Prince2 - a validation

It has now turned into another lovely sunny day here in south-east England. Summer is being comfortingly stubborn this year.

I am sitting here in my study - a rather grandiose title for the third bedroom, which just happens to hold a large and rather cluttered desk instead of a bed - and contemplating the last week and the next two.

The first three days of my holiday were taken in order to study for the Prince2 course, and although I did not do as much of the preparatory work as I wanted to, it was well worth while. Anyone contemplating doing a Prince2 course is well advised to do the pre-course work. While passing is entirely feasible without completing it (as I hope to have just demonstrated), the more prepared you are, the better.

I took the course not for advancement within my current company, because almost all of my peers will now be taking the course as well. No, I did it because if the worst came to the worst, and I needed to look elsewhere for a job, a Prince2 qualification is seen as vital. It's a validation that a manager knows the 'proper' way of undertaking Projects IN Controlled Environments. Even though the manual has it's fair share of contradictions (are Stage plans mandatory or not?), it is only a method, a high-level framework, similar to the Project Management Institute's Body of Knowledge.

Interestingly, a comparison of the two documents was made by Colin Bentley, Prince2 chief examiner, and author of a large part of the manual. Read the article here.

Having the qualification somehow ensures that one is taken seriously in the industry. I will be adding it to my CV as soon as I get the results through. No hurry - I'm not actively looking for a job at the moment, but you never know.

I would appreciate comments from anyone who has had recent experience of Prince2 helping them in either getting a job, or helping them on the job.

So... things I need to do over the next two weeks :

• Tidy this desk
• Get the car washed and valeted

Things I should do, but lack the enthusiasm for :

• Tidy up the row of trees at the side of the house
• Clean out the garage

Things I will probably do rather a lot of :

• Coffee mornings at Starbucks
• Daily updates of news from my favourite bloggers (see sidebar)
• Continuation of my Football Manager career (might have to upgrade to the new version though).

I will also - sad as I am - be getting an update on things at work, so that I know whether any new work is coming up. I am keen to get some interesting work when I get back.

Chat soon.