Earned Value Management - A method of measuring project performance and progress with regard to scope, resources, and schedule                                                                                

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Project Contingency Reserves - used to cover the costs of identified risks that can affect a project.

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Initiating - A project management process group that consist of Identifying stakeholders.

                          

Forcing - making the decision for conflicts that must be addressed immediately on a unilateral basis.

                                                      

Scope Creep - gradual changes in project scope that occur without a formal scope change procedure. Scope creep is considered negative since unapproved changes in scope affect cost and schedule but do not allow complementary revisions to cost and schedule estimates.

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Interactive, Push, and Pull - Communication methods to share information between stakeholders

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Project Risks - state that additional risks will emerge as the project progresses. 

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Acceptance Criteria -  refer to a set of predefined requirements that must be met to mark a user story complete. Acceptance criteria are also sometimes called the “definition of done”  and must be set prior to the work on a project has begun because they determine the scope and requirements that must be executed by developers to consider the user story finished.

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Analogous Cost Estimation - The analogy method compares a new or proposed system with one analogous (i.e., similar) system, that was typically acquired in the recent past, for which there is accurate cost and technical data.

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Closing Process - a process group that refers to those processes that have been conducted to formally terminate and conclude all tasks, activities, and component parts of a particular project, or phase of a project. The final step of the closing process will then typically involve either the transfer, acceptance, and approval of the final deliverables to the assigning party, or, in the event the activity did not end up taking place, initiating and completing the cancellation process.

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Collecting Requirements - A critical component of defining a project's scope

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Communications Strategy - have the right people get the accurate information at the correct time and with the right impact.

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Communication Channel Formula - Number of potential communication channels = n x (n-1)/2

                                                               n = the number of stakeholders (or team members)

                                                               Example: Number of Persons (stakeholders or team members) Number of Potential                     Communication Channels

                                                               1           0

                                                               2           1

                                                               3           3

                                                               4           6

                                                               5           10

                                                               6           15

                                                               7           21

                                                               8           28

                                                               9           36

                                                               10         45

                                                               50        1225

                                                               100      4950

                                                               200      19900

 

Contingency Reserve - is retained earnings that have been set aside to guard against possible future losses. A contingency reserve is needed in situations where a business occasionally suffers significant losses, and needs reserves to offset those losses.

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Contract Closeout - the process of resolving all contract issues or fulfilling contract requirements. During this phase, clients are to provide project managers with the completion notice.

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Cost Baseline - A document that is used to against cost variances measure for project control

 

Cost-Plus Fixed Fee (CPFF) - This is the most basic type of cost-plus contract. In this version, the buyer simply pays a flat fee on top of the actual costs incurred to meet the contractual obligations.

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Cost-Plus Incentive Fee (CPIF) - As the name implies, these contracts include a higher fee whenever the contractor meets or exceeds performance targets stipulated in the contract. Those targets typically involve completion dates but may also reward other results, most notably additional cost savings. a type of contract that has the highest risk for buyers and lowest risk to sellers.

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Cost-Plus Percentage of Cost (CPPC) - In these contracts, the contractor’s fee is a percentage of the overall costs incurred. So as costs escalate, so does the contractor’s fee. While such an arrangement may protect the contractor in case of, say, rising labor or research costs incurred to meet a deadline, most large companies and government agencies are averse to such contracts because there is little incentive for the contractor to keep costs from rising.

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Cost-Plus Award Fee (CPAF) - These contracts pay an additional fee based on work performance. In delivering a product, for example, additional fees may be earned if the item is more durable, energy efficient or faster than the original specifications set forth.

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Cost-Plus Fixed Rate- Rarely used, and only by contractors who really know their costs and labor rates, this type of cost-plus contract establishes labor rates up front. Neither party gets much flexibility.

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Critical Chain Method (CCM) - used to perform Schedule Network Analysis that considers task dependencies, limited resource availability, and buffers. It's used to prepare the project schedule when limited or restricted resources are available.

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Delphi Technique - a method of group decision-making and forecasting that involves successively collating the judgments of experts.

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Dependencies - the relationships among tasks which determine the order in which activities need to be performed. There are four (4) types of dependency relationships.

  Types of dependencies:

    Finish to Start - Predecessor must finish before Successor can start. [Land must be purchased before road building can start]

    Start to Start - Predecessor must start before Successor can start. [Road excavating must start before Asphalt can be laid]

    Finish to Finish -  Predecessor must finish before Successor can finish. [Laying Asphalt must be complete before line painting can                                    be completed]

    Start to Finish - Predecessor must start before Successor can finish. [Road excavating must start before line painting can be                                           completed]

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Forecasting - predicting future project performance based on the actual performance to date.

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Lessons Learned Document -  the collected results of surveys and team member input throughout the lifecycle of a project. Create a process for gathering input at key points throughout the project, then record and use it to create detailed reports. It is important to record these initial project observations, project variances, and the causes of these variances so you can access them later. This document contains the raw data you will use to write your reports.

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Management Reserve - the amount of the project budget reserved for unforeseen work that is within the scope of the project. The project manager adds the management reserve to the cost baseline resulting in the total project budget.

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Mitigation Plan - the process of planning for disasters and having a way to lessen negative impacts of uncertainty.

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Project Acceptance - by negotiating and influencing stakeholder desires to achieve and maintain the project goals, project stakeholders expectations can be managed.

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Project Assurance - a discipline that seeks to provide an independent and objective oversight of the likely future performance of major projects for those responsible for sanctioning, financing or insuring such undertakings. The discipline has emerged as a response to consistent problems in major projects and the need to provide confidence for project or programme stakeholders of technologically advanced, high capital or high risk projects.

 

Project Charter - A Project charter is a document that details the scope, organization, and objectives of a project. It is typically created by a project manager and formally approved by the sponsor. A project charter authorizes the project manager’s use of organizational resources for the project and is understood to be an agreement between the sponsor, stakeholders, and project manager.

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PMI Code of Ethics - members have determined that honesty, responsibility, respect and fairness are the values that drive ethical conduct for the project management profession. PMI’s Code of Ethics and Professional Conduct applies those values to the real-life practice of project management, where the best outcome is the most ethical one.

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Project Deliverable - any unique and verifiable product, result or capability to perform a service that is required to be produced to complete a process, phase , or project.

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Project Management Office - An organizational unit that oversees project management-related activities within an organization. It seeks to define and maintains standards within the organization. A project management office also functions as a repository of tools, methodologies, techniques, and resources.

 

Project Manager - The person tasked with initiating, planning, executing, and closing a project, and with managing all aspects of project performance through these phases. The term is typically used for a project management professional. Project managers are able to use organizational resources for projects. They serve as contact points for sponsors, program managers, and other stakeholders with the responsibility of project integration management.                                                                                                        

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Projectized Organization - A projectized organization arranges all its activities into a collection of projects, programs, and portfolios. Projects are typically completed for external clients or customers. The prioritization of project work means the project manager can utilize resources and assign work as they see fit.

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Qualitative Risk Analysis - involves identifying a list of risks (or opportunities), how likely they are to happen, and the potential impacts if they do.

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Responsibility Assignment Matrix - show the connections between work packages or activities and project team members.

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Risk Mitigation - After the risk has been identified and assessed, the project team develops a risk mitigation plan, ie a plan to reduce the impact of an unexpected event.

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Risk Avoidance - you take measures to avoid the risk from occurring

 

Risk Acceptance - Accepting the risk as it stands

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Risk Reduction - take steps to reduce the likelihood of a risk happening or the impact should it occur.

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Risk Transference - completely transfer risk to third party

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Stakeholder Input - To achieve maximum input from stakeholders, conduct interviews with all stakeholders

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Status Reports - need to be provided to each stakeholder identified in the communication plan and should identify actions that could reduce the possibility of incurring future negative performance. 

 

Scope Decomposition - A tool used to further break down deliverables to manageable levels.

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Validate Scope Process - the process of formalizing acceptance of project deliverables. A process that shows the stakeholders have received what was agreed upon and formalizes their approval. It is primarily concerned with the recognition of the product by validating each deliverable and documenting the level and extent of that deliverable. 

 

Work Breakdown Structure (WBS) -  a deliverable-oriented hierarchical decomposition of the work to be executed by the project team to accomplish the project objectives and create the required deliverables. A WBS is the cornerstone of effective project planning, execution, controlling, monitoring, and reporting. All the work contained within the WBS is to be identified, estimated, scheduled, and budgeted. Each level of the WBS represents an increase in detailed definition of the project work.

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Portfolio - A collectively managed set of programs and projects grouped together to help facilitate management of the work to meet business objectives.

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RACI Chart - also known as a responsibility assignment matrix—is a simple diagram used in project management to map task roles and responsibilities. It is also utilized as a primary source document for the resource management process.

 

To Complete Performance Index (TCPI) - is a measure of the cost performance that is required to be achieved with the remaining resources in order to meet a specified management goal, expressed as the ratio of the cost to finish the outstanding work to the remaining budget. 

 

Progressive Elaboration - involves continuously improving and detailing a plan as more detailed and specific information and more accurate estimates become available. Progressive elaboration allows a project management team to define work and manage it to a greater level of detail as the project evolves

 

Effective Communication - A Message must be acknowledged and understood

 

Control Chart - form one of the many tools at the disposal of a project manager to ensure that the project stays on track and the number of defects/output matches what was promised. Using and implementing tools that are both old and new will help make the job of managing a project much easier. It will also give more transparency to all the stakeholders and increase credibility and trust across the board.   

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Project Management Plan - is iterative and goes through progressive elaboration throughout the project’s life cycle.

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Non-Conformance Cost - money spent or costs incurred during or after the project, because of failures due to poor quality.

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Corporate Knowledge Base - collection of past project documents, process measurement databases, lessons learned write-ups, and issue database

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Decomposition - associated with the creation of the Work Breakdown Structure (WBS)

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Critical Path - is the longest sequence of tasks that must be completed to complete a project. The tasks on the critical path are called critical activities because if they’re delayed, the whole project completion will be delayed.

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Risk Identification Checklists - are developed based on historical information and knowledge that has been accumulated from previous similar projects. 

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Interpersonal Skills - The PMBOK® Guide—Fourth Edition offers a list of tools and techniques for use in managing stakeholder                                                  expectations, including the following three interpersonal skills (PMI, 2008, p. 264):

                                      Resolving conflict, overcoming resistance to change, and building trust.

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Software Resource Leveling - defined by A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK Guide) as "A technique in which start and finish dates are adjusted based on resource constraints with the goal of balancing demand for resources with the available supply."

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Program Evaluation and Review Technique (PERT) -  is used to find the estimated time for activities to be completed when there are many unknown factors. Three-Point Estimation can be utilized in this situation.

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Risk Appetite - a tendency towards risks

Risk Tolerance - an acceptable variance

Risk Threshold - a quantified limit beyond which you will not accept the risk

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Rolling Wave Planning - progressive detailing of the project plan throughout the project life cycle

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Scope Baseline - comprised of the project scope statement, work breakdown structure, and work breakdown structure dictionary.

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Stakeholder Identification - Should all be identified at the beginning of a project as they can have an impact on how successful a project is.

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Earned Value = Budget at completion x % Completed

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Cost Variance = Earned Value – Actual Cost

        We can conclude the following from the above formula:

        You are under budget if the Cost Variance is positive.

        You are over budget if the Cost Variance is negative.

        You are on the budget if the Cost Variance is zero.

 

Schedule Variance = Earned Value – Planned Value

        From the above formula, we can conclude that:

        You are ahead of schedule if the Schedule Variance is positive.

        You are behind schedule if the Schedule Variance is negative.

        You are on schedule if the Schedule Variance is zero.

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Staffing Management Plan - specifically focus on the man power aspects of the project. Staffs are the most important resource of a project. It is important to select and acquire the right staff with right skills at the right time.

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Quality Management Plan - ensure the quality of the project’s deliverables meet the acceptable standards of precision and accuracy as well as stakeholder’s expectations. 

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User Story - A project requirement stated in one sentence. It typically identifies users, real or hypothetical, what these users want from software, and why they want it. Project development teams prioritize user stories in each iteration by assigning story points. An informal, general explanation of a software feature written from the perspective of the end user or customer. 

 

Constraints of Project Management -

   Time (Schedule) Constraint: The time constraint refers to the project’s schedule for completion, including the deadlines for each phase of the project, as well as the date for rollout of the final deliverable.

   Scope Constraint: The scope of a project defines its specific goals, deliverables, features, and functions, in addition to the tasks required to complete the project.

   Cost (Budget) Constraint: The cost of the project, often dubbed the project’s budget, comprises all of the financial resources needed to complete the project on time, in its predetermined scope. Keep in mind that cost does not just mean    money for                                                         materials — it encompasses costs for labor, vendors, quality control, and other factors, as well.

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Project Cost Management - includes the processes involved in planning, estimating, budgeting, financing, funding, managing, and controlling costs so that the project can be completed within the approved budget. The ability to influence cost is greatest at the early stages of the project, making early scope definition critical. Project Cost Management should consider the stakeholder requirements for managing costs. Different stakeholders will measure project costs in different ways and at different times

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Total Float - measured as the difference between the early and late start dates (LS - ES) or the early and late finish dates (LF – EF). Total float is shared between the activities in a sequence. A sequence is defined as the activities between a point of path divergence and path convergence. Total float represents the amount of time an activity can be delayed without delaying the overall project duration and is also called “float” or “slack”.

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Free Float - measured by subtracting the early finish (EF) of the activity from the early start (ES) of the successor activity. Free float represents the amount of time that a schedule activity can be delayed without delaying the early start date of any immediate successor activity within the network path.

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Interactive Communication -  involves the sharing of information back and forth between sender and receiver in real time. It’s used in cases where an immediate response is required, and in other areas where push and pull communication methods seem insufficient. Interactive communication can be performed virtually or in person to help create a targeted audience.

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Secondary Risk - A secondary risk is a risk that arises as the result of implementing a risk response. If the risk response was not taken, the secondary risk would not exist. Secondary risks should be evaluated for appropriate action. The severity of the secondary risk or unknown risks may eliminate the risk response as an option if the secondary risk falls outside of the project risk tolerance.

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Communication Planning - The Communications Planning process determines the information and communications needs of the stakeholders; for example, who needs what information, when they will need it, how it will be given to them, and by whom. While all projects share the need to communicate project information, the informational needs and methods of distribution vary widely. Identifying the informational needs of the stakeholders and determining a suitable means of meeting those needs is an important factor for project success.

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Individual Risk - an uncertain event or condition that, if it occurs, has a positive or negative effect on a project's objectives.

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Overall Project Risk - the effect of uncertainty on the project as a whole. Greater than total of individual project risk.

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Stakeholder Engagement - Creating an environment of trust for stakeholders allows those involved to provide meaningful, productive feedback but also keeps them engaged in the process moving forward. By providing an accessible platform for stakeholder feedback and ensuring that they are being heard, education leaders demonstrate their recognition that stakeholder voices are important and their views have merit. 

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Stakeholder Expectations - Four keys to managing stakeholder expectations which lay on the project manager to manage:

                                                         Make sure "project success" is clearly defined before the project begins

                                                         Don't make stakeholders wait too long before they start to see value

                                                         Execute against the objective to ensure project success

                                                         Keep it simple when communicating with project stakeholders

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Communication Requirements Analysis - determines the information needs of the project stakeholders. These requirements are defined by combining the type and format of information needed with an analysis of the value of that information.

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Risk Register - used for each project to track and record the risks and issues identified.

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Project Life Cycle - a “series of project phases that a project passes through from its start to its completion.” A project phase is “a collection of logically related project activities that culminates in the completion of one or more deliverables.” 

 

Timing Diagram - a specific behavioral modeling diagram that focuses on timing constraints.

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Precedence Diagram -

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Stakeholder Matrix -

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Critical Path Diagram -

 

                                        

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Three-Point Estimating -  (Optimistic estimate  + Most likely estimate + Pessimistic estimate) / 3

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Workarounds Plans -  are responses to problems that develop while the project is being worked that were never identified.

 

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Projects are often utilized as a means of directly or indirectly achieving objectives within an organization's strategic plan.

 

Review of project performance and deliverables at the end of a project phase is completed to help find and correct any errors and determine if a project is ready for the next phase.

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Bigger risk = Bigger reward

Smaller risk =. Smaller reward

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Projects tend to be temporary in nature.

 

it is important to identify the critical path in order to define the activities that determine the duration of a project.

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The purpose of negotiating with clients as a communication technique is to achieve mutually acceptable agreements between parties.

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conflict over technical issues can lead to better understanding.

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Project managers must communicate with team members and project stakeholders before project start

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During the Initiation phase, sponsors has the greatest influence on scope, time, and cost

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A phase that occurs out of sequence will cause an error in a projects, forward and backward pass estimates

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Focusing on elements in level 3, instead of level 2, in the Work Breakdown Structure results in a more microscopic control.

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Measure the completion of the product scope against the product requirements to find out if all specifications are met.