Standard Dictionary Definition
Acceptance Certificate A formal mechanism for the senior user and the support section to acknowledge acceptance and responsibility for the output delivered by the project.
Activity A process, function or task that occurs over time, has recognizableresults and is managed. It is usually defined as part of a process orplan.
Assurance All the systematic actions necessary to provide confidence that thetarget (system, process, organization, programme, project,outcome, benefit, capability, product output, deliverable) isappropriate. Appropriateness might be defined subjectively orobjectively in different circumstances. The implication is thatassurance will have a level of independence from that which isbeing assured.
Authority The right to allocate resources (funds included) and make decisions (applies toall levels of project). Level of authority will vary across the hierarchy.
Baseline Reference levels against which an entity is monitored andcontrolled. Baseline will be set for time, budget and scope once project have been approved to commence execution (or when a variation is approved).
Benefit The measurable improvement resulting from an outcome perceivedas an advantage by one or more stakeholders.
Business Case The justification for an organizational activity (project), whichtypically contains costs, benefits, risks and timescales, and againstwhich continuing viability is tested. The Business case is the mechanism to gain approval from the relevant authority to utilise resources to deliver an output.
Change Request A formal mechanism to introduce modification to existing process, systems, products approved by the Change Advisory Board (CAB). Change requests are to be submitted by the Project Manager to CAB.
Closure notification Advice from the Project Board to inform all stakeholders and thehost sites that the project resources can be disbanded and supportservices, such as space, equipment and access, demobilized. Itshould indicate a closure date for costs to be charged to theproject.
Communication artefacts Items generated by the Project Manager or project team in an effort to deliver messages to stakeholders and the organisation.
Concept Document A document that identify the problem we are trying to solve and potential benefits to the organisation.
Configuration itemAn entity that is subject to configuration management. The entitymay be a component of a product, a product, or a set of products ina release.
Configuration management Technical and administrative activities concerned with the creation,maintenance and controlled change of configuration throughout thelife of a product.
Contingency Something that is held in reserve typically to handle time and costvariances, or risks.
Cost Breakdown Structure (WCBS) The decomposition of cost allocated to specific work delivered by the project and presented in a hierarchy structure.
Cost toleranceThe permissible deviation in a plan’s cost that is allowed before thedeviation needs to be escalated to the next level of management.Cost tolerance is documented in the respective plan.
Customer The person or group who commissioned the work and will benefitfrom the end results.
DeliverableSee ‘output’.
Detailed Scope Document A documents that identified what will be delivered by the project and what will not be delivered by the project. It is a derivative from the Scope document and developed during the planning phase.
End Project Report A report given by the Project Manager to the Project Board, thatconfirms the handover of all products and provides an updatedBusiness Case and an assessment of how well the project hasdone against the original Plan.
End Stage Report A report given by the Project Manager to the Project Board at theend of each management stage of the project. This providesinformation about the project performance during the stage and theproject status at stage end. This report can be part of the Gate report.
Execution PhaseThe phase when the Project Manager and the project team delivers the output/s defined in the detail scope document. This phase ends with the acceptance of the product by the senior user.
Executive The single individual with overall accountability for ensuring that aproject meets its objectives and delivers the projected benefits. Thisindividual should ensure that the project maintains its businessfocus, that it has clear authority, and that the work, including risks,is actively managed. The Executive is the chair of the ProjectBoard. He or she represents the customer and is responsible forthe Business Case.
Gate A project-level, time-driven review of progress with a view to authorise the next phase of the project (in terms of plan and resources allocation).
Gate ReportA collection of documentation submitted to the submitted to the Project Board for approval to enter the next phase of the project. The Gate report should clearly articulate the plan, the boundaries and the deliverables for the next phase. The Project Board can either approve, reject or request amendments to the plan. A rejection of the Gate report will consider a directive to close the project or put it on hold.
Governance (project)Those areas of corporate governance that are specifically related toproject activities. Effective governance of project managementensures that an organization’s project portfolio is aligned to theorganization’s objectives, is delivered efficiently and is sustainable.
Handover The transfer of ownership of a set of products to the respectiveuser(s). The set of products is known as a release. There may bemore than one handover in the life of a project (phased delivery).The final handover takes place in the Execution phase of the project life cycle.
Impact (of risk)The result of a particular threat or opportunity actually occurring, orthe anticipation of such a result. The impact is normally assessed in monetary value.
Initiation Phase The period from when the Project Board authorizes initiation towhen they establish funding for the project (or decide not to go ahead with theproject).
Issue A relevant event that has happened, was not planned, and requiresmanagement action. It can be any concern, query, request forchange, suggestion or off-specification raised during a project.
Issue Register A register used to capture and maintain information on all of theissues that are being managed formally. The Issue Register shouldbe monitored by the Project Manager on a regular basis.
Lessons Learnt Log An informal repository for lessons learnt during all project phases that apply to this project or futureprojects.
Milestone A significant event in a plan’s schedule, such as completion of keyWork Packages, a technical stage, or a management stage.
Off-specification Something that should be provided by the project, but currently isnot (or is forecast not to be) provided. This might be a missingproduct or a product not meeting its specifications. Off Specification is one type ofissue.
Operational and maintenanceacceptanceA specific type of acceptance by the person or group who willsupport the product once it is handed over into the operationalenvironment.
Outcome The result of change, normally affecting real-world behaviour and/orcircumstances. Outcomes are desired when a change is conceived.They are achieved as a result of the activities undertaken to effectthe change.
Output A specialist product that is handed over to a user(s). Note thatmanagement products are not outputs but are created solely for thepurpose of managing the project.
Project Phase A time bound period with specific objective\s for delivery by the Project Manager.
Project Progress Report A time-driven report from the Project Manager to the Project Board on a phase progress.
Plan A detailed proposal for doing or achieving something whichspecifies the what, when, how and by whom.
Planning phase the phase of the project where the Project Manager and the team prepare a detail plan to provide the Project Board with assurance of outcome.At the end of the planning phase, the Project Board will confirm the investment amount to be allocated to the project for execution.
Product An input or output, whether tangible or intangible, that can bedescribed in advance, created and tested.
Product breakdown structureA hierarchy of all the products to be produced during a plan.
Project A temporary organization that is created for the purpose ofdelivering one or more business products according to an agreedBusiness Case.
Project approachA description of the way in which the work of the project is to bemanaged and delivered.
Project AssuranceThe Project Board’s responsibilities to assure itself that the projectis being conducted correctly. The Project Board members eachhave a specific area of focus for Project Assurance, namelybusiness assurance for the Executive, user assurance for theSenior User(s), and supplier assurance for the Senior Supplier(s).
Project Board A group of stakeholders, including the project sponsor, senior customer and senior supplier who provide the project manager with decisions outside the Project Manager’s delegation or influence.
Project lifecycleThe period from the start-up of a project to the acceptance of theproject product.
Project managementThe planning, delegating, monitoring and control of all aspects ofthe project, and the motivation of those involved, to achieve theproject objectives within the expected performance targets for time,cost, quality, scope, benefits and risks.
Project Manager The person given the authority and responsibility to manage theproject on a day-to-day basis to deliver the required products withinthe constraints agreed with the Project Board.
Project Management Plan The overall project plan showing all the details of how to deliver the outputs defined in the detail scope document.
Project productWhat the project must deliver in order to gain acceptance.
Proposal A document that provides the initial details on how to solve the problem\s identified in the Concept document
RACI Acronym for Responsible Accountable Consulted and Informed. This tool is used to identify the level of involvement of team members and stakeholders in the project.
Registers Formal repositories managed by the Project Manager for the collation and coordination of risks, issues, actions and lesson learnt.
Release The set of products in a handover. The contents of a release aremanaged, tested and deployed as a single entity.
Request for variationA proposal for a change to a baseline. Request for a variation is a type of issue.
Requirements Documents The suite of documents that link business needs into systems specifications. Documents generated may include: Business requirements, Functional specifications, systems specifications etc.
Responsible authorityThe person or group commissioning the project (typically corporateor programme management) who has the authority to commitresources and funds on behalf of the commissioning organization.
Risk An uncertain event or set of events that, should it occur, will havean effect on the achievement of objectives. A risk is measured by acombination of the probability of a perceived threat or opportunityoccurring, and the magnitude of its impact on objectives.
Risk managementThe systematic application of principles, approaches and processesto the tasks of identifying and assessing risks, and then planningand implementing risk responses.
Risk Register A record of identified risks relating to an initiative, including theirstatus and history.
Schedule Graphical representation of a plan (for example, a Gantt chart),typically describing a sequence of tasks, together with resourceallocations, which collectively deliver the plan.
Scope For a plan, the sum total of its products and the extent of theirrequirements. It is described by the product breakdown structure forthe plan and associated Product Descriptions.
Scope Document A scope statement suggesting what will be included in the scope of the proposed project.
Scope toleranceThe permissible deviation in a plan’s scope.
Sponsor The main driving force behind a programme or project.
Stakeholder Any individual, group or organization that can affect, be affected by,or perceive itself to be affected by, an initiative (programme,project, activity, risk).
Tolerance The permissible deviation above and below a plan’s target for timeand cost without escalating the deviation to the next level ofmanagement. There may also be tolerance levels for quality,scope, benefit and risk. Tolerance is applied at project, stage andteam levels.
User acceptanceA specific type of acceptance by the person or group who will usethe product once it is handed over into the operational environment.
Variation A formal mechanism to introduce a change to baseline products.
Variation Authority A person or group to which project variation is submitted for consideration. The individuals will have the relevant financial delegation and be the benefit owner.
Work Breakdown Structure (WBS) The decomposition of work delivered by the project and presented in a hierarchy structure.
Work Package The set of information relevant to the creation of one or moreproducts. It will contain a description of the work, the ProductDescription(s), details of any constraints on production, andconfirmation of the agreement between the Project Manager andthe person or Team Manager who is to implement the WorkPackage that the work can be done within the constraints.
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