Chapter 6 Vocabulary - Phillips Pmp

Front 1

activity list

Back 1

A listing of all of the project activities required to complete each phase or the entire project

Front 2

activity on node

Back 2

A network diagramming approach that places the activities on a node in the project network diagram.

Front 3

activity sequencing

Back 3

The process of mapping the activities in the order in which the work should be completed.

Front 4

analogous estimating

Back 4

A duration-estimating technique that bases the current project duration estimate on historical information from similar projects.

Front 5

crashing

Back 5

A duration-compressing technique that adds project resources to the project in an effort to reduce the amount of time allotted for effort-driven activities.

Front 6

critical chain method

Back 6

A network diagramming approach that considers the availability of project resources and the project's promised end date to determine the critical path (s) in the project.

Front 7

critical path method

Back 7

A network diagramming approach that identifies the project activities that cannot be delayed or the project completion date will be late.

Front 8

discretionary dependencies

Back 8

Project activities do not have to be completed in a particular order; instead, these tasks can be completed in the order determined by the project manager or at the project team's discretion.

Front 9

fast-tracking

Back 9

A duration-compression technique that allows entire phases of a project to overlap other phases.

Front 10

finish no earlier than (FNET)

Back 10

A project constraint that requires an activity to finish no earlier than a specific date.

Front 11

finish-to-finish

Back 11

A relationship between project activities whereby predecessor activities must finish before successor activities may finish.

Front 12

finish-to-start

Back 12

A relationship between project activities whereby the predecessor activities must finish before the successor activities may start; this is the most common network diagramming relationship type.

Front 13

float

Back 13

A generic term to describe the amount of time an activity may be delayed without delaying any successor activities' start dates.

Front 14

fragnet

Back 14

A portion of the project that is usually contracted to a vendor to complete, yet the project work is still represented in the project network diagram.

Front 15

hard logic

Back 15

The project activities must be completed in a particular order; this is also know as mandatory dependencies.

Front 16

internal dependencies

Back 16

Dependencies that are internal to the project that are often related to the nature of the work that's being completed.

Front 17

lag

Back 17

Time added to a project activity to delay its start time; ____ time is considered positive time, and is sometimes call waiting time.

Front 18

lead

Back 18

Time added to an activity to allow its start time to begin earlier than scheduled; ____ time is negative time, as it moves the activities closer to the project's start date.

Front 19

mandatory dependencies

Back 19

Project activities that must happen in a particular order due to the nature of the work; also known as hard logic.

Front 20

Monte-Carlo analysis

Back 20

A "what-if" scenario tool to determine how scenarios may work out, given any number of variables. The process doesn't actually create a specific answer, but a range of possible answers. When _____________ is applied to a schedule, it can present, for example, the optimistic completion date, the pessimistic completion date, and the most likely completion date for each activity in the project.

Front 21

negative total float

Back 21

When a project is running late on its implementation or if there's a predefined deadline for the project, you may experience ________________. This means the activities on the critical path don't have enough time to meet the defined late finish date for the project.

Front 22

network template

Back 22

A network diagram based on previous similar projects that is adapted for the current project work.

Front 23

parametric estimating

Back 23

Ideal for projects with repetitive work where a parameter, such as five hours per unit, is used to estimate the project duration.

Front 24

Parkinson's Law

Back 24

Work expands to fill the amount of time allotted to it.

Front 25

precedence diagramming method

Back 25

The most common method of arranging the project work visually. The _________ puts the activities in boxes, called nodes, and connects the boxes with arrows. The arrows represent the relationship and the dependencies of the work packages.

Front 26

project calendar

Back 26

A calendar that defines the working times for the project. For example, a project may require the project team to work nights and weekends so as not to disturb the ongoing operations of the organization during working hours. In addition, the ____________ accounts for holidays, working hours, and work shifts the project will cover.

Front 27

resource calendar

Back 27

Shows when resources, such as project team members, consultants, and SMEs, are available to work on the project. It takes into account vacations, other commitments within the organization, restrictions on contracted work, overtime issues, and so on.

Front 28

resource-leveling heuristics

Back 28

A method to flatten the schedule when resources are overallocated or allocated unevenly. _________________ can be applied in different methods to accomplish different goals. One of the most common methods is to ensure that workers are not overextended on activities.

Front 29

resource smoothing

Back 29

A technique that allows you to do resource leveling, but only on noncritical path activities. This approach levels resource utilization by taking advantage of activities that have available float. For those activities with no float, the resource utilization will not be edited.

Front 30

schedule control

Back 30

Part of integrated change management, ______________ is concerned with three processes: the project manager confirms that any schedule changes are agreed upon, the project manager examines the work results and conditions to know if the schedule has changed, and the project manager manages the actual change in the schedule.

Front 31

schedule management plan

Back 31

A subsidiary plan of the overall project plan, used to control changes to the schedule. A formal _____________ has procedures that control how changes to the project plan can be proposed, accounted for, and then implemented.

Front 32

schedule variance

Back 32

The difference between the planned work and the completed work.

Front 33

soft logic

Back 33

The preferred order of activities. Project managers should use these relationships at their discretion and document the logic behind making ___________ decisions. Discretionary dependencies allow activities to happen in a preferred order because of best practices, conditions unique to the project work, or external events; also known as discretionary dependencies.

Front 34

Start no earlier than (SNET)

Back 34

A project constraint that demands that a project activity start no earlier than a specific date.

Front 35

start-to-finish

Back 35

A relationship that requires an activity to start so that a successor activity may finish; it is unusual and is rarely used.

Front 36

start-to-start

Back 36

A relationship structure that requires a task to start before a successor task activity may start. This relationship allows both activities to happen in tandem.

Front 37

three-point estimate

Back 37

An estimate that uses optimistic, most likely, and pessimistic values to determine the cost or duration of a project component.