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Guide to Using the Project Complexity and Risk Assessment Tool


Appendix : Glossary of Terms

Business process
A business process is a collection of related activities that produce something of value to the organization, its stakeholders or its clients. Management processes are those activities undertaken to operate an organization. Typical management processes include corporate governance and strategic management. Operational processes are those activities that deliver value to a client and are typically characterized as the core business activities, such as service delivery or product assembly. Supporting processes are those activities such as financial management, recruitment or IT that support the business process.
Change control
The process of identifying, documenting, approving or rejecting, and controlling changes to the project baseline. (Project Management Body of Knowledge, third edition)
Complexity
The degree (apparent) to which a system or component has a design or implementation that is difficult to understand and/or verify.

The degree (inherent) of complication due to a system or system component, determined by such factors as the number and intricacy of interfaces, the number and intricacy of conditional branches, the degree of nesting, and the types of data structures.

COTS
Commercial off-the-shelf; commercially available products that can be purchased and integrated with little or no customization, thus facilitating customer infrastructure expansion and reducing cost.
Enhanced Management Framework
The Enhanced Management Framework was approved by the Treasury Board in May 1996 and directed departments and agencies to apply this framework to projects that have an IM or IT component.

The Enhanced Management Framework is an integrated management model composed of principles, best practices, methodologies, tools and templates, designed to improve the Government of Canada's capability to manage its IM/IT investments, successfully deliver IM/IT projects and minimize risks.

Governance structure
Any organizational structure or formal governance process used to select which projects receive funding and grant approval, and to proceed and provide ongoing oversight.
Government policy
Refers to the various Treasury Board policies such as the Policy Framework for the Management of Assets and Acquired Services and the Policy on the Management of Projects.
Investment
The use of resources with the expectation of a future return, such as an increase in output, income or assets, or the acquisition of knowledge or capacity (Policy on Investment Planning - Assets and Acquired Services, 2007)
Knowledge area, project management
An identified area of project management defined by its knowledge requirements and described in terms of its component processes, practices, inputs, outputs, tools and techniques (Project Management Body of Knowledge, third edition)
Methodology
A system of practices, techniques, procedures and rules used by those who work in a discipline (Project Management Body of Knowledge, third edition)
Project
Is an activity or series of activities that has a beginning and an end. A project is required to produce defined outputs and realize specific outcomes in support of a public policy objective, within a clear schedule and resource plan. A project is undertaken within specific time, cost and performance parameters (Policy on the Management of Projects, 2007)
Project baseline (or project phase baseline)
The baseline is composed of each of the objectives established at the time of securing expenditure authority from the appropriate authority (e.g., minister). Any significant deviations from this baseline must be authorized by the appropriate approval authority. Expenditure authority can be sought only for those specific phases of the project that have been appropriately defined, costed and assessed.
Project charter
A document issued by the project initiator or sponsor that formally authorizes the existence of a project, and provides the project manager with the authority to apply organizational resources to the project’s activities. (Project Management Body of Knowledge, third edition)
Project close-out
The final step in the project that involves final acceptance of the deliverables, archiving of the project documents and disbanding of the project team. A project close-out would also take place at the termination of a project prior to the end of implementation.
Project definition
This is a distinct phase of the project life cycle. Its purpose is to establish sound objectives, refine the implementation phase estimate (which may include design and property acquisition costs), reduce project risk, and support development of an element that will be part of the end-product of the project.
Project implementation
Project implementation or execution is directing, managing, performing and accomplishing the project work, providing the deliverables, and providing work performance information.
Project life cycle
A collection of generally sequential project phases whose names and number are determined by the control needs of the organization or organizations involved in the project. A life cycle can be documented with a methodology (Project Management Body of Knowledge, third edition)
Project management plan
A document that identifies the planned objectives and deliverables of the project, the scope, work breakdown structure, budget, schedule, risks, roles, resources, functional strategies, project monitoring and control strategies, governance, process deviations and management approach. It becomes the baseline for the project against which changes are measured. Typically, this document is approved by all project team leads to ensure there is full support for the plan.
Project management office (also referred to as project office)

Is responsible for establishing, maintaining and enforcing project management processes, procedures, and standards within the organization.

A project office is a function that supports the project manager with project planning and control activities such as management of schedule, cost, risks, information and communication. On smaller projects, these functions may be performed by a single person; on larger projects, a team may be required.

Project manager
The person assigned by the performing organization to achieve the project objectives (Project Management Body of Knowledge, third edition)
Project planning and identification
This is the initial stage of the project life cycle during which the sponsoring department establishes operational need(s), produces the statement of operational requirements, conducts initial options analyses and feasibility studies, sets up the appropriate management framework and agreements, assigns resources, and makes an initial assessment of project risk.
Project sponsor
Refers to an individual who provides financial and political support for the project. The individual works with the project management team, typically assisting with matters such as project funding, clarifying scope, monitoring progress, and influencing others in order to benefit the project (Project Management Body of Knowledge, fourth edition).
Quality standards
Quality standards address both the management of the project and the output(s) of the project. They are those standards established to ensure that the project will satisfy the business needs for which it was undertaken.
Risk
Risk refers to the uncertainty that surrounds future events and outcomes. It is the expression of the likelihood and impact of an event with the potential to influence the achievement of an organization's objectives.
Risk assessment
Refers to an analysis of the risks of a project at a particular point in time in which specific risks to the success of the project are identified and quantified (impact and probability), and mitigation plans are defined and actioned, according to the degree of the quantified threat.
Sector (as referred to in question 7)
A sector in this context is defined as a division or directorate within a larger organization.
Stakeholders
People, groups or organizations who are actively involved in a project, or whose interests may be positively or negatively affected by the execution or completion of the project.
Work package
The lowest level of the work breakdown structure. Together, all work packages identify all the work required to deliver the project's objectives. A work package ideally has a single accountable lead.
Work breakdown structure
A work breakdown structure (WBS) in project management and systems engineering is a tool used to define and group a project's discrete work elements (or tasks) in a way that helps organize and define the total work scope of the project.

A WBS element may be a product, data, service or any combination of these. A WBS also provides the necessary framework for detailed cost estimating and control, and provides guidance for schedule development and control. Additionally, the WBS is a dynamic tool and can be revised and updated as needed by the project manager.



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