Project Management and IT Fundamentals practice flashcards

Comprehensive practice vocabulary flashcards covering the Project Management and IT fundamentals transcript.

Project

Temporary work with a clear START and END that creates something unique.

Operations

Ongoing, repeating work that keeps the business running with no end date.

Program

A group of RELATED projects with a common objective.

Portfolio

ALL projects, programs, and work grouped to hit the company's STRATEGIC goals; projects do not have to be related.

Project life cycle

The five phases in order: Discovery/Concept → Initiation → Planning → Execution → Closing.

Waterfall

A linear and SEQUENTIAL methodology where each phase must fully finish before the next starts.

Agile

An UMBRELLA term for iterative, incremental development that welcomes changing requirements.

Iterative development

Building in repeated CYCLES—design, build, test, repeat—refining each time.

Incremental development

Building in small PIECES where each adds working functionality.

Scrum

An Agile framework featuring fixed-length SPRINTS, a Product Owner, Scrum Master, and Developers.

Sprint

A short, fixed timebox, usually $2$–$4$ weeks, where the Scrum team completes selected work.

Product Owner

The Scrum role that OWNS and PRIORITIZES the product backlog, deciding what gets built to maximize value.

Scrum Master

A servant leader who coaches the team on the framework and REMOVES blockers; master of the method, not the people.

Product backlog

A prioritized list of ALL customer requirements for the product, owned by the Product Owner.

Sprint backlog

The items the team pulled from the product backlog and committed to finish during the current sprint.

Daily Scrum / Daily stand-up

A quick DAILY status meeting for the whole team, usually lasting $15$ minutes.

Sprint review

An END-of-sprint meeting used to DEMO the work/product to stakeholders.

Retrospective

An END-of-sprint meeting where the team reflects on HOW THEY WORKED to improve the process.

Kanban

An Agile method that VISUALIZES work on a board and LIMITS work in progress (WIP) to expose bottlenecks.

Extreme Programming (XP)

An Agile framework emphasizing engineering practices like PAIR PROGRAMMING and test-driven development.

DevOps

The practice of combining software DEVelopment with IT OPerationS into one integrated practice.

CI/CD

Continuous Integration / Continuous Delivery (or Deployment); a practice where code is constantly tested, merged, and pushed out.

SAFe

Scaled Agile Framework; used to run agile across MANY teams at an enterprise scale.

SDLC

Software Development Life Cycle; the phases software goes through including plan, design, build, test, deploy, and maintain.

PRINCE2

A PRocess-based methodology with predefined phases, roles, and tasks focused on heavy structure and control.

Minimum viable product (MVP)

A version of a product with JUST enough functionality to demo and gather early feedback.

Scope creep

The uncontrolled, gradual growth of project scope WITHOUT formal approval.

Progressive elaboration

The process of adding more DETAIL to plans as the project moves forward and more is learned.

Functional organizational structure

A traditional hierarchy where everyone reports to ONE functional manager; the PM has the LEAST authority.

Projectized organizational structure

A structure where the PM and team operate as their own separate unit; the PM has the MOST authority.

Matrix organizational structure

A blend where people report BOTH to a functional manager AND a PM.

PMO (Project Management Office)

A centralized department providing oversight, standards, tools, and support to PMs.

Project sponsor

A senior person who CHAMPIONS the project, provides FUNDING, and approves major decisions.

Business analyst (BA)

The translator between BUSINESS needs and IT who understands company priorities and the software environment.

Business case

A document created in the DISCOVERY phase that JUSTIFIES the investment and aligns with company policy.

ROI (Return on Investment)

A metric used to determine if an asset is worth what it costs to deploy and maintain.

Expected monetary value (EMV)

The average expected outcome when the future is uncertain, calculated as \text{Probability} \times \text{Impact } \text{($)}.

Project charter

A brief FORMAL document created in INITIATION that AUTHORIZES the project and names the PM.

WBS (Work Breakdown Structure)

A HIERARCHICAL breakdown of ALL project deliverables defining the total scope.

Work package

The LOWEST level of the WBS, small enough to estimate cost and duration.

MECE

Mutually Exclusive, Collectively Exhaustive; WBS items must not overlap and must cover everything.

Nonfunctional requirements (NFRs)

Requirements defining how WELL the system performs, such as speed, security, and reliability.

RTM (Requirements Traceability Matrix)

A table linking each REQUIREMENT to the deliverables and tests that satisfy it.

User story

A small requirement from the user's view: 'As a ___, I want ___, so that ___ .'

Milestone

A checkpoint event with ZERO duration used to mark major progress or approval points.

Analogous estimating

A TOP-DOWN estimating technique using numbers from a past SIMILAR project.

Parametric estimating

An estimating technique using a MATH formula with historical data, such as $\text{ per unit} \times \text{size}$.

PERT weighted formula

$\frac{O + 4M + P}{6}$; combines Optimistic, Most likely, and Pessimistic estimates.

Critical path

The LONGEST chain of dependent activities which determines the SHORTEST possible project duration; activities here have ZERO float.

Total float (TF) / Slack

How long an activity can slip WITHOUT delaying the PROJECT end date.

Resource leveling

Adjusting the schedule to fix OVER-ALLOCATED resources, which may extend the timeline.

Contingency reserve

Money or time set aside for KNOWN risks, controlled by the Project Manager.

Management reserve

Money set aside for UNKNOWN risks, controlled by MANAGEMENT; the PM must request access.

Monte Carlo analysis

A SIMULATION running thousands of scenarios to provide a statistical range of outcomes.

EVM (Earned Value Management)

A system measuring progress by comparing actual cost and schedule performance against baselines.

PV (Planned Value)

The value of work you PLANNED to have completed by a specific point in time.

EV (Earned Value)

The value of work ACTUALLY completed, calculated as $\text{\% complete} \times \text{budget for that work}$.

CV (Cost Variance)

$EV - AC$; a positive result is under budget, negative is over budget.

CPI (Cost Performance Index)

$EV \div AC$; a value over $1$ is under budget, under $1$ is over budget.

Risk vs. Issue

A Risk is an UNCERTAIN future event; an Issue is a risk that has already OCCURRED.

Negative risk strategies

Avoid, Mitigate, Transfer, or Accept (A.M.T.A.).

Positive risk strategies

Exploit, Enhance, Share, or Accept (E.E.S.A.).

Workaround

An UNPLANNED, quick response to an issue for which no plan previously existed.

Root cause analysis (RCA)

The process of finding the TRUE underlying cause of a problem to prevent recurrence.

Pareto principle

The $80$-$20$ rule; approximately $80\%$ of problems come from $20\%$ of causes.

Quality Assurance (QA)

A PROCESS-focused and PREVENTIVE approach to ensuring the right processes are followed.

Quality Control (QC)

A PRODUCT-focused and DETECTIVE approach focused on inspecting deliverables to find defects.

Verification vs. Validation

Verification asks 'did we build it RIGHT?' (meets specs); Validation asks 'did we build the RIGHT thing?' (meets user needs).

Smoke test

A quick test of only the MOST IMPORTANT functions to see if the system basically works.

UAT (User Acceptance Testing)

Testing by END USERS to confirm the product meets their needs; usually the final test before go-live.

Tuckman stages

The team life cycle stages: Forming → Storming → Norming → Performing → Adjourning.

Collaborating

A win-win conflict resolution strategy where a NEW solution is designed to satisfy everyone.

RACI chart

A matrix documenting who is Responsible, Accountable (only one), Consulted, and Informed.

RFP (Request for Proposal)

A formal document asking vendors for a full proposal including approach and price.

Fixed-price contract

A contract where the price is locked upfront and the VENDOR carries the cost risk.

Cost-plus contract

A contract where the vendor is reimbursed for costs plus a fee; the BUYER carries the cost risk.

TCO (Total Cost of Ownership)

The FULL lifetime cost of an asset, including purchase, operation, maintenance, and disposal.

Change control process

The formal order: Submit → Log → Analyze Impact → CCB Decides → Implement/Archive → Communicate.

Maintenance window

A scheduled LOW-IMPACT time period designated for making system changes.

Lessons learned

Information captured during the closing phase regarding what went well and what to do differently in the future.

OCM (Organizational Change Management)

A structured approach helping PEOPLE adapt to new processes or technology.

IaaS (Infrastructure as a Service)

A cloud model where the provider gives VMs, storage, and network; the user manages the OS and apps.

PaaS (Platform as a Service)

A cloud model providing a development PLATFORM; the user just builds the apps.

SaaS (Software as a Service)

A cloud model where a fully finished application is delivered to users.

PII

Personally Identifiable Information; data that can identify a specific person, such as an SSN or address.

Least privilege

A security principle of giving people only the MINIMUM access needed to perform their job.