PROJECT MANAGEMENT- C722 Questions and Answers 100% Solved Graded A

PROJECT MANAGEMENT- C722 Questions and Answers 100% Solved Graded A Portfolio - - a group of related programs that support a long-term company goal or objective Pg 13 Program - - a group of related projects Pg 13 Project - - an activity or group of activities to generate a new, unique product, service, or results to support that program Pg 13 Charter - - a document that, like a contract, is agreed upon by the sponsor and key stakeholders. It defines the project and authorizes the resources, roles, responsibilities, authorities, and scope for the project Pg 13 Specific, measurable, attainable, relevant, timely - - Criteria of specific objectives that are unique to a project are referred to as SMART which stands for what Pg 15 Triple constraint - - cost (budget), schedule (time), and scope (deliverables) Pg 17 Stakeholder analysis - - analysis to define the relevant stakeholders, their interests, and their communication needs Pg 19 Change Control Board (CCB) - - a group of people who track changes in a project and can be used as a governance tool Pg 19 Work Breakdown Structures (WBS) - - a key tool so that people understand what is expected of them and how they will be held accountable Pg 21 Project Management Institute (PMI) - - Founded in 1969, it's headquartered in Newton, PA, and has member chapters on every continent (except Antarctica). Publishes foundational and practice standards and is the largest in the world. Pg 22 Association for Project Management (APM) - - A UK-based charter organization that is the largest professional body of its kind in Europe. Formed in 1972, it's membership is primarily limited to the United Kingdom. Pg 22 International Project Management Association (IPMA) - - the world's first project management association, founded in 1965. The leading authority on competent project, programme, and portfolio management (PPPM) Pg 22 AXELOS, Ltd - - a joint venture between the government of the United Kingdom and Captia PLC. It was formed to manage and grow a number of standards and associated certifications developed by the Cabinet office, including ITIL (Information Technology Infrastructure Library), PRINCE2, and Managing Successful Programs (MSP). Pg 22 Functional (Departmentalized) Organization pros/cons - - Pros: Lines of authority are clear; work is easily prioritized by identified departmental authority Cons: Utilizing resources across functions can be difficult; project is not managed holistically Projectized Organization pros and cons - - Pros: Clear lines of authority; project is managed holistically; gain historical data from prior projects. Cons: Approach is expensive because of the duplication of personnel; SME assigned may not have the most appropriate knowledge or expertise for the project Matrix Organization pros and cons - - Pros: Central focus is the project; issues are responded to quickly. Cons: Requires cooperation and coordination between and among functional departments and project managers; resource balancing between projects can lead to friction. project management office (PMO) - - A process for determining if the level of documentation and best practices followed in project execution. Pg 26 Project Management Maturity Level - - Determined by the comprehensiveness of written procedures to accomplish tasks in each of the process areas identified by PMI. Pg 26 alignment - - Term used to describe connecting project outcomes to company goals. Pg 30 Realistic - - Model is appropriate to the level of resources available, the operating environment, and capabilities of the company. Pg 31 Capable - - The model is able to apply the pertinent factors of the evaluation, including time, risk, cost, and internal and external environment. Pg 31 Flexible - - Model should provide accurate measures across a reasonable range of changing conditions. Pg 31 Easy to use - - The model is not difficult to learn and understand in a relatively short time; provides results readily understandable to the user.. Pg 31 Low Cost - - Cost to run the model is economical relative to scale (budget) of project Pg 31 Comparable - - The model should be usable across a multitude of projects, and not be project specific. Pg 31 Non-numeric project selection models - - A process of selecting projects; not limited to traditional numeric performance measures; includes Competitive Necessity, Operating Necessity, Sacred Cow, and Checklist. Return on Investment (ROI) - - (NET PROFIT / COST OF INVESTMENT) * 100 Pg 32 Competitive Necessity Model - - A process of selecting a project based upon whether implementing the project will ensure the viability of the company in the competitive market. Operating Necessity Model - - A process of selecting a project based upon if it will ensure ongoing operations. Sacred Cow - - Projects are suggested by senior leadership or a powerful constituent of the company often created to satisfy the expectations of the leader with little regard for the project's viability or contribution to strategic or operational needs. Pg 32 Checklist Model - - This method uses a series of questions to evaluate each potential project. Each project would be analyzed using the same set of questions, and then the answers to the questions would be compared to determine whether a project is accepted or rejected. weighted factor scoring - - This scoring models requires senior management to assign a weight to each criterion, which places some emphasis on selected criteria when calculating the total project score. Pg 34 time value of money - - Money is worth more to an organization now than in the future. Pg 35 payback period - - Calculates the amount of time required to earn back the cost of doing the project. Pg 36 Internal rate of return (IRR) - - To calculate future cash flows using time and interest rate; evaluates potential projects as if they were financial investments. Pg 37 net present value (NPV) - - To calculate whether revenue tomorrow is greater than costs today; A financial measure of the total future benefits of a project minus the costs of the project. Pg 38 future net cash flows - - Amount a company expects to realize from a project before that project begins. Pg 38 Project Process Groups - - Initiating, Planning/Executing/Monitoring and Controlling, Closing Project Phases - - Defining, Planning, Executing, and Closing Work Breakdown Structure - - a key document that will be used for cost estimates, time estimates, risk identification, and resource assignment. Pg 45 collecting customer requirements - - The process of gathering information from the customer and stakeholders in order to define the high level project outcomes Pg 48 specifications - - used to describe customer requirements that identify precise and measurable characteristics of the project outcome Pg 48 project sponsor - - The person in the project organization who has authority to expend resources for projects. Pg 48 Integration Management Plan - - Documents how the various processes and planning areas will be kept in sync throughout the project life cycle. Pg 49 Types of Project Management Plans - - Integration, Scope, Risk, Procurement, Communications, Human Resources, Stakeholder, Quality, Cost, Time, Configuration, Change, Process Improvement, Requirements Stakeholder Management Plan - - Explains how stakeholders will be identified along with their level of interest in the project and influence over the project. This is closely tied to the communications plan since stakeholders will need varying levels and frequency of information. Pg 49 Configuration Management Plan - - Documents how the project team and stakeholders will keep track of the versions of project documents to ensure that the most up-to-date document is in use. Pg 49 Requirements Management Plan - - Documents how the customer and stakeholder requirements will be identified, integrated to the project scope, tracked throughout the project, and verified at closure. Pg 49 Iterative Process - - A process for arriving at a decision or a desired result through different stages of a project. Each stage will provide a deliverable that will help the business determine whether or not they will keep going with the overall plan. phase-gate - - Go/no go - where the overall project could be easily stopped before any more resources were expended Pg 52 Scope Creep - - occurs when the project team integrates enhancements to the scope without proper evaluation and approval. Pg 56 Gantt chart - - A type of bar chart that illustrates a project schedule with start and finish dates of the activities and tasks that the project requires. Pg 57 PERT chart - - Pg 57 float time (slack time) - - the difference between the time required for the critical path to complete and the time for another path to complete Pg 57 cost of business (COB) - - Day-to-day expenses that are not typically considered part of the project and should not be charged to the project. Pg 58 Critical path method (CPM) - - Developed for the Dupont Corporation to estimate activity time durations, this method assumes time can be reliably estimated; calculates the longest path. Pg 68 Critical chain project management (CCPM) - - Focuses on managing the uncertainties of a project and builds buffers into the schedule to prevent key activities from failing. Pg 68 Waterfall - - Used previously in software development, this method organizes project tasks into linear workflows. Pg 68 Projects in controlled environments (PRINCE) - - Focuses on the specification of outputs, including very specific processes and terminology. Pg 68 PMBOK - - a standard that identifies the best practices which can be applied across projects and environments Pg 68 uncertainty - - Situation where the current state of knowledge is such that (1) the order or nature of things is unknown, (2) the consequences, extent, or magnitude of circumstances, conditions, or events is unpredictable, and (3) credible probabilities to possible outcomes cannot be assigned. Pg 69 Network Diagram - - a project planning tool that shows the sequenced project activities using arrows and circles Pg 69 Agile project management - - an iterative approach to project management where the project team works closely with the customer to deliver projects in usable chunks Pg 74 scrum - - The daily standup meeting where the team discusses their work status and plans the work for the day. Pg 74 sprints - - Occurs when the focus is to work together in delivering functionality to the customer in a relatively short period of time (often less than 3 weeks). Pg 74 backlog - - Cards that contain customer functionality requirements Pg 74 retrospective - - a discussion after the completion of each sprint to determine what went well and what changes should occur in the next sprint. Pg 74 Extreme Project Management - - Approaches to address issues of extraordinary uncertainty or complexity. Pg 75 8/80 Rule - - A good rule of thumb that ensures that no task is less than 8 hours or more than 80 hours in the WBS Pg 89 living documents - - Planning documents that are not written in stone. Perodical review helps ensure that the plans are still valid. Pg 80 Statement of Work (SOW) - - Defines the project's outcomes in terms of objectives, specific deliverables, acceptance criteria, technical requirements, milestones, constraints, and assumptions. Pg 81 Project Scope Statement - - Both the product scope (description of the project outcomes) and the project scope (description of how the work will be completed) are included Pg 82 Requirements Traceability Matrix - - A grid that includes the requirement, identifies the business need, and the specific stakeholder who provided the requirement Pg 82 Resource Responsibility Matrix - - A document that shows the needed resources which are identified and roles and responsibilities are detailed. Pg 83 Skill Matrix - - Shows the required skills for each role and the available skills for each person available for the project team. Pg 83 Tools that document approval requirements - - Project Statement of Work (SOW) and Requirements Traceability Matrix (RAM) Resource Leveling - - The act of leveling the amount of resources needed to be constant over a period of time Pg 84 Activity - - A portion of work that will be executed as part of the project to create the specified deliverables. Pg 88 task - - specific actions taken to complete an activity. Pg 88 WBS Number - - Used as a coding scheme to associate the various tasks to activities, deliverables, and the project as a whole. Pg 89 Risk Breakdown Structure (RBS) - - Follows the WBS and insures that each activity and task in the WBS is reviewed for risk and opportunity and documented as identified. Pg 95 Risk Transfer - - A technique used to move the risk of loss to another party by means of a contract. Pg 95 Opportunity Acceptance - - An opportunity the we will welcome and use the benefits to our advantage Pg 95 Opportunity Enhancing - - Involves identifying the root cause of a positive risk so that you can influence it for a greater likelihood of the opportunity occurring. Pg 95 risk register - - a list of potential project-derailing events, how those they will be monitored, and what action will be taken should the event occur; include external, technical, and organizational. top-down estimation methods - - This approach starts with identifying every major aspect to the project; approach requires a history and knowledge of project pricing to accurately estimate. Bottom-up estimation methods - - In this style, project managers tally their costs upward, starting at the bottom and accounting for each expected cost. In sum, the total costs should equal the finished project. parametric estimating - - Determined by identifying the unit cost or duration and the number of units required for the project or activity. Pg 99 ratio method - - Uses experience from prior projects to estimate the overall cost of the current project. Pg 99 apportion method - - A method of allocating project costs using the work breakdown structure. Pg 99 baseline budget - - The approved budget that will be used as the standard for comparison of actual costs throughout the life of the project and identifying variances. Pg 100 Direct overhead costs - - costs from the project that are shared across the work activities. Pg 100 General and administrative costs (G&A) - - Costs that cannot be related to a specific project work activity Pg 100 simple budget - - cost of the major deliverables but does not indicate when the expenses will occur. Pg 101 padding - - adding in extra time or money "just in case." Pg 101 management reserve - - amount added to the overall project budget to cover unknown risks. Pg 101 Lead Time - - Time required for the delivery of products Pg 107 Deterministic - - Duration estimation technique used when the activity durations are very predictable Pg 108 Probabilistic - - Duration estimation technique used when there is uncertainty in how long an activity will take Pg 108 one-point estimate - - Activity duration estimating method where the team expert provides a single estimate for an activity based on either his or her own knowledge or historical information. Pg 108 triangular distribution - - ACTIVITY DURATION = (OPTIMISTIC ESTIMATE + MOST LIKELY ESTIMATE + PESSIMISTIC ESTIMATE) / 3 Pg 108 beta distribution - - ACTIVITY DURATION = (OPTIMISTIC ESTIMATE + [4 * MOST LIKELY ESTIMATE] + PESSIMISTIC ESTIMATE) / 6 Pg 108 Range - - PESSIMISTIC ESTIMATE - OPTIMISTIC ESTIMATE Pg 108 Standard Deviation - - (PESSIMISTIC ESTIMATE - OPTIMISTIC ESTIMATE) / 6 Pg 108 Single-Point Estimates - - An estimate that uses one time as a reasonable estimate Pg 109 Three-Point Estimates - - An estimate that uses pessimistic, optimistic, and most-likely estimates Pg 109 Precedence diagram or a network diagram - - a graphic representation for how the project will proceed. Pg 112 Serial Activities - - Can be done in a single stream of tasks Pg 112 Types of Task Dependencies - - Discretionary, Mandatory, Internal, External, Physical Discretionary Task Dependency - - Task dependency where PM can choose based on resource availability, including people, money, and other materials Pg 112 Mandatory Task Dependency - - Task dependency where one activity must be completed before moving to next task or where there are legal requirements Pg 112 Internal Task Dependency - - Task dependency where impact on milestones is defined by the project requirements or under management control Pg 112 External Task Dependency - - Task dependency that relies on external resources or forces Pg 112 Physical Task Dependency - - Task dependency where one activity cannot happen until something else is completed (i.e. primer applied before paint) Pg 112 Label Node - - A classification system such as 1.1, 1.2, etc Pg 113 Finish-to-Start Relationships (FS) - - a logical relationship in which a successor activity cannot start until a predecessor has finished. Pg 114 Finish-to-Finish Relationships (FF) - - A logical relationship where the successor task cannot be completed until the first task is completed. Pg 114 Start-to-Start Relationships (SS) - - A logical, but less common, relationship where the successor activity cannot start until the predecessor activity has started Pg 114 Start-to-Finish Relationships - - A logical, but less common, relationship where the first task cannot end until the second task has started Pg 114 Lag Time - - A delay that makes the successor task start some time after its predecessor ends Pg 115 Float/Slack - - the amount of time an activity, network path, or project can be delayed from the early start without changing the completion date of the project. Pg 117 Total float - - The difference between the finish date of the last activity on the critical path and the project completion date. Pg 117 negative float - - the calculated completion date of the last activity is later than the targeted completion date established at the beginning of the project. Pg 117 free float - - Free float is the amount of time an activity can be delayed without delaying the Early Start of its successor activity. forward pass - - start assigning dates based on the earliest start date, adding dates based on our estimates for each task in the diagram. Pg 117 backward pass - - Refers to the calculation of late finish dates and late start dates for the portions of schedule activities that have not been completed. Pg 117 crash - - to obtain the greatest amount of compression of the schedule/critical path for the least incremental cost or time. Pg 117 critical chain - - builds on the critical path method by going a step further adding time buffers to account for limited resources. Pg 117 Co-located Teams - - team members physically working at the same location or holding project meetings together in a common setup. Pg 125 earned value analysis (EVA) - - the process of assessing the work completed. Pg 128 Identify Change - - Which change process step is described: Processes are in place to document changes as soon as they are identified Pg 131 Evaluate Change - - Which change process step is described: The appropriate stakeholders provide input to identify cost and benefits Pg 131 Communicate Change - - Which change process step is described: Project plans are updated to incorporate the change Pg 131 Variance - - The fact or quality of being different, divergent, or inconsistent. Pg 132 Earned Value Management (EVM) - - A widely accepted method of measuring project performance and progress of actual cost against the budgeted/planned cost. Pg 135 Earned Value (EV) - - The dollar value of all work completed to date which is based on the baseline budgeted cost of each activity. Pg 135 Planned Value (PV) - - The dollar value of all work scheduled to have been completed to date which is based on the baseline schedule and the calendarized baseline budget. Pg 135 Actual Cost (AC) - - The total dollar value of costs incurred to date which includes work and invoices already paid as well as any expenses that have been incurred but not yet invoiced or paid. Pg 135 Budget at Completion (BAC) - - the approved total baseline budget approved for the completed project. Pg 135 50-50 rule - - Assigns half completed as soon as an activity is started and fully completed when an acitivity is finished. Pg 135 0-100 rule - - Assigns no portion completed until an activity is finished, then it assigns the full portion completed Pg 135 Cost variance (CV) - - Compares the difference between the EV and the AC (EV - AC) to determine if the project is meeting its budget expectations. Pg 136 Schedule variance (SV) - - Compares differences between the EV and the PV (EV - PV) to determine if the project is meeting its schedule expectations or if there is a variance. Pg 136 Negative Variance - - Term used when variances show that the project is behind schedule Pg 136 Postive Variance - - Term used when variances show that the project is ahead of schedule Pg 136 Cost performance index (CPI) - - A measure of the efficiency of expenses spent on a project schedule performance index (SPI) - - Ratio that creates a measure of time efficiency (EV / PV). Pg 137 To complete performance index (TCPI) - - Ratio that states what the CPI will need to be for the remainder of the project if the team intends to finish on budget. If project is under budget: (BAC - EV) / (BAC - AC) If project is over budget: (BAC - EV) / ( EAC - AC) percent complete index (PCI) - - A ratio measurement of how much of the total project work has been completed. Budget (PCIB): When using original budget: EV / BAC Cost (PCIC): When using new budget: AC / EAC estimate to completion (ETC) - - estimate of how much money will be needed to complete the project (BAC - EV) / CPI. estimate at completion (EAC) - - The forecast of how much more the project is expected to cost to complete. AC + ETC Scope baseline - - Includes the project scope statement, the Work Breakdown Structure (WBS), and the WBS dictionary Stage - - Each portion of a project Deliverable - - The end result or the result of a completed stage of an overall project