ISO 21500 in Practice - A Management Guide

This chapter answers the questions why and for whom ISO 21500 is important.

■  3.1   GENERAL IMPORTANCE

ISO guidelines and standards almost always get attention in relation to thinking and acting within companies and organizations. They are proven to add value in terms of communicating and organizing processes.

Standards and guidelines will never be exciting for most people. It's like a controller's audit, not exciting but necessary. They help to make things transparent and linkable. Thus far they are essential building blocks for improvement and innovation in our rapidly changing society. Standards and guidelines provide a foundation for trust. Therefore, a guideline for project management is also important for the project world.

ISO 21500 serves as an overarching reference for all methods, models and best practices of project management. The guideline also provides insight into the context of the project management discipline. The guideline contains clear descriptions of project management processes. These processes form a good basis for communication within and around projects, and help to clarify the responsibilities of all parties involved in a project.

ISO 21500 provides general principles for project management, which one can adapt to suit the project at hand or the company in which the project is executed.

Figure 3.1 A binding factor in project management

ISO 21500 is, at this point in time, an informative standard without certification. It is not a project management method, such as PRINCE2. Because project management experts from more than thirty countries have been involved in developing ISO 21500, this guideline definitely has an international character and thus the potential to grow into a certifiable world standard.

Using ISO 21500 facilitates greater transparency, openness and involvement of the various stakeholders of a project. Because the framework is independently and unambiguously defined, the members of projects in which various organizations participate can work together efficiently on the basis of ISO 21500. ISO 21500 describes the processes and themes necessary for managing a project and the basic conditions that a project must satisfy. This will contribute to the successful initiation, implementation and completion of projects.

The guideline has been developed and is supported by most major project management organizations and can therefore count on a very broad acceptance. ISO 21500 is very significant for project management for the following reasons:

■   ISO 21500 contains the generally accepted best practices that apply to all projects. This guideline is therefore a good starting point for shaping project management practice for an organization, or as a document that can be used as a reference to determine the maturity of project management within an organization.

■   ISO 21500 is a globally accepted guideline for project management. In essence, this means a global project management language. By choosing ISO 21500 it will prevent any confusion that may arise between, for example, PRINCE2 and PMI proponents due to the fact that they use different definitions for the same project management products and activities. In addition, ISO 21500 makes communication between the international project team members in, for instance, virtual teams more efficient, because all participants work with the same definitions.

■   The existence of so many project management methods increases the risk that you can get lost in the multitude of alternatives. ISO 21500 is an ideal starting point for all individuals involved in the initiation of projects such as project managers and sponsors. This is because it is a framework for project management and not a method. Once agreement has been reached on what will be done, based on the framework for a complete application of project management in a project, then you can look further at the methods, models, best practices and techniques that can be used to achieve these goals. You can use specific methods that are common in the work field in which the project is being carried out. And, of course, you can always refer back to the basic principles of ISO 21500.

What is the risk if you do not use ISO 21500? This presents both an opportunity and a threat. The opportunity is that you can demonstrate to your customers that you are actively engaged in the project management field and keeping abreast of the latest developments. The threat is that if you ignore ISO 21500 but the market demands it, you may lose market share. Alternatively, you may still have to take corrective measures to be able to show that your project management practice conforms to the principles of ISO 21500, which you may be unprepared for and which may add to your project costs.

■  3.2   VALUE FOR ORGANIZATIONS

3.2.1   Organizations in general

At first glance it may seem that the responsibility for ISO 21500 in an organization lies with the Project Management department or Project Management Office (PMO). One may reason that it is here where they understand projects and programs and ISO 21500 is indeed a guideline for project management.

However, the scope of a project, is usually well beyond that of the Project Management department or Project Management Office. Projects affect the regular business processes, the cash flow, the market, the available capacity and many more matters. The consequences of the introduction of new or revised products, services or results are noticeable both during the execution of the project and thereafter. In other words, projects affect the whole organization.

Since ISO 21500 is not a method but a collection of best practices, this guideline is a practical guide to help in describing the roles, responsibilities and processes in project management. It is also possible to check whether roles, responsibilities and processes are in compliance and to ensure that any noted deficiencies are resolved and improvements are made. In addition to the internal review of the organization's ability to meet its own organizational requirements, ISO 21500 can be used to assess whether the organization effectively complies with external requirements, such as those required by customers, legislation and regulations.

There are countless project management methods to choose from. Each has its own pros and cons. One can be very generic, whereas the other can be very specific. The advantage of a specific method is that it can be quite appropriate for the question at hand, but the downside is that it may not be quite as effective for other issues. Very generic methods, such as PRINCE2, have the advantage that they can be used for many different types of projects, however the downside is that they sometimes lack the necessary strength, because they are not specific enough or are too comprehensive.

A solution to this problem is to establish roles, responsibilities and processes for the project management practice in the organization. Then projects can be conducted uniformly irrespective of the method, model or adapted project management approach that is used by project teams. It must conform to these requirements and can be controlled and improved.

By anchoring ISO 21500 in the roles, responsibilities and processes of organizations, an organization can achieve maximum flexibility and freedom as to how they manage projects, while guaranteeing a reasonable degree of completeness in how project management is applied in their projects. Given the impact of projects in organizations this is not only desirable, but in most cases it is also necessary.

ISO 21500 even makes it possible to assess the practical translation of project management methods for use in the organization, as well as assuring the quality of the resultant project management processes.

3.2.2   Value for companies, governments and NGOs

All profit and non-profit organizations (companies, governments, non-governmental organizations (NGOs)) can make unambiguous arrangements if the parties work in accordance with this guideline. International enterprises and partnerships can use the guideline to align their projects and to efficiently manage their international suppliers.

ISO 21500 provides a common language and is therefore a reference when making decisions on the initiation and implementation of projects.

Applying ISO 21500 can bring many advantages to organizations that are involved in running projects:

■   Consistency in the management of all projects;

■   Possibility to develop a growth path for project management maturity in organizations;

■   Stability in project organizations;

■   Clarity and transparency through uniform procedures within projects;

■   Tools for measuring and controlling projects, leading to more predictable projects;

■   Better alignment between the sponsor and project organizations by clear process limits, assigning responsibilities and explicit rules for the conduct for ownership;

■   General management tools and products such as a benchmark for good project...