CPIT APM cheat sheet

Project: temporary endeavor with a defined start and end, unique product/service/result; operations are ongoing and repetitive.

Triple constraint (scope, time, cost) with quality as central; change in one constraint typically affects the others.

PMBOK process groups: Initiating, Planning, Executing, Monitoring & Controlling, Closing; 10 knowledge areas (Integration, Scope, Schedule, Cost, Quality, Resource, Communications, Risk, Procurement, Stakeholder).

Project life cycle vs. product life cycle: project life cycle spans from initiation to closure; product life cycle extends beyond project closure.

Organizational structures: functional (PM has little authority), matrix (weak/balanced/strong), projectized (PM has high authority).

PMO types: supportive (consultative), controlling (compliance), directive (directly manages projects).

Stakeholder vs. shareholder: stakeholder is any party affected by or affecting the project; shareholder owns equity.

Project vs. program vs. portfolio: program = related projects managed together; portfolio = projects/programs grouped to meet strategic objectives.

Deliverable vs. milestone: deliverable is a tangible output; milestone is a significant point in time with zero duration.

Project charter authorizes the project and names the project manager; issued by the sponsor. It contains high-level scope, budget, and risks.

Stakeholder register records identification, assessment (power/interest), and classification; stakeholder engagement plan defines strategies.

Scope statement includes product scope description, deliverables, acceptance criteria, exclusions, constraints, and assumptions.

WBS decomposes deliverables into work packages; rule of thumb: 8–80 hours per work package; WBS dictionary provides details.

Schedule: critical path is the longest path through the network and determines shortest project duration; zero float on critical path.

Cost estimating: analogous (top-down, less accurate), parametric (statistical), bottom-up (most accurate, time-consuming), three-point (PERT).

PERT expected duration = (O + 4M + P) / 6; standard deviation = (P – O) / 6.

Risk management plan: identify risks, perform qualitative (probability/impact matrix) and quantitative analysis (EMV, Monte Carlo), plan responses (avoid, transfer, mitigate, accept, escalate).

Communications management plan defines who receives what information, when, and in what format.

Direct and Manage Project Work: execute the project management plan, produce deliverables, implement approved changes, and manage issues.

Manage Project Knowledge: capture lessons learned and integrate new knowledge; explicit vs. tacit knowledge.

Acquire Resources: obtain team members, facilities, equipment; virtual teams and multi-criteria decision analysis.

Develop Team: improve competencies, team interaction, and team environment; Tuckman stages: forming, storming, norming, performing, adjourning.

Manage Team: track performance, provide feedback, resolve conflicts, and manage changes; conflict resolution techniques: collaborate/problem-solve, compromise, force, smooth, withdraw.

Manage Communications: create, collect, distribute, store, retrieve, and dispose of project information per plan.

Implement Risk Responses: execute agreed risk response plans; ensure risk owners are assigned.

Conduct Procurements: obtain seller responses, select sellers, award contracts; contract types: fixed-price (seller risk), cost-reimbursable (buyer risk), time and materials.

Manage Stakeholder Engagement: communicate and work with stakeholders to meet their needs and expectations.

Monitoring and controlling processes track, review, and regulate project progress and performance; compare actuals to plan and approve changes.

Earned Value Management (EVM): PV = planned value, EV = earned value, AC = actual cost, BAC = budget at completion.

EVM formulas: CV = EV – AC; SV = EV – PV; CPI = EV / AC; SPI = EV / PV.

EVM forecasting: EAC = BAC / CPI (typical variance); ETC = EAC – AC; VAC = BAC – EAC; TCPI = (BAC – EV) / (BAC – AC).

Integrated Change Control: review all change requests, approve or reject, manage changes to deliverables, assets, and plan; change control board (CCB).

Control Quality vs. Manage Quality: Control Quality monitors results and verifies correctness; Manage Quality is the process of auditing quality requirements.

Control Schedule: analyze schedule performance, use critical path method, schedule compression (crashing, fast tracking), and resource leveling.

Control Costs: monitor cost performance, ensure corrective actions, and prevent unauthorized changes.

Control Risks: monitor risk status, implement risk response plans, and evaluate risk process effectiveness.

Close Project or Phase: finalize all activities, confirm completion of deliverables, archive project documents, and release resources.

Final product transition: obtain formal acceptance from the customer/sponsor; transfer ownership to operations or receiving party.

Lessons learned: collect, document, and share knowledge; final lessons learned session is part of closure.

Administrative closure: verify project success, collect records, analyze project success/failure, and archive information.

Contract closure: verify all work is complete and correct, settle all claims, and close each contract.

Stakeholder communication at closure: inform stakeholders of completion, outcomes, and benefits; celebrate success.

Benefits realization: ensure project benefits are tracked after closure; benefits may be realized in operations.

Post-implementation review: evaluate project against original objectives and document recommendations for future projects.

Resource release: release team members and physical resources; update organizational process assets.