Many students on the Knowledge Train PRINCE2 training courses come from the public sector. Indeed, formal project or programme management training and the PRINCE2/MSP certificates are becoming increasingly important for anybody wishing to succeed in the public sector project management industry.

One of the more recent management frameworks to come out of governmental project management research is CHAMPS2, a business transformation methodology that integrates the separate project management, programme management, change management, service management and portfolio management methodologies into an overarching framework that drives business transformation from the identification of a need to the normalisation of the change and the realisation of benefits.

Like the compatible methodologies, PRINCE2 (project management) and MSP (programme management), CHAMPS2 is structured around a series of phases – the ‘transformation journey’ – each of which focuses on a set of key goals, activities and management products. The 8 CHAMPS2 phases are:

• Phase 0 – Transformation Initiation
  1. Determine the strategic need
  2. articulating the strategic outcomes
  3. define strategic benefits
• Phase 1 – Visioning
  1. formulate a vision of what the organisation will look like once the business transformation is complete
  2. define the specific outcomes necessary to achieve the vision
  3. create a ‘future operating model’
• Phase 2 – Shaping and Planning
  1. define the scope and objectives of the programme
  2. describe the solution
  3. identify the required technologies
  4. integrate the programme into the existing project/programme portfolio
  5. define programme governance
  6. develop high-level plans
• Phase 3 – Design
  1. describe the activities required to complete the programme, including responsibilities for performing them and the tools/technologies required
  2. review the Business Case to ensure that the business transformation is still projected to deliver value-for-money
  3. define detailed specifications for each of the individual components that the solution will operate
• Phase 4 – Creation and Realisation
  1. Create new job descriptions/competencies
  2. develop policies, standards and procedures to support the new processes
  3. install the necessary technology components
  4. prepare any data that will be needed during the transition
• Phase 5 – Proving and Transition
  1. User Acceptance Testing (verify that the solution is fit-for-purpose)
  2. put the solution into operation
• Phase 6 – Stabilisation
  1. measure benefit realisation, where appropriate
  2. monitor performance
  3. provide support for the new ways of working
• Phase 7 – Benefits Realisation
  1. take action to ensure the full realisation of benefits
  2. implement any appropriate improvements to the solution, in line with the overall Vision for the business

CHAMPS2, which has been developed specifically for the public sector, provides guidance for carrying out a very particular type of programme, the internal transformation of the business, and one that has become increasingly crucial not only to government departments, but also to private organisations, as budgets are cut, customers demand more and the programme manager’s job becomes ever more challenging – and rewarding.