Red's Ramblings v.2

I’ve not had a good rant for a while. Well, apart from the last post, erm and a few before that, and also daily on various forums and Usenet. Ok, so I like to put the world to rights occasionally and today is no exception.

What if I told you that going to the toilet now had a industry accepted methodology and required a qualification to prove that you were accredited to take even the smallest number two? That even considering the smallest deposit without the correct rubber stamped paperwork branded you an amateur in the eyes of the industry that is the lavatory, a sub standard pooper?

Well that’s what I’m feeling about this PRINCE2 business. I’d never even heard of it before the back end of last year when I put my CV together let alone know that it was an industry standard. Suddenly I’m faced with everyone wanting PRINCE2 qualifications and experience to even be considered. Faced with this I thought it prudent to at least go and take a look at what the fuss was all about. That’s when I started to get the red mist.

Ok, I’m all for project control and accountability. I’m born out of an ISO9000/9001 environment and have always worked to standards. I come from an engineering background and have worked for many years in a projects department so the philosophy is deep in my grain. Furthermore I come from an industrial process control background full of PLC programming, Closed Loop and PID control. That’s the way my mind works. I can look at any process, map it out and then code that process to tell the brain of a ‘dumb’ controller how to handle that process with all its given input information and output the correct response to achieve its goal. Much of my experience was all pre 1995 at which time I took on a full time role of IT management, something that I have been doing for the previous 10 years alongside my other duties. However now I’m told that without a methodology, that was only published in 1996, I’m not capable or at least not until I have spent a load of cash to sit the training course and exam. Don’t give me that bollocks!

PRINCE2 is just a process based method for project managers who don’t understand process control. Its a simple closed loop to ensure effective project deliver. It’s second nature to me, its what I do. Much like having a shit!