PRINCE2 2009

PRINCE2 2009

Why has PRINCE2® been updated?

PRINCE2® has been updated to reflect the latest best practice approaches for project management.  Since its launch in 1996, there have only been two major updates (in 2002 and 2005) of PRINCE2.   The method itself has remained largely unchanged, this is simply a routine update to the product.
The refresh is being led by the UK’s Office of Government Commerce (OGC) and involves OGC’s two main partners for its Best Practice portfolio: TSO, the official publisher and the APM Group, the official accreditor.

Should I take PRINCE2 (2005) now or should wait for PRINCE2:2009 to be released?

There are no major differences between the 2005 and 2009 versions of PRINCE2 – the methodology has been refreshed and not re-written so we would recommend that you do not delay your training or exams until the 2009 version has been released.

What will the format of the new exams be?

Information on the format of the PRINCE2: 2009 exams can be found at www.prince-officialsite.com/Qualifications/QualificationScheme2009.asp

2009 Foundation Examination

75 questions per paper
5 questions to be trail and not counted in scores
35 marks required (out of 70 available) to pass – 50%

2009 Practitioner Examination

Objective testing examination
9 questions per paper with 12 marks available per question, all question items will be worth 1 mark, making the total number of marks available 108
2.5 hours allowed (no reading time has been added)
Open book exam (manual only)
The pass mark is 55%.  Candidates will need to achieve at least 59 out of the 108 to pass the examination.
Important Note on the Pass Mark: From 6th July 2009 the pass mark for the Practitioner exam is changing from 50% to 55%, for papers based on either the 2005 or the 2009 editions of Managing Successful Projects with PRINCE2.

Re-Registration Examination

For information on the new Re-Registration Examination, please visit www.prince-officialsite.com/Qualifications/ReRegistration2009.asp.

When will PRINCE2® (2005) exams be retired?

The 2005 exams will be withdrawn on 31st December 2009.

Will my Foundation / Practitioner qualification still be valid upon PRINCE2 2009 being released?

As is the case now, there is no expiry date for your Foundation qualification but all Practitioner qualifications have to be re-registered after five years be kept them current.

What is the difference between PRINCE2® (2005) and PRINCE2®:2009?

The overall structure of the method remains largely unchanged and now includes 7 Principles, 7 Processes and 7 Themes.  The 7 Principles are key to ensuring that you are carrying out best practice project management.
The Processes have remained similar.  The Planning Process has been moved into the Plans Theme (previously known as the Plans Component).  Otherwise the Processes remain from Starting Up A Project (SU), through to Closing A Project (CP).  The diagrams have been updated to show a simpler view of how each process works.  The most significant change is that the Sub-Processed have been removed (i.e. SU1, SU2, SU3, etc).  The activities within each of the processes are still there, but are not numbered.  The result from this approach is that the processes appear less prescriptive in respect of what order to do things.

The 7 Themes are essentially the Components from the 2005 version of the manual.  There has been extensive work carried out to update the advice and approaches for the Themes, particularly in the Management of Risk chapter.  The old Configuration Management Component is now included in the “Changes” Theme.

Will my investment in PRINCE2® (2005) publications and training be lost?

APMG do not expect that any investment in training on previous PRINCE2® versions will be lost as it is still a valid and productive methodology for the management of projects.  The refresh of the manual is exactly that, a refresh to update and make improvements to the methodology – not to re-write it.  Therefore there is no danger of PRINCE2®:2005 being considered outdated or invalid.  Users of the 2005 version are under no obligation to update to the 2009 version.  The only time a candidate will be required to learn about P2:2009 is if they wish to take the Re-Registration exam after the launch of the new manual.

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