22 Project Management Terms You Must Know

Key takeaways: 

• Project management involves overseeing a project from start to finish.
• Understanding project management terms and methodology will help improve communication with your team members. 
• It will ensure everyone is on the same page, streamline workflow, save time, and present a clear path for implementing work.
• Project management methodologies break down tasks into smaller chunks to determine their duration or make them easily doable.

Did you know you’ll come across a list of project management terms while working as a project manager or with a project management team? 

Understanding these terminologies will make your work easier, strengthen your communication skills, and improve your project success rate.

In this article, we have compiled a list of the top 22 project management terms, vocabulary, and acronyms you must know, whether starting your journey in this field, managing complex projects, or collaborating with a team.

What is project management terminology? 

Project management terminology involves a list of specialized terms used to define, plan, budget, and execute projects.

Project management terminologies provide working strategies based on defined methods. It simplifies complex tasks and ensures they are completed on time.

They are also used to identify project performance and end projects.

Basic project management terminology with examples

Project management involves a wide range of terminology and vocabulary, and in this section, we have listed some of the basic terms:

1. Budget 

The amount of money allocated to complete a project is known as a budget. 

For example, a company has $40,000 to develop a mobile application called Trello. This is called the budget of the project.

2. Risk 

Any event that can negatively affect a project is known as a risk. 

Examples of project risks can be budget overruns or a shortage of resources.

3. Schedule 

Defining the timeline of the project is known as a schedule. 

An example of a schedule is breaking a task into 4 steps and committing to complete each step every week.

4. Activity 

Activity is the stage of the project that requires to be completed to deliver the project.

An example of project activity can be designing a website.

5. Collaboration 

Collaboration in project management occurs when people work together as a team, sharing responsibilities for the project.

For example, marketing and sales teams can collaborate on marketing a product by sharing their ideas and knowledge and dividing the marketing activities among the team members.

6. Project 

A project involves activities that generate an outcome through research, development, or construction. The outcome can be a service, product, event, program, or other entity. 

A project can be done individually or in collaboration with others.

Examples of projects can include developing software or an application, organizing an event, building a house, or other activities.

7. Project management 

Project management is the complete process of handling a project from start to end. It includes planning, documenting, budgeting, researching, executing, monitoring, and controlling a project. 

For example, consider that your project is to develop software. The project management steps will involve planning, budgeting, researching and designing the software, monitoring and testing the software, and deploying the software.

8. Project manager 

A project manager is a qualified individual or professional responsible for planning, organizing, executing, and completing a project within a specific time frame.

9. Scope 

Scope is also a project management term that refers to the objective or purpose of the project that must be achieved. 

For example, if you are developing a website, the scope of your project is to create an SEO-friendly website. It should be useful and easily accessible to your target audience.

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10. Stakeholders 

Stakeholders are people involved in a project or individuals affected by the outcomes of the project. Stakeholders can be people from outside your company or within your company.

For example, people (stakeholders) affected by the outcomes of your project outside the company can include investors, suppliers, and customers. 

People affected by the outcomes of your project inside the company are company owners and employees.

11. Business case

A business case is a document that justifies that the benefit of implementing any work outweighs the risks. It also proposes potential solutions to any problems that may arise in the case of execution.

Here is an example. If an employee wants to suggest a project idea to the company, they will provide a business case, which is a clear picture of the value, purpose, benefits, risks, cost, and solution to problems in the project.

Common project management terms and when to use them 

Here is a list of the common project management terms and when to use them:

12. Milestone  

A milestone is a specific achievement or the completion of a phase, task, or deliverable in a project. For example, in software development, the completion of research can be termed a milestone.

The term "milestone" in project management is used to mark progress or a specific point that leads to the ultimate goal of the project.

13. Backlog  

A backlog involves a complete list of tasks required to complete a project. A project cannot be marked complete until all the tasks in the backlog are done.

The term “backlog” is used in project management to define a list of tasks, requirements, or features that need to be completed.

14. Contingency plan 

A contingency plan means the second plan, or plan B. When the first plan doesn't work out due to any disruptions or failure, project managers implement the contingency plan.

15. Bottleneck 

A bottleneck is a delay or blockage in the process of a project. It can be due to various reasons, like work overload, limited resources, reduced productivity, stress, improper communication, or others.

16. Deliverable

A deliverable is a product, service, or result of a project that must be submitted to mark the project or any phase of the project as complete.

The term "deliverable" is used in project management to define a production of the project, like a specific outcome, product, or result.

Project management methodology 

Some of the most common methods of project management include:

17. Agile

Agile is a project management technique in which team members use a set of values and principles to work towards a common goal.

18. Scrum 

Scrum is defined as a specific agile method. It basically involves breaking down large and complex projects into smaller, manageable tasks or cycles known as sprints. It usually lasts 1-2 weeks.

Scrum can be used in marketing, healthcare, software development, and research.

19. Kanban 

Kanban is a physical or digital visual representation of a board that shows the steps of the workflow and its progress.

In project management, Kanban is used when you have to manage a continuous flow of work and improve efficiency.

20. Critical path 

The critical path is the sequence of project activities. The critical path method is used when the project involves multiple steps and efficient scheduling and has tight deadlines.

21. Gantt chart 

A Gantt chart is a graph that displays a visual horizontal line showing the schedule of project tasks, such as planning, research, design, implementation, and others.

A Gantt chart is primarily used to schedule specific tasks in a project.

22. Waterfall 

The waterfall method involves completing each phase of the project in a linear series of steps. It is ideal for projects where the end result is known.

For example, it can be used in building products and developing systems, like constructing a building or developing software.

Project management acronyms 

The most common project management acronyms include: 

• TQM: Total quality management 
• PPM: Project portfolio management 
• PM: Project manager
• PMO: Project management office 
• PERT: Project evaluation review technique 
• KPI: Key performance indicator 
• AC: Actual cost
• CCPM: Critical chain project management
• CPM: Cost per mille 
• SWOT: Strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats.

Why understanding project management vocabulary matters 

Understanding project management vocabulary is essential for various reasons, such as:

1. It helps in effective communication while working with your team or leading projects.
2. It assures that everyone is on the same page, whether you are working with your manager or other team members.
3. Having an understanding of project management terms and vocabulary avoids misunderstandings or misinterpretations between team members.
4. It reduces the chances of errors.
5. It saves costs.
6. It breaks down complex tasks into smaller chunks, making them easily doable.

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How to master project management terms 

Here is how you can master project management terms:

1. Master the basics 

Instead of trying to understand tough vocabulary or methodologies, first focus on basic terms. For example, learn about project, project manager, project management, stakeholders, milestones, and others. 

When you get a thorough understanding of their meanings and how they work, then move towards learning the methodologies of project management.

2. Read books and case studies 

Reading books is one of the most effective ways to improve your vocabulary in any field. You can purchase interesting project management books, like: 

• The Lazy Project Manager
• How to be Twice as Productive and Still Leave the Office Early.
• The Art of Project Management
• Agile Practice Guide or others to understand how project management terms work.

You can also read case studies or literature reviews about project management, for example, by learning what researchers experience while leading projects. 

3. Communicate

Another way to master project management terms is to communicate with people in the respective field, ask questions, use the vocabulary, and observe how they use those terms.

4. Watch tutorials 

Some project management vocabulary may be difficult to understand through reading alone. You can watch YouTube tutorials to get a deep understanding of what they mean and how to utilize them in the project management world.

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Conclusion 

Understanding project management terms and methodologies helps you manage and execute projects. It allows you to communicate effectively with your team members. 

The most common methodologies used in project management include Waterfall, Scrum, Agile, and Kanban. These methods help enhance teamwork and break down larger projects into smaller chunks. It also improves workflow and saves time.

The methods in project management are commonly selected according to the project requirements, deadline, and goals.