PM² Agile

PM² is the official Project Management methodology of the Commission. It is developed in harmony with the IT Governance roles and rules. It is a well balanced approach allowing autonomy of the delivery teams while assuring coherence with the enterprise structures and operations. PM² has built-in flexibility and does not prescribe specific processes at the technical level. This makes the adoption of Agile practices easier. At the same time the need for the Agile teams to take into account higher level Governance constraints, can be fully satisfied by just assuring alignment with PM².

IT projects as a whole have to consider European Commission policies, decisions and communications. Other factors to consider include:

• a fixed budgeting cycle
• a traditional management culture
• a traditional project lifecycle
• a functional/weak matrix project organisation
• clear project approval milestones
• upfront planning and architecture decisions

These organisational factors are accompanied with best practices and activities that are defined locally at the level of DGs and contribute to building a framework in which IT projects can be delivered. The set of roles and responsibilities complement these organisational elements and provides a sound basis for the clear assignment of responsibilities that a given person will assume during the lifecycle of a project.

All of the aforementioned constraints are incorporated and further elaborated in the European Commission's Project Management Methodology. The purpose of PM² is to enable EC Project Managers (PMs) to deliver solutions and realise benefits to the European Commission through the effective management of project work. It’s a methodology created by the EC specifically for the EC and for the purpose of facilitating the management of the complete lifecycle of EC projects.

PM² is a light and easy to implement methodology, it's compliant with EC Governance structures, and allows project teams to tailor the methodology to their specific needs.

The PM² Methodology provides: 

• A project Governance Structure.
• A project Lifecycle.
• Process Guidelines.
• Artefact Templates.
• Guidelines for using the Artefacts.
• A set of effective Mindsets.
• A Glossary.
• Project Management Tools & Techniques.

PM² recognizes the complex and uncertain nature of many types of projects and the positive contribution of the Agile attitude to their effective management. However, as already mentioned, certain European Commission management requirements cannot be fully satisfied by using a pure Agile project approach.

PM² is a comprehensive project methodology supported by a project governance structure with a serial phase lifecycle covering the full breadth of management and project delivery, and at the same time endorsing an enterprise-aware Agile approach. The seamless integration of PM² and PM²Agile can help Agile teams to be policy, process and audit-compliant. It allows project teams to achieve the desired agility while still accommodating audit requirements, working with contractors, collaborating with other projects and DGs, and coordinating with programme and portfolio groups.

PM² Agile provides: 

• PM² Agile Roles & Responsibilities (as an extension to the PM² Governance).
• Integration with the overall PM² project Lifecycle.
• Agile Themes and Guidelines.
• A set of suggested Agile Artefacts (as an extension to the PM² Artefacts).
• Guidelines for using the Artefacts.
• An Agile Glossary.
• Agile Tools & Techniques.

Would you like to enroll in a PM² training, book it in our public schedule.