Definitions Flashcards
Acceptance
The formal act of acknowledging that the project has met agreed acceptance criteria and thereby met the requirements of its stakeholders
Acceptance criteria
A prioritised list of criteria that the project product must meet before the user will accept it. For example, measurable definitions of the attributes required for the set of products to be acceptable to key stakeholders
Accountable
The single person who ‘owns’ a task. Unlike responsibility, accountability cannot be delegated
Activity
Each Prince2 process comprises a set of activities, which may be performed in sequence or in parallel during the project. Prince2 activities comprise a set of recommended actions designed to achieve a particular result
Agile and agile methods
A broad term for a collection of behaviours, frameworks, concepts and techniques that go together to enable teams and individuals to work in an agile way that is typified by collaboration, prioritization, iterative and incremental delivery, and timeboxing. Scrum and Kanban.
Approval
The formal confirmation that a product is complete and meets its requirements (less any concessions) as defined by its product description
Approver (in quality context)
The person or group (for example, a project board) who is identified as qualified and authorised to approve a (management or specialist) product as being complete and fit for purpose
Assumption
A statement that is taken as being true for the purposes of planning but which could change later
Authority
The right to allocate people and resources and make decisions (applies to project, stage and team levels)
Authorisation
The point at which authority is granted
Baseline management product
A type of management product that defines aspects of the project and, when approved, is subject to change control
Benefit
The measurable improvement resulting from an outcome that is perceived as an advantage by the investing organisation and contributes towards one or more business objectives
Benefits tolerance
The permissible deviation in the benefit performance targets that is allowed before the deviation needs to be escalated to the next level of management. Documented in the business case
Business
The organisation that provides the project mandate and the structure within which the project is governed.
Business case
The purpose of the business case is to document the business justification for undertaking a project, based on the estimated costs against the expected benefits to be gained and offset by any associated risks. It should outline how and when the expected benefits can be measured
Business layer
The layer of governance outside the project team that sets the overall objectives and tolerance levels for the project and holds the project board accountable for meeting them
Business objective
The measurable outcomes that demonstrate progress in relation to the organisations strategy and to which the project should contribute
Business opportunity
An issue that represents previously unanticipated positive consequences for the project or user organisation
Capability
The completed set of project outputs required to deliver an outcome
Change
A change is defined as a modification to any of the approved management products that constitute the project baseline
Change authority
A person or group to which the project board may delegate responsibility for the consideration of requests for change or off-specifications. The change authority may be given a change budget and can approve changes within that budget
Change budget
The money or authorised constraints set aside in a plan to cover changes. It is allocated by those with delegated authority to deliver authorised changes.
Change control
The process by which changes that may affect the project baseline are identified, assessed, and then approved, rejected or deferred
Change management
The means by which an organisation transitions from the current state to the target state
Checkpoint
A team-level, time-driven review of progress
Checkpoint report
A report to the project manager by a team manager of the status of the work package at a frequency defined in the work package description
Closure recommendation
A recommendation prepared by the project manager for the project board to send as a project closure notification to the business when the board is satisfied that the project can be closed
Co-creation
A specific form of collaboration involving users and key influencers in the design or products and agreed ways of working to ensure they are adopted by the project and organisational ecosystems
Collaboration
People from across the project ecosystem working together to achieve the project’s objectives
Communication management approach
This explains how team members will actively engage with and support each other and how relationships will be developed between different groups within the wider project ecosystem
Concern
An issue whose timeliness and impact need to be assessed
Concession
An off-specification that is accepted by the project board without corrective action
Constraints
The restrictions or limitations by which the project is bound
Corrective action
A set of actions to resolve a threat to a plans tolerances or a defect in a product
Cost tolerance
The permissible deviation in a plan’s cost that is allowed before it needs to be escalated to the next level of management
Culture
The set of shared attitudes, values, goals, and ways of working that characterise a group of people
Customer
The person or group from the business who commissioned the work and will benefit from the end results. The term ‘customer’ is only used where there is a commercial relationship between the business and the supplier
Daily log
A log used to record problems/concerns that can be handled by the project manager informally
Dashboard
A way of representing vast amounts of decision-support data that gives a current summary, usually in graphic, easy-to-read form, of key information relating to progress and performance
Data analytics
The means of using and analysing data to support effective decision making or to bring efficiency through the automation of tasks
Delivery method
The may in which the work of the project is to be delivered. The project may rely on one or more delivery methods to create the required products. Typical delivery methods include iterative-incremental, linear-sequential, or hybrid
Delivery model
The organisational and commercial arrangements to be deployed to meet the project objectives given the project constraints and capabilities of the user, business, and supplier organisations. It is described in the commercial management approach and reflected in the project management team structure
Dependency
A dependency means that one products is dependent on another. There are at least two types of dependency relevant to a project: internal and external
DevOps
An organisational culture that aims to improve the flow of value to customers. DevOps focuses on culture, automation, Lean, measurement and sharing (CALMS)
Dis-benefit
The measurable decline resulting from an outcome perceived as negative by the investing organisation and which detracts from one or more business objectives
Early warning indicators
Describe indicators to be used to track critical aspects of the project so that if certain predefined levels are reached, corrective action will be triggered. They will be selected for their relevance to the project objectives
End project report
A report given by the project manager to the project board, confirming the handover of all products. It includes a review of the performance of the project, any subsequent recommendations, and request approval to close the project.
End stage report
A report given by the project manager to the project board at the end of each stage. This provides information about the project’s performance during the stage and the project status at the end stage
Event-driven control
A control that takes place when a specific event occurs. This could be, for example, the end of a stage, the completion of the project initiation documentation, or the creation of an exception report. It could also include organisational events that may affect the project, such as the setting of annual budgets
Exception
A situation where it can be forecast that there will be a deviation beyond the tolerance levels agreed between the project manager and the project board (or between the project board and business layer)
Exception plan
A plan that follows an exception report and explains how the project will respond to the exception within the stage
Exception report
A report from the project manager to the project board to explain where tolerances have or are forecast to be breached for the stage or project and to request direction from the project board
External dependency
An external dependency is one between a project product and a product or activity outside the scope of the project. In these circumstances, the project team does not have complete control over the dependency
External products
Are products developed or provided outside of the project’s control but which the project is dependent on, for example, the publication of a new standard
Follow-on action recommendations
Actions to be taken by the business following the phased handover of any products during the stage
Forecast
A prediction made by studying historical data and past patterns
Governing
The ongoing activity of maintaining a sound system of internal control by which the directors and officers of an organisation ensure that effective management systems, including financial monitoring and control systems, have been established to protect assets, earning capacity, and the reputation of the organisation
Handover
The transfer of ownership of a set of products to the respective user(s). The set of products is known as a release
Highlight report
A time-driven report from the project manager to the project board on stage progress
Initiation stage
The period from when the project board authorises initiation to when it authorises the project (or decides not to proceed with it). The detailed planning and establishment of the project management infrastructure is covered by the ‘initiating a project’ process
Internal dependency
An internal dependency is one between two products of a project. In these circumstances, the project team has control over the dependency.
Issue
An event relevant to the project that requires project management consideration
Issue register
A register used to capture and maintain information on all of the issues that are being managed formally. The issue register should be monitored by the project manager on a regular basis.
Issue report
A report containing the description, impact assessment, and recommendations for a response to an issue. It is created only for those issues that need to be handled formally
Leadership
Motivating people to achieve a project’s objectives.
Lesson
A lesson is information to facilitate the future of the project or other projects and actively promote learning from experience. The experience may be positive or negative
Lessons log
An informal repository for lessons that apply to this project or future projects
Log
An informal repository managed by the project manager that does not require any agreement by the project board on its format and composition. Prince2 has two logs: the daily log and the lessons log
Management
Instructing the execution of tasks in line with agreed ways of working. Co-creating ways of working with project team members (and stakeholders) significantly improves people’s willingness to be managed in line with them
Management approaches
The procedures, techniques, and standards to be applied and the responsibilities for: benefit management, change management, commercial management, communication management, data management, issue management, quality management, risk management, and sustainability management
Management product
A product that will be required as part of managing the project and establishing and maintaining quality (for example, highlight report and end stage report). The management products are constant, whatever the type of project, and can be used as described, or with any relevant modifications, for all projects. There are three types of management product: baselines, records and reports.
Milestone
A significant event in a plan’s schedule, such as completion of key work packages, a development step, or a stage.
Minimum viable product
Used in agile development methods to describe a product with just enough features to satisfy early customers, who can then provide feedback for future product development
Off-specification
A product that will not meet its quality specification
Operational and maintenance acceptance
A specific type of acceptance by the person or group that will support the product after it has been delivered to the operational environment
Organisational ecosystem
The internal elements of an organisation (including staff, board, owners, and other stakeholders) together with the organisations external relationships such as customers, partners, suppliers, regulators, and competitors
Outcome
The result of change, normally affecting real-world behaviour and circumstances. Changes are implemented to achieve outcomes, which are achieved as a result of the activities undertaken to facilitate the change
Outline business case
Reasons why the project is needed and the business option that is selected
Output
The tangible or intangible deliverable of an activity
Performance target
The project’s performance target sets the expected success level against which the management of the project will be judged. Prince2 includes performance targets for benefits, cost, time, quality, scope, sustainability, and risk.
Plan
A proposal that outlines the what, where, when, how, and who of the project as a whole. In Prince2, there are the following types of plan: project plan, stage plan, team plan, and exception plan
Planning horizon
The period of time for which it is possible to plan accurately
Portfolio
The totality of an organisation’s investment (or segment thereof) in the changes required to achieve its strategic objectives
Practice
An aspect of project management that must be applied consistently and throughout the project lifecycle. The practices require specific treatment of that aspect of project management for the Prince2 processes to be effective
Premature closure
The Prince2 activity to close a project before its planned closure. The project manager must ensure that work in progress is not simply abandoned but that the project salvages any value created to date. They must check that any gaps left by the cancellation of the project are raised to the business
Prerequisites (plan)
Any fundamental aspects that must be in place, and remain in place, for a plan to succeed
Prince2 principles
The guiding obligations that determine whether the project is genuinely being managed using Prince2 and ensure effective application and tailoring of Prince2 to any project
Prince2 project
A project that applies the Prince2 principles
Probability
This is the evaluated likelihood of a particular threat or opportunity actually happening, including a consideration of the frequency with which this may arise.
Problem
An issue with an immediate and negative impact
Procedure
A series of actions for a particular aspect of project management established specifically for the project (for example, a risk management procedure)
Process
A structured set of activities that define the sequence of actions and their inputs and outputs to achieve a specific objective.
Producer (in a quality context)
The person or group responsible for developing a product
Product
An input or output, whether tangible or intangible, that can be described in advance, created, and tested. Prince2 includes four types of products: management products, specialist products, the project product, and external products.
Product backlog
Used in agile development methods to provide a list of new features for a product. The list may be made up of user stories that are structured in a way that describes who wants the feature and why
Product breakdown structure
A hierarchy of all the products to be produced during a plan
Product description
A description of a products’ purpose, format, composition, derivation, quality specifications, and development responsibilities
Product flow diagram
A diagram showing the sequence of production and interdependencies of the products listed in a product breakdown structure
Product register
A component of the project log that identifies the products to be delivered by the project and records their acceptance
Product-based planning
The Prince2 technique leads to a plan based on the creation and delivery of the required products
Programme
A temporary structure designed to lead multiple interrelated projects and other work in order to progressively achieve outcomes of benefit for one or more organisations
Progress
The measure of the achievement of the objectives of a plan
Project
A temporary organisation that is created for the purpose of delivering one or more business products according to an agreed business case
Project approach
Defines the choice of solution and delivery method that will be used in the project to deliver the business option selected from the business case, considering the operational environment into which the solution must fit
Project assurance
The project board’s responsibilities to assure itself that the project is being conducted correctly. The project board members each have a specific area of focus for project assurance, namely business assurance for the executive, user assurance for the senior user(s), and supplier assurance for the senior supplier(s)
Project baseline
The current version of the management products and specialist products that are subject to change control
Project board
Accountable to the business for the success of the project and has the authority to direct the project within the remit set by the business
Project brief
A statement that describes the purpose, cost, time and performance requirements, and constraints for a project. It is created before the project begins, during the ‘starting up a project’ process, and is used during the ‘initiating a project’ process to create the project initiation documentation. It is superseded by the project initiation documentation and not maintained.
Project closure notification
Advice from the project board to inform all stakeholders and the host sites that the project resources can be disbanded and support services such as space, equipment, and access can be demobilised. It should indicate a closure date for costs to be charged to the project
Project definition
Explains what the project needs to achieve and should include: background context, project objectives and desired outcomes, project scope (inclusions and exclusions), constraints and assumptions, the user(s) and any other interested parties, and interfaces
Project ecosystem
Those elements of the business involved in or directly impacted by the project and the associated users and suppliers
Project executive
The individual with overall responsibility for ensuring that a project meets its objectives and delivers the projected benefits
Project initiation documentation
A logical set of documents that brings together the key information needed to start the project on a sound basis and that conveys the information to all concerned with the project
Project initiation notification
Advice from the project board to inform all stakeholders and the host sites that the project is being initiated and to request any necessary logistical support sufficient for the initiation stage
Project lifecycle
The period from initiation of a project to the acceptance of the project product
Project management
The application of methods, tools, techniques, and competencies to a project
Project management team
The entire management structure of the project board, and the project manager, plus any team manager, project assurance, and project support roles
Project management team structure
An organisation chart showing the people assigned to the project management team roles to be used, their delegation, and reporting relationships
Project manager
The person given the authority and responsibility to manage the project on a day to day basis to deliver the required products within the constraints agreed with the project board
Project mandate
An external product generated by the authority commissioning the project that forms the trigger for starting up a project
Project office
A temporary office created to support the delivery of a specific change initiative being delivered as a project. If used, the project office undertakes the responsibility of the project support role
Project plan
A high-level plan showing the major products of the project and when, how, and at what cost they will be delivered
Project product
What the project must deliver in order to gain acceptance
Project product description
A description of the project’s major products or outcomes, including the user’s quality expectations, together with the acceptance criteria and acceptance methods for the project
Project support
An administrative role in the project management team. Project support can be in the form of advice and help with project management tools, guidance, administrative services such as filing and the collection of actual data
Project team
Prince2 uses the term project team to cover all people required to allocate their time to the project
Quality
The degree to which a set of inherent characteristics of a product, service, process, person, organisation, system, or resource fulfils its requirements
Quality assurance
A planned and systematic activity that provides confidence that products will meet their defined quality specifications when tested under quality control. Quality assurance activities are normally performed by the business ensuring they are independent of the project team
Quality control
The procedures to monitor the specific products of a project and their development or delivery activities to determine whether they comply with relevant standards and of identifying ways to minimise causes of unsatisfactory performance
Quality management approach
The description of the quality techniques and standards to be applied and the roles and responsibilities for achieving the required quality specification and acceptance criteria during a project
Quality planning
The capturing of quality specifications for the project products and generating the associated product descriptions and quality management approach
Quality register
A component of the project log that identifies all the quality control activities that are planned or have occurred and provides information for end stage reports and the end project report
Quality review
Quality reviews assess whether a product is complete, adheres to standards, and meets its quality specifications. They may need to be conducted at multiple points in the development of a complex product
Quality specification
A description of the quality measures that will be applied by those performing quality control and the levels that a finished product must meet
Quality tolerance
The permissible deviation in a product’s quality that is allowed before the deviation needs to be escalated to the next level of management
Records
Records are dynamic management products that maintain information regarding project progress. These are collectively referred to as the project log and include the daily log, issue register, lessons log, product register, quality register, and risk register
Reports
Management products providing a snapshot of the status of certain aspects of the project
Request for change
A proposal for a change to the baseline
Requirement
A need or expectation that is documented in an approved management product
Residual risk
The risk remaining after the risk response has been applied
Resource
The goods, services, equipment, materials, facilities, and funding required to complete a plan
Responsible
The person (or people) who has the authority and is expected to perform a task. Responsibility can be delegated
Reviewer (in quality context)
A person or group independent of the producer who assesses whether a product meets its requirements as defined in its product description
Risk
A uncertain event or set of events that, should it occur, will have an effect on the achievement of objectives. A risk is measured by a combination of the probability of a perceived threat or opportunity occurring and the magnitude of its impact on objectives
Risk action owner
The person who is the nominated owner of agreed actions to respond to a risk. This role is also known as the risk actionee
Risk appetite
The amount and type of risk that the business is willing to take in pursuit of its objectives
Risk budget
A sum of money to fund specific management responses to the project’s threats and opportunities (for example, to cover the costs of any contingent plans should a risk materialise)
Risk evaluation
The process of understanding the net effect of the identified threats and opportunities on an activity when aggregated together
Risk exposure
The degree to which a particular objective is ‘at risk’. Risk exposure is a neutral concept, as exposure can be negative or positive
Risk impact
The estimated effect on objectives should a risk occur
Risk management
The systematic application of principles, approaches, and processes to the tasks of identifying and assessing risks, planning and implementing risk responses, and communicating risk management activities with stakeholders
Risk management approach
An approach describing the goals of applying risk management, as well as the procedure that will be adopted, roles and responsibilities, risk tolerances, the timing of risk management interventions, the tools and techniques that will be used, and the reporting requirements
Risk owner
The person who is assigned to take responsibility for responding to a risk to the satisfaction of the relevant governance board
Risk probability
The estimated chance that a risk will occur. Probability is often estimated by considering likelihood or frequency
Risk profile
A description of the types of risk that are faced by an organisation and its exposure to those risks
Risk proximity
How near in time a risk might occur
Risk register
A record of identified risks relating to an initiative, including their status and history
Risk response
Actions that may be taken to bring a situation to a level where exposure to risk is acceptable to the organisation. These responses fall into a number of risk response categories
Risk tolerance
A measurable threshold to represent the tolerable range of outcomes for each objective ‘at risk’, using the same units as for measuring performance for that objective
Risk velocity
How quickly a risk would have an impact on objectives should it occur
Role
The function assigned to a group or individual in a particular project. It is not the same as the position or job of a person outside of that project
Role descriptions
Describe the roles of those in the project management team and their specific responsibilities
Schedule
A graphical representation of a plan (such as a Gantt chart) typically describing a sequence of tasks together with resource allocations, which collectively deliver the plan
Scope
The sum of the product, delivery, and management activities represented by an approved plan and its product descriptions and work package descriptions
Scope tolerance
The permissible deviation in a plan’s scope that is allowed before it needs to be escalated to the next level of management
Senior supplier
The project board role that provides knowledge and experience of the main discipline(s) involved in the production of the project’s deliverable(s). The senior supplier represents the supplier’s interests within the project and provides supplier resources
Senior user
The project board role accountable for ensuring that user needs are specified correctly and that the solution meets those needs
Specialist product
A product whose development is the subject of the plan. The specialist products are specific to an individual project
Sponsor
The main driving force behind a programme or project
Sprint
A fixed timeframe for creating selected features from the backlog
Stage
The section of a project that the project manager is managing on behalf of the project board at any one time
Stage plan
A detailed plan used as the basis for project management control throughout a stage
Stakeholder
Any individual, group, or organisation that can affect or be affected by the project
Supplier
The organisation that provides the expertise, people, and the resources required by the project. They may be internal or external to the business organisation
Sustainability management approach
Defines the actions, reviews and controls that will be established to ensure that sustainability performance targets for the project are achieved
Sustainability tolerance
The permissible deviation in the sustainability performance targets that is allowed before the deviation needs to be escalated to the next level of management. Sustainability tolerance is documented in the business case
Tailoring
Adapting a method or process to suit the situation in which it will be used
Team manager
The person responsible for the production of products allocated by the project manager (as defined in a work package description) to an appropriate quality, timescale, and a cost acceptable to the project board. This role reports to, and takes direction from, the project manager. If a team manager is not assigned, the project manager undertakes the responsibilities of the team manager role.
Team plan
A plan used as the basis for organising and controlling the work of a team when executing a work package. Team plans are optional in Prince2
Threat
An uncertain event that could have a negative impact on objectives or benefits
Time
The period over which the project will run and the period over which the benefits will be realised
Timebox
A finite period of time when work performed to achieve a goal or meet and objective. The deadline should not be moved, as the method of managing a timebox is to prioritise the work inside it. At a low level, a timebox will be a matter of days or weeks.
Time-driven control
A management control that takes place at predefined periodic intervals. For example, this could be producing highlight repots for the project board or checkpoint reports showing the progress of a work package
Time tolerance
The permissible deviation above and below the plan’s targets for benefits, cost, time, quality, scope, sustainability, and risk without needing to escalate the deviation to the next level of management. Tolerance is applied at project, stage, and team levels
Transformation
A distinct change to the way an organisation conducts all or part of its business
Trigger
An event or decision that triggers a Prince2 process to begin
User
The organisation that will use the project products to enable it to gain the expected benefits. They may be internal or external to the business organisation
User acceptance
A specific type of acceptance by the person or group who will use the product after it has been delivered to the operational environment
User story
A tool used to write a requirement in the form of who, what, and why
User’s quality expectations
A statement about the quality expected from the project product, captured in the project product description
Work breakdown structure
A hierarchy of all work done during a project that forms a link between the product breakdown structure and the work packages
Work package
Work assigned to a team manager requiring the delivery of one or more products
Work package description
The set of information relevant to the delivery of one or more products. It will contain a description of the activities to be performed, identification of the resources involved, the relevant product descriptions for the products to be delivered, and details of any constraints on production
