confirmation of your ITIL examination result but not the score, you should contact the

Examination Institute through which you gained your qualification listed on the following webpage:

http://www.itil-officialsite.com/ExaminationInstitutes/ExamInstitutes.aspx

If you are not aware of which EI this was you should contact your course provider.

FAQ's on ISO/IEC 20000

What are the Benefits of an ISO 20000 Certification?

An ISO 20000 certificate is proof that your IT organization has demonstrated its ability to

Be aware of customer needs and respond to these needs.

Deliver services which meet defined quality levels.

Make use of resources in an economical way.

As such, the ISO 20000 certificate and the corresponding logo are increasingly a competitive advantage in the

market:

Many clients even demand ISO 20000 compliance as a condition for awarding contracts to IT service providers.

Of course, working along ISO 20000 (and ITIL) principles also offers internal benefits for the IT organization,

because the standard is all about supporting the business side with adequate IT services, while providing those

services as efficiently as possible.

The decision to go for an ISO 20000 certificate sets a specific target for your IT organization and helps to

concentrate minds. An ISO 20000 certification initiative is, in other words, a good way to kick-start the adoption of

ITIL Best Practice and to make sure motivation stays high.

What exactly do we have to do to become ISO 20000 compliant?

Unfortunately, the standard ISO/IEC 20000:2011 itself only sets out a number of requirements which must be

fulfilled in order to qualify for an ISO 20000 certification. So there is no short answer to the question "What needs

to change?".

As a result, there is often a problem at the start of an ISO 20000 certification initiative:

It is not clear what the future (ISO 20000 compliant) state of your IT organization should be like, making it hard to

determine what you should aim for and how much change is needed.

However, since ITIL and ISO 20000 are closely aligned, it is possible to turn to ITIL for advice.

Make ITIL Best Practice instantly available for your ISO 20000 Project

ITIL knowledge is available in the form of books, but the ITIL Process Map, together with the ITIL - ISO 20000

Bridge provides you with a better alternative:

Our ISO 20000 compliant ITIL process model presents the ITIL contents as a complete set of process flowcharts

("Process Templates") and checklists ("Document Templates").

The ITIL - ISO 20000 Bridge tells you what ITIL processes and documents should be in place to meet a certain

ISO 20000:2011 requirement. For every one of the standard’s 147 single requirements, you can jump right into

the relevant process diagrams and document templates.

This means you get specific suggestions on how the requirements can be fulfilled - the ideal way to quickly

understand what exactly it means for your IT organization to become ISO 20000 compliant.

We do not mean to say, however, that you must implement all processes to the letter. The reference processes

should be seen as one possible approach to implementing ISO 20000, and it is acceptable to use the original

processes as a starting point and adapt them to your own organization's needs - as long as you stay in line with

the ISO 20000 requirements.

What is being verified during the ISO 20000 Certification Audit?

The aim of the ISO20000 certification audit is to check if your organization fulfils the ISO 20000 requirements. In particular, the mandatory requirements of 'ISO/IEC 20000:2011, Part 1: Service Management System Requirements' must be fulfilled.

Broadly speaking, the ISO 20000 audit relates to the following aspects of your organization:

Documentation of the ISO 20000 Processes

Adequately documented processes are a prerequisite for managing and continually improving your processes.

This is why an ISO 20000 audit typically starts with the examination of the process documentation:

Are all the processes documented?

Are the processes linked by consistent information flows?

Do the processes fulfill the ISO 20000 requirements?

]

Familiarity with the ISO 20000 Processes

The ISO 20000 auditor will hold structured interviews with IT staff to check if everyone is familiar the processes:

Do all members of IT staff know their own processes?

Do they have a general understanding of all ISO 20000 processes?

]

Adherence to the ISO 20000 Processes

If the ISO 20000 processes are executed as documented, there are traces in the form of documents and records

(for example, the Incident Management process is producing Incident Records if executed correctly).

This is why the ISO 20000 audit will include an examination of evidence related to the ISO 20000 processes:

Do the expected documents and records exist?

Are they adequate for their purposes?

What are the typical Project Steps leading to ISO 20000 Certification?

Create awareness

Communicate the goals and benefits of the ISO 20000 certification and the approach for achieving ISO 20000

compliance. This step should include giving everyone in your IT organization at least a basic understanding of

ITIL.

Determine the ISO 20000 certification scope

If you want to limit the scope of your ISO 20000 certificate: Decide what parts of the organization, what services

and/ or what locations shall be covered by the ISO 20000 certificate.

Conduct an initial ISO 20000 assessment

Determine gaps between today’s situation and the standard's requirements; this can be done by an external

advisor, but there is also an "IT Service Management Self Assessment Workbook" published by BSI.

The result of this step is a detailed list of the ISO 20000 requirements where conformant and non-conformant

areas are identified. For non-conformant areas the list includes the findings on what exactly the shortcomings are

and how they can be addressed.

Set up the ISO 20000 project

Establish a project board. Choose a project manager and project staff. Determine the necessary resources,

prepare a project plan and assign tasks. Choose a certifier and an experienced external advisor.

Prepare for the ISO 20000 certification audit

Close the gaps identified during the initial ISO 20000 assessment – usually the most time-consuming part of an

ISO 20000 certification initiative, because (depending on the level of compliance found during the initial

assessment) a considerable number of processes may need to be modified or introduced.

During preparation for the ISO 20000 audit, an inventory of requirements, documents and records helps to keep

track of what requirements are already fulfilled and what related evidence (documents and records) is in place.

To help you with this task, the ITIL - ISO 20000 Bridge contains a pre-configured inventory which you can use to

monitor your progress towards ISO 20000 compliance.

Conduct the ISO 20000 certification audit

The actual ISO 20000 audit must be carried out by an external certifier from a Registered Certification Body

(RCB, an organisation which has been granted permission to operate under the itSMF ISO/IEC 20000

Certification Scheme).

Retain ISO 20000 Certification

After the initial certification, a renewal of the ISO 20000 certificate is due every three years, with intermittent

assessments every 6 to 12 months.

Make sure that you continue to adhere to the standard and put a strong emphasis on continual service and

process improvement.

Are there typical Pitfalls in an ISO 20000 Project?

No management support

Management must understand and communicate why the service provider is seeking certification, and visibly

endorse the initiative.

Too little involvement of IT staff

The advantages of Best Practice should be explained to everyone in your organization, and all members of IT

staff should be involved as closely as possible during the design of the new ISO 20000 compliant processes.

If IT staff are able to contribute their views and experiences during the ISO 20000 project, this greatly enhances

acceptance of the new processes - and ensures long-term success.

Insufficient resources for the ISO 20000 project

Management commitment must be backed up by the provision of sufficient resources for the certification

program. This includes making sure that staff assigned to the project are freed from some of their day-to-day

tasks.