GLOSSARY TERMS

Q - S

 

-Q-

Quality Assurance (QA): (1) The process of evaluating overall project performance on a regular basis to provide confidence that the project will satisfy the relevant quality standards. (2) The organizational unit that is assigned responsibility for quality assurance.

Quality Control (QC): (1) The process of monitoring specific project results to determine if they comply with relevant quality standards and identifying ways to eliminate causes of unsatisfactory performance. (2) The organizational unit that is assigned responsibility for quality control.

Quality Planning: Identifying which quality standards are relevant to the project and determining how to satisfy them.

 

 

-R-

RACI Chart: A Responsibility Assignment Matrix (RAM), (also known as RACI matrix or Linear Responsibility Chart (LRC)), describes the participation by various roles in completing tasks or deliverables for a project or business process. It is especially useful in clarifying roles and responsibilities in cross-functional/departmental projects and processes.

The matrix is typically created with a vertical axis (left-hand column) of tasks (e.g., from a work breakdown structure WBS) or deliverables (e.g., from a product breakdown structure PBS), and a horizontal axis (top row) of roles (e.g., from an organizational chart) - as illustrated in the image of an example responsibility assignment (or RACI) matrix.There is a distinction between a role and individually identified people: a role is a descriptor of an associated set of tasks; may be performed by many people; and one person can perform many roles. For example, an organisation may have 10 people who can perform the role of project manager, although traditionally each project only has one project manager at any one time; and a person who is able to perform the role of project manager may also be able to perform the role of business analyst and tester. The responsibility assignment matrix is commonly known as a RACI matrix.

 

• Responsible : Those who do the work to achieve the task. There is typically one role with a participation type of Responsible, although others can be delegated to assist in the work required (see also RASCI below for separately identifying those who participate in a supporting role).

 

• Accountable (also Approver or final Approving authority) : Those who are ultimately accountable for the correct and thorough completion of the deliverable or task, and the one to whom Responsible is accountable. In other words, an Accountable must sign off (Approve) on work that Responsible provides. There must be only one Accountable specified for each task or deliverable. Very often the role that is Accountable for a task or deliverable may also be Responsible for completing it (indicated on the matrix by the task or deliverable having a role Accountable for it, but no role Responsible for its completion, i.e. it is implied). Outside of this exception, it is generally recommended that each role in the project or process for each task receive, at most, just one of the participation types. Where more than one participation type is shown, this generally implies that participation has not yet been fully resolved, which can impede the value of this technique in clarifying the participation of each role on each task.

 

• Consulted :Those whose opinions are sought; and with whom there is two-way communication.

• Informed : Those who are kept up-to-date on progress, often only on completion of the task or deliverable; and with whom there is just one-way communication.

 

Relationships: Any of the four basic types of constraint relationships between the start and/or finish of an activity and the start and/or finish or another activity.

Remaining Duration (RDU): The time needed to complete an activity.

Replanning: A change in the original plan for accomplishing authorized contractual requirements. There are two types of replanning effort:

Request for Information (RFI): Description of the products and/or services that the issuing potential customer wishes to learn about.

Request for Proposal (RFP): A type of bid document used to solicit proposals from prospective sellers of products or services.

Request for Quotation (RFQ): Generally, this term is equivalent to request for proposal.

Request for Services (RFS): Description of the products and/or services that the issuing potential customer wishes to have provided.

Resource Leveling: Any form of network analysis in which scheduling decisions (start and finish dates) are driven by resource management concerns (e.g., limited resource availability or difficult-to-manage changes in resource levels).

Resource-Limited Schedule: A project schedule whose start and finish dates reflect expected resource availability. The final project schedule should always be resource-limited.

Resource Planning: Determining what resources (people, equipment, and materials) are needed in what quantities to perform project activities.

Responsibility Assignment Matrix (RAM): A structure which relates the project organization structure to the work breakdown structure to help ensure that each element of the project’s scope of work is assigned to a responsible individual.

Responsible Organization: A defined unit within a company structure which is assigned the responsibility for accomplishing specific tasks and to which one or more Control Accounts is assigned.

Resource Leveling: The process of manipulating network data to create the resource plan, which most effectively utilizes project resources subject to project constraints.

Resource Limited Schedule: A schedule calculated by specifying that resource availability will not be exceeded. This may extend the schedule beyond the requested finish date.

Resource Plan: A list of the resources and quantities that will be required over time to perform the project work.

Responsibility: Originates when one accepts the assignment to perform assigned duties and activities, The acceptance creates a liability for which the assignee is held answerable for and to the assignor. It constitutes an obligation or accountability for performance.

Responsibility Assignment Matrix (RAM): With the contractor’s extended work breakdown structure on one axis and the contractor’s responsibility organization down to the cost account level on the other axis, all levels of organization should be shown. A dollarized matrix is preferred where dollars are identified at each level of the horizontal and vertical axis.

Responsible Organization: A defined unit within the contractor’s organizational structure that is assigned responsibility for accomplishing specific tasks.

Risk Event: A discrete occurrence that may affect the project for better or worse.

Risk Identification: Determining which risk events are likely to affect the project.

Risk Quantification: Evaluating the probability of risk event occurrence and effect.

Risk Response Control: Responding to changes in risk over the course of the project.

Risk Response Development: Defining enhancement steps for opportunities and mitigation steps for threats.

Rolling Wave Planning: The progressive conversion of planning packages into near-term detail tasks in order to have at least three months of detail planning into the future.

Root Cause: Original reason for nonconformance within a process. When the root cause is removed or corrected, the nonconformance will be eliminated.

 

 

 

-S-

Schedule Control: Controlling changes to the project schedule.

Schedule Development: Analyzing activity sequences, activity durations, and resource requirements to create the project schedule.

Scheduling: The assignment of desired start and finish times to each activity in the project within the overall time cycle required for completion according to plan.

Schedule Performance Index (SPI): The ratio of work performed to work scheduled (BCWP/BCWS). See earned value.

Schedule Variance (SV): (1) Any difference between the scheduled completion of an activity and the actual completion of that activity. (2) In earned value, BCWP less BCWS.

Scheduled Finish Date (SF): The point in time work was scheduled to finish on an activity. The scheduled finish date is normally within the range of dates delimited by the early finish date and the late finish date.

Scheduled Start Date (SS): The point in time work was scheduled to start on an activity. The scheduled start date is normally within the range of dates delimited by the early start date and the late start date.

Scope: The sum of the products and services to be provided as a project.

Scope Change: Any change to the project scope. A scope change almost always requires an adjustment to the project cost or schedule.

Scope Change Control: Controlling changes to the project scope.

Scope Definition: Decomposing the major deliverables into smaller, more manageable components to provide better control.

Scope Planning: Developing a written scope statement that includes the project justification, the major deliverables, and the project objectives.

Scope Verification: Ensuring that all identified project deliverables have been completed satisfactorily.

Security: The protection of computer hardware and software from accidental or malicious access, use, modification, destruction, or disclosure. Security also pertains to personnel data, communications, and the physical protection of computer installations.

Significant Variance: The differences between planned and actual cost and/or schedule performance which require further review, analysis or action by the CAM and are addressed in the monthly VAR. Appropriate thresholds are established as to the magnitude of variances which will be considered “significant”/

Slack: Term used in PERT for float.

Solicitation: Obtaining quotations, bids, offers, or proposals as appropriate.

Solicitation Planning: Documenting product requirements and identifying potential sources.

Source Selection: Choosing from among potential contractors.

Specification: A document containing a detailed description or enumeration of particulars. Formal description of a work product and the intended manner of providing it.

Staff Acquisition: Getting the human resources needed assigned to and working on the project.

Stakeholder: Individuals and organizations that are involved in or may be affected by project activities.

Start Date: A point in time associated with an activities start, usually qualified by one of the following: actual, planned, estimated, scheduled, early, late, target, baseline, or current.

Start-to-Finish: the predecessor activity must start before the successor activity can finish.

Start-to-Start: the predecessor activity must start before the successor activity can start

Statement of Work (SOW): A narrative description of products or services to be supplied under contract.

Status: The condition or progress of the project at a specified point in time.

Status Date: The calendar date, which separates actual (historical) data from forecasted data.

Statusing: The process of updating cost and schedule information to indicate accomplishment and forecasts.

Strategic Business Plan: The five-to-ten year objectives and direction of the information systems activities of a firm.

Strategic Planning: The process of developing an organization’s mission, vision, objectives, goals, strategies, and long range initiatives.

Subcontract: A subcontract is a procurement from a subcontractor requiring a Statement of Work, specifications, and design and/or manufacturing engineering effort on the part of the supplier.

Successor Activity: In the precedence diagramming method, the “to” activity.

Summary Level: Any level of the WBS higher than the bottom level. So named because each WBS level can be summarized into the next higher level.