MSP for Dummies

Programme management is the coordinated organisation and implementation of a portfolio of projects and activities that help your business achieve its strategic objectives. Good programme management is the key to managing transformational change and, in today's business environment, the organisations that can transform themselves are more likely to succeed.

Managing Successful Programmes For Dummies is your plain-English guide to implementing and using the proven MSP method. It provides a structured framework that helps you coordinate your projects and achieve your goals. The book takes you through every step of programme management and inside you'll find:

• What's involved in a programme — and how it differs from a project!
• An overview of the structure of MSP
• Full explanations of MSP principles, governance themes and transformational flow
• Planning and making a business case for your programme
• The key roles and responsibilities in programme management
• The lifecycle of a programme - from conception to delivery
• Quality and risk management in your programme
• Working with stakeholders
• All about the MSP Qualifications

• Introduction
  • About This Book
  • Foolish Assumptions
  • Icons Used In This Book
  • Beyond the Book
  • Where to Go from Here
• Part I: Getting Started with Managing Successful Programmes
1. Introducing Programme Management: Projects, Programmes and MSP
   • Understanding Projects and Programmes
     • Checking on the Characteristics of projects
     • Working out a programme's characteristics
   • Being Clear about the Four Central Themes
     • Following the projects-to-benefits-delivery sequence
     • Comparing outputs, capabilities, outcomes and benefits
   • Seeing the Structure of of MSP
     • Discerning the factors for success: Principles
     • Creating the right aspects: Governance themes
     • Tracing a route through the programme life-cycle: Transformational flow
2. Understanding What’s Involved in a Programme
   • Using the Ferguson Factory Model: What a Program Looks Like
     • Entering the Ferguson Factory
     • Exploiting capability
   • Appreciating the benefits
     • Understanding the central role of benefits
     • Achieving benefits
     • Avoiding the mistakes of others: Why change initiatives go wrong
   • Documenting Your Programme
     • Planning for the upside: The Benefits Realization Plan
     • Anticipating advantages: Benefits Management Strategy
   • Reaching the Destination: Vision and Blueprint
     • Aligning with organizational elemts
     • Viewing the Vision Statement
     • Considering the purpose of the Blueprint
     • Moving towards drivers for change
   • Deciding on the Type of Programme
     • Using the Programme Impact Matrix
     • Exploring programme types
     • Checking out the characteristics of a programme
     • Linking programmes, projects and business as usual
3. Identifying a Programme
   • Recognising When to Use MSP
   • Understanding What's Involved in Identifying a Programme
     • Discerning the nature of Identifying a Programme
     • Clarifying the purpose of Identifying a Programme
     • Considering the Programme Mandate
   • Meeting the People Who Identify an Initiative as a Programme
     • Making up the Sponsoring Group
     • Sponsoring the Programme
   • Moving from Mandate to Programme Brief
     • Bringing on the Programme Brief
     • Outlining the Vision Statement
   • Considering the Characteristics of Your Programme
     • Staying loose or tightening up your programme
     • Preparing for the programme
     • Gaining approval to proceed
4. Focusing on the Principles of Programme Management
   • Considering the Characteristics of Principles
   • Ensuring that Your Programme is Principled
     • Keeping aligned with corporate strategy
     • Leading change
     • Envisioning and communicating a better future
     • Focusing on the benefits and threats to them
     • Adding value
     • Designing and delivering a coherent capability
   • Learning from Experience
     • Demonstrating maturity
     • Logging and reviewing
     • Training and educating
• Part II: Moving Forward with Managing Your Programme
5. Creating Your Programme’s Vision
   • Picturing your Vision
     • Defining a Vision
     • Understanding why your programme needs a Vision
   • Dreaming Up Your Vision
     • Creating a great vision
     • Communicating your programme's goal
   • Watching Your Vision Evolve
     • Identifying that you have a programme
     • Defining the programme in more detail
     • Managing the tranches
   • Allocating Responsibilities to Your Vision
     • Taking overall responsibility: Senior Responsible Owner
     • Running day-to-day: Programme Manager
     • Implementing in the business: Business Change Manager
     • Administering: Programme Office
6. Building Up a Blueprint
   • Tying Up Blueprint and Vision
     • Situating the Blueprint within the programme
     • Entering the programme environment
     • Connecting the Blueprint and other themes
   • Building a Blueprint
     • Defining a Blueprint
     • Minding the gap: Current and future states
     • Defining tranches
     • Creating the Blueprint for an Emergent Programme
   • Helping Your Blueprint to Evolve
     • Analysing your options
     • Adopting existing projects
     • Setting up pilots
     • Refining your Blueprint
   • Knowing Who's Involved in the Blueprint: The Design Authority
     • Reeling off the Blueprint responsibilities
     • Considering Blueprint responsibilities: A real-life example
7. Details, Details: Honing Your Programme
   • Understanding Your Goals when Defining a Programme
     • Considering the purpose of Defining a Programme
     • Using the Programme Definition Document
     • Gathering together programme documents and information
     • Investigating the infrastructure for Defining a Programme
     • Knowing who does what
   • Carrying Out the Defining a Programme Sequence
     • Identifying the stakeholders
     • Refining the Vision Statement
     • Developing the Blueprint
     • Modelling the benefits and Benefits profiles
     • Designing the Project Dossier
     • Identifying tranches
   • Deciding on the Programme Organization and Governance
     • Designing the programme organization
     • Developing the Programme Governance
   • Planning, Planning, Planning!
     • Developing the Programme Plan
     • Confirming the Business Case
     • Preparing for the first tranche
     • Getting approval to proceed
8. Documenting the Business Case for Your Programme
   • Introducing the Case of the Business Case
     • Inclduing an investment appraisal
     • Examining the net benefit line and stakeholder engagement
     • Following the flow of the business case
   • Reviewing and Communicating the Business Case
     • Assessing the Business Case
     • Meeting the key players
   • Observing the Business Case across the Life of the Programme
     • Defining the Business Case
     • Revisiting the Business Case
     • Recognising the need
     • Validating the Business Case
     • Deciding when to close the programme
• Part III: Managing Multiple Projects
9. Organizing a Programme: Who does What
   • Considering the Basics
     • Tightening up the hanging loose: The two extremes of programme organization
     • Reading the role call
   • Taking Responsibility
     • Getting executives on-board: Sponsoring Group
     • Leading the Programme: Senor Responsible Owner
     • Providing governance: Programme Board
     • Running things day-to-day: Programme Manager
     • Taking charge of change: Business Change Managers
     • Supporting change: Business Change Team
   • Reading about Relationships between Roles
     • Linking project and programme management roles
     • Integrating project organizations
     • Co-operating in cross-Organizational programmes
     • Handling multiple programmes
     • Tracking programme evolution
   • Balancing Power between Roles
     • Spreading the work with additional roles
     • Bringing in HR management
     • Procuring effectively
     • Pondering programme assurance responsibilities and conflicts of interest
     • Going with the (information) flow
     • Allocating programme staff to project teams
   • Looking at the Programme Office
     • Linking to other offices
     • Adding information hub functions
     • Using additional expertise
10. Planning and Controlling Your Programme
    • Contrasing Programme and Project Planning and Control
      • Covering the basic difference
      • Planning your programme
    • Pondering the Planning Process
      • Developing the Programme Plan
      • Prioritising activities
      • Coupling and creating cohesion
      • Designing projects
      • Reading about resources
    • Home, Home on the Tranche!
      • Arraning work into tranches
      • Working with workstreams
      • Seeing tranches in a programme schedule
      • Tales of the unexpected: Tranche boundaries
      • Grouping projects
    • Controlling Your Programme
      • Overseeing a programme
      • Monitoring a programme's progress
    • Dealing with the Planning Documents
      • Discussing the purpose of the documents
      • Looking inside two documents
      • Clarifying the planning areas of focus
11. Managing Risk in Your Programme
    • Introducing the Basics: Risk and Issues in a Programme Context
      • Viewing programme risk in context
      • Getting risk clear: Basic phraseology
    • Thinking about Risk-Management Principles and Terminology
      • Meeting the Principles: M_o_R
      • Talking the talk: Risk terminology
    • Dealing with Risk in Four Perspectives
      • Surveying the typical risks to a programme
      • Thinking about programme risks and issues
      • Distinguishing programme and project risks
      • Investigating interraltionships between different organizational perspectives
    • Documenting the Risk-Management Approach
      • Defining required activities: Risk Management Strategy
      • Gotcha! Capturing risks with the Risk Register
      • Monitoring risks: Risk Progress Report
    • Following the Risk-Management Process
      • Communicate
      • Identify
      • Assess
      • Plan
      • Implement
      • Embed and review
      • Responding to risk
12. Resolving Issues and Keeping Track of Detail
    • Resolving Issues
      • Recognising the sources of issues
      • Describing your Issue Management Strategy
      • Setting up an issue-management cycle
      • Using the Issue Register
      • Taking Control of Changes
        • Taking steps to control change
        • Considering change control and issue management
      • Getting to Grips with Configuration Management
        • Configuring assets
        • Moving beyond asset management into configuration management
        • Carrying out configuration management
      • Confirming Risk and Issue Areas of Focus
13. Achieving Quality in Your Programme
    • Understanding the Scope and Diversity of Quality Management
      • Answering two core quality questions
      • Measuring quality … but of what?
      • Comparing quality management in projects and programmes
      • Providing assurance
      • Running through quality management principles
    • Investigating Interdependencies with Other Disciplines
    • Managing the Flow of Information
      • Looking at information baselines: Types of programme information
      • Addressing critical success factors in your Information Management Strategy
      • Understanding the information documents
    • Describing Quality Documentation and Areas of Responsibility
      • Explaining the Programme Quality Processes: Quality and Assurance Strategy
      • Detailing what to do: The Quality and Assurance Plan
      • Allocating responsibility for quality
• Part IV: Out in Business as Usual: Exploiting Projects’ Capabilities
14. Keeping ’em Sweet: Engaging Your Stakeholders
    • Holding an Identity Parade: Finding Your Stakeholders
      • Appreciating different stakeholders
      • Grouping stakeholders
    • Using the Vision to Understand Your Stakeholders
      • Managing business change
      • Bringing stakeholders into the Vision workshop
      • Leading change: Engaging stakeholders
      • Understanding the importance of stakeholder engagment
    • Engaging and Communicating with Stakeholders
      • Modelling your stakeholders
      • Documenting your decisions
      • Communicating with your stakeholders
      • Engaging stakeholders: Areas of responsibility
    • Reassuring Tour Stakeholders
      • Pondering assurance management principles
      • Assessing assurance management techniques
15. Getting Started with Benefits Management: Modelling the Benefits
    • Considering the Concept Behind Benefits
      • Placing benefits front and center
      • Defining benefits
    • Managing Programme Benefits
      • Accelerating the programme: Benefits management as the driver
      • Identifying the areas of focus of benefits management
      • Aligning with corporate strategy
      • Discovering the dark side: Dis-benefits
      • Looking at the big benefits picture
    • Being Clear about Each Benefit; Your Benefitrs Identification wORKSHOP
      • Confirming real benefits: Critical tests
      • Categorising benefits
    • Documenting the Benefits
      • Linking benefits: The Benefits Map
      • Assembling a Benefits Profile
      • Deciding on your strategy for managing benefits
16. Reaping the Benefits: Measuring Your Outcomes
    • Turning to the Benefits Cycle
      • Pedalling through the benefits cycle process
      • Relating the programme and corporate objectives
    • Carrying Out Benefits Reviews
      • Staying on track: Programme benefit reviews
      • Setting objectives for the review
      • Scheduling programme benefit reviews
    • Viewing Benefits From Different Angles
      • Quantifying benefits
      • Identifying benefits
      • Stepping up to the plate: Ownership, responsibilities and accountabilities
      • Paying attention to areas of focus for benefits
17. Leading People Through Change as the Programme Delivers
    • Taking a Deep Look at Leadership
      • Distinguishing leadership from management
      • Examining the leaders' requirements
      • Looking at the three levels of governance
      • Enjoying effective leadership
      • Considering Sponsoring Group behaviour
      • Establishing the Spnsoring Group's duties
    • Tackling Transition in a Tranche
      • Handling design planning
      • Managing transition
      • Following the transition sequence
• Part V: Step by Step in Your Programme
18. Managing a Tranche
    • Discovering Why You Manage the Tranches
    • Establishing a Tranche
    • Running a Tranche
      • Managing the programe
      • Maintaining the flow of information
      • Monitoring. reporting and controlling
      • Transitioning and maintaining stable operations
    • Dealing with a Tranche Boundary
      • Preparing for the next tranche
      • Moving towards tranche closure
      • Reviewing benefits
    • Allocating Responsibilities Across Tranche Management
19. Managing Projects within a Programme: Delivering Capability
    • Understanding the Purpose of Delivering the Capability
    • Starting a Group of Projects
      • Clarifying the connection between projects and benefits
      • Delineating a project in a tranche
      • Clarifying start-up responsibilities
    • Keeping an Eye on Existing Projects
      • Monitoring Progress
      • Overseeing progress
      • Deciding when to escalate risks and issues
      • Managing conflict
    • Closing Projects
    • Allocating Responsibilities across Capability Delivery
20. All Change: Realizing the Benefits through Transition
    • Appreciating the Purpose of Realizing the Benefits
      • Achieving the Blueprint
      • Looking the Activities
    • Pre-Transition; Getting Ready
      • Establishing benefits measurements
      • Monitoring benefits realization
      • Planning transition: Factors to consider
      • Communicating the changes
      • Assessing readiness for change
    • Transition: Embedding Change
    • Post-Transition: Stabilising the New Ways of Working
    • Allocating Responsibilities Across Benefits Realization
21. Closing a Programme
    • Knowing When to Close the Programme
      • Considering closure circumstances
      • Managing benefits after the end of your programme
      • Closing a programme prematurely
    • Closing Down a Programme: The Process
      • Inputs
      • Principal controls
      • Key roles and responsibilities
      • Outputs
• Part VI: The Part of Tens
22. Ten Reasons Why Change Initiatives Go Wrong
    • Failing to Clarify whether a Change Initiative is a Programme or a Project
    • Gaining Insufficient Board-Level Support
    • Suffering from Weak Leadership
    • Forming Unrealistic Expectations of Organizational Capacity and Capability
    • Focusing Insufficiently on Benefits
    • Working Without a Real Picture of Future Capability
    • Muddling through with a Poor Vision
    • Neglecting to Change the Culture
    • Allowing Stakeholders to be Unengaged
    • Drowning in Data
23. Ten Reasons to Run an Initiative as a Programme
    • Co-ordinating Complex Activities
    • Organizing Scarce Resources
    • Harmonising Design Interfaces Among Projects
    • Dealing with Economics of Scale Among Projects
    • Creating a Framework in an Uncertain Environment
    • Handling High Risk across Multiple-Projects
    • Coping with a Contracting Universe
    • Ordering Change in Business as Usual
    • Managing Multiple Stakeholder Groups
    • Funding a Busy Business Case
24. Ten Great Ways to Manage Benefits
    • Doing it in Public
    • Finding an Owner
    • Keeping Benefits Real
    • Tuning Out the Noise
    • Comparing Apples and Pears
    • Getting People Hooked onto a Programme
    • Remembering that Benefits are Big Business
    • Dealing with Bad News
    • Identifying Measures not Targets
    • Working Yourself Out of a Job
• Part VII: Appendixes
• Appendix A: Looking into MSP Qualifications
  • Examining the Exam Format and Sequence
  • Facing the Foundation Examination
    • Understanding the exam
    • Appraising the exam's value
  • Preparing for the Practitioner Examination
    • Understanding the exam
    • Appraising the exam's value
  • Considering the Advanced Practitioner Examination
    • Understanding the exam
    • Appraising the exam's value
    • Adding some Advanced Practitioner exam thoughts
  • Taking the Three Exams on One Course
• Appendix B: Glossary of the Main MSP Terms
  • Glossaries within Your Programme
  • MSP Glossary

A very good introduction to the MSP. Well worth reading as a stand-alone book on project management as well.