PeopleCert MSP-Practitioner - MSP Practitioner, 5th edition Exam

The false statement is that“End of tranche review drives benefits management.”In MSP, benefits management drives end of tranche reviews rather than the other way around.

The MSP Practitioner clarifies:“Benefits management drives end of tranche reviews,”meaning that benefits realization considerations inform tranche planning, execution, and review processes.

This approach ensures that benefit delivery remains central to programme governance and decision-making, promoting alignment of delivery with strategic value.

'Leading change' principle in MSP focuses on driving transformation through the right leadership, engaging stakeholders actively, and fostering innovative solutions. However, getting approval from the sponsoring group is not considered part of this principle but rather a responsibility addressed in programme organization under governance themes. Approval processes are formalized separately from the leadership approach.

Approval to proceed at this stage authorizes work on all projects within the first tranche of the programme. The MSP Practitioner explains:"Approval to proceed is for first tranche, at end of that tranche, Go/No Go decision will be taken for next tranche,"meaning that the programme is phased with controlled progression through tranches rather than approval for the entire programme upfront.

The Programme Manager holds responsibility for ensuring that individual projects align with the overarching programme objectives during capability delivery. This role coordinates the interdependencies, monitors progress, and manages risks to ensure projects collectively deliver the intended outcomes.

The MSP Practitioner notes:“Programme manager is responsible for all tasks in delivering the capability. This is a continual activity throughout the programme.”This alignment ensures that outputs contribute directly to the transformational goals and benefit realization plan, avoiding scope creep or misaligned efforts.

While the Senior Responsible Owner (SRO) provides strategic accountability and the Business Change Manager (BCM) focuses on benefits realization, the Programme Manager operationalizes these objectives through effective project oversight and control.

The Programme Office supports through administrative and coordination activities but does not have direct accountability for strategic alignment of projects.

Maintaining this alignment is critical for delivering business value and achieving programme success in complex transformational environments.

An Emergent programme is characterized by its evolution from a set of concurrent, individual projects that arise independently but require coordination to ensure they align with organizational strategy. The MSP Practitioner defines Emergent programmes as:“Programmes evolved from concurrent, individual projects with need to ensure compliance to organization strategy.”This reflects programmes that may not have been planned from the start as a programme but are brought together to align with strategic goals and provide greater control and coherence.

One key output of the 'Identifying the Programme' process is the appointment of the Programme Board and the Senior Responsible Owner (SRO). This formalizes the governance structure needed to provide leadership and oversight for the programme. The MSP Practitioner clearly states:“Programme board is set up by SRO in this process,”highlighting that governance is established early to ensure accountability and decision-making capability is in place before the programme progresses further.

All the listed groups are valid stakeholders in a city-building programme. MSP recognizes that stakeholders can be diverse, including internal groups like employees, external political leadership, and the wider community such as potential residents.

The MSP Practitioner notes:“All are valid stakeholders in programme,”emphasizing the importance of identifying and engaging a broad spectrum of stakeholders to ensure programme success.

Inclusive stakeholder management supports better decision-making, risk mitigation, and benefits realization by addressing varied needs and expectations across the stakeholder landscape.

The Blueprint document defines both the as-is and to-be (future) states of the organization. It provides a detailed description of the current operational environment and the changes required to achieve the programme’s desired outcomes.

The MSP Practitioner explains:“Blueprint defines as-is and future state of organization,”serving as a key governance document to guide design and delivery of the transformation.

By articulating the current state clearly, the Blueprint helps identify gaps, dependencies, and change requirements, ensuring that the programme’s outputs align with the intended future state, thus supporting successful transformational change.

Both the Business Change Manager (BCM) and the Programme Manager share responsibility for aligning projects with benefits realization. The MSP Practitioner highlights that“Both roles are responsible for this task as projects are overseen by programme manager, and benefits are under BCM supervision.”

The Programme Manager ensures that project outputs are delivered on time, within scope, and aligned to programme objectives, while the BCM ensures that these outputs translate into tangible benefits once transitioned into operational use.

This dual responsibility ensures seamless coordination between delivery and realization functions, bridging the gap between project outputs and strategic outcomes. Without this collaboration, there is a risk of projects delivering outputs that fail to produce the intended business improvements.

Together, the Programme Manager and BCM form a critical partnership in MSP’s approach to ensuring benefits are fully realized, tracked, and maximized throughout and beyond the programme lifecycle.

Project outputs are actually theoutputof delivering the capability, not an input. Inputs to delivering the capability include the Project Dossier, Business Case, and Blueprint, which provide the framework, justification, and detailed design for what is to be delivered.

The MSP Practitioner clarifies:“Project outputs are output of delivering the capability,”meaning these are the tangible products or deliverables produced by the projects managed within the programme. In contrast, the Project Dossier contains detailed descriptions and plans for the projects, the Business Case justifies the programme’s existence and value, and the Blueprint defines the future state and capabilities required.

This distinction is important because delivering the capability depends on having a clear, approved vision (Blueprint), a solid business justification (Business Case), and a structured project plan (Project Dossier). Only once these inputs are in place can project outputs be successfully created and integrated to achieve the programme’s objectives.

Understanding this flow ensures that programme teams focus on the correct artefacts at each stage—inputs for planning and delivery, outputs for realization and benefits management—ensuring clarity and control throughout the transformational flow.