Project Management Terminology

Terminology in Project Management

• Project management term definitions can differ from standard dictionary definitions and may consist of multiple words.
• Acceptance Criteria are conditions that must be met before project deliverables are accepted.
• Accuracy, in quality management, is the assessment of correctness.
• Activity List is a documented list of schedule activities with descriptions, identifiers, and scope of work details for team understanding.
• Actual Cost (AC) is the real cost for work performed on an activity during a specific period.
• Adaptive Approach is a development method where requirements are expected to change with high uncertainty and volatility.
• Affinity Diagram organizes a large number of ideas into groups for review and analysis.
• Affinity Grouping classifies items into similar categories based on likeness.
• Agile refers to a mindset of values and principles outlined in the Agile Manifesto.
• Alternatives Analysis evaluates identified options to select the best approaches for project work.
• Ambiguity describes a state of unclear cause of events, or multiple options to choose from.
• Analogous Estimating estimates activity or project duration/cost using historical data from similar projects.
• Artifact is a project template, document, output, or deliverable.
• Assumption is a factor considered true, real, or certain in planning without proof.
• Assumption and Constraint Analysis ensures assumptions and constraints are integrated and consistent within project plans and documents.
• Assumption Log is a project document that records all assumptions and constraints.
• Authority is the right to apply resources, spend funds, make decisions, or give approvals in a project.
• Backlog is an ordered list of work to be done.
• Backlog Refinement elaborates and prioritizes backlog content to identify work for an upcoming iteration.
• Baseline is the approved version of a work product and is used for comparison against actual results.
• Basis of Estimates provides the details supporting project estimates, including assumptions, constraints, levels of detail, ranges, and confidence levels.
• Benchmarking compares actual or planned project aspects to those of comparable organizations for best practices and improvement ideas.
• Benefits Management Plan documents processes for creating, maximizing, and sustaining project/program benefits.
• Bid Documents solicit information, quotations, or proposals from prospective sellers.
• Bidder Conference is a meeting with potential sellers to ensure understanding of procurement prior to bid preparation.
• A Blocker is also known as an impediment.
• Budget is the approved estimate for a project or WBS component.
• Budget at Completion (BAC) represents the total approved budget for work to be performed.
• Burn Chart graphically shows remaining work in a timebox or completed work towards a deliverable.
• Business Case offers a value proposition for a project, including financial and nonfinancial benefits.
• Business Model Canvas is a one-page visual summary of value proposition, infrastructure, customers, and finances, common in Lean Startup situations.
• Business Value is the quantifiable net benefit from a business endeavor, tangible or intangible.
• Cadence represents a rhythm of activities throughout the project.
• Cause-and-Effect Diagram visually traces an undesirable effect to its root cause.
• Change refers to a modification to a formally controlled deliverable, plan component, or document.
• Change Control is the process used to identify, document, approve, or reject modifications to project elements.
• Change Control Board (CCB) is the formally chartered group that reviews, evaluates, approves/rejects project changes, and communicates decisions.
• Change Control Plan is a plan component that establishes the change control board, its authority, and how the change control system will be implemented.
• Change Control System describes ways modifications to deliverables and documentation are managed.
• Change Log is a comprehensive list of changes and their current status during a project.
• Change Management involves a structured approach to transition individuals, groups, and organizations to a desired future state for business benefits.
• Change Request is a formal proposal for modifying a document, deliverable, or baseline.
• A Charter is also known as a project charter.
• Check Sheet is a tally sheet used as a checklist for data gathering.
• Closing Process Group includes processes to formally complete a project, phase, or contract.
• Communications Management Plan details howproject information will be administered and disseminated, including when and by whom.
• Complexity describes projects/programs that are difficult to manage due to human/system behavior, and ambiguity.
• Confirmation Bias is a cognitive bias that confirms existing beliefs or hypotheses.
• Conformance indicates the degree to which results meet quality requirements.
• Constraint is a limiting factor affecting project execution.
• Contingency is a potential event that may impact project execution, which may be accounted for with a reserve.
• Contingency Reserve is time or money allocated for known risks with active response strategies.
• Continuous Delivery delivers feature increments to customers immediately, commonly using small work batches and automation.
• Contract is a binding agreement where the seller provides a product/service/result and the buyer pays.
• Control is the process of comparing performance to plan, analyzing variances, and implementing corrective actions.
• Control Chart visually displays process data over time against control limits, showing trends.
• Cost Baseline is the approved, time-phased project budget, excluding management reserves, used for performance comparison.
• Cost-Benefit Analysis is a financial method to weigh benefits of a project against its costs.
• Cost Management Plan describes how project costs will be planned, structured and controlled.
• Cost of Quality (COQ) covers all costs for preventing nonconformance, appraising conformance, and addressing failures.
• Cost Performance Index (CPI) measures the cost efficiency of budgeted resources; it is the ratio of earned value to actual cost.
• Cost Plus Award Fee Contract (CPAF) pays the seller for actual costs, plus an award fee for profit.
• Cost Plus Fixed Fee Contract (CPFF) reimburses the seller for allowable costs plus a fixed profit.
• Cost Plus Incentive Fee Contract (CPIF) reimburses costs and provides a profit if performance criteria are met.
• Cost-Reimbursable Contract pays the seller’s actual costs, plus a fee for profit.
• Cost Variance (CV) measures the budget deficit or surplus at a point in time between earned value and actual cost.
• Crashing shortens the schedule duration at the least incremental cost, by adding resources.
• Criteria are standards, rules, or tests to base judgments/decisions or to evaluate products/services/processes.
• Critical Path is the longest sequence of project activities, determining the shortest possible project duration.
• Critical Path Method (CPM) estimates minimum project duration by analyzing schedule flexibility on logical network paths.
• Cumulative Flow Diagram (CFD) tracks features completed, in progress, and in the backlog over time.
• Cycle Time is the time from the start to completion of an activity or work item.
• Cycle Time Chart shows the average cycle time for completed work items over time.
• Daily Standup is a daily team meeting to review progress, intentions, and obstacles.
• Dashboard displays charts/graphs indicating project progress against key measures.
• Data Gathering and Analysis Methods collect, assess, and evaluate data for better understanding of a situation.
• Decision Tree Analysis is a diagramming method to evaluate multiple option implications in the presence of uncertainty.
• Decomposition divides project scope/deliverables into smaller, manageable parts.
• Definition of Done (DoD) is a checklist of criteria that a deliverable must meet to be considered complete for customer use.
• Deliverable refers to any unique product, result, or capability to perform a service, required to complete a project phase or process.
• Delivery Performance Domain covers activities and functions for achieving project scope and quality.
• Development Approach is a method for creating and evolving the project product/service/result, such as predictive, iterative, or agile.
• Development Approach and Life Cycle Performance Domain addresses activities and functions related to the development approach, cadence, and lifecycle phases.
• DevOps is a set of practices to improve collaboration between development and operations, ensuring smooth deliveries.
• Digital Product is delivered, used, and stored electronically.
• Discretionary Dependency is based on best practices or project preferences.
• Duration represents the number of work periods to complete an activity or WBS component, in hours, days, or weeks, and it differs from effort.
• Earned Value (EV) measures the work performed in terms of the authorized budget.
• Earned Value Analysis (EVA) is a technique using scope, schedule, and cost measures to determine project performance.
• Effort is the number of labor units to complete an activity or WBS component, in hours, days or weeks, differing from duration.
• Emotional Intelligence is the ability to understand and manage one’s emotions and the emotions of others.
• Enterprise Environmental Factors (EEF) are conditions outside the project team's control that impact the project.
• Epic refers to a large body of work to hierarchically organize requirements and deliver specific business outcomes.
• Estimate is a quantitative assessment of the likely amount or outcome of a variable, such as costs or durations.
• Estimate at Completion (EAC) is the expected total cost of completing all work.
• Estimate to Complete (ETC) is the projected cost to finish remaining project work.
• Estimating Methods create approximations of work time/cost in a project.
• Executing Process Group includes processes performed to carry out the work defined in the project management plan.
• Expected Monetary Value (EMV) is the value of an outcome expressed in monetary terms.
• Explicit Knowledge is knowledge that can be codified using words, numbers, and pictures.
• External Dependency occurs between project activities and non-project activities.
• Fast Tracking compresses the schedule by performing activities or phases in parallel.
• Feature is defined as a set of related requirements or functionalities adding value to the organization.
• Firm Fixed Price Contract (FFP) pays the seller a set amount regardless of their costs.
• Fixed Duration defines an activity where completion time remains constant regardless of resources assigned.
• Fixed-Price Contract sets a predetermined payment for a defined scope of work.
• Fixed Price Incentive Fee Contract (FPIF) pays a set amount but allows the seller to earn more by meeting performance criteria.
• Fixed Price with Economic Price Adjustment Contract (FPEPA) is a fixed-price contract that allows predefined final adjustments due to changed conditions.
• Flow describes the efficiency of work moving through a process.
• Flowchart depicts inputs, process actions, and outputs in a diagram format.
• Forecast estimates future project events based on available information.
• Function Point estimates business functionality amount in an information system.
• Gantt Chart uses bars to show schedule information with activities on the vertical axis and dates on the horizontal axis.
• Governance is a framework to direct and enable an organization via established policies and practices.