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Glossary
AC. Actual Cost. See Actual cost.
Accountability matrix.: A structure that relates the project organization structure to the work breakdown structure to help ensure that each element of the project?s scope of work is assigned to a responsible individual.
Activity :A unit of work performed as part of a project. An activity usually has a duration, a cost, and resource requirements. Activities can then be subdivided into tasks.
Activity defnition.:Identifying the specifc activities that must be performed in order to produce the various project deliverables.
Activity duration estimating. :Estimating the number of work periods that will be needed to complete individual activities.
Actual cost. In the earned value reporting system, this is the amount of cost accumulated by doing work on the project. Only work done on the project should be included in actual cost. Formerly, ACWP, Actual Cost of Work Performed.
ACWP. Actual Cost of Work Performed. The actual cost that was incurred to complete the work that was actually performed during a given time period. The Guide to the PMBOK 2000 has changed this term to AC, Actual Cost.
AD. Activity Description. A label used in a network diagram. The activity description normally describes the scope of work of the activity.
ADM. Arrow Diagramming Method. A network diagramming technique in which activities are represented by arrows. The tail of the arrow represents the start and the head represents the ?nish of the activity (the length of the arrow does not represent the expected duration of the activity). Activities are connected at points called nodes (usually drawn as small circles) to illustrate the sequence. Administrative closure. Generating, gathering, and disseminating information to formalize project completion.
AF. Actual Finish date. The actual date that an activity or task was completed.
Analogous estimate. Using the actual cost of a previous, similar project as the basis for estimating the cost of the current project. It is frequently used to estimate total project costs when there is a limited amount of detailed information about the current project.
AOA. Activity On Arrow. A network diagramming technique in which activities are represented by arrows. The tail of the arrow represents the start and the head represents the ?nish of the activity (the length of the arrow does not represent the expected duration of the activity). Activities are connected at points called nodes (usually drawn as small circles) to illustrate the sequence.
AON. Activity On Node. A network diagramming technique in which activities are represented by boxes (or nodes). Activities are linked by precedence relations to show the sequence in which the activities are to be performed.
Application area. A category of projects that have common elements not present in all projects. Application areas are usually de?ned in terms of either the product of the projects (i.e., similar technologies or industry sectors) or the type of customer (e.g., internal versus external, government versus commercial). Application areas often overlap.
AS. Actual Start date. The point in time that work actually started on an activity.
As-of-date. The point in time that separates actual data from future data. Sometimes called the data date
BAC. Budget At Completion. The estimated total cost of a project when it is completed.
Backward pass. The calculation of late ?nish dates and late start dates for the uncompleted portions of all network activities. Determined by working backwards through the network logic from the project?s end date.
Bar chart. A graphic display of schedule-related information. In the typical bar chart, activities of other project elements are listed down the left side of the chart, dates are shown across the top, and activity durations are shown as date-placed horizontal bars.
Baseline. The original plan (for a project, a work package, or an activity), plus or minus approved changes. Usually used with a modi?er (e.g., cost baseline, schedule baseline, performance measurement baseline). Baseline Finish date. The point in time that work was scheduled to finish on an activity. The scheduled finish date is normally within the range of dates delimited by the early finish date and the late finish date.
Baseline start date. The point in time when work was scheduled to start
on an activity. The scheduled start date is normally within the range of dates delimited by the early start date and the late start date.
BCWP. Budgeted Cost of Work Performed. The sum of the approved cost estimates (including any overhead allocation) for activities (or portions of activities) completed during a given period (usually project-todate). In the Guide to PMBOK 2000 this term has been changed to EV, Earned Value.
BCWS. Budgeted Cost of Work Scheduled. The sum of the approved cost estimates (including any overhead allocation) for activities (or portions of activities) scheduled to be performed during a given period (usually project-to-date). In the Guide to the PMBOK 2000, this term has been changed to PV, Planned Value.
Budget estimate. An assessment of the likely quantitative result. Usually applied to project costs and durations and should always include some indication of accuracy (e.g., x percent). Usually used with a modi?er (e.g., preliminary, conceptual, feasibility). Some application areas have speci?c modi?ers that imply particular accuracy ranges (e.g., order-ofmagnitude estimate, budget estimate, and de?nitive estimate in engineering and construction projects).
Calendar unit. The smallest unit of time used in scheduling the project. Calendar units are generally in hours, days, or weeks, but can also be in shift or even in minutes. Used primarily in relation to project management software.
CCB. Change Control Board. A formally constituted group of stakeholders responsible for approving or rejecting changes to the project baselines.
Change control. A collection of formal, documented procedures that de?nes the steps by which of?cial project documents may be changed.
Change in scope. Any change to the project scope. A scope change almost always requires an adjustment to the project cost or schedule.
Chart of accounts. Any numbering system used to monitor project costs by category (e.g., labor, supplies, materials). The project chart of accounts is usually based upon the corporate chart of accounts of the primary performing organization.
Charter. A document issued by senior management that provides the project manager with the authority to apply organizational resources to project activities.
Code of accounts. Any numbering system used to uniquely identify each element of the work breakdown structure.
Communications planning. Determining the information and communications needs of the project stakeholders: who needs what information, when will they need it, and how it will be given to them.
Concurrent engineering. An approach to project stafing that, in its most general form, calls for implementers to be involved in the design phase.
Constraint. A restriction or limitation set on the start or finish date of an activity.
Contingencies. Plans and funding set aside to take care of anticipated, identi?ed risks.
Contingency allowance. A separately planned quantity used to allow for future situations that may be planned for only in part (sometimes called -known unknowns-). For example, rework is certain, the amount of rework is not. Contingency allowance may involve cost, schedule, or both. Contingency allowances are intended to reduce the impact of missing cost or schedule objectives. Contingency allowances are normally included in the project?s cost and schedule baselines.
Contingency planning. The development of a management plan that identi?es alternative strategies to be used to ensure project success if speci?ed risk events occur.
Contingency reserve. A separately planned quantity used to allow for furture situations that may be planned for only in part (sometimes called -known unknowns-). For example, rework is certain, the amount of rework is not. Contingency reserves may involve cost, schedule, or both. Contingency reserves are intended to reduce the impact of missing cost or schedule objectives. Contingency reserves are normally included in the project?s cost and schedule baselines.
Contract. A contract is a mutually binding agreement that obligates the seller to provide the speci?ed product and obligates the buyer to pay for it.
Contract administration. Managing the relationship with the seller.
Contract closeout. Completion and settlement of the contract, including resolution of all outstanding items. Control. The process of comparing actual performance with planned performance, analyzing variances, evaluating possible alternatives, and taking appropriate corrective action as needed.
Control charts. Control charts are a graphic display of the results, over time and against established control limits, of a process. They are used to determine if the process is ??in control?? or in need of adjustment.
Corrective action. Changes made to bring expected future performance of the project in line with the plan. Cost. The money and resources required to complete an activity.
Cost budgeting. Allocating the cost estimates to individual project components.
Cost control. Controlling changes to the project budget.
Cost estimating. Estimating the cost of the resources needed to complete project activity.
Cost management. The system used to maintain effective ?nancial control of a project throughout its life cycle. Cost of quality. The costs incurred to ensure quality. The cost of quality includes quality planning, quality control, quality assurance, and rework.
CPFF. Cost Plus Fixed Fee contract. A type of contract where the buyer reimburses the seller for the seller?s allowable costs (de?ned by the contract) plus a ?xed amount of pro?t.
CPI. Cost Performance Index. The ratio of budgeted costs to actual costs (EV/AC). CPI is often used to predict the magnitude of a possible cost overrun using the following formula: Original cost estimate/CPI Project cost at completion.
CPIF. Cost Plus Incentive Fee contract. A type of contract where the buyer reimburses the seller for the seller?s allowable costs (de?ned by the contract), and the seller earns a fee if the seller meets de?ned performance criteria.
CPM. Critical Path Method. A network analysis technique used to predict project duration by analyzing which sequence of activities (path) has the least amount of ?oat.
Crashing. Taking actions necessary to decrease the total project duration after analyzing the options to determine how to get the maximum compression for the least cost.
Critical activity. Any activity on a critical path. Most commonly determined by using the critical path method. Although some activities are ??critical?? in the dictionary sense without being on the critical path, this meaning is seldom used in the project context. Critical path. In a project network diagram, the series of activities that determine the earliest completion of the project. The critical path will generally change from time to time as activities are completed ahead of or behind schedule. Although normally calculated for the entire project, the critical path can also be determined for a milestone or subproject.
The critical path is usually de?ned as those activities with ?oat less than or equal to a speci?ed value, often zero. Current finish date. The current estimate of the point in time when an activity will be completed.
Current start date. The current estimate of the point in time when an activity will begin.
CV. Cost Variance. The difference between the EV and the AC.
DD. Data Date. The point in time that separates actual data from future data. Also called the as-of-date. Definitive estimate. An assessment of the likely quantitative result. Usually applied to project costs and durations and should always include some indication of accuracy (e.g., x percent). Usually used with a modi?er (e.g., preliminary, conceptual, feasibility). Some application areas have speci?c modi?ers that imply particular accuracy ranges (e.g., order-of-magnitude estimate, budget estimate, and de?nitive estimate in engineering and construction projects).
Deliverable. Any measurable, tangible, veri?able outcome, result, or item that must be produced to complete a project or part of a project. Often used more narrowly in reference to an external deliverable, which is a deliverable that is subject to approval by the project sponsor or customer.
Dependencies. In a project, the relationships between tasks. For example, a task may not begin until another task is complete.
DU. Duration. The number of work periods (not including holidays or other nonworking periods) required to complete an activity or other project element. Usually expressed as workdays or work weeks. Sometimes incorrectly equated with elapsed time. Should not be confused with effort.
Dummy activity. An activity with zero duration used to show a logical relationship in the arrow diagramming method. Dummy activities are used when logical relationships cannot be completely or correctly described with regular activity arrows. Dummies are shown graphically as a broken line headed by an arrow. Duration compression. Shortening the project schedule without reducing the project scope.
Duration compression is not always possible and often requires an increase in project cost.
EAC. Estimate At Completion. The expected total cost of an activity, a group of activities, or the project when the de?ned scope of work has been completed. Most techniques for forecasting EAC include some
adjustment of the original cost estimate based on project performance to date. Often shown as: EAC Actuals-to-date
ETC. Earned value analysis. A method for measuring project performance. It compares the amount of work that was planned with what was actually accomplished to determine if cost and schedule performance is as planned. EF. Early Finish date. In the critical path method, the earliest possible point in time on which the uncompleted portions of an activity (or the project) can ?nish based on the network logic and any schedule constraints. Early ?nish dates can change as the project progresses and changes are made to the project plan.
Effort. The number of labor units necessary to complete an activity or other project element. Effort is usually expressed in hours, days, or weeks and should not be confused with duration.
ES. Early Start date. In the critical path method, the earliest possible point in time on which an activity (or the project) can ?nish based on the network logic and any schedule constraints. Early start dates can change as the project progresses and changes are made to the project plan. Estimate. An assessment of the likely quantitative result. Usually applied to project costs and durations and should always include some indication of accuracy (e.g., x percent). Usually used with a modi?er (e.g., preliminary, conceptual, feasibility). Some application areas have speci?c modi?ers that imply particular accuracy ranges (e.g., order-of-magnitude estimate, budget estimate, and de?nitive estimate in engineering and construction projects).
ETC. Estimate (or estimated) To Complete (or completion). The expected additional cost needed to complete an activity, a group of activities, or the project. Most techniques for forecasting ETC include some adjustment to the original estimate based on project performance to date.
EV. Earned Value. A method for measuring project performance. It compares the amount of work that was planned with what was actually accomplished to determine if cost and schedule performance are as planned. Event-on-node. A network diagramming technique in which events are represented by boxes (or nodes) connected by arrows to show the sequence in which the events are to occur.
Exception report. Document that includes only major variations from plan (rather than all variations).
Expected monetary value. The product of an event?s probability of occurrence and the gain or loss that will result. For example, if there is a 50 percent probability that it will rain, and rain will result in a $100 loss, the expected monetary value of the rain event is $50 (.5 $100).
Fast tracking. Compressing the project schedule by overlapping activities that would normally be done in sequence, such as design and construction.
FF. (1) Free Float. The amount of time an activity can be delayed without delaying the early start of any immediately following activities. (2) Finish-to-Finish. A dependency between two activities, where one activity must ?nish before the other activity can ?nish.
FFP. Firm Fixed Price contract. A type of contract where the buyer pays the seller a set amount (de?ned by the contract) regardless of the seller?s cost.
Finish date. A point in time associated with an activity?s completion. Usually quali?ed by one of the following: actual, planned, estimated, scheduled, early, late, baseline, target, or current.
Fixed price contract. A type of contract where the buyer pays the seller a set amount (de?ned by the contract) regardless of the seller?s cost.
Float. The amount of time that an activity may be delayed from its early start without delaying the project ?nish date. Float is a mathematical calculation and can change as the project progresses and changes are made to the project plan. Also called slack.
Forecast final cost. The expected total cost of an activity, a group of activities, or the project when the de?ned scope of work has been completed. Same as Estimate At Completion (EAC). Most techniques for forecasting final cost include some adjustment of the original cost estimate based on project performance to date. Often shown as EAC Actualsto-date ETC.
Forward pass. The calculation of the early start and early ?nish dates for the uncompleted portions of all network activities.
FPIF. Fixed Price Incentive Fee contract. A type of contract where the buyer pays the seller a set amount (de?ned by the contract), and the seller can earn an additional amount if the seller meets de?ned performance criteria.
FS. Finish-to-Start. The dependency between two activities where one activity must ?nish before the other activity can start.
Functional manager. A manager responsible for activities in a specialized department or function (e.g., engineering, manufacturing, marketing).
Functional organization. An organization structure in which staff are grouped hierarchically by specialty (e.g., production, marketing, engineering, and accounting at the top level, with engineering, further divided into mechanical, electrical, and others).
Gantt chart. A graphic display of schedule-related information. In the typical bar chart, activities of other project elements are listed down the left side of the chart, dates are shown across the top, and activity durations are shown as date-placed horizontal bars.
GERT. Graphical Evaluation and Review Technique. A network analysis technique that allows for conditional and probabilistic treatment of logical relationships (i.e., some activities may not be performed).
Grade. A category or rank used to distinguish items that have the same functional use (e.g., ??hammer??) but do not share the same requirements for quality (e.g., different hammers may need to withstand different amounts of force).
Hammock. An aggregate or summary activity (a group of related activities is shown as one and reported at a summary level). A hammock may or may not have an internal sequence.
Hanger. An unintended break in a network path. Hangers are usually caused by missing activities or missing logical relationships.
IFB. Invitation For Bid. Generally, this term is equivalent to request for proposal. However, in some application areas it may have a narrower or more speci?c meaning. Information distribution. Making needed information available to project stakeholders in a timely manner.
Initiation. Committing the organization to begin a project phase. Integrated cost/schedule reporting. A method for measuring project performance. It compares the amount of work that was planned with what was actually accomplished to determine if cost and schedule performance is as planned.
Key event schedule. A summary-level schedule that identi?es the major activities and key milestones.
Lag. A modfication of a logical relationship that directs a delay in the successor task. For example, in a finish-to-start dependency with a tenday lag, the successor activity cannot start until ten days after the predecessor has ?nished.
Lead. A modi?cation of a logical relationship that allows an acceleration of the successor task. For example, in a ?nish-to-start dependency with a ten-day lead, the successor activity can start ten days before the predecessor has finished.
Leveling. Any form of network analysis in which scheduling decisions (start and ?nish dates) are driven by resource management concerns (e.g., limited resource availability or dif?cult-to-manage changes in resource levels).
LF. Late Finish date. In the critical path method, the latest possible point in time that an activity may begin without delaying a speci?ed milestone (usually the project ?nish date).
Life cycle costing. The concept of including acquisition, operating, and disposal costs when evaluating various alternatives.
Line manager. (1) The manager of any group that actually makes a product or performs a service. (2) A functional manager.
Link. A dependency between two project activities or between a project activity and a milestone.
LOE. Level Of Effort. Support-type activity (e.g., vendor or customer liaison) that does not readily lend itself to measurement of discrete accomplishment. It is generally characterized by a uniform rate of activity over a speci?c period of time.
Logic. The collection of activity dependencies that make up a project network diagram.
Logic diagram. Any schematic display of the logical relationships of project activities. Always drawn from left to right to re?ect project chronology. Often incorrectly referred to as a ??PERT chart.?? Logical relationship. A dependency between two project activities, or between a project activity and a milestone. Loop. A network path that passes the same node twice. Loops cannot be analyzed using traditional network analysis techniques such as CPM and PERT. Loops are allowed in GERT.
LS. Late State date. In the critical path method, the latest possible point in time that an activity may begin without delaying a speci?ed milestone (usually a project ?nish date).
Management reserve. A separately planned quantity used to allow for future situations that are impossible to predict (sometimes called ??known unknowns??). Management reserves may involve cost or schedule. Management reserves are intended to reduce the risk of missing cost or schedule objectives. Use of management reserve requires a change to the project?s cost baseline. Master schedule. A summary-level schedule that identi?es the major activities and key milestones.
Mathematical analysis. The process of identifying early and late start and ?nish dates for the uncompleted portions of project activities.
Matrix organization. Any organizational structure in which the project manager shares responsibility with the functional managers for assigning priorities and for directing the work of individuals assigned to the project. Milestone. A signi?cant event in the project, usually completion of a major deliverable.
Milestone schedule. A summary-level schedule that identi?es the major milestones.
Mitigation. Taking steps to lessen risk by lowering the probability of a risk event?s occurrence or reducing its effect should it occur.
Monitoring. The capture, analysis, and reporting of project performance, usually as compared to plan.
Monte Carlo analysis. A schedule risk assessment technique that performs a project simulation many times in order to calculate a distribution of likely results.
MPM. Modern Project Management. A term used to distinguish the current broad range of project management (scope, cost, time, quality, risk, etc.) from narrower, traditional use that focused on cost and time. Near-critical activity. An activity that has low total ?oat. Network. Any schematic display of the logical relationships of project activities. Always drawn from left to right to re?ect project chronology. Often incorrectly referred to as a ??PERT chart.?? Network analysis. The process of identifying early and late start and ?nish dates for the uncompleted portions of project activities. Network logic. The collection of activity dependencies that make up a project network diagram.
Network path. Any continuous series of connected activities in a project network diagram.
Node. One of the determining points of a network; a joined to some or all of the other dependency lines.
OBS. Organizational Breakdown Structure. A depiction of the project organization arranged so as to relate work packages to organizational units. Order of magnitude estimate. An assessment of the likely quantitative result. Usually applied to project costs and durations and should always include some indication of accuracy (e.g., x percent). Usually used with a modi?er (e.g., preliminary,cation areas have speci?c modi?ers that imply particular accuracy ranges (e.g., order-of-magnitude estimate, budget estimate, and de?nitive estimate in engineering and construction projects).
Organizational planning. Identifying, documenting, and assigning project roles, responsibilities, and reporting relationships. Overall change control. A process for coordinating changes across the entire project.
Overlap. A modiication of a logical relationship that allows an acceleration of the successor task. For example, in a ?nish-to-start dependency with a ten-day lead, the successor activity can start ten days before the predecessor has ?nished.
Parametric estimating. An estimating technique that uses a statistical relationship between historical data and other variables (e.g., square footage in construction, lines of code in software development) to calculate an estimate.
Pareto diagram. A histogram, ordered by frequency of occurrence, that shows how many results were generated by each identi?ed cause.
Path. A set of sequentially connected activities in a project network diagram.
Path convergence. In mathematical analysis, the tendency of parallel paths of approximately equal duration to delay the completion of the milestone where they meet.
PC. Percent Complete. An estimate, expressed as a percent, of the amount of work that has been completed on an activity or group of activities.
PDM. Precedence Diagramming Method. A network diagramming technique in which activities are represented by boxes (or nodes). Activities are linked by precedence relationships to show the sequence in which the activities are to be performed.
Performance reporting. Collecting and disseminating information about project performance to help ensure project progress. Performing organization. The enterprise whose employees are most directly involved in doing the work of the project.
PERT. Program Evaluation and Review Technique. An event-oriented network analysis technique used to estimate project duration when there is a high degree of uncertainty with the individual activity duration estimates. PERT applies the critical path method to a weighted average duration estimate.
PERT chart. A speci?c type of project network diagram.
PF. Planned Finish date. The point in time when work on an activity is scheduled to ?nish. Phase. A collection of logically related project activities, usually culminating in the completion of a major deliverable.
Planned value. Formerly, Budgeted Cost of Work Scheduled, BCWS, in the Earned Value Reporting System. It is the time-phased budget of the project, PV.
PM. (1) Project Management. The application of knowledge, skills, tools, and techniques to project activities in order to meet or exceed stakeholder needs and expectations from a project. (2)
Project Manager. The individual responsible for managing a project.
PMBOK. Project Management Body of Knowledge. An inclusive term that describes the sum of knowledge within the profession of project management. As with other professions such as law, medicine, and accounting, the body of knowledge rests with the practitioners and academics who apply and advance it. The PMBOK includes proven, traditional practices that are widely applied as well as innovative and advanced ones that have seen more limited use.
PMP. Project Management Professional. An individual certi?ed as such by the Project Management Institute. Precedence relationship. The term used in the precedence diagramming method for a logical relationship. In current usage, however, precedence relationship, logical relationship, and dependency are widely used interchangeably regardless of the diagramming method in use.
Predecessor activity. (1) In the arrow diagramming method, the activity that enters a node. (2) In the precedence diagramming method, the ??from?? activity.
Procurement planning. The process of identifying which project needs can be best met by procuring products or services outside the project organization. It involves the consideration of whether to procure, how to procure, what to procure, how much to procure, and when to procure it.
Professional responsibility. Professional responsibility is a domain in project management that refers to the aspects of the profession, such as legal, ethical, and professional behavior. Program. A group of related projects managed in a coordinated way. Programs usually include an element of ongoing activity. Project. A temporary endeavor undertaken to create a unique product or service.
Project charter. A document issued by senior management that provides the project manager with the authority to apply organizational resources to project activities.
Project communications management. A subset of project management that includes the processes required to ensure proper collection and dissemination of project information. It consists of communications planning, information distribution, performance reporting, and administrative closure.
Project cost management. A subset of project management that includes the processes required to ensure that the project is completed within the approved budget. It consists of resource planning, cost estimating, cost budgeting, and cost control.
Project human resource management. A subset of project management that includes the processes required to make the most effective use of the people involved with the project. It consists of organizational planning, staff acquisition, and team development.
Project integration management. A subset of project management that includes the processes required to ensure that the various elements of the project are properly coordinated. It consists of project plan development, project plan execution, and overall change control.
Project life cycle. A collection of generally sequential project phases whose name and number are determined by the control needs of the organization or organizations involved in the project.
Project management software. A class of computer applications speci?cally designed to aid with planning and controlling project costs and schedules.
Project management team. The members of the project team who are directly involved in project management activities. On some smaller projects, the project management team may include virtually all of the project team members.
Project network diagram. Any schematic display of the logical relationships of project activities. Always drawn from left to right to re?ect project chronology. Often incorrectly referred to as a ??PERT chart.??
Project phase. A collection of logically related project activities, usually culminating in the completion of a major deliverable. Project plan. A formal, approved document used to guide both project execution and project control. The primary uses of the project plan are to document planning assumptions and decisions, to facilitate commu- nication among stakeholders, and to document approved scope, cost, and schedule baselines. A project plan may be a summary or detailed.
Project plan development. Taking the results of other planning processes and putting them into a consistent, coherent document.
Project plan execution. Carrying out the project plan by performing the activities included therein. Project planning. The development and maintenance of the project plan.
Project procurement management. A subset of project management that includes the processes required to acquire goods and services from outside the performing organization. It consists of procurement planning, solicitation planning, solicitation, source selection, contract administration, and contract closeout.
Project quality management. A subset of project management that includes the processes required to ensure that the project will satisfy the needs for which it was undertaken. It consists of quality planning, quality assurance, and quality control.
Project risk management. A subset of project management that includes the processes concerned with identifying, analyzing, and responding to project risk. It consists of risk identi?cation, risk quanti?cation, risk response development, and risk response control.
Project schedule. The planned dates for performing activities, and the planned dates for meeting milestones. Project scope management. A subset of project management that includes the processes required to ensure that the project includes all of the work required, and only the work required, to complete the project successfully. It consists of initiation, scope planning, scope de?nition, scope veri?cation, and scope change control.
Project team members. The people who report either directly or indirectly to the project manager.
Project time management. A subset of project management that includes the processes required to ensure timely completion of the project. It consists of activity de?nition, activity sequencing, activity duration estimating, schedule development, and schedule control.
Projectized organization. Any organizational structure in which the project manager has full authority to assign priorities and to direct the work of individuals assigned to the project.
PS. Planned Start date. The point in time work is scheduled to start on an activity. See Planned Value.
QA. Quality Assurance. (1) The process of evaluating overall project performance on a regular basis to provide con?dence that the project will satisfy the relevant quality standards. (2) The organizational unit that is assigned responsibility for quality assurance.
QC. Quality Control. (1) The process of monitoring speci?c project results to determine if they comply with relevant quality standards and identifying ways to eliminate causes of unsatisfactory performance. (2) The organizational unit that is assigned responsibility for quality control. Quality planning. Identifying which quality standards are relevant to the project and determining how to satisfy them.
RAM. Responsibility Assignment Matrix. A structure that relates the project organization structure to the work breakdown structure to help ensure that each element of the project?s scope of work is assigned to a responsible individual.
RDU. Remaining Duration. The time needed to complete an activity. Reserve. A provision in the project plan to mitigate cost and/or schedule risk. Often used with a modi?er (e.g., management reserve, contingency reserve) to provide further detail on what types of risk are meant to be mitigated. The speci?ed meaning of the modi?ed term varies by application area.
Resource leveling. Any form of network analysis in which scheduling decisions (start and ?nish dates) are driven by resource management concerns (e.g., limited resource availability or dif?cult-to-manage changes in resource levels).
Resource-limited schedule. A project schedule whose start and ?nish dates re?ect expected resource availability. The ?nal project schedule should always be resource limited.
Resource planning. Determining what resources (people, equipment, materials) are needed in what quantities to perform project activities.
Responsibility chart. A structure that relates the project organization structure to the work breakdown structure to help ensure that each element of the project?s scope of work is assigned to a responsible individual. Responsibility matrix. A structure that relates the project organization structure to the work breakdown structure to help ensure that each element of the project?s scope of work is assigned to a responsible individual. Retainage. A portion of a contract payment that is held until contract completion in order to ensure full performance of the contract terms.
RFP. Request For Proposal. A type of bid document used to solicit proposals from prospective sellers of products or services.
RFQ. Request For Quotation. Generally, this term is equivalent to request for proposal. However, in some application areas it may have a narrower or more speci?c meaning. Risk event. A discrete occurrence that may affect the project for better or worse.
Risk identi?cation. Determining which risk events are likely to affect the project.
Risk quanti?cation. Evaluating the probability of risk event occurrence and effect.
Risk response control. Executing the risk management plan in order to respond to risk events over the course of the project.
Risk response development. De?ning enhancement steps for opportunities and mitigation steps for threats. S-curve. Graphic display of cumulative costs, labor hours, or other quantities plotted against time. The name derives from the S-like shape of the curve (?atter at the beginning and end, steeper in the middle) produced on a project that starts slowly, accelerates, and then trails off.
Schedule. The planned dates for performing activities and the planned dates for meeting milestones.
Schedule analysis. The process of identifying early and late start and ?nish dates for the uncompleted portions of project activities.
Schedule compression. Shortening the project schedule without reducing the project scope. Duration compression is not always possible and often requires an increase in project cost. Schedule control. In?uencing the factors that create schedule changes to ensure that changes are bene?cial, determining that the schedule has changed, and managing the actual changes when and as they occur. Schedule development. Analyzing activity sequences, activity durations, and resource requirements to create the project schedule. Scope. The work that must be done in order to deliver a product with the speci?ed features and functions, and the features and functions that are to be included in a product or service. Scope baseline. The original plan (for a project, a work package, or an activity), plus or minus approved changes.
Scope change. Any change to the project scope. A scope change almost always requires an adjustment to the project cost or schedule. Scope change control. In?uencing the factors that create scope changes to ensure that changes are bene?cial, determining that a scope change has occurred, and managing the actual changes when and if they occur.
Scope de?nition. Decomposing the major deliverables into smaller, more manageable components to provide better control.
Scope planning. Developing a written scope statement that includes the project justi?cation, the major deliverables, and the project objectives.
Scope veri?cation. Ensuring that all identi?ed project deliverables have been completed satisfactorily.
SF. (1) Scheduled Finish date. The point in time when work is scheduled to ?nish on an activity. (2) Start-to-Finish, indicating that the ??from?? activity must start before the ??to?? activity can ?nish. Should-cost estimate. An estimate of the cost of a product or service used to provide an assessment of the reasonableness of a prospective contractor?s proposed cost.
Slack. Term used in PERT for ?oat.
Solicitation. Obtaining quotations, bids, offers, or proposals as appropriate.
Solicitation planning. Documenting product requirements and identifying potential sources. Source selection. Choosing from among potential contractors.
SOW. Statement Of Work. A narrative description of products or services to be supplied under contract.
SPI. Scheduled Performance Index. The ratio of work performed to work scheduled (EV/PV).
SS. (1) Scheduled Start date. The point in time work is scheduled to start on an activity. (2)
Start-to-Start. A type of dependency relationship where the ??from?? activity has to start before the ??to?? activity can start. Staff acquisition. Getting the human resources needed assigned to and working on the project. Stakeholders. Individuals and organizations who are involved in or may be affected by project activities. Start date. A point in time associated with an activity?s start
Subnetwork. A subdivision of a project network diagram usually representing some form of subproject. Successor activity. (1) In the arrow diagramming method, the activity
that departs a node. (2) In the precedence diagramming method, the ??to?? activity.
SV. Schedule Variance. (1) Any difference between the scheduled completion of an activity and the actual completion of that activity. (2) In earned value, EV less PV. Target schedule. The original plan (for a project, a work package, or an activity), plus or minus approved changes. Task. A unit of work performed as part of a project. A task usually has a duration, a cost, and resource requirements. Tasks may be subdivisions of activities.
TC. Target Completion date. An imposed date that constrains or otherwise modi?es the network analysis. Team development. Developing individual and group skills to enhance project performance.
Team members. The people who report either directly or indirectly to the project manager.
TF. (1) Total Float. The total amount of ?oat available to an activity. (2)
Target Finish date. The date work on an activity is planned (targeted) to ?nish. Time-scaled network diagram. Any project network diagram drawn in such a way that the positioning and length of the activity represents its duration. Essentially, it is a bar chart that includes network logic.
TQM. Total Quality Management. A common approach to implementing a quality improvement program within an organization.
TS. Target Start date. The date work is planned (targeted) to start on an activity.
WBS. Work Breakdown Structure. A deliverable-oriented grouping of project elements that organizes and de?nes the total scope of the project. Each descending level represents an increasingly detailed de?nition of a project component. Project components may be products or services.
Work item. An element of work performed during the course of a project. Work package. A deliverable at the lowest level of the work breakdown structure. A work package may be divided into activities. Workaround. A response to a negative risk event. Distinguished from a contingency plan in that a workaround is not planned in advance of the occurrence of the risk event.