Vocab Flashcards
Project Scope
Work required to output a project’s deliverable. Highly dependent on time, cost, and quality.
Often defined by a Work Breakdown Structure, and changes should take place only through formal change control procedures.
Work Breakdown Structure (WBS)
Hierarchical deconstruction of the total scope of work; contains work packages; contains Initiation, Planning, Execution, Control, and Closeout
Waterfall
Activities completed in linear fashion; new phase begins only when previous phase completed (predictive)
Backlog
Prioritized list of tasks/activities belonging to stories (to-do list)
Fishbowl Window
Tool that facilitates transparency and communication allowing all members to spontaneously interact (virtual or physical space; like office hours)
Scrum of Scrums
Technique for agile (Scrum) approach with several teams working on the same project; coordinates in areas that overlap to facilitate integration
MoSCoW
Prioritization technique to reach common understanding with stakeholders on importance placed on delivery of each requirement; Must have, Should have, Could have, Won’t have
Pairing
Swarming
Mobbing
Pairing: 2 people, 1 keyboard, 1 story
Swarming: Team works on 1 story together, checking in after short intervals
Mobbing: Many people, 1 keyboard, 1 story (screen often projected for all to see)
Timeboxing
Fixed maximum time period defined for a process within a project that has its own tasks, a goal, and deliverables. Mini projects.
Allows for Quick Feedback, Focus of Team, Reliable Cadence of Delivery, and Clarity
(Type of Iterations or Sprints)
Spike
Timeboxed work used to answer question, gather information, or solve a problem rather than a viable product
Avoid v. Mitigate v. Transfer v. Accept
Avoid: Completely eliminate or forego risk
Mitigate: Reduce likelihood or impact of risk
Transfer: Assign or move the risk to a third-party
Accept: Acknowledge the risk and choose not to resolve, transfer or mitigate
Control Chart
Detects variations within the project over time; has an upper and lower limit
Stakeholder Register
Document includes identity, assessment, and classification of project stakeholders
Stakeholder Engagement Plan
Document outlining strategies to promote productive stakeholder involvement; includes stakeholder communication requirements, level of engagement, and participation.
Resource Management Plan
Guides how project resources should be categorized, allocated, managed, and released
Issue Log/Issue Register
Document where all issues are recorded and tracked
Crystal Method
Agile method that focuses on the individual and communication/skill rather than processes/tools. Teams find own ways to improve/optimize. Every project is unique and always changing, which is why that project’s team is best suited to determine how it will tackle the work
XP Method (Extreme Programming)
Agile method that focuses on speed and simplicity with short development cycles
Firm Fixed Price Contract (FFP)
Client pays single, pre-agreed amount regardless of costs incurred during project implementation. Only changes when the scope of the project changes, to reflect the cost of the additional work carried out
Cost Plus Incentive Fee Contract (CPIF)
A performance-based incentive fee will be paid to the seller over and above the actual cost they have incurred on the projects. With this type of contract, the incentive is a motivating factor for the seller to meet or exceed the project’s performance metrics.
Cost Performance Index (CPI)
Calculates the cost efficiency and financial effectiveness of a specific project: CPI = earned value (EV) / actual cost (AC). CPI higher than 1 indicates that a project is performing well budget-wise
Enterprise Environmental Factors (EEFs)
Outside control of project team but impact its work: culture, technology, governmental standards
Organizational Process Assets (OPAs)
Organization’s processes, procedures, and policies, its knowledge repositories: things that facilitate work of project
Functional Organization
“Silo”. Projects occur within single dept. Communication/project transference is from one “silo” to another “silo”
Project Oriented Organization
“No Home”. When team finishes project, they don’t have dept. to go back to; they require a new project to work on or find a new job
Matrix Organization
“Two Managers”. Team reports to project manager and functional manager; power shifts depending on situation. Team does project and operational work. **THIS IS MOST COMMON ON EXAM
Present Value (PV) & Future Value (FV) Equation
*Don’t confuse with Planned Value (for Cost)
PV=FV/(1+r)^n
r=interest rate; n=number of time periods
Net Present Value (NPV)
Present value of total benefits (income or revenue) minus cost over many time periods *Don’t have to calculate
**If NVP is positive, investment is good; greatest NVP is selected
Internal Rate of Return (IRR)
Value returned from project completion; want to break even or be positive – higher IRR the better *Don’t have to calculate
Payback Period
Time it takes for organization to recover investment in project; shorter the better
Cost Benefit Analysis
> 1 means benefit outweighs cost
=1 means cost equals benefit
<1 means cost outweighs benefit
i.e. 1.7 means REVENUE is 1.7 times the cost
Think: Cost Benefit Analysis (C B A) -> backwards alpha, so R (Revenue) comes before P (Profit) backwards so Cost Benefit Analysis has to do with Revenue
Opportunity Costs
Opportunity given up by selecting another option. It equals the opportunity of what was given up, NOT the difference between the projects being compared. (i.e. Project A NVP of $45k and Project B NVP of $60k. What’s the opportunity cost of picking Project B? – $45k, because you’re giving up Project A)
