Project Manager · Cheatsheet

Project Manager Cheatsheet

A short reminder sheet that pairs with the full playbook. Use it in a meeting when you need the next move, not a long read. Tap “What this means” on any card if a heading is unclear.

Civil Service specific Universal any sector Both

MAP-01

Control maps

Both

Control: PRINCE2 Agile · GovS 002 · MSP

Funding: Green Book · SOC/OBC/FBC

Teams: Scrum · Kanban inside the envelope

RL-01

The role

Both

You own the envelope. Teams own delivery inside it.

Run daily:

Baseline still true?
Closest tolerance breach?
SRO knows before the board?

PL-01

Plan & tolerances

Both

Living baselines
Tolerances that trigger options
Contingency visible
Change shows full impact

GV-01

RAID & RAG

Civil Service

Groom RAID weekly

One shared story with the DM

RAG: driver, change, action, ask

Reward early red

BC-01

Business case

Civil Service

SOC to OBC to FBC

Management Case needs real capacity

Challenge optimism bias

Benefit owners beyond go-live

ST-01

SRO & tone

Universal

Options + recommendation

Private bad news first

RAG: driver, change, action, ask

Team: dependencies. SRO: decision + ask

AG-01

PRINCE2 Agile

Both

Stages and tolerances wrap Sprints

Translate forecasts into ranges

Prefer scope flex over quality flex

No double dashboards

SP-01

Suppliers

Both

Acceptance criteria unambiguous

Delivery reviews on a cadence

Document gaps in writing

One commercial + delivery narrative

CS-01

Gov standards

Civil Service

GovS 002 shall without gold-plate
MSP only when it is a programme
Living assurance evidence
Service Standard / WCAG in Done

CC-01

Change control

Universal

Envelope moves need formal change

Backlog reorder inside envelope is PO work

Impact on time, cost, scope, benefits

GV-03

Troubleshooting: symptom to first move

Universal

!Watermelon RAG: reward the next early red

!Scope creep: write the scope line; route new asks

!Optimism bias: reforecast on evidence; show contingency

!Quiet slip: re-baseline against actuals; tell people once

!Double reporting: one RAID/RAG with the DM

!Supplier drift: reinstate cadence; document the gap

REF-01

Field reference

Both

One-minute checklist when the project is on fire:

Name the biggest baseline risk, one sentence
Scope, schedule, cost, supplier, or reporting honesty?
Decision that unlocks the most, who owns it
Brief the SRO before they hear it elsewhere
Protect the teams from noise while you sort it

Standards: GovS 002, MSP, IPA, Green Book

Control: baseline, tolerance, change request

Govern: RAID, RAG, RACI, SRO

Wrap: PRINCE2 Agile, SOC/OBC/FBC