ISO 21502 provides guidance for managing projects across initiation, planning, monitoring, control, and closure. It also covers governance, roles, and practical management practices such as scope, schedule, cost, risk, and communication.
ISO 21502:2020 is a guidance standard focused on how projects can be managed in a structured way across the full lifecycle. It is not limited to planning artifacts. It also addresses how projects are governed, how roles and responsibilities are organized, and how teams direct and control delivery as conditions change.In practical terms, ISO 21502 guidance aligns project work into two complementary areas. First are integrated project management practices that span the lifecycle. These include pre-project activities, initiating the project, overseeing and directing work, controlling delivery, and closing or terminating the project with post-project activities. This integrated view emphasizes coordination and continuity rather than treating each phase as isolated.Second are individual management practices that are applied within project activities. The course agenda lists practices such as project planning and quality management, scope management, benefit management and change control, schedule and cost management, resource management and procurement, and risk and issues management. It also covers stakeholder engagement, communication management, project reporting, and information and documentation management.The standard’s guidance is intended to support consistent decision-making. For example, governance and project organization influence how changes are approved, how progress is reported, and how accountability is maintained. Management practices provide the tools to define what is being delivered, how it will be delivered, and how performance and risks are tracked.When you apply ISO 21502 guidance as a system, you get a repeatable operating model: clear roles, lifecycle practices that do not break under pressure, and management practices that keep scope, schedule, cost, and risk visible. That is why the course begins with governance and role definitions before moving into integrated practices and then detailed management practices.
Many project teams have templates but lack operating discipline. ISO 21502 becomes useful when you treat it as a set of consistent decisions: who approves changes, how progress is reported, and how risks and issues are escalated. If those decisions are stable, tools like schedules and budgets become more reliable.Use the integrated practices to keep continuity across phases and the individual practices to keep delivery measurable. That combination reduces firefighting and makes closure and lessons learned meaningful.
“ISO 21502 ties governance, lifecycle control, and management practices together.”
Expert Trainer
Expert Trainer
Integrated practices are the lifecycle-wide activities used to initiate, direct, control, and close a project consistently. In this course they include pre-project activities, initiation, oversight and direction, delivery control, and closure with post-project work.
Days 3 and 4 focus on management practices used during project activities, including planning and quality, scope, benefits and change control, schedule and cost, resources and procurement, risk and issues, plus stakeholder engagement, communication, reporting, and documentation.
The exam is stated as available online and has a stated duration of three hours. It is available in English.
Necessary cookies are always active. You can accept, reject non-essential cookies, or customize your preferences.