Study guide
2.2 What Changed in PRINCE2 7
PRINCE2 Practitioner Version 7
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1 Introduction & Exam Overview
1.1 Current Exam Facts 1.2 Exam Strategy & Open-Book Technique
2 PRINCE2 7 Method Overview
2.1 The PRINCE2 7 Method 2.2 What Changed in PRINCE2 7 2.3 Performance Targets, Tolerances & Project Context
3 PRINCE2 Principles (1–4)
3.1 Continued Business Justification 3.2 Learn from Experience 3.3 Defined Roles, Responsibilities & Relationships 3.4 Manage by Stages
4 PRINCE2 Principles (5–7) & Applying Principles
4.1 Manage by Exception 4.2 Focus on Products 4.3 Tailor to Suit the Project 4.4 Applying Principles in Context
5 People Management in Projects
5.1 Organisational & Project Ecosystems 5.2 Leadership in Projects 5.3 Team Culture & Diversity 5.4 Communication, Stakeholder Engagement & Change Management
6 Practices Overview & Business Case
6.1 The Seven Practices & Tailoring 6.2 Business Case: Desirability, Viability & Achievability 6.3 Business Case Lifecycle & Management Products 6.4 Business Case Application & Tailoring Scenarios
7 Practices: Organising & Plans
7.1 Organising: Roles & Accountability 7.2 Organising: 5-Step Ecosystem Technique 7.3 Plans: Three Levels & Product-Based Planning 7.4 Plans: Techniques, Tolerances & Tailoring
8 Practices: Quality & Risk
8.1 Quality: Planning, Control & Assurance 8.2 Quality Techniques & Management Products 8.3 Risk: Threats & Opportunities 8.4 Risk 5-Step Technique & Application
9 Practices: Issues
9.1 Issues Practice: Issue vs Change & Categories 9.2 Issues 5-Step Technique & Supporting Techniques 9.3 Change Control, Configuration & Priority/Effort Assessment
10 Practices: Progress, Sustainability & Application
10.1 Progress: Controls, Tolerances & Reports 10.2 Sustainability as the 7th Performance Target 10.3 Tailoring the Practices 10.4 Practices Application Scenarios (BL4)
11 Processes: Model, Starting, Directing & Initiating
11.1 The Seven Processes & Process Model 11.2 Starting Up a Project 11.3 Directing a Project 11.4 Initiating a Project
12 Processes: Controlling a Stage & Product Delivery
12.1 Controlling a Stage 12.2 Managing Product Delivery 12.3 Stage Control & Exception Scenarios (BL4) 12.4 Work Packages & Reporting Cycle
13 Processes: Stage Boundary, Closing & Tailoring
13.1 Managing a Stage Boundary 13.2 Closing a Project 13.3 Tailoring the Processes 13.4 Process Application Scenarios (BL4)
14 Tailoring, Management Products & Exam Technique
14.1 Tailoring to Project Environment, Scale & Agile 14.2 Management Products & the v7 Project Log 14.3 Final Exam Technique, Full Scenarios & Common Traps
2.2 What Changed in PRINCE2 7
Key Takeaways Explain This Topic AI
Themes were renamed practices in v7, and the 'Change' theme became the 'Issues' practice — communication before control.
A new People element was added, carrying roughly 9% of the Practitioner exam weighting (14% at Foundation).
Sustainability is a new seventh project performance target alongside benefits, cost, time, quality, scope, and risk.
Three new management approaches were introduced (digital and data, commercial, sustainability), and management products were consolidated from 26 to 15 with a new Project Log holding six records (daily log, issue register, lessons log, product register, quality register, risk register).
Foundation and Practitioner pass marks were raised from 55% to 60% — Foundation is 60 marks (36 to pass) and Practitioner is 70 marks (42 to pass).
Last updated: August 2026
Headline Changes from v6 to v7
PRINCE2 7 is the first major rewrite since the 2017 edition. The structural changes are not cosmetic — they signal a shift from a controls-heavy method toward one that treats people, sustainability, and data as first-class concerns.
- Area PRINCE2 v6 (2017) PRINCE2 7
- Recurring aspects Themes (7) Practices (7) — renamed
- Change theme "Change" theme Issues practice — broader, communication before control
People Embedded in roles/communication theme New People element (~9% Practitioner weight; 14% at Foundation) — leadership, culture, communication, change management
- Performance targets 6 (benefits, cost, time, quality, scope, risk) 7 — adds sustainability
- Management approaches Not formalised 3 new : digital and data, commercial, sustainability
- Management products 26 15 — consolidated, plus a new Project Log
Product/version tracking Configuration Item Record, Product Status Account Both withdrawn — replaced by the Product Register inside the Project Log
Change control document Change Control Approach Issue Management Approach (the v7 Change Management Approach is organisational change management)
Principle names 'continued business justification'; 'defined roles and responsibilities' 'ensure continued business justification'; 'define roles, responsibilities, and relationships'
- Foundation pass mark 55% 60% (36 of 60 marks)
- Practitioner pass mark 55% 60% (42 of 70 marks)
- 'Minimum requirements' Used to frame tailoring Dropped — replaced by techniques guidance
- Renaming Themes to Practices
The seven v6 themes are now called practices . The rename is more than wording: a theme suggested a cross-cutting topic, whereas a practice signals a recurring discipline that must be actively worked throughout the project. The content moved too — most notably the Change theme became the Issues practice.
Why 'Issues' instead of 'Change'
In v6, the Change theme conflated every unintended deviation with a formal change request. v7 separates concerns: not every issue is a change . A team member raising a concern, a supplier problem, or a misunderstanding may need communication and resolution without ever becoming a formal change to a baseline. The Issues practice puts communication before control — talk first, then decide whether a change request is warranted.
Worked example: Issues practice in action
A supplier notifies the Project Manager that a key component will arrive two weeks late. Under v6's Change theme, the immediate question was often "raise a change request?" — forcing every deviation into a formal control route. Under v7's Issues practice, the Project Manager first communicates : they talk to the supplier to understand the cause, assess whether the delay affects stage tolerance, and check whether alternative components or partial deliveries can bridge the gap. Only if the issue requires a change to an approved baseline — say, moving a milestone in the stage plan — does a formal change request follow. If instead the delay is absorbed by float in the plan, the issue is captured in the Project Log and resolved without a change request. The practice thus separates issue resolution (communicate, assess, act) from change control (formally re-baseline). This distinction is a frequent exam topic: candidates who assume every issue becomes a change are applying v6 thinking to a v7 practice.
The New People Element
People is the most visible addition. It covers those working on the project and those affected by it . Content spans:
- Leadership styles and behaviours appropriate to the project context
- Organisational culture and how it helps or hinders delivery
- Communication — purposeful, two-way, audience-aware
- Change management — preparing and supporting people through transition
- Team performance — motivation, capacity, competence
This element carries roughly 9% of the Practitioner exam (and 14% of the Foundation exam), so it is not a footnote — expect direct questions on leadership styles, communication principles, and change management concepts.
Sustainability as a Seventh Performance Target
v6 tracked six project performance targets: benefits, cost, time, quality, scope, risk . v7 adds sustainability — recognising that projects are accountable for environmental, social, and economic impact, not just delivery metrics. Sustainability is also supported by a dedicated sustainability management approach , one of three new approaches alongside digital and data and commercial .
Management Products Consolidated
v6 defined 26 management products (logs, registers, strategies, reports, plans). v7 consolidates these to 15 . The most significant consolidation is the new Project Log , which absorbs:
- The daily log
- The lessons log
- The issue register
- The quality register
- The risk register
The product register — new in v7, and the replacement for v6's configuration item record and product status account
A useful mnemonic for the six records is DILPQR : D aily log, I ssue register, L essons log, P roduct register, Q uality register, R isk register.
This does not mean risks and issues are no longer tracked — they are, but inside one living log rather than six separate registers. Tailoring still allows splitting them out on a large or high-risk project.
Scenario: the Project Log in use
On a medium-sized project, the Project Manager opens a single Project Log at project initiation. Each entry is tagged by type — risk , issue , lesson , product status , quality check , daily note — so the log remains one searchable record rather than six separate registers. A risk entry might read: "R-014: Integration API rate limit may delay UAT — probability 3, impact 4, owner: Tech Lead." An issue entry might read: "I-007: Supplier delivered component B without certification — raised 12 Aug, action: request replacement certificate." A lesson entry: "L-003: Early supplier site visits reduced delivery defects by 40% — feed into supplier selection checklist." Tailoring still permits splitting the log into separate registers on a large or regulated project where auditors expect a dedicated risk register, but the default is one consolidated log. Exam questions test the consolidation directly: know that the Project Log holds six records (daily log, issue register, lessons log, product register, quality register, risk register) and that the former issue register and risk register are the most commonly tested in v7 questions.
Principle Renames
Two of the seven principles were reworded for clarity and emphasis:
'continued business justification' → 'ensure continued business justification' — the verb makes clear the obligation is active, not passive.
'defined roles and responsibilities' → 'define roles, responsibilities, and relationships' — relationships matter; a role description is not enough if the working dynamic is broken.
Exam Pass Marks Raised
Both exams moved from a 55% pass mark to 60% :
Foundation : 60 marks, 60 minutes, closed book, pass = 36 of 60 (60%).
Practitioner : 70 marks, 150 minutes, open book, pass = 42 of 70 (60%).
This raises the floor for candidates and reflects the broader syllabus rather than harder questions per se. Any study materials quoting 55% are stale.
Traps for v6-prepared candidates
Quoting 55% as the pass mark — v7 requires 60% (Foundation: 36 of 60; Practitioner: 42 of 70).
Calling the recurring aspects themes — v7 calls them practices .
Treating every issue as a change — the Issues practice puts communication before control.
Listing six performance targets — v7 has seven (sustainability added).
Naming 26 management products — v7 has 15 , with the Project Log holding six records.
Reaching for a Configuration Item Record , a Product Status Account , or a Change Control Approach — all three are PRINCE2 6 products that v7 withdrew.
Assuming "minimum requirements" still frame tailoring — the phrase was dropped in v7 and replaced by techniques guidance.
Overlooking the People element — at roughly 9% of the Practitioner weighting (14% at Foundation), it generates direct questions on leadership styles, communication principles, and change management that a v6 candidate would not have studied.