Glossary

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A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK) The project management standard developed by the Project Management Institute.

Acceptance The decision to tolerate the defects that are found as a result of the quality testing. Also a tool for risk response planning.

Activity definition Identifying the activities of the project that need to be performed to produce the product or service of the project.

Activity duration estimating Assessing the number of work periods needed to complete the project activities. Work periods are usually expressed in hours or days. Large projects might express duration in weeks or months.

Activity sequencing Sequencing activities in logical order and determining whether dependencies exist among the activities.

Actual cost (AC) The cost of work to date including direct and indirect costs. Formerly known as actual cost of work performed (ACWP).

Actual cost of work performed (ACWP) See actual cost.

Administrative closure Gathering and disseminating information to formalize project closure. The completion of each project phase requires administrative closure also.

Analogous estimating An estimating technique that uses the actual duration of a similar, completed activity to determine the duration of the current activity. Also called top down estimating.

Appraisal costs Costs that cover the activities that keep the product defects from reaching the client, including inspection, testing, and formal quality audits .

Assumption An event or action believed to be true. Project assumptions should always be documented.