- PMI
- Project Management Institute, the nonprofit professional organization that develops and administers the PMP certification and the PMBOK Guide.
- PMBOK Guide
- A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge, PMI's foundational standard describing generally recognized project management practices, processes, and knowledge areas.
- PDU
- Professional Development Unit, a credit earned through qualifying education or professional activity that PMP holders must accumulate to renew their certification.
- WBS
- Work Breakdown Structure, a hierarchical decomposition of total project scope into smaller, manageable work packages.
- Critical Path
- The longest sequence of dependent tasks in a project schedule that determines the minimum possible project duration.
- Critical Path Method (CPM)
- A scheduling technique used to estimate project duration by analyzing the sequence of activities with the least scheduling flexibility.
- Earned Value Management (EVM)
- A methodology that integrates scope, schedule, and cost data to objectively measure project performance and forecast outcomes.
- CPI
- Cost Performance Index, a ratio of earned value to actual cost used to measure cost efficiency of work performed.
- SPI
- Schedule Performance Index, a ratio of earned value to planned value used to measure schedule efficiency of work performed.
- Predictive Approach
- A project management approach, also called waterfall, in which scope, schedule, and cost are planned in detail in advance and executed in largely sequential phases.
- Adaptive Approach
- An iterative, incremental project management approach, commonly called agile, that accommodates changing requirements through short delivery cycles.
- Hybrid Approach
- A project management approach that blends predictive and adaptive elements, applying each where it best fits different parts of the project.
- Scrum
- An agile framework that organizes work into fixed-length iterations called sprints, supported by defined roles, ceremonies, and artifacts.
- Sprint
- A fixed, time-boxed iteration in Scrum, typically used to produce a usable increment of product.
- Product Backlog
- A prioritized, evolving list of features, requirements, and work items that represents everything needed for a product in an agile project.
- Risk Register
- A project document that catalogs identified risks along with their analysis, ownership, and planned response strategies.
- Stakeholder
- An individual, group, or organization that may affect, be affected by, or perceive itself to be affected by a project's decisions or outcomes.
- RACI Matrix
- A responsibility assignment tool that designates each project activity's roles as Responsible, Accountable, Consulted, or Informed.
- Project Charter
- A formal document that authorizes a project's existence and grants the project manager authority to apply organizational resources to it.
- Scope Creep
- The uncontrolled expansion of project scope without corresponding adjustments to schedule, cost, or resources.
- Change Control Board (CCB)
- A formally chartered group responsible for reviewing, evaluating, approving, or rejecting proposed changes to a project.
- Servant Leadership
- A leadership style, emphasized in agile environments, in which the project leader prioritizes removing obstacles and enabling the team's success over directing them.