Project Management Definitions – Part 2

Change control

Identifying, documenting, approving or rejecting, and controlling changes to the project baselines

Change control board (CCB)

A formally constituted group of stakeholders responsible for reviewing, evaluating, approving, delaying, or rejecting changes to a project, with all decisions and recommendations being recorded

Change request

Requests to expand or reduce the project scope, modified policies, processes, plans, or procedures, modified cost or budgets, or revise schedules

Claim

A request, demand, or assertion of rights by a seller against the buyer, or vice versa, for consideration, compensation, or payment under the terms of a legally binding contract, such as for a disputed change

Charter

A document that formally authorized is all recognizes a project

Circular dependency

A timing relationship among tasks that creates an endless loop that cannot be resolved

Co-location technique

An organisational placement strategy where the project team members are physically located close to one another in order to improve communication, working relationships, and productivity

Common cause

A source of variation that is inherent in the system and predictable.  On a control chart, it appears as part of the random process variation, that is, variation from a process that would never be considered normal or not unusual, and is indicated by a random pattern of points within the control limits.  This is also referred to as a random cause

Communication management plan

The document that describes:

The communication needs and expectations of the project

How and in what format information will be communicated

When and where each communication will be made

And who is responsible for providing each type of communication

Configuration management system

This tool is a subsystem of the overall project management system.  It is a collection of formal documented procedures used to apply technical and administrative direction and surveillance to:

Identifying document the functional and physical characteristics of a product, result, service, or component

Control any changes to such characteristics; record am report each change and its implementation status; and support the audit of the products, results, or components to verify conformance to the requirements

It includes the documentation, tracking systems, and defined approval levels necessary for authorizing and controlling changes

Constraint

The state, quality, or sense of being restricted to a given course of action or inaction.  And applicable restriction all limitation, either internal or external to a project, which will affect the performance of the project or process.  For example, a schedule constraint is any limitation or restraint placed on the project schedule that affects where schedule activity can be scheduled and is usually in the form of fixed imposed dates

Contingency reserve

Time or money that is factored into your schedule or budget to mitigate identified risks.  The amount of funds, budget, or time needed above the estimate to reduce the risk of overruns of project objectives to a level acceptable to the organization

Contract

A contract is a mutually binding agreement that obligates the seller to provide the specified product or service or result and obligates the buyer to pay for it

Control

Comparing actual performance with planned performance, analyzing variances, assessing trends to affect process improvements, evaluating possible alternatives, and recommending appropriate corrective action as needed

Control account tool

A management control point where scope, budget in the form of resource plans, actual cost, and schedule are integrated and compare to earned value for performance measurements

Control chart tool

A graphic display of process data over time and against established control limits, and that has a center line that assists in detecting the trend of plotted values toward either control limits

Control limits

The area composed of three standard deviations on either side of the center line, or mean, of a normal distribution of data plotted on a control chart that reflects the expected variation in the data

Corrective action

Documented direction for executing the project work to bring expected future performance of the project work in line with the project management plan

Cost management plan

The document that sets out the format and establish the activities and criteria for planning, structuring, and controlling the project costs.

Go To PART 3 HERE!