Introduction

The management of projects encompasses an enormous variety of techniques, methods and processes. Each of these has its own terminology which often varies between industries, or more noticably, between books and software packages. Total confusion reigns since there is no worldwide definitive standard for the language of project management. Far be it from us to suggest that this book defines such a standard but it brings together a range of sources and provides a comprehensive guide to terms and definitions as used in the UK.

Most of the definitive British texts on project management and its derivatives are represented here. PRINCE, the Association for Project Management's Body of Knowledge and CCTA guides have all their terms included and indexed to show their source. Where necessary full definitions have been abridged and this is indicated in the text. We hope you find the section useful and, on occasion, amusing. There are one or two tongue in cheek definitions that may sound familiar to some of the more battle weary project managers out there.

The Glossary of Project Management is compiled by: Adrian Dooley: Technical Editor, Project Manager Today magazine.

$ BS 6079

• The new and soon to be published British Standard for Project Management.

  $APMP

• APM Professional - the new entry qualification to the Association of Project Managers

  $Burst Node

  • A node in a network diagram from which two or more links or activities emerge.

  $Chart Room

  • A room used to display progress charts on a project or number of projects. A excellent facility for general team communication, often maintained by the Project Support Office.

  $Merge Node

  • A node in a network diagram where two or more links or activities merge.

  $Progress Payments

  • Payments made to the contractor by the customer at predefined intervals or stages during the course of a project.

  0/100 Tracking

  • A Tracking method which assumes that all the cost of an Activity is incurred on completion.

  100/0 Tracking

  • A Tracking method which assumes that all the cost of an Activity is incurred at commencement of the Activity.

  50/50 Tracking

  • A Tracking method which assumes that 50% of the cost of an Activity is incurred on commencement and 50% on completion.

  99% Complete

  • A state in which 99% of Activities exist 99% of the time.

  Acceptance

  • The formal process of accepting the delivery of a Deliverable or Product in accordance with the Product Description.

  Acceptance Letters

  • There are four (or maybe five) Acceptance Letters written during the final Stage(s) of a project: Systems, Operations, Security, User and Business Acceptance Letters.
    (definition from PRINCE 1)

  Activity

  • The lowest level of the Work Breakdown Structure. A packet of work which forms the basic building block of a Plan or Network. PRINCE 1 sometimes uses the term 'major activity' to describe a larger element of the work - see Detailed Plans.Something there always seems to be too little of on your projects.

  Activity Calendar

  • Usually applicable to computer scheduling, the Activity Calendar defines the working and non-working patterns applicable to the activity. The Activity Calendar is normally overridden by the Project Calendar. See also Resource Calendars.

  Activity Description

  • The description of an Activity.

  Activity ID

  • An ID number given to the Activity to provide a unique identifier for computer scheduling.

  Activity Network

  • The PRINCE term for a Network.
    (definition abridged from PRINCE 1)

  Activity on Arrow

  • A form of Network in which the activities are represented by Arrows between Nodes which are normally circles.

  Activity on Node

  • A form of Network in which the activities are represented by Nodes linked by Dependencies. The Nodes are normally rectangular.

  Actual Cost

  • The actual money spent in performing an Activity so far.

  Actual Cost of Work Performed

  • The C/Spec term for Actual Cost.
    (definition from C/Spec)

  Actual Finish Date

  • The date an Activity actually finished.

  Actual Start Date

  • The date an Activity actually started.

  ACWP

  • See Actual Cost of Work Performed
    (definition from C/Spec)

  Adjourning

  • The last stage of Team Building where the team disbands

  ADM

  • See Arrow Diagram Method

  AIPM

  • See Australian Institute of Project Management

  ALAP

  • See As Late As Possible

  Allocation

  • The process of allocating work on an Activity to specific Resources.

  APM

  • See Association of Project Managers

  Approval to Proceed

  • This approval is given by the Project Board at Project Initiation and at each End Stage Assessment prior to commencement of the next Stage. It represents a commitment to a further expenditure up to the end of the next stage of the Project.
    (definition from PRINCE 1)

  Archive Plan

  • Some computer packages allow versions of a plan to be archived. One of these archives would be the Baseline Plan.

  Arrow Diagram Method

  • See Activity on Arrow

  As Late As Possible

  • A term used in computer scheduling packages to indicate that an activity should be performed as late as possible i.e. it should be scheduled to take up all of its Float. See also As Soon As Possible

  As of Date

  • See Progress Date

  As Soon As Possible

  • A term used in computer scheduling packages to indicate that an activity should be performed as soon as possible. See also As Late As Possible

  ASAP

  • See As Soon As Possible

  Assignment

  • The work on an activity attributed to a specific resource.

  Association of Project Managers

  • The Professional Association for Project Managers in the UK.

  Australian Institute of Project Management

  • The Australian equivalent of the APM in the UK and the PMI in the USA.

  BAC

  • See Business Assurance Co-ordinator
    (definition from PRINCE 1)

  BAC

  • See Budget at Completion
    (definition from C/Spec)

  Backward Pass

  • A sequence of arithmetic calculations by which the Latest Start and Latest Finish dates of Activities is calculated. This is the second phase of Critical Path Analysis.

  Balanced Matrix

  • An organisational matrix where functions and projects have the same priority. Project Managers are external to the functional departments their teams come from.

  Bar Chart

  • See Gantt ChartA chart of the known watering holes of the Project Team. For use when a crisis occurs after normal working hours.

  Base Date

  • See Progress Date

  Baseline

  • A set of dates and costs frozen at the start of the project and used as a basis for comparison as the project progresses.A set of goalposts which, by means of careful resetting, can be used to make the project look as if it is always on schedule.

  Baseline Cost

  • The amount of money an Activity was intended to cost when the Plan was baselined.

  Baseline Duration

  • The amount of time an Activity was intended to take when the Plan was baselined.

  Baseline Effort

  • The amount of Effort an Activity was intended to cost when the Plan was baselined.

  Baseline Finish

  • The Scheduled Finish Date of an Activity at the time the Plan was baselined.

  Baseline Start

  • The Scheduled Start Date of an Activity at the time the Plan was baselined

  BCM

  • See Business Change Manager
    (definition from CCTA Programme Management)

  BCWP

  • See Budget Cost of Work Performed
    (definition from C/Spec)

  BCWS

  • See Budget Cost of Work Scheduled
    (definition from C/Spec)

  Belbin

  • J. Meredith Belbin was a pioneer of team dynamics........

  Benefits

  • The enhanced efficiency, economy and effectiveness of future business operations to be delivered by a programme.
    (definition from CCTA Programme Management)

  Benefits Framework

  • A component of the Programme Brief which sets out in outline a description of the expected benefits of the Programme, the business operations affected and current and target performance measures.
    (definition from CCTA Programme Management)

  Benefits Management

  • A formal process with Programme Management for planning, managing, delivering and measuring the set of benefits which the Programme is to provide.
    (definition from CCTA Programme Management)

  Benefits Management Plan

  • A component of the Programme Definition Statement, which specifies who is responsible for achieving the benefits set out in the Benefits Profiles and how achievement is to be managed, measured and monitored.
    (definition from CCTA Programme Management)

  Benefits Management Regime

  • The activities, Roles and Outputs of Programme Management for ensuring that the Programme will deliver expected business benefits. The regime is described by the Benefits Management Plan as set out in the Programme Definition Statement.
    (definition from CCTA Programme Management)

  Benefits Profiles

  • A component of the Programme Definition Statement which describes the planned benefits to be realised by the Programme and states where, how, and when they are to be realised.
    (definition abridged from CCTA Programme Management)

  Benefits Realisation Stage

  • The fourth phase of the Programme Management Approach, occurring at the end of each Tranche of a Programme, and particularly at the end of the full programme.
    (definition abridged from CCTA Programme Management)

  Beta Distribution

  • The statistical distribution which is commonly used in the Three Duration Technique to calculate the Duration of an Activity.

  Blueprint

  • The section of the Programme Definition Statement which sets out the vision for the Programme.
    (definition from CCTA Programme Management)

  Board of Directors

  • A group of people who spend one third of their time thinking of pointless new Projects and two thirds of their time inventing artificial and tortuous acronyms for the new projects which make them sound like highly profitable or motivational initiatives.

  Body of Knowledge

  • A document produced by the Association of Project Managers which defines 40 areas of knowledge which make up the discipline of Project Management.

  BOOT

  • Build, Own, Operate, Transfer. A break with the traditional contractual processes for construction projects where the contractor provides project funding.What the Project Manager gets when the Project fails.A means of keeping the Customer's nose out of the project until its too late to change, cunningly disguised as one of the latest bright ideas in Project Management.

  Bottom Up

  • The opposite of Top Down. Overall estimates for the project are built up from the detailed level and aggregated to give totals for the project as a whole.

  Brainstorming

  • The unstructured and dynamic generation of ideas by a group of people where anything and everything is acceptable - well almost ! Particularly useful in generating a list of possible project risks.

  Breakdown Structures

  • These are all the rage. Project Management is more Top Down than Bottom Up and the best way to get from the top to the bottom is via a breakdown structure. Nearly everything in a project may be structurally broken down. Hence the creation of WBS's, NBS's, PBS's, OBS's and CBS's.

  Budget

  • An arbitrary amount of money which will be exceeded by Actual Costs by an amount which is inversely proportional to the amount Risk Analysis done during the Planning Stage.

  Budget at Completion

  • The total budgeted cost of the project from the Baseline.
    (definition from C/Spec)

  Budget Cost of Work Performed

  • The C/Spec term for the Earned Value of work done.
    (definition from C/Spec)

  Budget Cost of Work Scheduled

  • The value of work which should have been completed by the Current Date according to the Baseline Plan. A C/Spec term.
    (definition from C/Spec)

  Business Acceptance Letter

  • This is a mandatory letter prepared by the Executive on the Project Board after reviewing the completed project at the end of the final Stage. It records the successful completion of the project.
    (definition from PRINCE 1)

  Business Area

  • The part of the organisation containing the business operations affected by a Programme.
    (definition abridged from CCTA Programme Management)

  Business Assurance

  • The process of ensuring the Actual Costs and Elapsed Times are in line with Planned Costs and time schedules and that the Business Case remains viable.
    (definition from PRINCE 1)

  Business Assurance Co-ordinator

  • A role within the Project Assurance Team responsible for planning, monitoring and reporting on all Business Assurance aspects of the project. The focal role for administrative controls.
    (definition from PRINCE 1)

  Business Case

  • A document which provides justification for the commitment of resources to a Project or Programme.

  Business Change Manager

  • A role in the Programme Executive responsible for Benefits Management, the programme's Business Case, Transition Plan and the management of change and Risk.
    (definition abridged from CCTA Programme Management)

  C/SCSC

  • See Cost/Schedule Control Systems Criteria
    (definition from C/Spec)

  C/Spec

  • Another term for Cost/Schedule Control Systems Criteria
    (definition from C/Spec)

  Calendar

  • See Project Calendar

  CCTA

  • A government agency which provides IT services to central government and sponsored the development of PRINCE and the Guide to Programme Management.

  Certificated Project Manager

  • A designation of the Association of Project Managers achieved by professional interview and submission of a 5,000 word personal case study.

  Change Control

  • Uncontrolled changes are one of the most common causes of delay and failure. Change Control is the process of implementing procedures which ensure that proposed changes are properly assessed and, if approved, incorporated into the project plan.The control over changes to the specification that every project manager would like to have but doesn't have time for because he is too busy coping with the results of the last uncontrolled change.

  Checkpoint

  • A regular technical and managerial control point.
    (definition from PRINCE 1)

  Checkpoint Meeting

  • Is conducted on behalf of the Stage Manager by the Project Assurance Team, together with Stage Teams, and provide the basic information used to measure actual achievement against plan on both Stage Technical Plans and Stage Resource Plans.
    (definition from PRINCE 1)

  Checkpoint Report

  • Each project holds regular Checkpoint Meetings as prescribed by the Project Board. At each meeting the Stage Manager (with help from the BAC or TAC) prepares a report and passes it to the Project Manager.
    (definition from PRINCE 1)

  Close Out (1.11)

  • The completion of project work once the project has been implemented. The phase at the end of the project lifecycle just before the operations begin. Confusingly this period is often called Start-Up since this refers to the start-up of the facility.

  CMM

  • See Configuration Management MethodologyCommitted Costs
    (definition from PRINCE 1)

  Co-ordinated Matrix

  • An organisational matrix where the Project Leader reports to a functional manager and does not have real authority over team members from other departments.

  Communication (2.3)

  • The effective transmission of information so that the recipient understands clearly what the receiver intends. Communication media may take several forms: Oral, written, textural, numerical, graphic, body language, paper, electronic, physical, etc. In short, bring together and control effectively those things which need inter-relating in order for the project to be properly assessed, configured and implemented.

  Communications Plan

  • A plan indicating how Objectives, Plans and Progress of the programme are to be communicated to staff.
    (definition abridged from CCTA Programme Management)

  Completion Date

  • The date calculated by which the project could finish following careful estimating, planning and risk analysis taking into account resource limitations and contingency.The impossible date the boss says it must be finished following careful analysis of office politics and his promotion prospects.The impossible date your computer says it will be finished following a simple Critical Path Analysis.

  Compound Risk

  • A Risk which comprises a number of inter-related risks.

  Configuration

  • The complete technical description required to build, test, accept, install, operate, maintain and support a System.
    (definition abridged from PRINCE 1)

  Configuration Item

  • A component of a Configuration that has a defined function and is designated for Configuration Management.
    (definition from PRINCE 1)

  Configuration Librarian

  • A role with responsibility for administering Configuration Management and Technical Exception procedures. This role may exist within the project team, or externally with responsibility for a system rather than a project.
    (definition from PRINCE 1)

  Configuration Management

  • The process of defining the configuration items in a System, controlling the release and change of those items throughout the project life-cycle, recording and reporting the status of Configuration Items and change reports and verifying the completeness and correctness of configuration items.
    (definition from PRINCE 1)

  Configuration Management Methodology

  • A formal and documented methodology for Configuration Management. PRINCE 1 contains its own recommended methodology for configuration management.
    (definition from PRINCE 1)

  Conflict Management (2.7)

  • The art of managing conflict effectively. Nearly all projects endanger conflict. It occurs at all levels largely because there are so many different parties working together each with their own aims and people often come together who barely know each other and yet are asked to work together under pressure. The art of conflict management is to channel conflicts so that the result is positive rather than destructive.

  Constraints

  • A generic term for factors affecting the possible start and finish dates of an Activity including Logic and Imposed Dates.

  Consumable Resource

  • The most common Resources are re-usable i.e. people and machinery. Some computer packages allow definition of consumable resources i.e. materials to allow for stock control.

  Contingency

  • As a result of Risk Analysis sums of money or amounts of time may be set aside as contingency which may be used in the event of risks occurring.Warning: Contingency should be shown in a plan as a separate item not hidden in Activities as 'an extra 10%' on Duration or cost.

  Control and Co-ordination (2.2)

  • Control is the process of establishing targets and plans, measuring actual performance, comparing actual performance against planned and taking any necessary actions to correct the situation. Co-ordination is the activity of ensuring that work is being carried out in various organisations and places fit together effectively in time, content and cost in order to achieve the project objectives effectively.

  Control Points

  • A generic term for four elements of project control in PRINCE 1: End-Stage Assessment, Mid-Stage Assessment, Quality Review and Checkpoint.
    (definition from PRINCE 1)

  Cost Benefit Analysis

  • The analysis of the potential costs and benefits of a project which allows comparison of the returns from alternative forms of investment.

  Cost Codes

  • Codes allocated to Activities which allow costs to be consolidated according to the elements of the coding structure.

  Cost Control (3.5)

  • The discipline of reconciling planned and actual money figures to physical parts of the project. Cost control also involves careful treatment of changes (including claims), trend forecasting and authorisation for payment. Cash Flow forecasting is also a cost control function.

  Cost Curve

  • A graph plotted against a horizontal time scale and cumulative cost vertical scale.

  Cost Envelope

  • The area bounded by a Cost Curve based on Early Start Dates of Activities and a Cost Curve based on Late Start Dates of activities.

  Cost Performance Index

  • A ratio calculated from BCWP ÷ ACWP
    (definition from C/Spec)

  Cost Variance

  • The value of the work done less the actual cost of the work done i.e. BCWP - ACWP. A negative number shows the project is currently over budget.
    (definition from C/Spec)

  Cost/Schedule Control Systems Criteria

  • In 1967 the US Department of Defence defined a standard for the use of Earned Value Analysis in defence projects. It has since been adopted much more widely and is supported by most planning software.
    (definition from C/Spec)

  CPI

  • See Cost Performance Index
    (definition from C/Spec)

  CRAMM

  • The CCTA Security Risk Analysis and Management Methodology for IT projects and systems.

  Crash Costs

  • The cost of reducing an Activity to its Crash Duration.

  Crash Duration

  • If there is an urgent need to shorten the Critical Path of a Network, Activities may be 'Crashed'. This indicates drastic action to reduce the duration of a Critical Activity which is only taken in exceptional circumstances and probably achieved by a dramatic increase in Resources.

  Critical Activity

  • An Activity on the Critical Path i.e. with zero Float.

  Critical Path

  • The longest sequence of Activities in a Network. Usually, but not always, a sequence with zero Float.A useful means of encouraging staff and contractors as in "Your activity is on the Critical Path"Warning: The Critical Path is an accident of arithmetic. It may be the longest sequence of activities but there may be others which have such minimal float as to be inconsequential. Just because books are fond of talking about Critical Paths and planning software highlights the activities with no float do not focus on the Critical Path at the expense of all else. Also note that once Resource Scheduling has been performed, Float and hence the Critical Path, are no longer valid calculations.

  Critical Path Analysis

  • A simple calculation of a Network of Activities which results in a date which is the earliest possible completion of the project taking time and logic only, into account. Results in calculation of a Critical Path.A process which computer programmers can understand and therefore one of the few calculations that planning software does almost accurately.Assessment of the quickest route to the pub after the latest Progress Meeting.

  Critical Sequence

  • A sequence of Activities which have zero Float where Resource Limits are taken into account when calculating Float.

  Critical Sequence Analysis

  • A proposed method for calculating a Critical Sequence which takes Resource Limits into account when calculating an Activity's flexibility.

  Critical Success Factors

  • The key factors which are deemed critical to the success of the project. The nature of these factors will govern the response to Conflicts, Risks and the setting of Priorities.

  Criticality Index

  • A measure of how often an Activity appears on the Critical Path during a Monte Carlo Simulation

  Cross-Stage Plan

  • A Detailed Plan which is prepared to show Activities which span more than one of the project's Stages
    (definition from PRINCE 1)

  Current Date

  • See Progress Date

  Customer

  • Every Project should have a Customer who is responsible for Acceptance of Deliverables. The role may be external or internal to the organisation.

  CV

  • See Cost Variance
    (definition from C/Spec)

  ---

  Dangle

  • An Activity in a Network which has either no Predecessors or no Successors.

  Delegation (2.5)

  • Delegation is the art of getting others to perform work effectively which one cannot do oneself because of a lack of time, competency or other reasons.

  Deliverable

  • See Product

  Delphi Technique

  • An iterative process whereby a consensus view is reached by consultation with experts. Often used as an estimating technique.

  Dependency Links

  • The various types of link connecting Activities in a Precedence Network. See also Finish to Start; Start to Start; Finish to Finish and Start to Finish.

  Design Authority

  • A role within the Programme Executive, with the responsibility to manage the design of the business and information systems that are affected or created by the Programme.
    (definition abridged from CCTA Programme Management)

  Design Management Plan

  • A component of the Programme Definition Statement which helps to preserve both the programme's overall technical design integrity and its coherence with plans for infrastructure and support services.
    (definition abridged from CCTA Programme Management)

  Detailed Plans

  • See Detailed Resource Plan and Detailed Technical Plan.
    (definition from PRINCE 1)

  Detailed Resource Plan

  • This will exist when it is considered necessary to plan and control a particular major activity within a Stage. It sets out the costs and resource usage which correspond to a Detailed Technical Plan.
    (definition from PRINCE 1)

  Detailed Technical Plan

  • This exists in all but the smallest of projects. They are used to give a detailed breakdown of certain major activities, e.g. system testing, and are produced as and when required.
    (definition from PRINCE 1)

  Deterministic Network

  • Both Activity on Arrow and Precedence Networks are said to be deterministic since they have no facilities to accommodate Probabilistic Dependencies.

  Dummy

  • An arrow in an Activity on Arrow Network which represents a Dependency Link rather than an Activity. Usually represented by a dotted line.

  Duration

  • The amount of elapsed time an Activity is estimated to take.

  EAC

  • See Estimate at Completion

  Early Event Date

  • The earliest date an Event could occur. Calculated from a Forward Pass calculation.

  Early Finish Date

  • The earliest date by which an Activity can finish. Calculated during the Forward Pass of Critical Path Analysis.

  Early Start Date

  • The earliest date by which an Activity can start. Calculated during the Forward Pass of Critical Path Analysis.

  Earned Value

  • The value of the work done where value is calculated in terms of the Baseline Cost. Known as Budget Cost of Work Performed in the Cost/Schedule Control Systems Criteria.

  Earned Value Analysis

  • The analysis of project progress where the actual money spent is compared to the value of the work achieved. See also Cost/Schedule Control Systems Criteria.

  Efficiency

  • A measure of the speed and effectiveness with which a Resource delivers a particular Skill.

  Effort Remaining

  • The Estimate of effort remaining to complete an Activity. A far more useful measure of progress than Percentage Complete.

  End Stage Assessment

  • A mandatory management control at the end of each Stage. Work may not proceed on the next Stage until the Project Board has approved current status and future Resource Plans and Technical Plans at this assessment.
    (definition abridged from PRINCE 1)

  End Tranche Assessment

  • A review carried out at the outset of the Benefits Realisation Phase to verify the completion of all Tranche projects.
    (definition abridged from CCTA Programme Management)

  ESA

  • See End Stage Assessment
    (definition from PRINCE 1)

  Estimate at Completion

  • The current estimated total cost of the project.
    (definition from C/Spec)

  Estimate to Complete

  • An Estimate of the time and/or Effort required to complete the Activity.

  Estimating

  • The process of combining the results of Post Project Reviews, Metrics, consultation and informed assessment to arrive at time and resource requirements of an Activity.The process of allocating wild guesses and random numbers to Activities.

  Estimating (3.4)

  • An estimate is an assessment of the anticipated cost of implementing all or part of a project.

  ETC

  • See Estimate to Complete

  Event

  • The circle used to indicate the start point and finish point of an Activity in an Activity on Arrow Network.

  Exception Memo

  • A document which records situations which have diverged from the planned Quality Review activities, It may be raised by the Stage Manager or Project Manager, the chairman of a Quality Review or the Business Assurance Co-ordinator.
    (definition from PRINCE 1)

  Exception Plan

  • A plan produced in situations where costs or timescales have already been exceeded or are anticipated to exceed the Tolerance set by the Project Board for the current Stage or Project.
    (definition from PRINCE 1)

  Executive

  • The member of the Project Board who is responsible for ensuring that the system under development achieves the expected benefits and that the project is completed within the cost and timescales approved by the IT Executive Committee.
    (definition from PRINCE 1)

  External Constraint

  • Constraints which act upon Activities within a Network from outside the network, typically Imposed Dates or an Interface.

  ---

  Hammock Activity

  • An Activity which spans between two points in a Network. It has no Duration of its own but derives one from the time difference between the two points to which it is connected.

  Hand-over Plan

  • Part of the Transition Plan component of the Programme Definition Statement which covers the take-on of Project Deliverables to operational services.
    (definition abridged from CCTA Programme Management)

  Hard Project

  • A project which has a well defined physical product as its outcome as opposed to a Soft Project.Is there any other kind?

  Henry Gantt

  • The inventor of the Gantt Chart around the turn of the century.

  Highlight Report

  • A report prepared by the Project Manager at intervals determined by the Project Board. It reviews progress to date and highlights any actual or potential problems which have been identified during the period it covers.
    (definition from PRINCE 1)

  Histogram

  • A graph showing resource usage on the vertical axis against time on the horizontal axis.

  Hypercritical

  • If an Imposed Date has been set the Critical Path leading to that point may be too long to finish by that date. The Critical Path becomes Hypercritical and possesses Negative Float.

  i Node

  • The Node at the start of an Activity in an Activity on Arrow Network.

  i/j Numbers

  • The numbers used to identify an Activity in an Activity on Arrow Network.

  Impact

  • Used in Risk Analysis as one part of the assessment of a risk the other being Likelihood. Impact is an assessment of the adverse effect of the Rick occurring.

  Impact Analysis

  • The process of assessing the ramifications of pursuing a particular course of action - typically a change to the existing system.
    (definition from PRINCE 1)

  Imposed Finish

  • A Finish Date imposed on an Activity by external Constraints. May lead to Hypercritical paths and Negative Float.

  Imposed Start

  • A Start Date imposed on an Activity by external Constraints. May lead to Hypercritical paths and Negative Float.

  Independent Float

  • The degree of flexibility which an Activity has which does not affect the Float available on any Preceding or Succeeding activities

  Individual Work Plan

  • The lowest level of the Technical Plan which defines the tasks and responsibilities of an individual team member.
    (definition abridged from PRINCE 1)

  Informal Review

  • A less formal subset of a Quality Review.
    (definition abridged from PRINCE 1)

  Information Systems Examination Board

  • A body which offers a Certificate in Project Management which is awarded on completing 80 hours of training and passing the ISEB exam.

  Insanity

  • The art of making the same old mistakes and expecting a different result. See also Project Culture.

  Integration (1.9)

  • Integration, in the opinion of most project management professionals is the key distinguishing function of the project manager. It involves bringing people and things together to perform effectively.

  Interface

  • An Activity or Node which indicates a logical connection to another Network.

  International Journal of Project Management

  • The academic journal of the IPMA.

  International Project Management Association

  • A federation of the European project management associations. It does not include the PMI or the AIPM

  Internet

  • The old colloquial name for the International Project Management Association that was dropped to avoid confusion with some rag bag collection of computers joined up by telephone wires.

  IRR

  • See Internal Rate of Return

  ISEB

  • See Information Systems Examination Board.

  Island of Stability

  • A review point at the end of a Tranche, when progress is reviewed and the next Tranche is planned.b: An island in the South Seas where nothing changes and hence Project Management is part of an alien culture. Site of a proposed home for tired and emotional managers at the bottom of the NBS.
    (definition abridged from CCTA Programme Management)

  IT Executive Committee

  • The top management group within a department responsible for the overall overall direction of the IT projects forming part of the IT strategy. It initiates and sets their terms of reference.
    (definition from PRINCE 1)

  j Node

  • The Node at the finish of an Activity in an Activity on Arrow Network.

  ---

  Hammock Activity

  • An Activity which spans between two points in a Network. It has no Duration of its own but derives one from the time difference between the two points to which it is connected.

  Hand-over Plan

  • Part of the Transition Plan component of the Programme Definition Statement which covers the take-on of Project Deliverables to operational services.
    (definition abridged from CCTA Programme Management)

  Hard Project

  • A project which has a well defined physical product as its outcome as opposed to a Soft Project.Is there any other kind?

  Henry Gantt

  • The inventor of the Gantt Chart around the turn of the century.

  Highlight Report

  • A report prepared by the Project Manager at intervals determined by the Project Board. It reviews progress to date and highlights any actual or potential problems which have been identified during the period it covers.
    (definition from PRINCE 1)

  Histogram

  • A graph showing resource usage on the vertical axis against time on the horizontal axis.

  Hypercritical

  • If an Imposed Date has been set the Critical Path leading to that point may be too long to finish by that date. The Critical Path becomes Hypercritical and possesses Negative Float.

  i Node

  • The Node at the start of an Activity in an Activity on Arrow Network.

  i/j Numbers

  • The numbers used to identify an Activity in an Activity on Arrow Network.

  Impact

  • Used in Risk Analysis as one part of the assessment of a risk the other being Likelihood. Impact is an assessment of the adverse effect of the Rick occurring.

  Impact Analysis

  • The process of assessing the ramifications of pursuing a particular course of action - typically a change to the existing system.
    (definition from PRINCE 1)

  Imposed Finish

  • A Finish Date imposed on an Activity by external Constraints. May lead to Hypercritical paths and Negative Float.

  Imposed Start

  • A Start Date imposed on an Activity by external Constraints. May lead to Hypercritical paths and Negative Float.

  Independent Float

  • The degree of flexibility which an Activity has which does not affect the Float available on any Preceding or Succeeding activities

  Individual Work Plan

  • The lowest level of the Technical Plan which defines the tasks and responsibilities of an individual team member.
    (definition abridged from PRINCE 1)

  Informal Review

  • A less formal subset of a Quality Review.
    (definition abridged from PRINCE 1)

  Information Systems Examination Board

  • A body which offers a Certificate in Project Management which is awarded on completing 80 hours of training and passing the ISEB exam.

  Insanity

  • The art of making the same old mistakes and expecting a different result. See also Project Culture.

  Integration (1.9)

  • Integration, in the opinion of most project management professionals is the key distinguishing function of the project manager. It involves bringing people and things together to perform effectively.

  Interface

  • An Activity or Node which indicates a logical connection to another Network.

  International Journal of Project Management

  • The academic journal of the IPMA.

  International Project Management Association

  • A federation of the European project management associations. It does not include the PMI or the AIPM

  Internet

  • The old colloquial name for the International Project Management Association that was dropped to avoid confusion with some rag bag collection of computers joined up by telephone wires.

  IRR

  • See Internal Rate of Return

  ISEB

  • See