Glossary

Glossary 279

free slack. The amount of time a task can be delayed without delaying the start of the next task. full path. A sequence that leads from the first task of a project to the final path of the project. goal. A change that one or more customers desires. Goals can involve cost savings, revenue improvements, work process improvements, saving time, and so on. independent project portfolio. The projects fall under a common management umbrella, but the projects themselves are essentially unrelated. interdependent project portfolio. The projects are elements in a “super-project” that is aimed at a common outcome. lag task. A task that must be shown in the work flow although it has no work associated with it.

least (scarcest) resource. The resource used on multiple projects that is in least supply. least resource scheduling. A technique for getting the maximum total work from your available resources. middle constraint. The Triple Constraint that is stronger than the weak constraint and weaker than the driver. It comes in the middle.

milestone task. A task that requires no time or budget but must be shown in the work flow. In a project timeline, a milestone is often shown with a diamond symbol ( ). negative slack. There isn’t enough time (a negative amount of time) to accomplish a task. noncritical task. A task on any path or path segment that isn’t critical.

objective. A written statement of a project, designed to achieve one or more goals.

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parallel task. A task that may be performed during the same time frame as other tasks.

path. A sequence of tasks in a dependent order. path segment. A sequence of tasks in between two internal tasks.

predecessor task. The task that comes immediately before a current task on which the current task depends for its start. project portfolio. A collection of co-managed projects. restraining forces. Forces that work against the solution. schedule variance. Expressed as BCWP minus BCWS, which shows schedule variance in monetary terms. slack. The extra time available to perform noncritical tasks. total slack. The amount of time a task can be delayed without delaying the end of the project. Triple Constraints. The key elements in any project definition. You must fully define and understand the Triple Constraints before you begin to manage any project. The three constraints are Time constraint, Budget constraint, and Performance criteria. weak constraint. The Triple Constraint that is most flexible and/ or least important to achieving your project goal.

Bibliography and Suggested Resources

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Practical Project Management

Baker, Sunny, and Kim Baker. On Time—On Budget: A Step by

Step Guide for Managing Any Project. New York: Prentice Hall, 1992. Blanchard, Kenneth, and Spencer Johnson. The One Minute

Manager. New York: Berkley Books, 1983. Caroselli, Marlene. Meetings That Work. Mission, KS: SkillPath

Publications, 1992. Cleland, David I., and William R. King. Project Management

Handbook. New York: Van Nostrand Reinhold, 1983. Covey, Stephen R. The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People.

New York: Simon and Schuster, 1989. Dawson, Roger. The Secrets of Power Negotiating (audio);

Chicago: Nightingale-Conant, 1987. Feder, Michael E. Taking Charge. Mission, KS: SkillPath

Publications, 1989. Finkler, Steven A. The Complete Guide to Finance and Accounting for Nonfinancial Managers. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall, 1983. Frame, J. Davidson. Managing Projects in Organizations: How to

Make the Best Use of Time, Techniques, and People. San

Francisco: Jossey-Bass, 1987. Gardner, Reich. How to Manage Projects (audio). Mission, KS:

SkillPath Publications, 1989. Gonick, Larry, and Woolcott Smith. The Cartoon Guide to

Statistics. New York: HarperCollins, 1993. Gray, Clifford F. Essentials of Project Management. New York:

Petrocelli Books, 1981. Haynes, Marion E. Project Management. Los Altos, CA: Crisp

Publications, 1981.