50 must know project management terms for every professional
50 must know project management terms for every professional
2. ACCOUNTABILITY
It refers to  the fact of being
accountable or responsible.
1
 3. ASSUMPTION
Assumptions help in  risk
management of a project.
2
 4. BASELINE
It refers to  a plan that has been
approved.
3
 5. BUDGET
The planned expenses  for a project.
4
 6. BUSINESS PROCESS
MODELING (BPM)
In  BPM, a business process is
analyzed and required changes are
made in it.
5
 7. CAPABILITIES
Find people who  are skilled,
experienced and willing to do their
best.
6
 8. CLIENT/ CUSTOMER
They are  the ones that matter- a
project is run for them.
7
 9. COLLABORATION
This refers to  the process in which
teams plan, organize and track their
work together.
8
 10. CONSTRAINTS
Anything that limits  a team’s action.
Time, budget and scope are the main
constraints in a project.
9
 11. COST BENEFIT
ANALYSIS
In CBA,  total expenditure of a project
is compared with its benefits to
calculate the net cost of the project.
10
 13. CRITICAL PATH
It refers  to the longest sequence of
project activities needed to be done
on time so that the project gets
completed within the deadline.
11
 14. DELIVERABLE
This refers to  tangible products of a
project. Every project has deliverables
such as a report, a plan, a software
product etc.
12
 15. DECISIONS
Authorize right people  for taking
decisions and also decide how quickly
a decision should be taken.
13
 16. DEBATE
While tackling a  situation think from
each perspective and zero in on the
best option. Also, encourage your
colleagues to do the same.
14
 17. DEPENDENCIES
Any task or  event depends on other
tasks or outcomes of the project.
15
 18. EARNED VALUE
The EV  helps you know whether the
project is on track or not by
monitoring time and money spent
and the amount of work done.
16
 19. EXPLORATION
Consider all the  possible options with
their negatives and positives before
taking final decision.
17
 20. FLOAT
The amount of  time for which a task
can be postponed without any
impact on timeline of a project.
18
 21. GANTT CHART
In a  gantt chart, horizontal bars show
activities of a project against time. A
horizontal bar shows beginning date
and end date of a task.
19
 22. GOAL
Goals help you  plan in a better way
to complete a project successfully.
20
 23. ISSUE
The roadblocks that  hinder the
project progress are referred to as
issues. These are needed to be
addressed to run a project
successfully.
21
 24. KANBAN
It consists of  a series of cards that
visualizes the workflow creating
physical representations of their tasks.
22
 25. LIFECYCLE
Lifecycle of a  project mainly has four
parts- planning, collaboration,
execution and delivery.
23
 26. MANAGEMENT
Bringing people and  resources
together so as to achieve goals.
24
 27. MILESTONE
A reference point  in timeline of the
project to track its progress.
25
 28. OBJECTIVE
It refers to  a statement that tells the
purpose of a project.
26
 29. PROGRAM
A series of  related projects
considered as one entity is referred
to as a program.
27
 30. PROGRAM
MANAGER
It refers to  the person who is given
authority to manage a program.
28
 31. PROJECT
It’s a structure  made for a limited
period of time in order to plan,
organize and manage work to
achieve a specific goal.
29
 32. PROJECT MANAGER
The person  who’s given authority to
manage a project. He has the full
responsibility and power to decide
processes to run the project.
30
 33. PROJECT
MANAGEMENT
It refers to  overall management of a
project whether it’s about the team,
tasks or tools.
31
 34. PROJECT
MANAGEMENT
SOFTWARE
Project management software  helps
plan, organize, and manage a project
in a fast and easy way.
32
 36. PROJECT PHASE
A project  phase is a part of a project
that shows the completion of a main
deliverable or other deliverables
related to it.
33
 37. PROJECT
REPORTING
It refers to  a record of different
events in a project.
34
 38. PROJECT TEAM
The project  team consists of the
resources who are assigned tasks to
complete a project successfully.
35
 39. RED FLAGS
Ambience of  a workplace matters a
lot. People should be encouraged to
raise their voice against anything they
find wrong and look for solutions to
such problems.
36
 40. REQUIREMENTS
Requirements refer to  the description
of how a product should be built or a
service should act.
37
 41. RESOURCES
A manager needs  resources to run a
project. The resources can be capital,
people, space or anything else
required to complete the project.
38
 42. RISK
It refers to  an uncertain condition
which has an impact on the project, if
it occurs.
39
 43. SCOPE
Project scope refers  to determination
and documentation of a list of
project goals, deliverables, tasks,
deadlines and related aspects.
40
 44. SCOPE CREEP
It refers  to change in scope of a
project over time. It can take place if
a project’s scope is not defined or
controlled.
41
 45. SCRUM
A project management  methodology
in which a small team is led by a Scrum
Master who solves the problems faced
at work.
42
 46. SIX SIGMA
It refers  to a methodology based on
statistics used to improve any
process.
43
 47. STAKEHOLDER
It refers to  a particular person who
has share in the results of a project.
44
 48. TASK
The smallest activity  in a project
with a set start and end date.
45
 49. TRANSPARENCY
A manager needs  to know who’s
doing what and how much work has
been done by his team members at
any point of time.
46
 50. TIMELINE
It refers to  a graphical representation
of a specific time period that shows
sequence of important events.
47
 51. WATERFALL
It’s a hierarchical  design process which
shows progress in software
development through different phases
like analysis, design, construction,
testing, and deployment.
48
 52. WORK BREAKDOWN
STRUCTURE (WBS)
A  list of project deliverables that
organizes a work into different
sections.
49
 53. WORK PLAN
It refers  to a document used by
organizations to manage their
projects.
50
 55. Sources

Techrepublic.com/blog/it-consultant/it-
project-management-terms-you-should-
know/

Businessnewsdaily.com/6448-project-
management-works.html

Visual.ly/top-50-project-management-
terms-you-need-know-infographic
  56. ProofHub.com
  