Project Related Terms You Should Know

Written by the well-known management consultant Peter Drucker, this piece of wisdom is relevant not only, but especially for project managers. Effective project management is about breaking through the clutter and focusing on the things that have the greatest impact on the end result of the project. The cornerstones that keep your project going. It's no use optimizing the details if your core process is flawed.

Here are a few things to keep in mind:

Purpose

Without purpose, it is difficult for the teams to make the extra effort to get things done. Before you start, organize a kick-off meeting and define the goal and what you want to achieve.

Goals

Goals provide the focus on how to design a roadmap to achieve the goal. They should be S.M.A.R.T.: specific, measurable, achievable, relevant and time-bound.

Resources

Determine the resources that are needed from capital, people, equipment, space, time and everything else to get the job done. Without the right resources, a project will fail.

Capabilities

People are the most important resource of all. Choose those who have the skills, experience and will to achieve the best results.

Decisions

Be clear about who can make what decision, what needs to be reviewed by a committee and how quickly decisions are made. If too many people are involved, the risk of falling into analytical paralysis increases. Make sure that the right people make the best possible decisions at all critical points.

Discussions

Try to analyse a situation from several angles. Encourage your team to explore all the possibilities, list the most viable options and then choose the best one. Introduce a healthy debate to explore the opposite sides so that you have considered most factors when making your decision.

Target Date

Time is a very important factor, and your team must complete tasks on time to reach the project on time. If not, more resources are needed to achieve the same goal.

Research

Go through all possible options. Carefully weigh up the pros and cons and try to find the option that adds the most value.

Priorities

Priorities must be constantly reviewed, because what is important today may not be so important tomorrow. Your team needs to know how the context changes so you can adjust the plan accordingly.

Accountability

This should not be confused with responsibility. Teams can share responsibility, but individuals within a team are responsible for completing tasks.

Transparency

They know who is working on what and who is doing or not doing their tasks on time. Without transparency, problems are likely to remain hidden and get worse. It's much better to raise red flags and work together to solve problems early.

Red Flags

Create an environment where people are willing to address problems when they see that something is wrong. Teams must work together to solve problems and trust each other to express their real opinions.

Critical Path

This term refers to the longest way to achieve a result that depends on the execution of numerous processes. Be sure to identify the critical path throughout the project. It may shift depending on the type of project you are working on.

Consider these 13 terms in project management to ensure that your projects run smoothly and on schedule from kick-off to follow-up. A project management software like Merlin Project will support you in this.