Q-S

QA

See quality assurance.

quality assurance (QA)

The process of evaluating overall project or product performance on a regular basis.

recurring cost

An expenditure that occurs on a repetitive basis.

remaining cost

The estimated cost that is yet to be incurred.

remaining duration

The amount of time needed to complete the balance of an activity or project.

remaining work

The amount of work, in terms of days or hours, that remains to be completed on a task.

resource

Any person, item, or funding necessary to accomplish an activity.

resource allocation

The assignment of resources to tasks in a project.

resource assignment

The work on an activity related to a specific resource.

resource leveling

The process of adjusting project schedules to minimize the peaks in daily resource usage.

resource pool

A group of resources, related by skill, department, or function, that are available for assignment to project tasks.

resource replacement

The act of replacing one resource with another that offers similar characteristics. Itís important to replace generic resources with actual resources at some point in a projectís lifespan.

risk

The probability of an undesirable outcome.

schedule

The timetable for a project, showing project tasks and milestones.

schedule performance index (SPI)

The ratio of work performed to work scheduled.

schedule variance (SV)

The difference between a taskís scheduled progress and its actual progress.

scope

The combination of all project goals and tasks, and the work required to accomplish them.

scope creep

Unplanned change in the scope of a project.

slack

See float.

slippage

The amount of slack or float time used up by the delayed start of an activity.

Smart Tag

A pop-up tip or label that appears when you hover your cursor over a particular part of the Microsoft Project interface. Many Smart Tags prompt the user for additional input.

SPI

See schedule performance index.

stakeholder

Any person who has an interest in the project; includes project team members, clients, funders, contractors, customers, higher-level managers, and other interested parties.

standard rate

A base rate you assign to resources.

status date

A date that you set for reporting the current status of a project.

successor

An activity whose start or finish depends on the start or finish of a predecessor activity.

SV

See schedule variance.