A project will traditionally start when a sponsor within the business is
comfortable that sufficient drivers exist to either deliver a new process, to
change an existing one or, occasionally to cease a process.
The sponsors first step is to appoint a Project Manager and it is IT Bites
belief that such an action immediately defines a fundamental principle that
should guide the project throughout its life-cycle - the recognition of
Strategic and Operational relationships. By this, the project must, throughout
its structure, have clearly defined decision makers (Strategic) and "doers"
(Operational). Such a model will cascade through the structure because at
different levels, individuals may be strategic and at others operational. For
instance, in the sponsor/project manager relationship the sponsor is strategic
and the P/M is operational. However, to members of the Project Team, the P/M
will be strategic in that decision making may very well be undertaken at that
level.
The appointment of the P/M sees the point at which the project is officially
launched, because at that point time and money are likely to be committed. The
next steps are:
Initiation also formally recognises the launch points of both project and
stages or phases within it and sign-off and notices that accompany it. For
example, project launch may be accompanied by a Project Notification to senior
management. Stage launch will usually be accompanied by a project plan that has
been agreed by project governance body.
In Prince 2 terms, Initiation corresponds to the Project Start Up (SU) and
Direct a Project (DP) processes.
