Proj to Pz - Praxis Framework

A pdf of the complete Praxis Comparative Glossary can be downloaded here.

From Project to Push system

Project	There are many definitions of a project in the available literature. Every published standard and method makes a new attempt at defining a project in a succinct way. For instance: "A unique set of co-ordinated activities, with definite starting and finishing points, undertaken by an individual or organisation to meet specific objectives within defined schedule, cost and performance parameters." - BS6079. "A temporary endeavour undertaken to create a unique product, service or result" - PMBoK® guide. "A temporary organisation that is created for the purpose of delivering one or more business products according to the specified business case" - PRINCE2.
Project and programme process model More: Method	Praxis has a process model that can be used for both projects and programmes. While this may seem odd when compared to other guides, a comparison of life cycles and processes in project and programme guides from sources such as Axelos or the Project Management Institute reveals that their project and programme life cycles are fundamentally the same. Therefore they can be managed with the same, adaptable, processes.
Project approach	A PRINCE2 document that describes the chosen delivery approach for a project. Options considered could be: bespoke solution vs. ready-made solution; in-house development vs. contracted out development; modify current assets vs. replace with new and so on. The document should explain the reasons for rejecting options as well as justifying the chosen option.
Project assurance	PRINCE2 distinguishes between project assurance and quality assurance. Project assurance refers to the responsibility of the members of the project board to assure themselves that the area of the project, on which they focus, is being managed correctly. Praxis covers this in the assurance function.
Project authorization notification	In PRINCE2 this is a formal notification to appropriate stakeholders that the project has started. It also requests that any necessary logistical support be provided. This is an output of the authorize the project activity in the Directing a Project (DP) process.
Project based working	The APM BoK 7’s term for project delivery.
Project board	An element of the PRINCE2 project organisation comprising three senior management roles that combine to provide sponsorship for the project. The roles are: Executive (representing those who are paying for the project). Senior user (representing those who will use the end product). Senior supplier (representing those who will perform the work). The project manager reports to the project board on matters outside his or her span of control. The principal of the relationship between the manager and the board is one of management by exception. The board is there to support the project manager, not manage the project. Most of the responsibilities of the board are laid out in the Directing a Project (DP) process in PRINCE2. The board will approve each stage of the project based on a viable business case. Praxis simply refers to the sponsor role which may be performed by an individual or a group such as the project board.
Project brief	See brief. The APM PSMC uses the term in a different way to PRINCE2 and Praxis. In this guide the project brief is produced by a client to define their requirements.
Project budget	The overall budget for the project showing income as well as expenditure.
Project buffer	A reserve of time applied to the critical chain.
Project calendar	A calendar which defines global project working and non-working periods such as public holidays.
Project charter	This is a key document in the PMBoK® guide and ISO21500. It is the document that is developed by the sponsor and gives the project manager authority to apply resources to project activities. It is an output of the Develop Project Charter process in the PMBoK® guide and Develop project charter in ISO21500. The broad equivalent in Praxis and PRINCE2 is the brief. The key difference between the project charter and the brief is the responsibility for its development, i.e. the charter is developed by the sponsor while the brief is developed by the project manager.
Project closure notification	A PRINCE2 notification from the project board to all stakeholders informing them of the closure of the project. This notification triggers the disbandment of the project management team and the demobilisation of resources. A date should be given beyond which no costs can be charged to the project.
Project closure recommendation	A recommendation prepared by the Project Manager of a PRINCE2 project that the project board uses as the basis of a project closure notification. This is the output of the recommend project closure activity.
Project communications management	A PMBoK® guide knowledge area that provides a set of processes for managing procurement. The processes comprise: Plan Communications Management. Manage Communications. Control Communications. In Praxis, the principles of communication are covered in the communication function; the practicalities of communication are covered in information management and the key function of communicating with stakeholders is covered in stakeholder management. PRINCE2 doesn’t have a specific communications theme but covers the subject in areas such as organisation and the activities in the PRINCE2 processes. ISO21500 and the PMBoK® guide share a very similar structure and the nearest equivalent subject group in ISO21500 is simply communication.
Project cost management	A PMBoK® guide knowledge area that provides a set of processes for managing time. The processes comprise: Plan Cost Management. Estimate Costs. Determine Budget. Control Costs. The equivalent in Praxis are the financial management function and their component procedures. PRINCE2 doesn’t have a dedicated section on costs but addresses cost and budgeting issues in many different areas. ISO21500 and the PMBoK® guide share a very similar structure and the nearest equivalent subject group in ISO21500 is simply cost.
Project delivery	Since the creation of the separate terms project, programme and portfolio, the discipline and profession of project programme and portfolio management (P3M) has lacked a collective name. The UK GovS 002 standard uses the term ‘Project delivery’ as a collective phrase for all aspects of P3M. APM BoK 7 refers to this as project-based working.
Project director	Often used to describe the manager of a very large project that demands a senior level of responsibility. May also refer to a person at board level within an organisation who has overall responsibility for projects and their management.
Project execution plan	See project management plan.
Project human resource management	A PMBoK® guide knowledge area that provides a set of processes for managing internal project resources. The processes comprise: Plan Human Resource Management. Acquire Project Team. Develop Project Team. Manage Project Team. Praxis covers these areas in the resource management and organisation management topics and the process activities that implement them such as appoint definition team and mobilise in the definition process. The nearest equivalent in PRINCE2 is the organisation theme. The equivalent subject group in ISO21500 is called simply - resource.
Project initiation	The PMBoK® guide defines this as the launch of a process that can result in the authorisation of a new project but doesn’t provide any further detail. It could be equated to whatever process produces a mandate in Praxis and PRINCE2.
Project initiation documentation	In PRINCE2 this documentation is approved by the project board at the end of the Initiating a Project (IP) process. It provides a single source of reference about the objectives of the project and how they will be achieved. All the management strategies are included along with the business case, organisation structure, project plan and various other documents. The equivalent in Praxis is the definition documentation produced by the definition process. The corresponding documentation in the PMBoK® guide and ISO21500 is broadly a combination of the project charter, project management plan and the outputs of other planning processes such as the project schedule.
Project initiation notification	A communication from the project board of a PRINCE2 project to inform stakeholders that the project is being initiated. This notification will request all necessary support for the initiation stage from the stakeholders.
Project integration management	A PMBoK® guide knowledge area that provides a set of high level processes that co-ordinate the processes of individual knowledge areas. At the project level these processes align closely with the project life cycle. The processes comprise: Develop Project Charter. Develop Project Management Plan. Direct and Manage Project Work. Monitor and Control Project Work. Perform Integrated Change Control. Close Project or Phase. The Praxis processes serve an equivalent purpose when applied to the project life cycle. The same is true of the PRINCE2 processes. ISO21500 and the PMBoK® guide share a very similar structure and the equivalent subject group in ISO21500 is integration.
Project management More: Knowledge	The day to day management of a project by a project manager or project management team. The central elements of project management are: having a clear reason why the work is necessary; capturing requirements, specifying objectives, estimating resources and timescales; preparing a business case to explain that the work is desirable, achievable and viable; securing funding for the work; developing and implementing management plans; leading and motivating the management and delivery teams; monitoring and controlling scope, schedule, finance, risk and resources; maintaining good relations with stakeholders; closing the project or programme in a controlled manner when appropriate.
Project management knowledge area	In the PMBoK® guide this is an identifiable area of the discipline of project management that is defined by its knowledge requirements. The equivalent in Praxis are the functions described in the knowledge section of the framework. PRINCE2 refers to these as themes and ISO21500 as subject groups.
Project management office	See PMO.
Project management plan	This document summarises or brings together all the management plans for the project or programme. It may be a single, self-contained document with a section for each relevant function or a collection of separate management plans. Praxis, ISO21500 and the PMBoK® guide all use this term. In PRINCE2 the term project initiation documentation covers all the management plans but also some delivery documentation as well. APM BoK 7 describes the plan as the output of integrated planning.
Project management process groups	Both ISO21500 and the PMBoK® guide collect their component processes into five broadly compatible groups. In ISO21500 these are referred to as: Initiating. Planning. Implementing. Controlling. Closing. In the PMBoK® guide they are referred to as the: Initiating process group. Planning process group. Executing process group. Monitoring and controlling process group. Closing process group. These groups are often mistaken for phases of a life cycle – which they are not.
Project management staff	The PMBoK® guide term for the project management team and any other staff involved in the project management activities. It could, for example, include members of a support office. In PRINCE2 and ISO21500 this would be the project management team and in Praxis, the management team.
Project management team	In the PMBoK® guide this term includes the members of the project team who are directly involved in project management activities. The management team in Praxis, PRINCE2 and ISO21500 are the same and hence broader than the PMBoK® guide project management team.
Project manager	In simple terms this is the person responsible for day to day management of the project. In practice this can cover many different role descriptions. The Project Manager of a major project may have a broader range of responsibilities but have a project support office performing detailed administrative and planning duties. Conversely, the manager of a small project may have a narrower remit but be responsible for the project support functions as well as management.
Project mandate	See mandate.
Project network diagram	See network diagram.
Project office	Usually used synonymously with project support office.
Project organisation	A generic term to describe the structure, roles and responsibilities of the project’s management team and its interfaces to the outside word.
Project plan	Both PRINCE2 and ISO21500 use this term to represent the document that contains baselines for scope, time, cost and resources. Neither Praxis nor the PMBoK® guide describe an all-encompassing project plan but Praxis refers generically to the delivery documentation which will contain schedules and budgets for the project.
Project procurement management	A PMBoK® guide knowledge area that provides a set of processes for managing procurement. The processes comprise: Plan Procurement Management. Conduct Procurements. Control Procurements. Close Procurements. The equivalent in Praxis are the procurement and contract management functions. PRINCE2 doesn’t go into any detail on the procurement of external products and services. ISO21500 and the PMBoK® guide share a very similar structure and the equivalent subject group in ISO21500 is simply procurement.
Project product description	A PRINCE2 document that explains what the project must achieve in order to gain customer acceptance. Praxis uses the more generic term specification which is more easily adaptable to different contexts and environments. In the PMBoK® guide and ISO21500 the equivalent document is the project scope statement.
Project professional	In APM BoK 7, this is used to describe people with roles associated with the management of projects, programmes or portfolios.
Project programme	In modern terminology, this seems like a contradiction in terms. The words project and programme now have distinct meanings. Historically, the programme was equivalent to a schedule and was most often manifested by a Gantt chart. There are parts of the profession that still use this term.
Project quality management	A PMBoK® guide knowledge area that provides a set of processes for managing quality. The processes comprise: Plan Quality Management. Perform Quality Assurance. Control Quality. The equivalent in Praxis are the planning steps in every functional procedure, the assurance function and the control function. PRINCE2 covers this in the quality theme. ISO21500 and the PMBoK® guide share a very similar structure and the equivalent subject group in ISO21500 is simply quality.
Project register	An alternative name for the projects dossier in MSP 4th Ed.
Project risk management	A PMBoK® guide knowledge area that provides a set of processes for managing risk. The processes comprise: Plan Risk Management. Identify Risks. Perform Qualitative Risk Analysis. Perform Quantitative Risk Management. Plan Risk Responses. Control Risks. The equivalent in Praxis is the risk management function and its component procedure. PRINCE2 covers this in the risk theme. ISO21500 and the PMBoK® guide share a very similar structure and the equivalent subject group in ISO21500 is simply risk.
Project scope	The PMBoK® guide makes a clear distinction between product scope and project scope. The former is the features and functions of the project’s final output whilst the latter is the work that must be done to deliver the final output.
Project scope management	A PMBoK® guide knowledge area that provides a set of processes for managing scope. The processes comprise: Plan Scope Management. Collect Requirements. Define Scope. Create WBS. Validate Scope. Control Scope. The equivalents in Praxis are the scope management functions and their component procedures. PRINCE2 doesn’t have a section devoted to scope and the subject is covered in a variety of areas including the plans theme and product-based planning in particular. The control of scope change is covered by the change theme. ISO21500 and the PMBoK® guide share a very similar structure and the equivalent subject group in ISO21500 is simply scope.
Project scope management plan	A PMBoK® guide document that describes how the detailed scope of the project should be defined, how the work breakdown structure will be maintained and approved, and how scope change requests will be processed. The equivalent in Praxis is the scope management plan. The nearest equivalent in PRINCE2 is the quality management strategy and elements of the project controls contained in the project initiation documentation.
Project Scope Statement	A PMBoK® guide and ISO21500 document that describes the detailed scope of a project. This includes product descriptions, constraints, assumptions and acceptance criteria as well as the initial project organisation and risks. Praxis uses the more generic term specification which excludes the organisation and risks but can be adapted to different contexts. The equivalent in PRINCE2 is the project product description although this also excludes organisation and risks.
Project sponsor	See sponsor.
Project stakeholder management	A PMBoK® guide knowledge area that provides a set of processes for managing stakeholders. The processes comprise: Identify Stakeholders. Plan Stakeholder Management. Manage Stakeholder Engagement. Control Stakeholder Engagement. The equivalent in Praxis is the stakeholder management function and its component procedure. In PRINCE2, stakeholders are covered in the organization theme. ISO21500 and the PMBoK® guide share a very similar structure and the equivalent subject group in the ISO21500 is simply Stakeholder.
Project support	See support.
Project support office	An organisation set up to provide support to a project.
Project team	The PMBoK® guide term for everyone involved in delivering a project including management and delivery staff. Praxis refers to these as the management team and the delivery team. In ISO21500 the term represents only those who perform the project activities, i.e. the delivery team.
Project time management	A PMBoK® guide knowledge area that provides a set of processes for managing time. The processes comprise: Plan Schedule Management. Define Activities. Sequence Activities. Estimate Activity Resources. Estimate Activity Durations. Develop Schedule. Control Schedule. The equivalents in Praxis are the schedule management functions and their component procedures. PRINCE2 covers this in the plans them. ISO21500 and the PMBoK® guide share a very similar structure and the nearest equivalent subject group in ISO21500 is simply time.
Projectized organisation	A PMBoK® guide term for a strong matrix.
Projects dossier	The MSP 4th Ed. term for the list of projects contained in a programme.
Projects, programmes and portfolios More: Knowledge Resources	Project, programme and portfolio are terms used to describe typical combinations of complexity and environment that require distinguishable approaches to governance. The terms have been used in various ways since the origins of modern project management in the 1950s. Many argue that there is no need to distinguish between the three and that the term ‘project’ is sufficient to cover the entire range of initiatives that an organisation may undertake. The APM BoK contains a function of the same name. Most other guides address only one of the three, i.e. they are project or programme or portfolio guides.
Project register	An alternative name for the projects dossier in MSP 4th Ed.
Prolongation cost	The additional costs incurred on a project due to prolongation.
Prompt list	A prompt list raises questions about risk on a project or programme that should be considered. Rather than containing specific suggestions such as those contained in a check list model, it asks open questions such as: "Are there potential legal risks on this project?"
Prototype	A prototype is produced to prove or disprove the achievability or viability of a requirement. It may subsequently be developed into a real product or discarded.
Provider	The APM BoK term for a person or company that supplies goods or services to a project. Referred to in Praxis, PRINCE2 and ISO21500 as the supplier and in the PMBoK® guide as a seller.
Provider selection and management	An APM BoK function dealing with the acquisition of external resources. The equivalent in Praxis is the procurement function, in the PMBoK® guide it is the project procurement management knowledge area and in ISO21500 the procurement subject group.
Proximity	A term used to indicate the likely timescale of a risk event, i.e. if it occurs, will it be next week or next month.
Pull system	An approach where work is pulled into a system as capacity becomes available. Kanban is a pull system.
Push system	An approach where work is added to a system without considering the available capacity – see also pull system.