Revising for PRINCE2 exam – Starting up a project

I’m currently preparing for my PRINCE2 exams. I’ve booked the foundation exam for next weekend and I need to get the Practitioner exam completed by the end of July.  I’m finding the foundation exam really difficult to prepare for because it is all about knowing the content of the manual.  I’m not a details person (I’m the person that can keep multiple overviews in mind at the same time) so I find some the questions (like when you need to know whether a management product is called a log or a plan) a bit irritating.

The way I look at it, I just need to put up with these irritations for a few weeks longer because when i use the method out the field a) it’s likely to be tailored so probably isn’t called the same thing anyway and b) I can look it up when i need to rather than having to memorise it!

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Revision notes for the Starting up a project process

The purpose of this first pre-stage is to answer the question: Do we have a viable and worthwhile project?  Do the minimum necessary to check if it is worth initiating a project.
Process is initiated by a Project mandate.

Objectives:

• is there business justificiation (produces outline business case)
• necessary authorities exist for initiating the project
• sufficient information is available to define and confirme the scope of the project (produces project brief)
• appoint exectuive and project manager
• evaluate how to deliver the project and select an approach
• plan the project initiation stage (produces a stage plan)

Activities

• • Appoint the executive and the project manager
    • Create daily log
  • Capture previous lessons
    • Create the lessons log
  • Design and appoint the project management team
    • Create Project management team role description
    • Create project management team structure
  • Prepare the outline business case
    • Prepare outline business case
    • Create pfoject product description
  • Select the project approach and assemble the project brief
    • • Assemble the project brief:
        • • Define the project
            • Curent status of project
            • Desired objectives and outcomes
            • Project scope
            • Constraints and assumptions
            • Tolerances
            • Users and stakeholders
            • Interfaces
          • Include outline business case
          • include project pfoduce descriptoin
          • Include project approach
          • Include project team roles and structure
  • Plan the initation stage (produce stage plan)

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To help with the revision I am using the Passing the PRINCE2 Exams for Dummies book. The book is based on the 2009 manual but I’m hoping that there aren’t too many drastic differences beween the old and new manual that will mess with my learning.
Things that tripped me up in practice questions:

• not being clear on the difference between management products produced in the stage and what was included in the project brief
• who is responsible for the outline businnes case – I can see I’m going to have to note carefully who is responsible for waht