DC37_APM_Glossary

Question 1

Accountability

Answer 1

Feedback of consequences to people based on their performance.

Question 2

Activities plan

Answer 2

A table that lists planned project activities with their start and end dates

Question 3

Activities Report

Answer 3

A table that lists project activities with their planned start and end dates and their actual start and end dates.

Question 4

Activity

Answer 4

The work required to move from one event to the next in a project

Question 5

Activity-in-the-box diagram

Answer 5

A network diagram format in which boxes represent events and arrows represent activities.

Question 6

Assumption

Answer 6

A statement about uncertain information that you take as fact as you conceive, plan, and perform a project.

Question 7

Backing in

Answer 7

The process of identifying activities and estimates of duration that equal the project’s allotted time by starting at the end of a project and working back toward the beginning.

Question 8

backward pass

Answer 8

The process of calculating the latest allowable start and finish dates for each activity by beginning at the end of a project and moving back along each path toward the start of the project.

Question 9

baseline

Answer 9

The plan that guides project activities and supports project performance assessments.

Question 10

budget

Answer 10

A detailed , time-phased estimate of the costs to perform a project.

Question 11

benefit-cost analysis

Answer 11

A comparative assessment of a project’s anticipated benefits with respect to its estimated costs.

Question 12

business-requirements document

Answer 12

A description of the business needs that a requested product, service, or system must address.

Question 13

centralized-organization structure

Answer 13

An organizational approach in which individual units in an organizationmhandle the specialty work for all projects.

Question 14

champion

Answer 14

A person in a high position in the organization who strongly supports a project; will advocate for the project in disputes, planning meetings, and review sessions; and will take the necessary actions to help ensure the project’s successful completion.

Question 15

confirmation of purchase order

Answer 15

A reply from a vendor agreeing to provide a requested item and reconfirming the price and associated costs.

Question 16

constraint

Answer 16

A restriction that limits what your project must achieve, how and when you can do it, and for what cost.

Question 17

cost report

Answer 17

A table listing activities with their planned costs and their actual expenditures.

Question 18

critical path

Answer 18

A sequence of activities in a project that takes the longest time to complete.

Question 19

delegation

Answer 19

Assigning some or all of your authority to someone else.

Question 20

dependency

Answer 20

A relationship between activities in which one avctivity must finish before the other can start.

Question 21

detailed budget estimate

Answer 21

An itemization of estimated costs for each project activity.

Question 22

direct costs

Answer 22

Expenditures for resources used solely for a particular project.

Question 23

distribution list

Answer 23

List of people who receive a written project-communication.

Question 24

driver

Answer 24

A person who has some authority in defining the results of a project; a person for whom you perform the project.

Question 25

duration

Answer 25

The actual calendar time to perform an activity; also called span time.

Question 26

earliest finish date

Answer 26

The earliest possible date to finish an activity.

Question 27

earliest start date

Answer 27

The earliest possible date to start an activity.

Question 28

Earned Value Mangement

Answer 28

An analysis approach based solely on resource expenditures to determine whether a project is over or under budget and whether the project is ahead of or behind schedule.

Question 29

efficiency

Answer 29

The proportion of time a person spends solely on project work, not includiing organizational tasks not realted to specific projects.

Question 30

event

Answer 30

A significant occurrence in the life of a project; a milestone.

Question 31

fast tracking

Answer 31

Performing two or more activities at the same time to reduce the overall project time.

Question 32

feasibility study

Answer 32

A formal investigation to determine the likelihood of successfully performing certain work or achieving certain results.

Question 33

forward pass

Answer 33

The process of calculating earliest start and finish dates for all activities by beginning at the start of a project and moving along each path toward the end of the project.

Question 34

functional manager

Answer 34

A person responsibile for the business and technical performance of activities in a specialized, organizational function (such as finance or engineering).

Question 35

functional organization structure

Answer 35

An organizational approach in which separate units address the same specialty in various functional groups.

Question 36

Gantt chart

Answer 36

Named after Henry Gantt, a graph comprised of bars on a timeline that depict when each activity starts, is performed, and ends.

Question 37

Human Resources Matrix

Answer 37

A table depicting the people who work on each lowest level project activity and the total effort each person invests in each activity.

Question 38

Indirect costs

Answer 38

Expenditures for personnel, materials, equipment, facilities, and services that support projects but aren’t tracked by the projects.

Question 39

Initiator

Answer 39

The person who had the original idea leading to a project.

Question 40

Key-events list

Answer 40

A table that lists planned project events and their dates.