PROJECTNET GLOSSARY (PROJECT MANAGEMENT GLOSSARY)
Introduction
The management of projects encompasses an enormous variety of techniques,
methods and processes. Each of these has its own terminology which often varies
between industries, or more noticably, between books and software packages.
Total confusion reigns since there is no worldwide definitive standard for the
language of project management. Far be it from us to suggest that this book
defines such a standard but it brings together a range of sources and
provides a comprehensive guide to terms and definitions as used in the
UK.
Most of the definitive British texts on project management and its
derivatives are represented here. PRINCE, the Association for Project
Management's Body of Knowledge and CCTA guides have all their terms included and
indexed to show their source. Where necessary full definitions have been
abridged and this is indicated in the text. We hope you find the
section useful and, on occasion, amusing. There are one or two tongue in cheek
definitions that may sound familiar to some of the more battle weary project
managers out there.
The Glossary of Project Management is compiled by: Adrian Dooley:
Technical Editor, Project Manager Today magazine.
The new and soon to be published British Standard for Project Management.
APM
Professional - the new entry qualification to the Association of Project
Managers
- Payments made to the contractor by the customer at
predefined intervals or stages during the course of a project.
- A Tracking
method which assumes that all the cost of an Activity is
incurred on completion.
- A Tracking
method which assumes that 50% of the cost of an Activity is
incurred on commencement and 50% on completion.
- A state in which 99% of Activities exist 99% of the time.
- The lowest level of the Work Breakdown
Structure. A packet of work which forms the basic building block of a Plan or Network. PRINCE 1
sometimes uses the term 'major activity' to describe a larger element of the
work - see Detailed
Plans.Something there always seems to be too little of on your projects.
- An ID number given to the Activity to
provide a unique identifier for computer scheduling.
- The PRINCE term for a Network.
(definition abridged from PRINCE 1)
- A form of Network in which
the activities are represented by Arrows between Nodes which are normally
circles.
- A form of Network in which
the activities are represented by Nodes linked by Dependencies. The Nodes are
normally rectangular.
- The process of allocating work on an Activity to
specific Resources.
- Some computer packages allow versions of a plan to be
archived. One of these archives would be the Baseline Plan.
- The work on an activity
attributed to a specific resource.
- The Professional Association for Project Managers
in the UK.
- The Australian equivalent of the APM in the UK and
the PMI in the
USA.
- A sequence of arithmetic calculations by which the Latest Start and Latest
Finish dates of Activities is calculated. This is the second phase of Critical Path
Analysis.
- An organisational matrix where functions and projects have the same priority. Project Managers
are external to the functional departments their teams come from.
- See Gantt ChartA chart of the known watering holes of the Project Team. For
use when a crisis occurs after normal working hours.
- A set of dates and costs frozen at the start of the project and used
as a basis for comparison as the project
progresses.A set of goalposts which, by means of careful resetting, can be
used to make the project look as if
it is always on schedule.
- The amount of money an Activity was
intended to cost when the Plan was
baselined.
- The amount of time an Activity was
intended to take when the Plan was
baselined.
- The amount of Effort an Activity was
intended to cost when the Plan was
baselined.
- J. Meredith Belbin was a
pioneer of team dynamics........
- The enhanced efficiency,
economy and effectiveness of future business operations to be delivered by a
programme.
(definition from CCTA Programme
Management)
- A component of the Programme Brief
which sets out in outline a description of the expected benefits of the Programme, the
business operations affected and current and target performance measures.
(definition from CCTA Programme
Management)
- A group of people who spend one third of their time thinking of pointless
new Projects and two thirds of their time inventing artificial and tortuous
acronyms for the new projects which make them sound like highly profitable or
motivational initiatives.
- Build, Own, Operate, Transfer. A break with the traditional contractual
processes for construction projects where the contractor provides project
funding.What the Project Manager
gets when the Project fails.A
means of keeping the Customer's nose out of the project until its
too late to change, cunningly disguised as one of the latest bright ideas in
Project
Management.
- The opposite of Top Down. Overall
estimates for the project are built
up from the detailed level and aggregated to give totals for the project as a
whole.
- The unstructured and dynamic generation of ideas by a group of people
where anything and everything is acceptable - well almost ! Particularly
useful in generating a list of possible project risks.
- These are all the rage. Project Management
is more Top
Down than Bottom Up and the
best way to get from the top to the bottom is via a breakdown structure.
Nearly everything in a project may be
structurally broken down. Hence the creation of WBS's, NBS's, PBS's, OBS's and
CBS's.
- An arbitrary amount of money which will be exceeded by Actual Costs by an
amount which is inversely proportional to the amount Risk Analysis done
during the Planning
Stage.
- The total budgeted cost of the project from the
Baseline.
(definition from C/Spec)
- This is a mandatory letter prepared by the Executive on the
Project Board
after reviewing the completed project at the end
of the final Stage. It records
the successful completion of the project.
(definition from PRINCE 1)
- The part of the organisation containing the business operations affected
by a Programme.
(definition abridged from CCTA Programme
Management)
- The process of ensuring the Actual Costs and Elapsed Times are in line
with Planned Costs and time schedules and that the Business Case
remains viable.
(definition from PRINCE
1)
- A document which provides justification for the commitment of resources to
a Project or Programme.
- A government agency which provides IT services to central government and
sponsored the development of PRINCE and the Guide to Programme
Management.
- Uncontrolled changes are one of the most common causes of delay and
failure. Change
Control is the process of implementing procedures which ensure that
proposed changes are properly assessed and, if approved, incorporated into the
project plan.The control
over changes to the specification that every project manager
would like to have but doesn't have time for because he is too busy coping
with the results of the last uncontrolled change.
- A regular technical and managerial control point.
(definition from PRINCE 1)
- The completion of project work once
the project has
been implemented. The phase at the end of the project lifecycle
just before the operations begin. Confusingly this period is often called
Start-Up since this refers to the start-up of the facility.
- An organisational matrix where the Project Leader
reports to a functional manager and does not have real authority over team
members from other departments.
- The effective transmission of information so that the recipient
understands clearly what the receiver intends. Communication
media may take several forms: Oral, written, textural, numerical, graphic,
body language, paper, electronic, physical, etc. In short,
bring together and control effectively those things which need inter-relating
in order for the project to be
properly assessed, configured and implemented.
- A plan
indicating how Objectives, Plans and Progress of the programme are to
be communicated to staff.
(definition abridged from
CCTA Programme Management)
- The date calculated by which the project could
finish following careful estimating, planning and risk analysis
taking into account resource limitations and contingency.The
impossible date the boss says it must be finished following careful analysis
of office politics and his promotion prospects.The impossible date your
computer says it will be finished following a simple Critical Path
Analysis.
- A Risk
which comprises a number of inter-related risks.
- The complete technical description required to build, test, accept,
install, operate, maintain and support a System.
(definition abridged from PRINCE 1)
- The process of defining the configuration
items in a System,
controlling the release and change of those items throughout the project
life-cycle, recording and reporting the status of Configuration
Items and change reports and verifying the completeness and correctness of configuration
items.
(definition from PRINCE 1)
- The art of managing conflict effectively. Nearly all projects endanger
conflict. It occurs at all levels largely because there are so many different
parties working together each with their own aims and people often come
together who barely know each other and yet are asked to work together under
pressure. The art of conflict
management is to channel conflicts so that the result is positive rather
than destructive.
- A generic term for factors affecting the possible start and finish dates
of an Activity
including Logic and Imposed Dates.
- The most common Resources are re-usable i.e. people and machinery. Some
computer packages allow definition of consumable resources i.e. materials to
allow for stock control.
- As a result of Risk Analysis sums
of money or amounts of time may be set aside as contingency which
may be used in the event of risks
occurring.Warning: Contingency should
be shown in a plan as a separate
item not hidden in Activities as 'an extra 10%' on Duration or cost.
- Control is the process of establishing targets and plans, measuring actual
performance, comparing actual performance against planned and taking any
necessary actions to correct the situation. Co-ordination is the activity of
ensuring that work is being carried out in various organisations and places
fit together effectively in time, content and cost in order to achieve the project objectives
effectively.
- The analysis of the potential costs and benefits of a project which
allows comparison of the returns from alternative forms of investment.
- Codes allocated to Activities which allow costs to be consolidated
according to the elements of the coding structure.
- The discipline of reconciling planned and actual money figures to physical
parts of the project. Cost control also
involves careful treatment of changes (including claims), trend forecasting
and authorisation for payment. Cash Flow forecasting is also a cost control
function.
- A graph plotted against a horizontal time scale and cumulative cost
vertical scale.
- The area bounded by a Cost Curve based
on Early Start Dates of Activities and a Cost Curve based
on Late Start Dates of activities.
- A ratio calculated from BCWP ÷ ACWP
(definition from C/Spec)
- The value of the work done less the actual cost of the
work done i.e. BCWP - ACWP. A negative
number shows the project is
currently over budget.
(definition from C/Spec)
- In 1967 the US Department of Defence defined a standard for the use of Earned Value
Analysis in defence projects. It has since been adopted much more widely
and is supported by most planning software.
(definition from C/Spec)
- If there is an urgent need to shorten the Critical Path of a
Network,
Activities may be 'Crashed'. This indicates drastic action to reduce the duration of a Critical Activity
which is only taken in exceptional circumstances and probably achieved by a
dramatic increase in Resources.
- The longest sequence of Activities in a Network. Usually,
but not always, a sequence with zero Float.A useful
means of encouraging staff and contractors as in "Your activity is on the
Critical Path"Warning: The Critical Path is
an accident of arithmetic. It may be the longest sequence of activities but
there may be others which have such minimal float as to be
inconsequential. Just because books are fond of talking about Critical Paths
and planning
software highlights the activities with no float do not focus
on the Critical
Path at the expense of all else. Also note that once Resource
Scheduling has been performed, Float and hence
the Critical
Path, are no longer valid calculations.
- A simple calculation of a Network of
Activities which results in a date which is the earliest possible completion
of the project
taking time and logic only, into account. Results in calculation of a Critical Path.A
process which computer programmers can understand and therefore one of the few
calculations that planning software
does almost accurately.Assessment of the quickest route to the pub after the
latest Progress Meeting.
- A sequence of Activities which have zero Float where
Resource Limits are taken into account when calculating Float.
- A proposed method for calculating a Critical Sequence
which takes Resource Limits into account when calculating an Activity's
flexibility.
- The key factors which are deemed critical to the success of the project. The
nature of these factors will govern the response to Conflicts, Risks and the
setting of Priorities.
- A Detailed Plan which is
prepared to show Activities which span more than one of the project's Stages
(definition from PRINCE 1)
- Every Project should
have a Customer
who is responsible for Acceptance of
Deliverables. The role may be external or internal to the organisation.
- An Activity
in a Network
which has either no Predecessors or no Successors.
- Delegation
is the art of getting others to perform work effectively which one cannot do
oneself because of a lack of time, competency or other reasons.
- An iterative process whereby a consensus view is reached by consultation
with experts. Often used as an estimating
technique.
- A role within the Programme
Executive, with the responsibility to manage the design of the business
and information systems that are affected or created by the Programme.
(definition abridged from CCTA Programme
Management)
- A component of the Programme Definition
Statement which helps to preserve both the programme's overall technical
design integrity and its coherence with plans for infrastructure and support
services.
(definition abridged from CCTA Programme
Management)
- This will exist when it is considered necessary to plan and control a
particular major activity within a
Stage. It sets
out the costs and resource usage which correspond to a Detailed Technical
Plan.
(definition from PRINCE 1)
- This exists in all but the smallest of projects. They are used to give a
detailed breakdown of certain major activities, e.g. system testing,
and are produced as and when required.
(definition from
PRINCE 1)
- The amount of elapsed time an Activity is
estimated to take.
- A measure of the speed and effectiveness with which a Resource delivers a
particular Skill.
- A review carried out at the outset of the Benefits
Realisation Phase to verify the completion of all Tranche projects.
(definition abridged from CCTA Programme
Management)
- The current estimated total cost of the project.
(definition from C/Spec)
- An Estimate of the time and/or Effort required to complete the Activity.
- The process of combining the results of Post Project Reviews,
Metrics, consultation and informed assessment to arrive at time and resource
requirements of an Activity.The
process of allocating wild guesses and random numbers to Activities.
- An estimate is an assessment of the anticipated cost of implementing all
or part of a project.
- A plan
produced in situations where costs or timescales have already been exceeded or
are anticipated to exceed the Tolerance set by
the Project
Board for the current Stage or Project.
(definition from PRINCE 1)
- An Activity
which spans between two points in a Network. It has no
Duration of its
own but derives one from the time difference between the two points to which
it is connected.
- The inventor of the Gantt Chart around
the turn of the century.
- A report prepared by the Project Manager at
intervals determined by the Project Board. It
reviews progress to date and highlights any actual or potential problems which
have been identified during the period it covers.
(definition from PRINCE 1)
- A graph showing resource usage on the vertical axis against time on the
horizontal axis.
- The process of assessing the ramifications of pursuing a particular course
of action - typically a change to the existing system.
(definition from PRINCE 1)
- The degree of flexibility which an Activity has which
does not affect the Float available on
any Preceding or Succeeding activities
- The lowest level of the Technical Plan which defines
the tasks and responsibilities of an individual team member.
(definition abridged from PRINCE 1)
- A less formal subset of a Quality Review.
(definition abridged from PRINCE 1)
- A body which offers a Certificate in Project Management
which is awarded on completing 80 hours of training and passing the ISEB exam.
- The art of making the same old mistakes and expecting a different result.
See also Project
Culture.
- The academic journal of the IPMA.
- See Internal Rate of Return
- A review point at the end of a Tranche, when
progress is reviewed and the next Tranche is
planned.b: An island in the South Seas where nothing changes and hence Project Management
is part of an alien culture. Site of a proposed home for tired and emotional
managers at the bottom of the NBS.
(definition abridged
from CCTA Programme Management)
- The top management group within a department responsible for the overall
overall direction of the IT projects forming part of
the IT strategy. It initiates and sets their terms of reference.
(definition from PRINCE 1)
- An Activity
which spans between two points in a Network. It has no
Duration of its
own but derives one from the time difference between the two points to which
it is connected.
- The inventor of the Gantt Chart around
the turn of the century.
- A report prepared by the Project Manager at
intervals determined by the Project Board. It
reviews progress to date and highlights any actual or potential problems which
have been identified during the period it covers.
(definition from PRINCE 1)
- A graph showing resource usage on the vertical axis against time on the
horizontal axis.
- The process of assessing the ramifications of pursuing a particular course
of action - typically a change to the existing system.
(definition from PRINCE 1)
- The degree of flexibility which an Activity has which
does not affect the Float available on
any Preceding or Succeeding activities
- The lowest level of the Technical Plan which defines
the tasks and responsibilities of an individual team member.
(definition abridged from PRINCE 1)
- A less formal subset of a Quality Review.
(definition abridged from PRINCE 1)
- A body which offers a Certificate in Project Management
which is awarded on completing 80 hours of training and passing the ISEB exam.
- The art of making the same old mistakes and expecting a different result.
See also Project
Culture.
- The academic journal of the IPMA.
- See Internal Rate of Return
- A review point at the end of a Tranche, when
progress is reviewed and the next Tranche is
planned.b: An island in the South Seas where nothing changes and hence Project Management
is part of an alien culture. Site of a proposed home for tired and emotional
managers at the bottom of the NBS.
(definition abridged
from CCTA Programme Management)
- The top management group within a department responsible for the overall
overall direction of the IT projects forming part of
the IT strategy. It initiates and sets their terms of reference.
(definition from PRINCE 1)
- A sequence of parallel activities connected at their starts and finishes.
Can result in some odd results in Critical Path
Analysis.Because programmers don't understand the effects of ladders on Critical Path
Analysis most software packages don't allow them.
- Management is defined as the art of getting others to do what one cannot
necessarily do oneself by organising, planning ,
controlling and directing resources. Leadership is
getting others to follow.
- A set of Configuration
Items - whether they comprise hardware, software or documentation.
(definition abridged from PRINCE 1)
- A technique used primarily on a construction project where
there are repetitive cycles, e.g. a housing estate.
- A term used in some computer packages to indicate Projects which use a
common set of Resources.
- A term which is being increasingly used in companies where many of the
normal management processes are being project managed.
- Management
development covers all aspects of staff planning,
recruitment, development, training and assessment. A project manager
would also be expected to have a reasonable understanding of personnel issues
such as salary administration and standard remuneration benefits.
- This are one of the three groups of Products produced by a project. Management
products are concerned with the organising, planning,
controlling, monitoring and reporting of the project.
(definition abridged from PRINCE 1)
- Organisations were traditionally managed by a series of functional
departments. Projects cut across departmental boundaries and create a Matrix.
Types of Matrix are Functional, Co-ordinated, Balanced, Secondment and Project.
- Some computer based Resource
Scheduling methods allow for Normal Resource Limits and maximum resource
limits. The resources between these two limits may be used when the Activity cannot be
scheduled using the normal limit.
- A documented process for the management of Projects or Programmes
containing procedures, definitions of terms and Roles &
Responsibilities.
- This may be held for one or more of four reasons: an interim assessment
for the Project
Board; to authorise limited work on the next Stage before the
current one is finished; to permit a formal review part way through a long
stage; to review Exception Plans.
(definition abridged
from PRINCE 1)
- A plan
containing only Milestones highlighting key points in the Project.
- The art and science of managing multiple projects which are, in some way,
interconnected. This may be Logic connections or, more likely, use of common
Resources. Warning: Often confused with Programme
Management, especially by developers of planning software
looking for a new selling point.
- A sequence of parallel activities connected at their starts and finishes.
Can result in some odd results in Critical Path
Analysis.Because programmers don't understand the effects of ladders on Critical Path
Analysis most software packages don't allow them.
- Management is defined as the art of getting others to do what one cannot
necessarily do oneself by organising, planning ,
controlling and directing resources. Leadership is
getting others to follow.
- A set of Configuration
Items - whether they comprise hardware, software or documentation.
(definition abridged from PRINCE 1)
- A technique used primarily on a construction project where
there are repetitive cycles, e.g. a housing estate.
- A term used in some computer packages to indicate Projects which use a
common set of Resources.
- A term which is being increasingly used in companies where many of the
normal management processes are being project managed.
- Management
development covers all aspects of staff planning,
recruitment, development, training and assessment. A project manager
would also be expected to have a reasonable understanding of personnel issues
such as salary administration and standard remuneration benefits.
- This are one of the three groups of Products produced by a project. Management
products are concerned with the organising, planning,
controlling, monitoring and reporting of the project.
(definition abridged from PRINCE 1)
- Organisations were traditionally managed by a series of functional
departments. Projects cut across departmental boundaries and create a Matrix.
Types of Matrix are Functional, Co-ordinated, Balanced, Secondment and Project.
- Some computer based Resource
Scheduling methods allow for Normal Resource Limits and maximum resource
limits. The resources between these two limits may be used when the Activity cannot be
scheduled using the normal limit.
- A documented process for the management of Projects or Programmes
containing procedures, definitions of terms and Roles &
Responsibilities.
- This may be held for one or more of four reasons: an interim assessment
for the Project
Board; to authorise limited work on the next Stage before the
current one is finished; to permit a formal review part way through a long
stage; to review Exception Plans.
(definition abridged
from PRINCE 1)
- A plan
containing only Milestones highlighting key points in the Project.
- The art and science of managing multiple projects which are, in some way,
interconnected. This may be Logic connections or, more likely, use of common
Resources. Warning: Often confused with Programme
Management, especially by developers of planning software
looking for a new selling point.
- Where a path in a Network becomes Hypercritical the
Activities on that path have Float of less than
zero. The quantity of float then
indicates the amount of time which must be picked up in order to achieve an
Imposed Date.
- The art of achieving, to the greatest extent possible, what it is that you
wish from a transaction leaving all parties to the negotiation
sufficiently content that the relationship has gone well.
- A diagram in which the logical relationships between Activities is shown
in either Activity
on Arrow or Precedence format.
Used as a basis for Critical Path
Analysis.A highly complex, intricate and involved diagram which Planners present
to project
Sponsors, the sole purpose of which is to convince the sponsor that he or she
could not possibly survive without the expertise of the planner.The group of
old friends and colleagues who you hope will help you out when your Risk Analysis
doesn't look so good.
- The preferred limit for a Resource. In some cases a Maximum Resource
Limit may be defined which is used when the Activity cannot be
scheduled in normal time.
- The Team
Building stage where
conflicts are largely settled and a group identity starts to emerge.
- A restriction placed on an Activity which
indicates that it may not start earlier than the specified date.
- A restriction placed on an Activity which
indicates that it may not finish later than the specified date.
- This is used to document any situation where the system fails to
meet its specification in some respect.
(definition
abridged from PRINCE 1)
- This is prepared by the operations manager at each location where the System is
installed after ensuring that the project complies
with the operations acceptance
criteria.
(definition abridged from PRINCE
1)
- The design of the most appropriate organisation for a project, including
definitions of roles and
responsibilities of the participants. The five basic kinds of structure are
functional, Coordination, Balanced, Seconded and Project Matrix.
- Extra time available for a Resource which may be used as part of Resource
Scheduling in some computer packages.
- See Programme
Definition Stage
(definition from CCTA Programme Management)
- Performance
Measurement is the method used to relate physical progress achieved with
cost status. The method identifies whether cost variances are due to
differences in the value of the work being performed being to expensive or
under budget.
In this way it is possible to determine if a project is ahead,
on or behind budget and whether
the trend will continue.
- The longest of the three durations in the Three Duration
Technique or PERT.The second
estimate given to you by a Team Member after you've already gone to press
based on his first estimate.
- Planning is
the process of identifying the means, resources and actions necessary to
accomplish one or more objectives.
- A review 6-12 months after a System has become
operational to that the project has met
its objectives and the system continues
to meet user requirements.
(definition abridged from
PRINCE 1)
- This activity completes
the Project
Management process and provides feedback in order to learn for the future.
A job close out/historical report will be generated and a review carried out
once the project has been
completed and accepted by the Customer/Owner.
- A formal review of the project which
examines the lessons which may be learnt and used to the benefit of future
projects.
- A format of Network where the
Activities are represented by rectangles and the flow of Logic, or
Dependencies, is shown by arrows connecting the boxes.
- The person responsible for ensuring that the Reviewers at a Quality Review
have the information required to carry out the review.
(definition abridged from PRINCE 1)
- The name everybody gives to their personal adaptation of PRINCE. It
usually stands for Projects in a Dynamic Environment but widely rumoured to
mean Projects In Deep Excrement.
- The person within a department responsible for co-ordinating the use of
PRINCE, and for liaison with the CCTA on matters
relating to PRINCE.
(definition from PRINCE
1)
- Projects In Controlled Environments. The first version of the standard methodology for project management
in government IT departments. Widely used in non-governmental organisations
usually in some adapted and cut-down form.
- A version of PRINCE due for release in 1996. It is intended to be
applicable to non-IT projects.
- A means of defining the order in which Activities will be scheduled during
Resource
Scheduling.
- Dependencies between Activities which indicate alternative sequences of
logic which have probabilities attached to them.
- Networks which comprise Probabilistic rather than Deterministic
relationships between Activities.
- This identifies the Products which are required and which must be
produced. It describes the System in a
hierarchic way.
(definition abridged from PRINCE
1)
- This shows how the Products are produced by identifying their derivation
and the Dependencies between them.An abstract representation of how project
deliverables seem to constantly slip through your fingers.
(definition abridged from PRINCE 1)
- A portfolio of Projects selected and planned in a co-ordinated way so as
to achieve a set of defined objectives, giving effect to various (and often
overlapping) initiatives and/or implementing a strategy. Alternatively, a
single, large or very complex project or a set
of otherwise unrelated projects bounded by a business cycle.
(definition abridged from CCTA Programme
Management)
- A review to assess achievement of targets and to measure performance
levels in the resulting business operations. The review also analyses the programme
management process.
(definition abridged from CCTA
Programme Management)
- A report drawn up at the end of the programme (and of
each Tranche of
the programme)
describing the findings, conclusions and recommendations of the PBR.
(definition from CCTA Programme Management)
- The second phase of Programme
Management involving a feasibility study, full definition and funding
approval. Initial Project Briefs are
written, specifying project
deliverables and outline project plans.
(definition from CCTA Programme
Management)
- The agreed statement of objectives and plans between the target business
operation, the Programme
Director, and the senior management group to whom the Programme Director
reports.
(definition abridged from CCTA Programme
Management)
- The senior manager with individual responsibility for the overall success
of the Programme who is
drawn from the management of the target business area.
(definition abridged from CCTA Programme
Management)
- A committee which directs the Programme, in
circumstances where this is not performed by an individual. It should be led
by an accountable individual Programme Director
as chairman.
(definition from CCTA Programme
Management)
- The original name for the Three Duration
Technique which has latterly become synonymous with networking techniques
in general.Plethora of Esoteric Reporting Terminology
- A group of individuals supporting the Programme Director
which has day to day management responsibility for the whole Programme.
(definition abridged from CCTA Programme
Management)
- The first phase of Programme
Management in which all high-level change proposals from available
strategies and initiatives are considered collectively and their objectives
and directions translated into one or more achievable programmes of work.
(definition abridged from CCTA Programme
Management)
- The selection and co-ordinated planning of a
portfolio of projects so as to achieve a set of defined business objectives,
and the efficient execution of these projects within a controlled environment
such that they realise maximum benefit for the resulting business
operations.The conspiracy between the BBC and ITV to ensure that the only two
programmes you really wanted to see all week are on at the same time.
(definition from CCTA Programme
Management)
- A programme
is a specific undertaking to achieve a number of objectives. Examples include
product and
economic development programmes where the programmes follow a concept/design
life cycle before moving into the implementation of multiple projects or
production units. In the case of multiple projects there is not the same
common objective. Instead, each project follows
its own project
lifecycle but the set of lifecycles should be coordinated and managed so
the overall system works
effectively.
- The individual responsible for day-to-day management of the programme on
behalf of the Programme
Director.
(definition abridged from CCTA Programme
Management)
- The date used in order to calculate the progress of the Project. All
Estimates to Complete or Remaining Durations should be assessed in accordance
with the Progress
Date.
- The process of gathering information on work done and revised estimates,
updating the Plan and reporting
the revised plan.
- A temporary management environment which is created in order to achieve a
particular business objective through the control and
co-ordination of logistical and technical resources.A major undertaking
who's sole purpose seems to be to provide the press with an opportunity to
write sensational headlines about the latest overrun in Completion Date or
Budget thus
creating a Project Failure
Culture.The fashionable name given to the latest moneymaking scheme of an
aspiring thespian, ageing rock star or both; as in "I'm really excited about
my latest project for a rock
opera based on Troillus and Cressida"
- Project
appraisal is the discipline of calculating the viability of a project. Project viability
is normally determined in largely economic or financial terms. However, it is
normally extended to include issues such as environment appraisal and
certainty of performance.
- The boundary of a project must be
defined to indicate how it interacts with other projects and non-project activity both
within and outside the organisation.
(definition from
PRINCE 1)
- A champion is a senior manager at a level higher than the Project Manager
who gains support and resources for the project.
- Most projects do not operate in isolation from the rest of the business.
They have to operate within a business environment which should be
complementary to the requirements of good project
management. The Project Culture is
the general attitude towards projects within the business.An insidious algae
that grows on old Post Project Reviews
which don't see the light of day for years leading to Insanity on the
part of uninformed Project Managers.
- Often used to describe the manager of a very large project which
demands a senior level of responsibility. May also refer to a person at board
level within an organisation who has overall responsibility for projects and
their management.
- A title that usually indicates that a person who is responsible for a
significant technical role on the project has also
been given the 'part time' role of Project
Manager.Somebody who manages a project and works
for a company who don't want to pay the going rate for a Project Leader.
- The Project
Environment is the context within which the project is
formulated, assessed and realised. It covers the external influences that are
brought to bear on a project including
geophysical, ecological, social, cultural, political, economic and ascetic.
- A documented review of the project's performance, produced at Project Closure.
It ensures that the experience of the project is
recorded for the benefit of others.
(definition from
PRINCE 1)
- The Project
File contains overall project plans and
other major documents.
(definition abridged from PRINCE
1)
- Certain management activities are required at Project Initiation
to ensure that the project is
established with clear terms of reference and an adequate management
structure.
(definition abridged from PRINCE
1)
- A report which raises issues on any aspect of the project whether
technical or managerial.
(definition from PRINCE
1)
- Somebody who manages a project and works
for a company who don't want to pay the going rate for a Project Manager.
- A sequence of phases through which a project must pass.
There are a variety of definitions that generally reflect different industry
practices. For example the RIBA nomenclature in building or the ESA, NATO and MOD
nomenclature in aerospace. The generally accepted sequence is: Prefeasibility
(validation of concepts); Feasibility (detailed investigation of viability)
Design; Contract (procurement); Implementation; Commissioning; Handover and
operation
- The American Professional body for Project Managers
- The name usually given to Project Planning and Scheduling
Software Packages.A mythical beast residing in the minds of software
salespersons who honestly believe that a couple of discs and a manual can turn
anyone into a Project Manager.
- The person appointed to take day-to-day responsibility for management of
the project
throughout all its stages.N.B. In PRINCE the Project Manager is
a non-technical role with technical management of the project being
undertaken by Stage Managers.
(definition abridged from PRINCE 1)
- Somebody who manages a project!The person who takes all the blame when the
project fails
to deliver but is politically astute enough to let the Project Sponsor
take all the credit when it goes well.
- Without doubt the most informative and entertaining periodical on the
subject of Project
Management - in the unbiased view of the editor.
- An organisational matrix based primarily on projects. Functional
structures are duplicated within each project.
- A generic term to describe the structure, roles and
responsibilities of the project team and
its interfaces to the outside word.
- The constituent projects within a programme.
(definition abridged from CCTA Programme
Management)
- A plan
contained within the Programme Definition
Statement which sets out a schedule of work,
covering the timing, resourcing and control, for the programme's projects.
(definition abridged from CCTA Programme
Management)
- A top-level management Resource Plan produced at
the beginning of the project. It covers
all Products within the Project Boundary.
(definition from PRINCE 1)
- A sponsor is concerned with defining the project objectives
in the context of the sponsoring organisation.Somebody who has screwed up so
many projects that he or she has been promoted to a level where they can't do
any damage but is deemed to have considerable project
experience.
- Projects should have a high level comprehensive definition of the way they
are to be developed and managed. All major issues should be addressed i.e.
technical, financial, organisational, time and quality as well as safety,
human resources, logistics, procurement, information systems and technology.
- The criteria upon which the relative success or failure of a the project may be
judged. Three basic sets of criteria can be identified: 1- the sponsoring
organization, owner or user. 2 - the traditional or classical project management
one of on time, in budget or to
specification. 3 - project
profitability. It is important to note that criteria change with time. The
fact that the original objectives were not achieved does not mean the project was a
failure.
- Where a large number of projects are regularly undertaken it can be
beneficial to concentrate the planning and project support
functions in one area which has the responsibility of managing resources
across projects and maintaining planning
standards.When planners are
unsuccessful at convincing other members of the project team of
their indispensability, they congregate in groups external to the projects and
convince the Board
of Directors that a body is required to make sure Project Managers
are under control. This project police
force is usually given the misnomer of the Project Support
Office.
- A proprietary methodology
developed by Learmonth Burchett Management Systems Ltd. upon which PRINCE 1
was originally based.
- A generic term for subjective methods of assessing risks e.g.
Identification of Likelihood and Impact.
- This is concerned with how quality is achieved and assured through the
specification of cost effective Quality Control
procedures.
(definition abridged from PRINCE
1)
- Involves the examination and checking of products produced by the project. It is
realised by the Quality Review,
End-Stage and
Mid-Stage
Assessments and by testing of products.
(definition
abridged from PRINCE 1)
- The characteristics of a Product which
determine whether it meets it requirements.
(definition
abridged from PRINCE 1)
- A component of the Programme Definition
Statement, setting out quality objectives for the programme's design and
execution.
(definition abridged from CCTA Programme
Management)
- A review where a Product or group
of products is checked against an agreed set of Quality Criteria.
(definition abridged from PRINCE 1)
- A Calendar
which defines the working and non-working patterns for a specific Resource.
- The amount of a particular Resource available to the Project at a point
in time.A number which is always less than the resources required on the project.
- A component of the Programme Definition
Statement stating how the programme will be
resourced, and specifying what supporting services, infrastructure and third
party services are required.
(definition from CCTA
Programme Management)
- $ A sequence of milestones in a Milestone Chart
which contribute to a common result. i.e. a means of categorising milestones
in order to impose structure on the diagram.
- A sum of money retained by the Customer from each
Stage Payment
which is paid at the end of the Project when the
end product is
accepted.
- The people responsible for checking that a Product is
complete and fault free, at a Quality Review.
(definition from PRINCE 1)
- Projects by their very definition comprise a high degree of work which is
unique in itself or in the way it is incorporated into a particular project. This
implies risks of various types e.g. physical, estimating,
financial or political.In quantitative terms Risk is the probability of an
undesired outcome.
- The process of assessing your chances of keeping your job when the project is canned.
See also Risk
Management.
- The process of planning
activities so as to avoid risks which have been identified by using an
alternative method.
- The analysis, evaluation and management of project risks.
Risks are present in all projects and in most aspects of the project
(technical, financial, schedule, etc.) only the
size of the risk varies. Risks
should be analysed in a comprehensive and systematic manner and in combination
under a variety of scenarios
- A matrix containing the identified risks as rows and columns for Impact and Likelihood. Each
cell in the matrix contains a classification from the Risk Ranking
process.
- The allocation of a
classification to the Impact or Likelihood of a Risk. This may be
in the form of High, Medium, Low or a numeric classification on a scale of,
say, 1 to 5.
- A file containing all relevant information relating to the identification
and management of a risk.
- Where a contractual arrangement exists between two parties for delivery
and acceptance
of a product
the liability for the costs of a Risk may be
transferred from one party to the other.
- Many aspects of project work are
done as a part-time responsibility. All Methodologies recognise that the Project Manager
and all other job titles are role definitions where the role is often
fulfilled by a person who has other roles to fill
simultaneously.
- An automatic demonstration of a software package which highlights all the
good looking parts of the software and omits all the tricky parts that don't
work so well.
- A term coined by the consultancy KPMG to identify mainly IT projects which
resist termination. Typified by a constantly changing specification and
absorption of much extra resource and cost in a desperate effort to get the project finished.
- See Synergistic Contingency
Evaluation and Response Technique.
- A collection of reports showing the timing of Activities, the resources
allocated to them and associated costs.
- A ratio calculated from BCWP ÷ BCWS.
(definition from C/Spec)
- The value of the work done less the value of the work which should have
been done i.e. BCWP - BCWS. A negative
number shows the project is behind
schedule.
(definition from C/Spec)
- The latest calculated finish date for an Activity taking
all Dependencies, Progress and Resource Limits into account.
- The latest calculated start date for an Activity taking
all Dependencies, Progress and Resource Limits into account.
- Determination of the best means of achieving a project's general and
specific schedule
objectives. This involves identification and optimization of the project's
overall and stage schedule
requirements, resource availability and internal external
constraint and activity
sequencing.
- The term often used to describe the continual extension of the scope of
some projects. Often leading to a Runaway Project.
The smarmy social climber who tells the boss that he knew all along that the
project
definition was wrong.
- A Risk
which comes about as a result of avoiding or reducing another risk.
- An organisational structure where team members are seconded from their
respective departments for the duration of the project.
- A letter prepared by the Executive after
reviewing security aspects of the completed project.
(definition from PRINCE 1)
- This role on the Project Board
represents the interests of the development and operational organisations.
(definition from PRINCE 1)
- This role on the Project Board
represents the interests of users and other
functions affected by the project.
(definition from PRINCE 1)
- Resources perform Activities through possession of skills. The increasing
ability of computer packages to define skills separately from resources
provides considerably greater flexibility in managing resource Allocation.
- Some computer packages allow the definition of Group Resources or Skill Groups. The
scheduling
algorithm then chooses the most appropriate resource for an Activity based on
its availability and Efficiency.
- The time difference between the latest scheduled dates for an Activity and the
Baseline dates.
- A report highlighting the time difference between current Scheduled Dates
and the original Baseline Dates
which from its name clearly assumes the worst!Any newspaper article on a major
project.
- A project
which is intended to bring about some form of change, e.g. a relocation or
re-organisation, and does not have physical end products.
- A sub-section of a project which has
its own organisational structure, life-span and Stage Manager.
(definition abridged from PRINCE 1)
- This contains the detailed management plans and reports for the stage.
(definition abridged from PRINCE 1)
- The person who is responsible for the management and successful completion
of a Stage.
(definition abridged from PRINCE 1)
- A plan
containing the details of all the required resource for one particular Stage.
(definition from PRINCE 1)
- A team built for the purpose of completing the Stage.
(definition from PRINCE 1)
- A term used in some Methodologies to describe the lowest level of the Work Breakdown
Structure.Two of the backwards variety often equal one of the forwards
variety on projects.
- The Team
Building stage where
conflicts arise as members of the group try to exert leadership and
methods of operation are being established.
- A discrete section of the main project for which
a Sub-Network
may be developed in order to simplify the main plan.
- Cost which could not be avoided even if the project were to be
terminated.
- Every project should
have a set of systems and
procedures detailing the standard methods, practices and procedures of
handling frequently occurring events within the project. These
will cover management approvals, controls and technical requirements. Systems
will also cover methods of handling information transfer and storage. Such
systems are often called methodologies.
- Systems
management covers the elaboration of the specification for the technical,
organisational, cost, time and other parameters of a system and the
subsequent management of the planning,
design/engineering, procurement, implementation and testing areas of the work
needed to realise the system concept. Systems management
comprises the prime activities of Systems Analysis, Systems Design and
Engineering and Systems Development.
- A term usually synonymous with Activity.
- A vital Soft Skill for Project Managers
who need to understand Team Dynamics and the individual characteristics that
make up a high functioning team. According to Tuckman and Jensen the stages
are Forming, Storming, Norming, Performing and Adjourning.A
lunchtime diversion for those into fantasy football and cricket.
- The ability to assemble the right people to join the project team and
to get everyone working together for the benefit of the project.
Motivating and resolving conflict between individual members of the team are
important elements of team building.
- The person responsible for managing a Stage Team.
(definition abridged from PRINCE 1)
- The process of monitoring the technical integrity of Products.
(definition abridged from PRINCE 1)
- A file containing all end Products which will be delivered to other bodies
at the end of the project.
(definition abridged from PRINCE 1)
- The Products produced by the project which
satisfy an end user function.
(definition abridged from
PRINCE 1)
- A method for reducing estimating
uncertainty. Three durations are estimated; Optimistic, Likely and
Pessimistic. Either a Beta Distribution
is then used to calculate the Estimated Duration which is
used in a Critical
Path Analysis, or Monte Carlo simulations are used to calculate a
distribution for the overall project duration.An estimating
technique which allows three damp fingers to be waved in the breeze rather
than one.
- The process of recording effort done on each project activity for use
in updating the project plan.A weekly
memory test to see if you can remember what you've been doing this week.
- Software packages which build a time sheet from project planning software
files and feed actual effort back in to the project plan.A means of
automatically transferring the work of fiction which is your weekly Time Sheet into
progress information in the Project Management
Software package. This process confers an indisputable aura of truth to
the random numbers used to fill all the fields in the on-screen time sheet.
- A means of recording the actual effort expended against project and non-project
activities.A series of boxes which can be filled with random numbers in order
to pass time at the end of the day when its not worth starting anything else.
- The level of Risk which is
acceptable in order to achieve certain benefits.
- The approach to a project whereby it
is planned in increasing levels of detail one level at a time.
- The amount of time an Activity may be
delayed without delaying any succeeding activities.
- The process of collecting actual time, cost and resource information and
feeding this back into the project plan.
- A block of work within the Programme,
identified to facilitate the programme's management.
(definition from CCTA Programme Management)
- The process of taking Products and, by performing
activities and then quality processes on them, producing the next set of
Products.
(definition abridged from PRINCE
1)
- A component of the Programme Definition
Statement, describing how the transition from the current business
operation to the new environment of the Blueprint is to be
managed.
(definition from CCTA Programme
Management)
- A member of the PSO responsible for co-ordination of the User Assurance
Co-ordinators on the project supported
by the PSO.
(definition abridged from PRINCE
1)
- The protection of the User's interests including the impact on the
user's business and operational requirements.
(definition abridged from PRINCE 1)
- The person who represents the Users on a
day-to-day basis and is responsible for reporting and monitoring User Assurance
aspects of the project.
(definition abridged from PRINCE 1)
- The group of people who are intended to benefit from the project. They are
characterised by a manic obsession with adding new requirements to the
specification, especially those which bring no extra value to the end product but
require much time and money.
- Value
management in its broadest sense may be defined as a structured means of
improving business effectiveness and includes the use of management techniques
such as Value Engineering and Value Analysis. Value management
is concerned with appreciation of value NOT costs.
- The term used in the construction industry for an approved technical
change to the Project.
- See Venture Evaluation and Review Technique
- A code which represents the "family tree" of an element in a Work Breakdown
Structure, e.g. 01.05.02 indicates the second element at level 3, which is
part of the fifth element of level 2. Level one usually has only one element -
the Project.
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© Copyright
1996
Created: 19 March 1996
Last Updated: 09 April
1997