A strong Starting Up phase establishes the success foundations for the entire project. The Project Brief is the primary document produced during this phase — it documents what has been agreed before the project formally begins, and it requires Project Board review and approval before initiation can proceed.
What the Project Brief Contains
The PRINCE2 Project Brief comprises six components:
- Project Definition — background, objectives, desired outcomes, scope, exclusions, constraints, and assumptions
- Outline Business Case — the reason for the project and the expected benefits, at a level sufficient to justify proceeding to initiation
- Project Product Description (PPD) — a high-level description of what the project will create, including quality expectations and acceptance criteria
- Project Approach — how the project will be delivered (build vs. buy, internal vs. external, waterfall vs. agile)
- Project Management Team Structure — who will be in the Project Board and who will manage the project
- Role Descriptions — responsibilities for the Executive, Senior User(s), Senior Supplier(s), and Project Manager
From Brief to PID
The Project Brief is created during Starting Up and is used as the basis for Initiating a Project. Once initiation is complete, the Project Brief is superseded by the Project Initiation Document (PID), which contains the full, detailed project baseline. The Brief is a one-time approval document; the PID is a living document updated at every stage boundary.
Common Pitfalls
- Don't oversimplify — a single-page brief may feel efficient, but it often doesn't prompt the reflection needed to secure a good start. The Brief should be brief, but not trivial.
- Don't get stuck in Brief Mode — if the missing information won't change the decision to initiate, note it as "to be clarified in the PID" and move on. See Don't Get Stuck in Brief Mode.
- Don't use it for detailed planning — the Brief is not the place for detailed schedules or resource plans. Those belong in the Initiation Stage Plan and subsequently the Stage Plans.
Download a Project Brief template from the PRINCE2 Templates page.