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| Calculate Schedule
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The Critical Path Method (Calculate Schedule) is a modeling process that defines all the project's critical activities which must be completed on time. The Calc tool bar button on the Gantt and PERT (found in most GUI-based PM software) windows calculates the start and finish dates of activities in the project in two passes. The first pass calculates early start and finish dates from the earliest start date forward. The second pass calculates the late start and finish activities from the latest finish date backwards. The difference between the pairs of start and finish dates for each task is the float or slack time for the task (see FLOAT). Slack is the amount of time a task can be delayed without delaying the project completion date. A great advantage of this method is the fine-tuning that can be done to accelerate the project. Shorten various critical path activities, then check the schedule to see how it is affected by the changes. By experimenting in this manner, the optimal project schedule can be determined.
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| Calendar Date
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A specific date shown on the calendar (e.g., July 3, 1942) as opposed to a relative date. See Relative Date.
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| Calendars
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A project calendar lists time intervals in which activities or resources can or cannot be scheduled. A project usually has one default calendar for the normal work week (Monday through Friday), but may have other calendars as well. Each calendar can be customized with its own holidays and extra work days. Resources and activities can be attached to any of the calendars that are defined.
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| Change
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Difference in an expected value or event. The most significant changes in project management are related to scope definition, availability of resources, schedule and budget.
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| Change Control
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The process of managing scope, schedule and budget changes to the plan. See Scope Change Control.
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| Change Management
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The process of identifying, documenting, approving and implementing changes within a project.
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| Change Request
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A documented request for a change in scope or other aspects of the plan.
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| Client
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The person or organization that is the principle beneficiary of the project. Generally the client has a significant authority regarding scope definition and whether the project should be initiated and/or continued.
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| Closing
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The process of gaining formal acceptance for the results of a project or phase and bringing it to an orderly end, including the archiving of project information and post-project review.
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| Communications Management
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The process of identifying, creating, reviewing and distributing communications messages to stakeholders within a project.
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| Communications Planning
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The process of identifying the information needs of project stakeholders and scheduling communications activities to meet those needs within the project.
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| Consensus
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Unanimous agreement among the decision-makers that everyone can at least live with the decision (or solution). To live with the decision, one has to be convinced that the decision will adequately achieve objectives. As long as someone believes that the decision will not achieve the objectives, there is no consensus.
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| Constraint
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A restriction or limitation that influences the project plan. For example, a target date may be a constraint on scheduling. A schedule may be constrained by resource limitations.
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| Content Expert
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See Subject Matter Expert (SME).
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| Contingency Reserve
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A designated amount of time and/or budget to account for parts of the project that cannot be fully predicted. For example, it is relatively certain that there will be some rework, but the amount of rework and where it will occur in the project (or phase) are not known. These are sometimes called "known unknowns". The purpose of the contingency reserve is to provide a more accurate sense of the expected completion date and cost of the project (or phase). Some PMs separate contingency reserves from management reserves while others combine the two into a single reserve. Reserves for changes and issues may be part of the contingency reserve or separate reserves.
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| Control
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Control is the process of comparing actual performance with planned performance, analyzing the differences, and taking the appropriate corrective action.
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| Controlling
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The process of monitoring, measuring and reporting on progress and taking corrective action to ensure project objectives are met.
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| Cost Management
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The process of monitoring and controlling the costs incurred within a project, through the completion and approval of Expense Forms.
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| Critical Activity
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A critical activity has zero or negative float. This activity has no allowance for work slippage. It must be finished on time or the whole project will fall behind schedule. (Non-critical activities have float or slack time and are not in the critical path. Super-critical activities have negative float.)
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| Critical Path
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The path(s) in a project network that has the longest duration. This represents the series of activities that determines the earliest completion of the project. There may be more than one critical path and the critical path(s) may change during the project.
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| Critical Path
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There may be several paths within one project. The critical path is the path (sequence) of activities which represent the longest total time required to complete the project. A delay in any activity in the critical path causes a delay in the completion of the project. There may be more than one critical path depending on durations and work flow logic.
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