Hi, I’m Rhona – Deputy Everything Officer at Psoda.
In this series of videos we’ll be looking at the fundamentals of project management.
We’ll define the important terms, discuss project management lifecycles and methodologies
and look at some of the more common project management techniques.
To kick off, we’re looking at 12 key project management terms that I think anyone involved
in projects should know.
I’ll never forget sitting in my first project meeting and feeling completely out of my depth
as I could barely follow the conversation that flowed around me.
Words like RAG, GANTT and triple constraint had me feeling like I’d dropped into an
alien environment and was waiting for the spaceships to come and take me away.
So let’s get started with the first term: RAG status
This stands for Red, Amber, Green status; which is pretty obvious once you figure it
out.
It’s one of the most common terms and is used to indicate if something is on or off
track.
Just like a traffic light, red means there is something seriously wrong, hey stop the
bus I need to get off.
Amber, MEH, might be something that needs to be looked at, but not enough to make you
want to stop the bus.
Green, everything is sweet, project can keep on going!
Number 2: Work Breakdown Structure or WBS This is basically one of the first deliverables
of the project.
Its where you break your project into manageable chunks and have some logic around it.
You’ve got things like your estimated time, the people that you want to use on it.
Normally I do it as a team activity, so I get all the team together and have post it
notes that you can stick on walls and move around, so that you can all interact and get
something that makes logical sense.
Number 3: Gantt chart/schedule This is a specific way to visualise the work
needed to do to deliver the project.
This falls out of the work that you have done with the work breakdown structure.
It’s basically taking everything you’ve done and putting it into a logical flow.
You add some more detail at this point, so you’ll have estimated start and end dates,
estimated duration, the amount of effort needed to do the job as well as relative progress.
Number 4: Triple constraint This the absolute bane of a project manager’s
life.
It is represented in a number of ways, but usually as a triangle.
You have cost, time and scope on the vertices and quality in the middle.
Basically, you can’t change one of the vertices without affecting the other two.
You’ll very often hear “pick any two, because you can’t have them all”.
Number 5: Methodology This is basically the framework you use to
manage the project.
This could be PRINCE2 (Projects In Controlled Environments), PMBoK (Project Management Body
of Knowledge), Agile or a combination of them all.
I’ve seen a number of projects recently where they are using PRINCE2, for example,
to manage the actual project management and AGILE to manage any development that is happen.
So you pick the methodology that works best or for the particular project that you are
doing.
Number 6: Business Case A: This is a formal document that sets out
exactly what the project hopes to achieve.
It gives background information, a justification for doing the project, the expected benefits
of doing the project a comprehensive options analysis, the various cost options a gap analysis
and the potential risks.
B: This is the fundamental document for your project.
This is where you are presenting your case for actually doing the project and it contains
lots of key information.
Could be written by a business analyst.
It goes up to your project committee to be approved and if its signed off then your project
can start.
Number 7: Requirements These are things that must happen or must
be produced by the project.
It can be anything from the new IT system must be able to integrate with ADFS single
sign on or the cake must be egg free.
They are usually grouped into 3 main types – business, stakeholder and solution.
Number 8: Risk This is something that may, or may not happen,
but if it does happen, it will have a good or bad effect on the project.
The risks may or may not be within your control.
Number 9: Issue This is something that is happening on your
project right now, like a big old burning fire.
You may or may not have identified it as a risk, but it is something that needs to be
treated now.
Number 10: Milestone This is an anchor point on the project management
timeline.
It’s usually found on the Gantt chart and is represented by a diamond shape.
It has absolutely no impact on the project schedule whatsoever, its just there as a visual
reference.
Number 11: Stakeholder This is someone, or a group of someone’s,
who will be, or who think they will be, directly or indirectly affected by what the project
is supposed to be delivering.
The last term is: Steering committee This is a group of people that have been tasked
with providing strategic guidance to the project and are there to support the project manager.
Any big decisions that are outside the agreed tolerances need to be raised here.
So, these are some of the key terms that I think everyone involved with project should
know.
Hopefully you’ve found it useful!
There are obviously loads more so let us know in the comments below what other terms you
think are key.
And remember, if you’re looking for a tool to help you manage your portfolios, programmes
and projects check out Psoda at www.Psoda.com