Practice Management Vocabulary Flashcards

1
Q

Dividends

A

A sum of money paid regularly by a company to its shareholders out of its profits

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2
Q

Statutory

A

Required, permitted, or enacted by a statue (a written law passed by a legislative body)

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3
Q

Accounts payable

A

Amounts owed to the suppliers of goods or services (such as consultants, reproduction companies, or the utility company) that have not been paid

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4
Q

Accounts receivable

A

Money that others owe to the business through invoices for services

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5
Q

Assets

A

Any type of tangible or intangible resource that can be measured in monetary terms, including current assets, fixed assets, and other assets

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6
Q

Chart of accounts

A

A list of various accounts a business uses to keep track of money, along with corresponding account numbers used for data processing

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7
Q

Current asset

A

Resources of a business that are converted into cash within one year

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8
Q

Direct labor

A

All labor of technical staff, principals, and support staff that is directly chargeable to projects

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9
Q

Direct personal expense

A

The expense of employee salaries plus the cost of mandatory and discretionary expenses and benefits such as payroll taxes and health insurance

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10
Q

Discretionary distribution

A

Voluntary distribution of profits to owners and non owners, such as performance bonuses, profit sharing, and incentive compensation

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11
Q

Fixed assets

A

Resources that the firm uses and retains for a long period of time, such as equipment and property

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12
Q

Gross revenue

A

All the revenue generated by a business during a stated period of time

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13
Q

Indirect labor

A

All labor not charged to a specify project or revenue-producing account, such as administration, general office time, and marketing

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14
Q

Liabilities

A

Claims by people outside the business and claims by the owners of the business against the total assets of the business

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15
Q

Net operating revenue (or net revenue)

A

The money that remains from billing after deduction fees and expenses, reimbursable expenses, and non-reimbursable project-related expenses

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16
Q

Other assets

A

Miscellaneous resources such as securities and copyrights

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17
Q

Overhead

A

Expenses incurred to keep a business operating whether of not any revenue is being generated, such as rent, software leases, and fees for power and telephone services

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18
Q

Balance sheet

A

Summarized all assets and liabilities and shows the financial position of a business

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19
Q

Owners equity

A

The money invested in a business by the owners or stockholders

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20
Q

Profit and loss statement (or income statement)

A

Lists all the income and expenses of a business for a certain period of time. The difference between all the income and all the expenses gives either the profit or the loss for that period

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21
Q

Cash flow statement

A

Shows actual inflows and outflows of cash or cash equivalents

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22
Q

Cash equivalents

A

Short-term investments that can be quickly converted into cash, such as short-term certificates of deposit

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23
Q

Ledger

A

Where transactions are grouped into individual accounts

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24
Q

Project progress report

A

Shows the hours and costs of each phase of a project, both for the current reporting period and the total to date, and compare these numbers with the estimated hours and costs

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25
Q

Office earnings report

A

Summarizes each of the firms projects in terms of the amount of revenue it has generated, the expenses it has incurred, unbilled services, percentage of completion, and profit or loss to date

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26
Q

Chargeable ratio

A

The percentage of time spent on direct labor, divided by the total time spent if direct and indirect labor, vacation, holiday, and sick leave

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27
Q

Billing rate

A

Hourly rate per staff member working on a project

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28
Q

Stipulated lump sum fee

A

Determined by estimating the number if hours it will take for each staff member to complete his or her work on the project and multiplying each number by that staff members billing rate

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29
Q

Fiduciary

A

Involving trust, especially with regard to the relationship between a trustee and a beneficiary

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30
Q

Vicarious liability

A

The legal responsibility of one party (the architect) for the acts of another party (the consultant)

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31
Q

Omission

A

Something neglected or left undone

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32
Q

Bridging

A

Allows an owner to establish which things he or she wants to control, gives responsibility for details of construction to the contractor, and permits the owner to obtain the advice and participation of an architect

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33
Q

CMc

A

A project delivery approach that employs a construction manager to oversee the project; this method is often used for fast-track construction, where the design and construction phases overlap

34
Q

Teaming agreement

A

An agreement between two or more firms that, prior to bidding on work, sets forth terms that the firms will accept. This is the basis for a joint venture or a prime consultant agreement, which will be put into place after the project is awarded.

35
Q

Employment at will

A

There is no written contract and employees can be terminated at any time without explanation

36
Q

Employment contract

A

Documents the terms of employment and may include valid reasons for termination

37
Q

Cost-plus-fee method

A

The architect’s compensation includes actual work experience (cost) plus a reasonable fee for profit (fee)

38
Q

Agency

A

The concept that one person acts on behalf of another, as the architect does for the client

39
Q

Duty

A

A concept in law whereby one person “owes” something to another

40
Q

Privity

A

A legal concept that means that two parties to a contract or other transaction have a connection or mutual interest. A lack of privity protects an architect against claims made by a subcontractor.

41
Q

Pro forma

A

A fanatical projection for a development project that includes the cost of developing the project and expected income . It’s used to determine if a project is feasible.

42
Q

Reimbursable expenses

A

Money the firm spends on project related travel/meals, etc. that is reimbursed by the client. A “not to exceed” limit is sometimes included in the contract”.

43
Q

Payroll burden

A

The cost of benefits provided to staff members and includes health insurance, worker’s comp insurance, federal and state unemployment insurance, and payroll taxes

44
Q

Net worth

A

Claims of the firm owners against its assets; what the firm owes to its owners

45
Q

Revenues

A

Amounts earned by a firm during an accounting period

46
Q

Expenses

A

What it costs the firm to produce its revenue

47
Q

Profit or loss

A

The difference between revenue and expenses

48
Q

Cash accounting method

A

Records entries at the time they impact cash

49
Q

Accrual accounting method

A

Records revenue when it is earned and expenses when they are incurred

50
Q

Leverage

A

Manage debt

51
Q

Solvency

A

Pay current debt

52
Q

Liquidity

A

Convert assets to cash

53
Q

Direct salary cost

A

The cost of employee salaries without the payroll burden included

54
Q

Limitation of liability (LOL)

A

A contractual provision between the architect and the client in which they agree that the architect’s maximum liability shall be limited in certain ways

55
Q

Fee retainage

A

Amounts withheld from professional service fees until the completion of a project or work phase

56
Q

Noncompete clause

A

Stated in an employment contract and means after leaving the firm, the employee cannot set up competing business in the same geographical area, nor accept work from the previous employer’s developers

57
Q

Tort

A

A civil wrong resulting from negligence as opposed to a criminal act

58
Q

Time analysis report

A

Shows how each employee is dividing their time between work, vacation , sick leave, and other non-chargeable time

59
Q

Indemnification clause

A

Attempts to hold harmless the owner and architect for any damages or claims resulting from the performance of working the contractor or others, including subcontractors, with whole the architect has no contractual relationship

60
Q

General liability insurance

A

Protects against claims of property damage, liability, and personal injury cause by the architect or employees, consultants, or other people hired by the architect

61
Q

Professional liability insurance

A

Protects the architect and employees against bodily injury, property damage, or other damage. Also protects against mistakes in the contract documents or their services the architect offers

62
Q

Utilization rate

A

Measures overall efficiency and effective use of labor, not productivity

63
Q

Project alliance

A

A legal structure often associated with integrated project delivery

64
Q

Design-assist contracting

A

A project management method that includes specialty subcontractors or trades early in the DD and CD phases to assist with the development of complex or unique portions of the building

65
Q

Contract form

A

The agreement between owner and contractor for enumerating the contract documents, specifying the time of performance, and stating the contractor’s compensation

66
Q

Contract conditions

A

Set forth the rights, duties, and responsibilities of owner and contractor and other parties to the construction process

67
Q

Submittals

A

Include detailed drawings (referred to as “shop drawings”) prepared by the contractor, detailed information or data from the product manufacturer, and physical product samples

68
Q

“Scope creep”

A

An enlargement of scope based on the many good ideas and solutions that arise during design

69
Q

Allowances

A

Fixed sums determined by the owner and architect before bidding takes place, and bidders are instructed to include these sums in their bids

70
Q

Alternates

A

May delete work shown on the construction documents, require additional work, or change the level of quality specified

71
Q

Unit prices

A

Used to provide a cost basis for changes to the contract, usually to cover unknown conditions and variables that cannot be quantified exactly at the time of bidding

72
Q

Schedule of values

A

Submitted by the contractor and the beginning of construction. It’s a schedule that lists the various parts of the work and quantities involved.

73
Q

Submittal schedule

A

Provides a basis for knowing how long substitutions may be proposed

74
Q

Date of substantial completion

A

The date when work (or a portion thereof) is in a condition to be occupied or utilized. It is not necessarily the date on which the owner actually occupies the project

75
Q

Subdivision ordinances

A

Control how tracts of land are divided for building and development purposes

76
Q

Floor-area ratio (FAR)

A

The gross floor area of a building compared to the total area of the site

77
Q

In order for a request for a variance from the zoning ordinance to be valid, what must be the case?

A

There must be an unnecessary hardship inherent in the physical characteristics of the property

78
Q

The board of zoning appeals hears primarily two types of cases:

A
  1. Those requesting a variance 2. Those requesting a reconsideration of an earlier decision
79
Q

Land use classification

A

A legal term that defines permitted uses for a parcel of land

80
Q

Consequential damages

A

Refers to an owner’s economic losses, such as lost profits, loss of use of a facility, or loss of opportunity resulting from delays to the project that were the result of an act, error, or omission of the architect