MSP® Foundation & Practitioner

MSP is the go-to certification and guidance for programme managers, business change managers and the next step for project managers to develop their knowledge and skills to be able to positively respond to the challenges they face when managing programmes and larger, more strategic or multiple projects.

MSP is a globally recognised framework for best practice programme management. MSP is specifically designed to address the most common challenges that organizations encounter when leading investments in change. It is designed to align programmes and projects to organizational strategy and to provide governance. It focuses on the outcomes of benefit, whilst mitigating risks and actively engaging stakeholders.

MSP can be used in conjunction with all the other best-practice products (such as PRINCE2 and MoP) and international or internal organizational standards.

MSP 5th edition consists of a set of principles, themes and processes that provide a clear roadmap for the programme lifecycle and ensure successful organizational outcomes.

Using elements from our ‘Performance Based Learning’ approach, we help you to not only know MSP, but also apply and tailor it for your programmes. The course has been designed by award winning instructional designers to ensure that it provides an interactive and engaging introduction to MSP. Our experienced MSP experts explain the method through a wide range of individual and group exercises, case-study application, learning ‘games’ and practice exam questions.

Target audience

Prince2 practitioners

Evolve your skills to manage larger, more complex projects – MSP is the natural next step to develop your knowledge and skills to be able to respond to challenges and boost your career
Adopt a wider strategic approach – The vision and target operating model allow you to see the “big picture” and link actions to the wider organizational strategy
Be highly responsive to change – with its adoption of incremental approach to the programme lifecycle MSP empowers you to be adaptable, flexible and responsive to change

Project managers, Senior project managers

Develop a strategic mindset – the vision, target operating model and programme plan allow you take a wider strategic view and co-ordinate multiple projects ensuring they are linked to corporate objectives,
Be adaptable and choose the most appropriate delivery mode – MSP’s multimodal delivery mode allows multiple ways of working, based on what is most suitable for you when delivering the work and on the work itself.
Take the next step with MSP – It is an industry-recognized certification which shows you can be trusted with responsibility for business change and major shifts in organizations.

Programme managers, Business change managers

Gain more clarity within complex environments – MSP provides a clear route through complex programmes and encourages a strategic viewpoint to deliver outcomes and benefits, without getting distracted by operational issues. The framework is designed to be flexible and adaptable through the programme lifecycle.
Build your capability to lead business change across the organization – in the strategic context i.e. from delivering outputs to enabling a vision through the principles and themes of MSP which ensure that there is a continual focus on co-ordinating multiple projects to the agreed strategic outcomes.
Supporting organizational agility – by adopting a multimodal delivery philosophy and emphasizing an incremental approach, MSP enables organizations to be agile, responsive and flexible.

Organization, budget decision maker

Align projects and programmes to organizational strategy – MSP aligns programmes and projects to organizational strategy; it provides governance and focuses on the outcome of benefits for the organization.
Stay competitive and respond to industry change – Organizations need to continually improve their ability to change to be able to react to changes in the industry. MSP is specifically designed to address common challenges such as fixed deadlines and scarce resource that organizations encounter when leading investments in change.
Rely on proven, successfully applied framework – MSP represents proven best practice in the successful delivery of organizational change through the application of programme management.

Learning Objectives

For foundation

Demonstrate an understanding of the various components of the MSP®5th Edition best practice programme management framework
Describe each step of the MSP® journey, listing the activities required to guide a programme throughout its lifecycle
Outline the relevant aspects of MSP® principles, themes and lifecycle in context

For practitioner

Build on the knowledge gained in the Foundation course
Demonstrate sufficient ability to apply and tailor the MSP programme management framework (as described in the practitioner syllabus) to be awarded the MSP Practitioner qualification.
Be able to start applying the framework to a real programme

Pre-Requisites

There are no pre-requisites for taking MSP 5th edition Foundation exam.
To take the MSP 5th edition Practitioner exam, candidates are required to have MSP 5th edition Foundation

• Course content

  The course focuses on the components of the MSP framework and how they help to create outcomes of benefit while mitigating risks and actively engaging stakeholders.

  MSP philosophy and structure

  What is a programme and how it differs to both business as usual and project work
  Relationship between the MSP principles, governance themes and the lifecycle

  The 7 MSP Principles

  Lead with purpose
  Collaborate across boundaries
  Deal with ambiguity
  Align with priorities
  Deploy diverse skills
  Realize measurable benefits
  Bring pace and value.

  The 7 governance themes

  Organization
  Design
  Justification
  Structure
  Knowledge
  Assurance
  Decisions

  The 7 processes in the programme lifecycle

  Identify the programme
  Design the outcomes
  Plan progressive delivery
  Deliver the capabilities
  Embed the outcomes
  Evaluate new information
  Close the programme

  Exams & Certification

  MSP Foundation and practitioner examinations

  The foundation exam consists of;

  60 multiple choice questions
  1 hour
  Closed book
  Candidates require a minimum of 36 correct answers (60%) to pass

  The practitioner exam consists of;

  70 scenario based multiple choice questions
  2.5 hours
  Open book – MSP® 5th edition publication only
  Candidates require a minimum of 42 marks (60%) to pass

  Pre-Reading

  Included