16th June 2009, London, UK…. The APM Group, which is responsible for the Office of Government Commerce (OGC) Best Practice Qualifications, is celebrating the launch of PRINCE2: 2009. To coincide with the launch of the new manual, APMG's accredited training organisations are now ready to deliver courses in the new version of the method. Examinations will be available in seven languages from 6th July 2009.

Nigel Smith, Chief Executive, OGC said: "PRINCE2® is extensively used in over 150 countries around the world and its take up grows daily. It is widely considered as the leading tool in project management, with over 20,000 organisations already benefiting from its pioneering and trusted approach. Complex projects today often involve several organisations working together in partnership or through contractual arrangements to achieve the objectives, and PRINCE2 provides a common language between organisations and with external suppliers.

"This updated guidance will help those running projects of any size and in any environment to effectively deliver what is required by appropriately managing the costs, timescales, quality, scope, risks and benefits. Its development by the Office of Government Commerce has followed widespread consultation and draws upon real-life experiences in both public and private sector organisations. The number of people taking PRINCE2 qualifications increases by around 20% year on year and it remains a key contributor to the successful delivery of projects. It is a vital tool for any organisation wishing to secure efficient and effective operational outcomes," Smith said.

Richard Pharro, CEO, The APM Group, said: "This is a very exciting time for the PRINCE2 Accredited Community. The new version of PRINCE2 makes it more accessible for all users and particularly for senior managers. Many of the criticisms that were made of the method have been addressed. It is more appealing than ever to adopt it as a Best Practice Standard. Organisations operating globally will find the method is compatible with other Project Management standards and so we expect increased demand for PRINCE2 Practitioner certificates."

The APM Group confirmed that certificates for PRINCE2 Practitioners who qualified prior to the introduction of the updated version are still valid. Candidates will need to re-register against the new version when their certificate expires – up to five years after it is issued.

PRINCE2 was first launched in 1996. There are now 170 organisations who are accredited to deliver training in the method and examinations have been taken in over 150 countries around the world. The method forms part of the OGC Best Practice Portfolio. More details are available at www.best-management-practice.tv.

For further details on examinations and accredited training organisations visit http://www.prince-officialsite.com/home/home.asp or email servicedesk@apmgroup.co.uk

Artcle Source: APM Group Press Release

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Article Source: IT Governance Network
The release of ISO 38500 brings greater clarity to the topic of IT governance. Described as a standard for "corporate governance of IT" this standard is aligned with the 1992 definition of Corporate Governance published in the Cadbury Report in the United Kingdom. This standard provides a framework with six guiding principles for good corporate governance of IT and a model for directors to govern IT with three main tasks: evaluate, direct and control.
ISO 38500 decribes governance as being distinct from management and defines governance as the system used by the most senior governing body (e.g. board of directors) of an organisation for directing and controlling the current and future use of IT. The objective is to support the organisation achieve its plans.

Managers looking to implement ISO 38500 will find CobiT (www.isaca.org) a good reference for the policies, processes, structures and controls needed to implement the management system that supports governance as this standard only describes what should happen, but not how, by when or by whom.

The scope of this standard is the governance of all management processes relating to IT services. The six principles address:

-Assigning reponsibilities to competent persons with decision-making authority, making use of appropriate governance mechanisms and make sure responsibilities are understood
-Aligning IT activities with business objectives, focus on organisational benefits and ensure benefits are realised
-Investing in IT so that proposals can be realised, balancing risk and value delivered
-Provide the capability and capacity in IT to support the business, risks are to be managed, resources are to be protected (including intellectual property and the organisational memory), measure how IT supports the business
-Provide adequate internal controls to meet internal and external compliance requirements
-Identify the human behaviour required and develop work practices for the appropriate use of IT. Read more on this article...

Leading Global Provider of Corporate Portfolio Management Solutions Announces Its 2009 Ideation Campaign at the Company's 8^th Annual Life Sciences User Conference in North Carolina (Article Courtesy: Businesswire.com)

Planisware™, the leading global provider of world-class corporate portfolio management (CPM) solutions for companies across myriad industries – including pharmaceutical, biotechnology, medical device, energy, aerospace and defense, automotive, and high-tech – today announced the company's 2009 ideation campaign. The campaign – Planisware's second thus far – will provide the company's employees, partners and customers worldwide with the opportunity to contribute input into the direction of Planisware's product development pipeline. With participation extended to nearly 15,000 of Planisware's customers, employees and partners worldwide, the company expects that the campaign will drive new product innovation and enhance its advanced, user-friendly Planisware 5 solution. Much like the company's first campaign, participants can post comments and suggestions through a Web portal that is powered by Planisware solutions. Contributors can endorse or negate these comments, thereby increasing or decreasing the popularity of suggestions. Additionally, users can choose to sort ideas according to popularity or time published, create "watch lists" to follow particular topics, and access the portal in a variety of languages, including English, French, German, Spanish, and Italian. Data collected will be reviewed and evaluated by a panel comprised of top Planisware executives, employees and industry leaders who will use the results of the campaign to decide which new features and functionalities should be added to the existing – as well as future – products.

Planisware expects the 2009 ideation campaign to be met with the same success as its drive in late 2008. As the first ideation campaign not only for Planisware but for the entire project and portfolio management software industry, it yielded great interest from the company's customers and partners, including Airbus, Eurocopter and BioMerieux, and – on average – each participant submitted three unique suggestions. Of the strong ideas generated from the campaign, 10 were immediately implemented into Planisware 5 and several were integrated into the overall development roadmap. The winning suggestion from the 2008 drive – the ability to easily design and edit decision trees with analysis of outcome probabilities – was submitted by Joachim Rademacher of Novartis Pharmaceuticals.

"With the advent of social media and other technologies, companies worldwide are communicating with their customers more than ever before, subsequently receiving important feedback into how products and services can be improved," said Pierre Demonsant, CEO and founder of Planisware. "Planisware has always stayed ahead of the curve in understanding customers' needs and executing solutions – through both our fully configurable solutions and our Flexpace methodology. An ideation campaign is another means through which we are able to obtain users' points-of-view on our solutions and enhance them to ensure that we are consistently meeting our customers' needs."

Planisware is the global leader in developing unique, best-in-class CPM products and solutions for companies across myriad industries worldwide. Featuring full-scale integrated portfolio management, financial analysis, resource allocation, scheduling and cost management, and risk and simulation analysis, the Planisware system has been cited by several esteemed analysts as a leader and innovator among CPM vendors worldwide. The only fully configurable, Web-based project and portfolio management solution available, Planisware is Stage-Gate® Ready, SAP®-certified, and has been adopted by several organizations for its superior research & development, IT PPM, CPM, enterprise CPM and earned value management capabilities.

Planisware's 2009 ideation campaign will begin May 15, 2009 and last until July 15, 2009. For more information, please contact ideation@planisware.com.

About Planisware™

Planisware is the leading global provider of world-class corporate portfolio management solutions for companies managing complex R&D investments. Planisware's acclaimed configurability accommodates the company's global customers across a variety of industries – including pharmaceutical, biotechnology, energy, aerospace and defense, automotive, and high-tech – and empowers users to align the solution with key business programs and portfolio management processes. With more than 150,000 users worldwide and a 99% customer retention rate, Planisware has been recognized as an industry leader by several esteemed analysts, as well as has achieved Stage-Gate Ready© and SAP® integration certifications. To learn more about Planisware, please visit www.planisware.com or call 888-752-6479.

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Authors:

Jose Mora is Senior Director of Product Marketing; CA Clarity PPM at CA. Randy Perry is Vice-President of Business Value Consulting at IDC

This IT Briefing is based on a CA/TechTarget Webcast, "How CA Clarity PPM On Demand Delivers Value: Building the Business Case." This TechTarget IT Briefing covers the following topics:

• Business Benefits of PPM Solutions
  
• How to Optimize the Benefits of PPM Solutions
  
• Meeting Implementation Obstacles
  
• The Benefits of CA Clarity PPM On Demand
  
• Clarity Customer Case Studies
  
• Build a Better ROI Model to Justify a PPM Solution
  
• Conclusion
  
• Common Questions
  

    "-CIOs and their IT staffs are facing an increasing number of challenges when it comes to managing and delivering projects. Despite reduced budgets and staffs, they are expected to deliver high quality products that emphasize innovation. And pain points that were minor issues before cut-backs are now crucial to the success of projects. For example, users must adopt the applications that the organization has dedicated scarce resources to develop. Even the best application won't add value to the organization if nobody uses it. And there's an increasing need to collaborate beyond IT with business stakeholders, executives, etc.

    Project and Portfolio Management (PPM) solutions are designed to help IT staffs and their organizations meet these challenges. Research and analyst firm IDC studied 13 organizations in 2008 to determine the degree that PPM solutions help organizations better manage IT resources and project planning. The study, Measuring the ROI of Project and Portfolio Management, uncovered significant benefits.-" Download the full article here and enjoy reading…!

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Across the world, corporations and private and public agencies are recognizing a growing need for a business management center of excellence as a key element of the organization. PMO 2.0 is the term, as per Terry Doerscher of Planview, has been developed to describe this emerging trend in the realm of business integration and how the traditional role PMO is being transformed to fulfill it.

As the speed and complexity of modern business steadily accelerates, a centralized point for business coordination, collaboration, and information is necessary to address the challenges of such a dynamic operating environment. New and existing PMO's are evolving into full-service business management centers, incorporating functions such as strategic planning and financial management, product and service management, process ownership and automation, and integrated work and workforce management into their scope of operation. Whether operating across the enterprise to improve business alignment, or at a departmental level to facilitate integrated IT management, the PMO 2.0 phenomenon is here to stay.

Planview is at the forefront of PMO 2.0, providing thought leadership, best practices, and supporting applications. We believe that a highly integrated business management environment which enables the ability to understand and respond to total demand, manage assets, resources and financial capacities, and monitor and control the benefit of the product and service portfolio by clearly assessing their costs relative to business value is the most effective means of maximizing organizational efficiency. A dedicated center of excellence directed to these functions is a vital component to maturing business management competencies and achieve such a result.

You can take advantage of the many PMO 2.0 resources by visiting here.

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