2 Standards, definitions and books

 

2.1 Standards

Standards on projects, french references, verbs used

2.2

The main standards related to project management: explications

Some French references:  

And also:

Project Management Body of Knowledge: set of standard terminology and guidelines (a body of knowledge) for project management 

For simplicity, this module is based on ISO 21502. This standard does not contain requirementsexplicit or implicit need or expectation (see also ISO 9000, 3.1.2) (there is no verb “shall”). They are recommendations on project management. Verbs are, for example:

The correspondences between the ISO 21502, ISO 21500, ISO 10006 and PMBOK standards are shown in annex 04. To go further, you can use the “Project Management Body of Knowledge” guide. If your interest is mainly focused on the quality of a project, you should use ISO 10006. record

None of these standards are obligatory but as Deming said:

There is no need to change. Survival is not obligatory

gameMinute of relaxation. Cf. game: Standards

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2.2 Definitions

Definitions, terms, acronyms

2.2

The beginning of wisdom is the definition of terms. Socrates

There are multiple definitions of the word "project". Some examples:

Our preference:

Project: temporary effort initiated with the goal of solving a problem

Some definitions and acronyms:

Activity (step, phase): set of tasks to obtain a deliverable
Benchmarking: comparative analysis method in connection with one or more competitors
Brainstorming: method allowing the development of ideas from the participants in order to find solutions
Business case: document supporting decision-making relating to a project
Cf.: confer (from Latin), compare, see
Constraint: factor that limits the completion of a project
Control: see inspection
Critical activity: any activity that impacts a project as a whole
Deliverable: result of a project
Duration: work period necessary to finalize an activity
Effort: cost necessary to finalize an activity in people/days
Enterprise risk management: global approach to controlling uncertainties and their interactions in business
FIFO: First in, first out
FMEA: Failure Modes and Effects Analysis. Technical risk prevention approach
Hazard: situation that could lead to an incident
Identify the hazard: ask yourself what could go wrong
Impact: consequence of an event affecting the objectives
Inspection: actions of measuring, testing and examining a product, service, process or material to determine conformity with requirements
Likelihood: possibility that something happens
Management system: set of processes allowing objectives to be achieved 
Milestone: significant point or event
MS: management system
Non-quality: gap between expected quality and perceived quality
NVA: Non-Value Added. What the customer is not ready to pay
Opportunity: uncertain event that may have a favorable impact
Project life cycle: all phases from start to finish of a project
Project management: the use of specific knowledge, skills, tools and techniques to deliver something of value to people (PMI)
Quality: ability to meet requirements
Requirement: implicit or explicit need or expectation
Responsibility: ability to make a decision on your own
Risk analysis: risk assessment activity to understand the nature of a risk and determine its impact
Risk assessment: risk identification, analysis and evaluation process
Risk factor (peril, danger): element likely to cause a risk
Risk identification: assessment activity to find and describe risks
Risk level: criticality of the risk according to the impact and likelihood
Risk management plan: risk management planning including approach, steps, methods, resources
Risk management system: set of processes enabling the risk objectives to be achieved
Risk management: activities to restrict the possibility that something goes wrong
Risk measurement: set of possibilities with quantified probabilities and losses
Risk owner: person with responsibility and authority to manage risk
Risk prevention: activities based on decreasing risk likelihood of occurrence
Risk protection: activities based on reducing risk impacts
Risk severity: measurement of risk impact
Risk threshold: acceptance limit (below) or non-tolerance limit (above)
Risk treatment: risk modification activities
Risk: likelihood of occurrence of a threat or opportunity
Safety: absence of unacceptable risk
Schedule (of the project): activities with planned dates, durations, milestones and resources
Sponsor (of the project): person or group ordering and recipient of the project
Stakeholder: person, group or organization that can affect or be affected by a company
Strategy: total approach to achieve objectives
Surveillance: set of planned actions to ensure the effectiveness of control measures
SWOT: Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, Threats. Tool for structuring a risk analysis
System: set of interactive processes
Task (action, operation): any work during a period leading to a result
Threat: uncertain event that could have a negative impact on objectives
Uncertainty: existence of more than one possibility
Work breakdown structure: breaking down a project into work elements

In the terminology of management systems, do not confuse:

2-4 
Figure 2-1. Prevention and protection

Remark 1: between project manager and project leader, our preference is for project manager

Remark 2: between risk owner and risk driver our preference is for risk owner

Remark 3: between scope, content and perimeter our preference is for scope

Remark 4: between likelihood and probability, our preference is for likelihood (of appearance)

Remark 5: a risk can have negative impacts (we speak of threats) or positive impacts (we speak of opportunities). Seizing an opportunity is taking risks, but not seizing an opportunity can expose us to risk. Risk is often assimilated with hazard and commonly used instead of threat.

Remark 6: each time you use the expression “opportunity for improvement” instead of non-conformity, dysfunction or failure you will gain a little more trust from your interlocutor (external or internal customer)

Remark 7: the use of ISO 9000, ISO 19011 and ISO/TR 21506 definitions is recommended. The most important thing is to determine a common and unequivocal language for everyone in the company. 

For other definitions, comments, explanations and interpretations that you don’t find in this module and in annex 06, you can consult: record

The icons used in the module:

gameMinute of relaxation. Cf. game: Effectiveness

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2.3 Books

Books related to quality and project management

 2.3

When I think of all the books still left for me to read, I am certain of further happiness. Jules Renard

explicationsBooks for further reading on project management:

 Minute of relaxation. Paganini's violin concert performed with facial expressions.

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