MSP® Foundation & Practitioner

Today's organisations exist in a climate of constant and increasing change. The many dynamic and contradictory drivers for change include innovations in technology, working practices (including outsourcing and partnerships), mergers, increased demands from regulation and for the public sector, delivery of policy driven by changing political parties and/or ministers. Whatever the organisation, wherever it is located, however it is structured, the rate of change is increasing.
Organisations that have learned to transform themselves through effective leadership and strategic control are more likely to survive and prosper. Programme management is increasingly being recognised as a key tool to enable organisations to manage that transformation. Managing Successful Programmes (MSP) represents proven programme management good practice in successfully delivering transformational change, drawn from the experiences of both public and private sector organisations.

The MSP framework is based on three core concepts:

MSP principles – derived from lessons learned in programmes that had both positive and negative results. They represent common factors that underpin the likelihood of success of any programme of transformational change.MSP Governance Themes – an organisation's approach to programme management needs to be defined, measured and controlled. The Governance Themes allow organisations to put in place the right leadership, delivery team, robust organisation structures, controls and control information (e.g. Blueprint, Business Case, Quality Management Strategy, etc), giving the best chance of delivering the planned outcomes and realising the desired benefits.MSP Transformational Flow – the flow provides a route through the lifecycle of a programme, from its conception through to its delivering the new capability, outcomes and benefits and finally on to the close of the programme.

Capita Learning & Development's MSP training course is based on the 2007 edition of the MSP manual: 'Managing Successful Programmes'. This is an enjoyable but intensive five day course providing delegates with the knowledge of MSP as well as an opportunity to sit the Foundation & Practitioner examinations, administered on behalf of Office of Government Commerce (OGC) by the APM Group Ltd (APMG). Typically all our courses are run by MSP-accredited trainers who have experience of both 'hands-on' management and training.

• Delegates understand the need for programme management and to be able to apply the concepts of successful programme management using the MSP method
• Delegates will be able to manage the realisation of benefits and the needs of stakeholders, to set up a framework to manage planning, progress, quality, issues and risks within a programme environment and to test their understanding and competency, by sitting the MSP Foundation & Practitioner examinations

• Entry-level programme management personnel wishing to learn about programme management generally and the MSP method in particular
• Experienced Programme Managers and personnel who wish to learn about the MSP method
• Those managers wishing to consider whether to adopt the method for use in their own programmes
• Programme management support staff who actively/intend to support MSP
• Anybody who needs to know how to run programmes more effectively