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243 Cards in this Set

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The project management standard developed by the Project Management Institute.

A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK Guide)

The decision to tolerate the defects that are found as a result of the quality testing. This is also a tool for risk response planning.

Acceptance

The process and the criteria that will be used to determine whether the deliverables are acceptable and satisfactory.

Acceptance criteria
Identifying the activities of the project that need to be performed to produce the product or service of the project.
Activity definition
Assessing the number of work periods needed to complete the project activities. Work periods are usually expressed in hours or days. Large projects might express duration in weeks or months.
Activity duration
A list of all the activities required to complete the work of the project that also includes an identifier code and the WBS code it's associated with. Activities are broken down from the work package level of the WBS.
Activity list
Sequencing activities in logical order and determining whether dependencies exist among the activities.
Activity sequencing
The cost to complete a component of work in a given time period. Actual costs include direct and indirect costs.
Actual cost (AC)
A type of project ending that occurs when projects evolve into ongoing operations.
Addition
A process that involves gathering and disseminating information to formalize project closure. The completion of each project phase requires Administrative Closure also. The primary purpose of this process is to gather lessons learned and distribute the notice of acceptance.
Administrative Closure
An estimating technique that uses the actual duration of a similar, completed activity to determine the duration of the current activity. This is also called top-down estimating.
Analogous estimating
Costs of quality that cover the activities that keep the product defects from reaching the client, including inspection, testing, and formal quality audits.
Appraisal costs
An event or action believed to be true for planning purposes. Project assumptions should always be documented.
Assumption
A conflict-resolution technique that occurs when one party refuses to talk anymore about the issue and physically leaves. This is an example of a lose-lose conflict-resolution technique. This technique is also known as withdrawal.
Avoiding
Calculating late start and late finish dates by starting at the end of a network diagram and working back through each path until reaching the start of the network diagram. This is part of critical path method (CPM), which is a mathematical technique to develop the project schedule.
Backward pass
Compares previous similar activities to the current project activities to provide a standard to measure performance against. It's often used to derive ideas for quality improvements for the project.
Benchmarking
A type of decision model that compares the benefits obtained from a variety of new project requests by evaluating them using the same criteria and comparing the results.
Benefit measurement methods
A meeting held by the buyer with potential vendors during the procurement process to allow vendors to ask questions and get clarification on the project.
Bidder conference
Individually estimating each work package, all of which are then rolled up, or added together, to come up with a total project estimate. This is a very accurate means of estimating, provided the estimates at the work package level are accurate.
Bottom-up estimating
The total amount of the project budget for a work package, control account, or schedule activity, or for the project.
Budget at completion (BAC)
The person in charge of understanding the business unit's needs when assessing a project request. The business analyst might be assigned directly from the business unit itself or may be part of the IT organization.
Business analyst
Formally documents components of the project assessment, including a description of the analysis method and the results.
Business case
Applying changes to an IT system and putting those elements into place based on a project request and a business analyst's examination of the workflow—how people handle their work relative to the request.
Business process reengineering
The requirements that describe how the business objectives of the project will be met.
Business requirements
A Quality Control technique that shows the relationship between the effects of problems and their causes. This is also known as an Ishikawa diagram and a fishbone diagram.
Cause-and-effect diagram
A board responsible for reviewing and approving, denying, or delaying change requests. The change control board is usually made up of stakeholders, managers, project team members, and others who might have an interest in the project.
Change control board (CCB)
A process that concerns completing and settling the terms of the contract and documenting its acceptance.
Close Procurements
A process that documents the final delivery and acceptance of the project and is where hand-off occurs to the operational unit. Lessons learned are performed during this process, and project team members are released.
Closing
When team members work together at the same physical location.
Collocated
Describes a software application that is purchased from a reseller, vendor, or manufacturer.
Commercial off-the-shelf (COTS)
Variances that come about as a result of circumstances that are common to the process you're performing and are easily controlled at the operational level. The three types of common cause variances are random, known or predictable, and variances that are always present in the process.
Common causes of variances
Documents the types of information needs the stakeholders have, when the information should be distributed, and how the information will be delivered.
Communications management plan
Determines the communication needs of the stakeholders, when and how the information will be received, and who will receive the information.
Communications planning
Integrates all planning data into one document that the project manager can use as a guidebook to oversee the project work during the Executing and Controlling phases.
Comprehensive project plan
A conflict-resolution technique where each party involved gives up something to reach a resolution. This is not generally a permanent solution.
Compromise
Describes the characteristics of the product of the project and ensures the description is accurate and complete. Controls changes to the characteristics of an item and tracks the changes made or requested and their status. It is usually a subset of the change control process in most organizations, or it may serve as the change control system.
Configuration management
A conflict-resolution technique that is also known as problem solving. This is the best way to resolve conflicts and involves fact finding to bear out the solution. This is a win-win conflict-resolution technique.
Confronting
Decision models that use complex principles of statistics and other mathematical concepts to assess a proposed project.
Constrained optimization models
Anything that either restricts the actions of the project team or dictates the actions of the project team.
Constraint
An amount of money or time set aside and dedicated to the project to be used to cover unforeseen costs or time that was not identified as part of the planning process.
Contingency reserve
A legally binding document that describes the work that will be performed, how the work will be compensated, and any penalties for noncompliance.
Contract
The process of monitoring vendor performance and ensuring all the requirements of the contract are met.
Contract administration
The process of completing and settling the terms of the contract and determining whether the work described in the contract was completed accurately and satisfactorily.
Contract closeout
A graph of the variance of several samples of the same process over time based on a mean, an upper control limit, and a lower control limit.
Control chart
A type of change request that typically occurs during the Monitoring and Controlling processes. Corrective actions bring the work of the project back into alignment with the project plan.
Corrective actions
The total approved, expected cost of the project created in the planning process. It's used as a comparison to actual project expenses throughout the remainder of the project.
Cost baseline
Assigning cost estimates to activities and creating the cost baseline, which measures the performance of the project throughout the project's life.
Cost budgeting
A process that measures the project spending to date, determines whether changes have occurred to the cost baseline, and takes action to deal with the changes. This process monitors the budget and manages changes to the cost baseline.
Cost Control
Developing an estimation of the cost of resources needed for each project activity.
Cost estimating
The cost of all of the work required to assure the project meets the quality standards. The three costs associated with the cost of quality are prevention costs, appraisal costs, and failure costs.
Cost of quality
Measures the value of the work completed at the measurement date against actual cost. This is the most critical of all EVM measurements. The formula is CPI = EV / AC.
Cost performance index (CPI)
The difference between a task's value at the measurement date and its actual cost. The formula is CV = EV – AC.
Cost variance
A commonly used benefit measurement method that calculates the cost of producing the product, service, or result of the project and compares this to the financial gain the project is expected to generate.
Cost-benefit analysis
Provides the seller with payment for all costs incurred to deliver or produce the product or service requested.
Cost-reimbursable contract
This is a schedule compression technique that adds resources to the project to reduce the time it takes to complete the project.
Crashing
The longest path through the project. Activities with zero float are considered critical path tasks.
Critical path (CP)
A schedule development method that determines a single early and late start date, early and late finish date, and the float for each activity on the project.
Critical path method (CPM)
Elements that must be completed in order for the project to be considered complete. Critical success factors that are not satisfactory can lead to project failure.
Critical success factor
The recipient of the product or service created by the project. In some organizations this stakeholder may also be referred to as the client.
Customer
A formal method of project selection that helps managers make the best use of limited budgets and human resources. Includes benefit measurement methods and constrained optimization models.
Decision model
The process of breaking project deliverables down into smaller, manageable components of work so that work packages can be planned and estimated.
Decomposition
A type of change request that typically comes about during the Monitoring and Controlling process group. Defect repairs either correct or replace components that are substandard or are malfunctioning.
Defect repairs
An estimating technique that assigns a cost estimate to each work package in the project WBS. This is the most accurate of the cost estimating techniques, which typically falls within −5 percent and +10 percent of the actual budget.
Definitive estimate
An output or result that must be completed in order to consider the project complete or to move forward to the next phase of the project. Deliverables are tangible and can be measured and easily proved.
Deliverable
The relationship between project activities.
Dependencies
The type of dependency between two activities and the specific relationship between the activities.
Dependency relationships
Compares the value of the future cash flows of the project to today's dollars.
Discounted cash flow (DCF)
A type of dependency that the project manager and project team choose to impose on the project schedule, such as the use of an established corporate practice.
Discretionary dependency
Defines how revisions are made, the version numbering system, and the placement of the version number and revision date.
Document control process
The use of techniques such as fast-tracking or crashing to shorten the planned duration of a project or to resolve schedule slippage.
Duration compression
The earliest date an activity may finish as logically constrained by the network diagram.
Early finish
The earliest date an activity may start as logically constrained by the network diagram.
Early start
The value of the work completed to date as it compares to the budgeted amount for the work component.
Earned value (EV)
EVM is a tool and technique of the Cost Control process that compares what you're received or produced as of the measurement date to what you've spent. The three measurements needed to perform earned value measurement are planned value (PV), actual cost (AC), and earned value (EV).
Earned value measurement (EVM)
A type of benefit measurement method. It is a series of financial calculations that provide data on the overall financials of the project and is generally used as a project selection technique.
Economic model
A project that will be used by users throughout the enterprise.
Enterprise project
(a) Resources such as servers, specialized test equipment, or additional PCs that are required for a project. (b) One of the categories of project resources. It includes test tools, servers, PCs, or other related items required to complete the project.
Equipment
A forecast of the total cost of the project based on both current project performance and the remaining work. The formula is EAC = AC + ETC.
Estimate at completion (EAC)
The cost estimate for the remaining project work. This estimate is provided by the project team members.
Estimate to complete (ETC)
This project process group is where the work of the project is performed.
Executing
A technique used in project selection, determining estimates, and determining other related project information that relies on the knowledge of those with expertise on the requested subject matter. Expert judgment can come from stakeholders, other departments, consultants, team members, vendors, or industry groups.
Expert judgment
A type of dependency where a relationship between a project task and a factor outside the project, such as weather conditions, drives the scheduling of that task.
External dependency
This is a type of project ending that occurs when the project is completed and accepted by the stakeholders.
Extinction
The cost if the product fails, including downtime, user support, rework, and scrapping the project.
Failure costs
A schedule compression technique where two activities that were previously scheduled to start sequentially start at the same time. Fast-tracking reduces schedule duration.
Fast-tracking
Undertaken to determine whether the project is a viable project, the probability of project success, and the viability of the product of the project.
Feasibility study
A project task relationship in which the finish of the successor task is dependent on the finish of the predecessor task.
Finish-to-finish
A project task relationship in which the successor task cannot begin until the predecessor task has completed.
Finish-to-start
A contract that states a fixed fee for the work that the vendor will perform.
Fixed-price contracts
The amount of time the early start of a task may be delayed without delaying the finish date of the project. Also known as slack time.
Float time
A diagram that shows the logical steps that must be performed in order to accomplish an objective. It can also show how the individual elements of a system interrelate.
Flowchart
This is a conflict-resolution technique where one party forces their solution on the others. This is an example of a win-lose conflict resolution technique.
Forcing
Planned communications such as project kickoff meetings, team status meetings, written status reports, or team-building sessions.
Formal communications
The process of working from the left to the right of a network diagram in order to calculate early start and early finish dates for each activity.
Forward pass
A form of organizational structure. Functional organizations are traditional organizations with hierarchical reporting structures.
Functional organization
These define what the product of the project will do by focusing on how the end user will interact with the product.
Functional requirements
These explain the major characteristics of the product and describe the relationship between the business need and the product requested. This is also referred to as a product description.
High-level requirements
The people with the background and skills to complete the tasks on the project schedule.
Human resources
Defining team member roles and responsibilities, establishing an appropriate structure for team reporting, securing the right team members, and bringing them on the project as needed for the appropriate length of time.
Human resources planning
The consequences imposed if a risk event occurs on the project.
Impact
Unplanned or ad hoc communications, including phone calls, emails, conversations in the hallway, or impromptu meetings.
Informal communications
Providing stakeholders with information regarding the project in a timely manner via status reports, project meetings, review meetings, email, and so on. The communications management plan is put into action during this process.
Information distribution
The first process in a project life cycle and the first of the five project process groups. This is the formal acknowledgment that the project should begin. The primary result of this process is the project charter.
Initiating
A quality control technique that includes examining, measuring, or testing work results.
Inspection
A process that influences the factors that cause change, determines that a change is needed or has happened, and manages and monitors change. All other change control processes are integrated with this process.
Integrated change control
A type of project ending where the resources of the project are reassigned or redeployed to other projects or other activities within the organization.
Integration
The discount rate when the present value of the cash inflows equals the original investment. Projects with higher IRR values are generally considered better than projects with lower IRR values. Assumes that cash inflows are reinvested at the IRR value.
Internal rate of return (IRR)
A Quality Control technique that shows the relationship between the effects of problems and their causes. This is also known as a cause-and-effect diagram and fishbone diagram.
Ishikawa diagram
Any process that is repeated more than once. The five process groups are repeated throughout the project's life because of change requests, responses to change, corrective action, and so on.
Iterative process
Help you determine whether the project is on track and progressing as planned by monitoring the project against predetermined criteria.
Key performance indicators (KPIs)
The latest date an activity can complete without impacting the project end date.
Late finish
The latest date an activity can start without impacting the project end date.
Late start
Information gathered throughout the project (and again at the end of a project phase or the end of the project) that documents the successes and failures of the project. This information is used to benefit the current project and future projects.
Lessons learned
A mathematical formula that determines the number of lines of communication between participants in a meeting. The formula is n (n – 1) / 2, where n represents the number of participants.
Lines of communication
A rate used for cost estimating of human resources that includes a percentage of the salary to cover employee benefits, such as medical, disability, or pension plans.
Loaded rate
The dependency relationships that may exist between tasks. Finish-to-start is the most common logical relationship.
Logical relationships
Determines the cost effectiveness of producing goods or services in-house vs. procuring them from outside the organization.
Make-or-buy analysis
An amount of money set aside by upper management to cover future expenses that can't be predicted during project planning.
Managerial reserve
A type of dependency where the relationship between two tasks is created by the type of work the project requires.
Mandatory dependency
A catchall category of project resources that includes software, utility requirements such as electricity or water, any supplies needed for the project, or other consumable goods.
Materials
Calculating theoretical early and late start and finish dates for all project activities.
Mathematical analysis
An organizational structure where employees report to one functional manager and at least one project manager. Functional managers assign employees to projects and carry out administrative duties, while project managers assign tasks associated with the project to team members and execute the project.
Matrix organization
A standard of measurement that specifically defines how something will be measured.
Metric
A major deliverable or key event in the project used to measure project progress.
Milestone
This project process group is where activities are performed to monitor the progress of the project and determine whether there are variances from the project plan. Corrective actions are taken during this process to get the project back on course.
Monitoring and Controlling
A project that is initiated by multiple business units.
Multiple business unit project
Negotiating is a leadership technique and a conflict-resolution technique. Negotiating is the act of two or more parties explaining their needs and coming to a mutual agreement on a resolution.
Negotiating
Evaluation of the cash inflows using the discounted cash flow technique, which is applied to each period the inflows are expected. The total present value of the cash flows is deducted from the initial investment; this assumes that cash inflows are reinvested at the cost of capital. It is similar to discounted cash flows.
Net present value (NPV)
A depiction of project activities and the interrelationships between these activities.
Network diagram
Operations typically involve ongoing functions that support the production of goods or services. They don't have a beginning or an end.
Operations
A high-level estimate of the time and cost of a project based on the actual cost and duration of a similar project.
Order of magnitude
The process of addressing factors that may impact how to manage a project team, defining roles and responsibilities for project team members, identifying how the project team will be organized, and documenting a staffing management plan.
Organizational planning
A quantitatively based estimating technique that is typically calculated by multiplying rate times quantity.
Parametric estimating
A Quality Control technique used to rank importance of a problem based on its frequency of occurrence over time. This diagram is based on the Pareto principle, more commonly referred to as the 80/20 rule, which says that the majority of defects are caused by a small set of problems.
Pareto diagram
The length of time it takes a company to recover the initial cost of producing the product or service of the project.
Payback period
Collecting information regarding project progress and project accomplishments and reporting it to the stakeholders, project team members, management team, and other interested parties. It also makes predictions regarding future project performance.
Performance reporting
The cost of work that's been budgeted for an activity during a certain time period.
Planned value (PV)
The process group where the project plans are developed that will be used throughout the project to direct, monitor, and control work results. The primary result of this process is the project plan.
Planning
Performed when a project is canceled or ends prematurely. It describes the reasons for cancellation or failure and documents the deliverables that were completed.
Post-mortem analysis
Conducted at the end of the project to document lessons learned.
Post-project review
A network diagramming method that places activities on nodes, which connect to dependent activities using arrows. Also known as activity on node.
Precedence diagramming method (PDM)
A task on the network diagram that occurs before another task.
Predecessor
An investigation at project request time to determine the costs and benefits of the project, as well as examine alternatives to the proposed solution in order to determine the feasibility of carrying out the project.
Preliminary investigation
A Quality Control tool and technique that keeps errors from reaching the customer. Prevention is less expensive than having to fix problems after they've occurred.
Prevention
The cost of activities performed to avoid quality problems, including quality planning, training, and any product or process testing.
Prevention costs
A type of change request that usually occur during the Monitoring and Controlling process group. Preventive actions are implemented to help reduce the probability of a negative risk event.
Preventive action
The likelihood a risk event will occur. Probability is expressed as a number between 0.0 and 1.0.
Probability
The process of identifying what goods or services will be purchased from outside the organization. It uses make-or-buy analysis to determine whether goods or services should be purchased outside the organization or produced internally.
Procurement planning
Explains the major characteristics of the product and describes the relationship between the business need and the product. This is also referred to as high-level requirements.
Product description
Occurs in the Close Procurements process and determines whether the work of the contract is acceptable and satisfactory.
Product verification
A grouping of related projects that are managed together to capitalize on benefits that couldn't be achieved if the projects were managed separately.
Program
Calculates the expected value, or weighted average, of critical path tasks to determine project duration by using three estimates: most likely, pessimistic, and optimistic. The PERT calculation is (optimistic + pessimistic + (4 × most likely)) / 6.
Program evaluation and review technique (PERT)
Reports from project team members listing the tasks each team member is working on, the current progress of each task, and the work remaining.
Progress reports
Temporary in nature, with a definite start and end date; creates a unique product, service, or result. It is completed when the goals and objectives of the project have been met and signed off on by the stakeholders.
Project
The person who fully understands, believes in, and espouses the benefits of the project to the organization. This is the cheerleader for the project.
Project champion
An official, written acknowledgment and recognition that a project exists. It's signed by the project sponsor and gives the project manager authority to assign organizational resources to the work of the project.
Project charter
The formal acceptance of a project and the activities required to formally end the project work.
Project closure
Documents the key characteristics of the product or service that will be created by the project.
Project description
Carrying out the project plan. Activities are clarified, the work is authorized to begin, resources are committed and assigned to activities, and the product or service of the project is created. The largest portion of the project budget will be spent during this process.
Project execution
Documentation in the project charter that includes the reason the project is being undertaken and the business need the project will address.
Project justification
The grouping of project phases in a sequential order from the beginning of the project to the close.
Project life cycle
Applying skills, knowledge, and project management tools and techniques to fulfill the project requirements.
Project management
The world's leading professional project management association.
Project Management Institute (PMI)
The nine project management groupings, or Knowledge Areas, that bring together common or related processes. They are Integration, Scope, Time, Cost, Quality, Human Resource, Communications, Risk, and Procurement.
Project management knowledge areas
Established by organizations to create and maintain procedures and standards for project management methodologies to be used throughout the organization.
Project management office (PMO)
The person responsible for applying the skills, knowledge, and project management tools and techniques to the project activities to successfully complete the project objectives.
Project manager
Measures that the project manager uses to determine whether the project is on track, such as any deviation from the baseline schedule or the baseline budget.
Project performance indicators
A document, or assortment of documents, that constitutes what the project is, what the project will deliver, and how all the processes will be managed. Used as the guideline throughout the project Executing and Controlling phases to track and measure project performance and to make future project decisions. Also used as a communication and information tool for stakeholders, team members, and management.
Project plan
A formal presentation by the project manager or project team members to the sponsor, the client, and the other executive stakeholders.
Project review
Determines the start and finish dates for project activities and assigns resources to the activities.
Project schedule
Used to determine which proposed projects are approved to move forward.
Project selection
An organizational structure focused on projects. Project managers generally have ultimate authority over the project, and sometimes supporting departments such as human resources and accounting might report to the project manager. Project managers are responsible for making project decisions and acquiring and assigning resources.
Project-based organization
A project that undertakes to prove that a specific activity can be done or an idea can be accomplished.
Proof of concept
Determining the impact of identified risks on the project and the probability they'll occur. Aligns risks in a priority order according to their effect on the project objectives.
Qualitative risk analysis
Monitoring work results to see whether they fulfill the quality standards set out in the quality management plan; determines whether the end product conforms to the requirements and product description defined during the planning processes.
Quality control
Describes how the project management team will enact the quality policy and documents the resources needed to carry out the quality plan. It describes the responsibilities of the project team in implementing quality and outlines all the processes and procedures the project team and organization will use to satisfy quality requirements.
Quality management plan
Identifying the quality standards applicable for the project and how they'll be fulfilled.
Quality planning
A complex analysis technique that uses a mathematical approach to numerically analyze the probability and impact of risk events.
Quantitative risk analysis
A duration estimate obtained by applying a productivity rate of the resource performing the task.
Quantitatively based durations
A type of responsibility assignment matrix that describes the resources needed for the task and their role for that task using the following descriptors: responsible, accountable, consult, or inform.
RACI chart
Setting a new project baseline because of substantial changes to the schedule or the budget.
Rebaselining
This process is where the project manager gathers and documents the collection of baseline data for the project. Baseline data includes cost, schedule, scope, and quality data. Performance report information is delivered to the stakeholders at project status meetings and steering committee meetings.
Report Performance
A document that is sent out to potential vendors requesting them to provide a proposal on a product or service.
Request for proposal (RFP)
The specifications and characteristics of the goal or deliverable.
Requirement
A process that defines and documents all the resources needed and the quantity of resources needed to perform project activities, including human, material, and equipment resources.
Resource planning
A listing of all the job titles within a company or department with a brief description of the job. It may also identify the number of people currently employed in each job title.
Resource pool description
A document containing a description of the resources needed from all three resource types for work package items from the WBS.
Resource requirements
A resource chart that defines the WBS identifier, the resource type needed for the WBS element, and the quantity of resources needed for the task. A WBS is displayed in chart form.
Responsibility assignment matrix (RAM)
An update to the approved start or end date of the schedule baseline, typically a result of approved scope changes.
Revision
An action that is taken as a result of quality activities to correct a defect.
Rework
A potential future event that can have either negative or positive consequences.
Risk
The process used to identify and focus on those risks that are the most critical to the success of your project.
Risk analysis
Identifying the potential project risks and documenting their characteristics.
Risk identification
A numbered list of risks that are produced during the risk identification process and that are documented within a risk register.
Risk list
Details how risk management processes will be implemented, monitored, and controlled throughout the life of the project. It does not define responses to individual risks.
Risk management plan
The process that involves implementing the risk response plan, tracking and monitoring identified risks, and identifying and responding to new risks as they occur.
Risk monitoring and control
Identifying, analyzing, and determining how risk events will be managed for a project.
Risk planning
A process that describes how to reduce threats and take advantage of opportunities, documents the plan for negative and positive risk events, and assigns owners to each risk.
Risk response planning
An event that warns a risk is imminent and a response plan should be implemented.
Risk trigger
A Quality Control tool and technique that shows variation in the process over time or shows trends such as improvements or the lack of improvements in the process.
Run chart
The final, approved project schedule that is used during project execution to monitor project progress.
Schedule baseline
The process of documenting and managing changes to the project schedule.
Schedule control
Calculating and preparing the schedule of project activities, which becomes the schedule baseline. It determines activity start and finish dates, finalizes activity sequences and durations, and determines activity duration estimates.
Schedule development
Measures the progress to date against the progress that was planned. The SPI indicator acts as an efficiency rating. If the result is greater than one, performance is better than expected, and you're ahead of schedule. If it's less than one, performance is less than expected, and you're behind schedule. The formula is SPI = EV / PV.
Schedule performance index (SPI)
Any change that is made to the project schedule as part of the ongoing work involved with managing the project.
Schedule update
The difference between a task's progress as compared to its estimated progress represented in terms of cost. The formula is SV = EV − PV.
Schedule variance (SV)
The description of the work involved to complete the project. It defines both what is included in the project and what is excluded from the project.
Scope
The process of documenting and managing changes to project scope. Any modification to the agreed-upon WBS is considered a scope change. Changes in product scope will require changes to project scope, and scope changes always require schedule changes.
Scope control
The minor changes or small additions that are made to the project outside of a formal scope change process that cause project scope to grow and change.
Scope creep
Per the PMBOK Guide, the process of breaking down the major deliverables from the scope statement to create the WBS. For purposes of the CompTIA objectives and exam, scope definition is used in a much broader sense to cover several scope planning elements, including the scope statement and the scope management plan.
Scope definition
Defines the process for preparing the scope statement and the WBS. This also documents the process that manages project scope and changes to project scope.
Scope management plan
The process of defining the scope management plan, the scope statement, and the WBS and WBS dictionary.
Scope planning
Documents the product description, key deliverables, success and acceptance criteria, key performance indicators, exclusions, assumptions, and constraints. The scope statement is used as a baseline for future project decisions.
Scope statement
A process that concerns formally accepting the deliverables of the project and obtaining sign-off that they're complete.
Scope verification
One of the benefit measurement methods used for project selection. It contains a predefined list of criteria against which each project is ranked. Each criterion has a scoring range and a weighting factor. A scoring model can also be used as a tool to select from among competing vendors.
Scoring model
Putting the project activities in the order in which they will take place.
Sequencing
The amount of time allowed to delay the early start of a task without delaying the finish date of the project. This is also known as float time.
Slack time
A requirement that a product or service must be obtained from a single vendor in government work; also includes justification.
Sole source
Obtaining bids and proposals from vendors in response to RFPs and similar procurement documents prepared during the solicitation planning process.
Solicitation
An executive in the organization with authority to allocate funds, assign resources, and enforce decisions regarding the project.
Sponsor
Obtaining human resources and assigning them to the project. Human resources may come from inside or outside the organization.
Staff acquisition
Documents when and how human resources will be added to and released from the project team and what they will be working on while they are part of the team.
Staffing management plan
A person or an organization that has something to gain or lose as a result of the project. Most stakeholders have a vested interest in the outcomes of the project.
Stakeholder
A task relationship where the finish of the successor task is dependent on the start of its predecessor.
Start-to-finish
A project task relationship where the start of the successor task depends on the start of the predecessor task.
Start-to-start
A type of project ending where resources are cut off from the project.
Starvation
Contains the details of a procurement item in clear, concise terms and includes the project objectives, a description of the work of the project, and concise specifications of the product or services required.
Statement of work (SOW)
The date when the project manager measures how much has been spent on a specific task.
Status date
See acceptance criteria.
Success criteria
A task on the network diagram that occurs after another task.
Successor
A way to get diverse groups of people to work together efficiently and effectively. This is the responsibility of the project manager. It can involve activities performed together as a group or individually designed to improve team performance.
Team building
Creating an open, encouraging environment for stakeholders to contribute, as well as developing the project team into an effective, functioning, coordinated group.
Team development
Also known as nonfunctional requirements, the product characteristics needed for the product to perform the functional requirements. Technical requirements typically refer to information technology–related projects. They are typically the elements and functions that happen behind the scenes of a program to meet the client's request.
Technical requirements
A type of contract where the buyer and the seller agree on a unit rate, such as the hourly rate for a programmer. The total cost is unknown and will depend on the amount of time spent to produce the product.
Time and materials contract
The projected performance level that must be achieved in the remaining work of the project in order to satisfy financial or schedule goals. The formula is TCPI = (BAC − EV) / (BAC − AC).
To-complete performance index (TCPI)
An estimating technique that uses actual durations from similar activities on a previous project. This is also referred to as analogous estimating.
Top-down estimating
A mathematical technique that can be used to predict future defects based on historical results.
Trend analysis
According to CompTIA, time, cost, and quality. Other sources site scope rather than quality in their definitions of the triple constraints.
Triple constraint
The comparison of planned project results with actual project results. The formula is VAC = BAC − EAC.
Variance analysis
A deliverables-oriented hierarchy that defines the total work of the project. Each level has more detailed information than the previous level.
Work breakdown structure (WBS)
A document that describes the deliverables and their components, the code of accounts identifier, estimates, resources, criteria for acceptance, and any other information that helps clarify the deliverables.
Work breakdown structure (WBS) dictionary
The total time it takes for a person to complete a task if they did nothing else from the time they started until the task was complete.
Work effort
The lowest level in a WBS. Team assignments, time estimates, and cost estimates can be made at this level. On very large projects, this level is handed off to subproject managers who develop their own WBS to fulfill the requirements of the work package deliverable.

Work package