Lesson 2 Starting the Project

Question 1

focus groups

Answer 1

a group providing expectations and attitudes about a product, service or result

Question 2

SMART objectives

Answer 2

Objective adhering to the SMART criteria: Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant and Time-bound

Question 3

predictive life cycles

Answer 3

form of project life cycle where scope, time and cost are determined in the early phases of the life cycle

Question 4

agile life cycles

Answer 4

also called adaptive life cycle; form of project life cycle that uses an iterative and incremental approach to define and deliver the results of the project

Question 5

iterative life cycles

Answer 5

form of project life cycle where the result or product is developed through a series of repeated cycles with each cycle providing more functionality

Question 6

incremental life cycles

Answer 6

form of life cycle that delivers the product in functional increments through a series of cycles

Question 7

hybrid methodologies

Answer 7

methodologies that combine both predictive and agile approaches

Question 8

requirements traceability matrix

Answer 8

a grid that links requirements from their origin to the deliverables that satisfy them

Question 9

agile estimating

Answer 9

estimating techniques that use relative estimates as opposed to definitive

Question 10

product backlog

Answer 10

a prioritized list of customer requirements or user stories

Question 11

scope management plan

Answer 11

a component of the project management plan that describes how the scope will be defined, developed, monitored, controlled and validated

Question 12

affinity diagramming

Answer 12

a technique that allows for large number of ideas to be classified into groups for analysis and review

Question 13

context diagram

Answer 13

a visual representation of a product, service or process

Question 14

requirements management plan

Answer 14

a component of the project management plan that describes how requirements will be collected, analyzed, documented and managed

Question 15

project scope statement

Answer 15

a document that describes the project scope, the deliverables, exclusions, constraints and assumptions

Question 16

WBS

Answer 16

(work breakdown structure) - a hierarchical decomposition of the total scope of work

Question 17

WBS dictionary

Answer 17

a document that provides the detail description of each component in the WBS

Question 18

control accounts

Answer 18

management control points where scope, schedule and costs are integrated

Question 19

planning package

Answer 19

a WBS component below the control account with known work content but without detailed scheduled activities

Question 20

code of accounts

Answer 20

a numbering system used to uniquely identify each component of the WBS

Question 21

work package

Answer 21

the work defined at the lowest level of the WBS

Question 22

user story

Answer 22

a brief description of the definable value for a specific user

Question 23

sprint backlog

Answer 23

a list of work items to be completed in a scrum sprint

Question 24

definition of done (DoD)

Answer 24

a list of the criteria required to be met for the deliverable to be considered complete or ready to use

Question 25

acceptance criteria

Answer 25

a set of conditions required to be met before a deliverable can be accepted

Question 26

Rough Order of Magnitude (ROM)

Answer 26

high level estimate developed without basis of detailed of detailed data and usually based on high level historical information; accuracy generally -25% to +75%

Question 27

analogous estimate

Answer 27

a technique for estimating using historical data from a similar activity or project; low level of accuracy

Question 28

parametric estimating

Answer 28

a technique for estimating using parameters or variables and historical data

Question 29

bottom up estimating

Answer 29

also called definitive estimating; most accurate type of estimating using detail from the lowest components of the work

Question 30

three-point estimating

Answer 30

an estimating technique that determines the estimate by calculating the average or weighted average of the optimistic, pessimistic and most likely estimates

Question 31

T-shirt sizing

Answer 31

a technique for determining relative estimates by using t-shirt sizes ((small, medium. large, extra large)

Question 32

velocity

Answer 32

the measure of how much work can be performed in a sprint

Question 33

EVM

Answer 33

Earned Value Management - a methodology that combines scope, schedule and cost measurements to assess project performance

Question 34

estimate at completion (EAC)

Answer 34

the expected total cost of completing all work combining the actual cost to date and the estimate to complete

Question 35

funding limit reconciliation

Answer 35

the process of comparing the planned expenditure of project funds against any limits on the commitment of funds

Question 36

story estimates

Answer 36

relative estimates of value and/or complexity for a specific story

Question 37

task estimates

Answer 37

estimates of the work required for a specific task or activity

Question 38

relative estimating

Answer 38

any technique that provides relative estimates as opposed to definitive work estimates

Question 39

burndown chart

Answer 39

a visual tool used to track the number of hours (or story points) of work remaining

Question 40

burnup chart

Answer 40

a visual tool used to track completed work versus planned work

Question 41

four types of precedence relationships

Answer 41

finish-to-start (fs); start-to-start (ss); finish-to-finish (ff); start-to-finish (sf); finish-to-start is the most used; start-to-finish is the least used

Question 42

milestone chart

Answer 42

a type of schedule chart that shows only milestones or expected completion of major events or deliverables

Question 43

critical path

Answer 43

the sequence of activities that represents the longest path through a project which determines the shortest project duration

Question 44

CPM

Answer 44

critical path method - the technique used to determine the critical path on a project

Question 45

Agile release planning

Answer 45

a top-down approach to planning an agile project; uses high level estimating to determine the number of releases and the number of iterations within each release

Question 46

cost of quality

Answer 46

costs organized by investment of costs to prevent defects and costs incurred due to defects

Question 47

benchmarking

Answer 47

provides a basis for measuring performance by using historical or competitive measurements

Question 48

quality audit

Answer 48

an independent audit to determine whether a project is conforming to standard or expected quality practices

Question 49

verify deliverables

Answer 49

the process of verifying the quality of deliverables

Question 50

validate deliverables

Answer 50

the process of obtaining customer approval of deliverables

Question 51

control charts

Answer 51

graphs used to communicate the variability of a process or project activity over time

Question 52

Pareto chart

Answer 52

a histogram used to rank causes of problems in a hierarchical format

Question 53

statistical sampling

Answer 53

a quality technique that inspects a portion of the population as opposed to the entire population

Question 54

Project plan documents versus project documents

Answer 54

project plan documents are components of the Project Management Plan and once approved can only be changed through change control; project documents are intended to be updated as needed without requiring formal change control

Question 55

Project Management Plan components

Answer 55

documents which make up the Project Management Plan (includes the three baselines and the supporting management plans)

Question 56

scrum of scrums

Answer 56

representatives from multiple scrum teams meet to review each scrum team's progress and to identify any potential conflicts or issues

Question 57

SAFe

Answer 57

Scaled Agile Framework - a holistic view of agile approaches across an organization or enterprise

Question 58

make-or-buy analysis

Answer 58

the analysis used to determine whether a project team should make (build) a product or service or buy the product or service from a third party

Question 59

Statement of Work (SOW)

Answer 59

a document that describes the procurement item in sufficient detail to allow prospective sellers to bid on the work required to deliver the expected product, service or result

Question 60

source selection criteria

Answer 60

set of attributes desired by the buyer which a seller is required to meet or exceed

Question 61

bidder conferences

Answer 61

meetings conducted by the buyer with potential sellers after issuing the RFP but prior to submission of the bids; meetings are used by the buyer for setting clear expectations of the project

Question 62

types of fixed price contracts

Answer 62

Firm Fixed Price (FFP, also called "lump sum"); Fixed Price Incentive Fee (FPIF); Fixed Price with Economic Price Adjustment (FPEPA)

Question 63

types of cost reimbursable contracts

Answer 63

Cost Plus Fixed Fee (CPFF): Cost Plus Incentive Fee (CPIF); Cost Plus Award Fee (CPAF)

Question 64

Time and materials (T&M) contract

Answer 64

contract where buyer pays seller negotiated hourly rate and reimbursement of materials used to complete the project