What is a Project?
We say that everything is a project because every activity can be treated, and managed, as a project.
A project is a group of sequential tasks with the intention to deliver something that did not exist before the project started.
A project may include all or some of the following: the milestones we need to attain, the issues we need to resolve, the changes we have to make, the risks we need to minimize, the documents we generate and use, the time that it takes to do things, the cost, the teams we create, etc.
Projects are complex entities and they are complex to manage. They require attention to detail, while maintaining the ability to see the big picture. They force us to look at the future, trying to prevent any pitfalls, while relying on our past experiences to make the right decisions.
Managing projects is not easy and that is why we created ProjectTrack; to help you successfully manage projects.
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What is an Action Item?
You can think of Action Items in two different ways:
1. If you have a project plan with all the Tasks (or steps), Action Items are those tasks that never made it to the plan. They are discovered during the life of the project. Many Action Items are discovered during meetings.
2. If you do not have a plan, Action Items are the tasks (or steps) necessary to complete the Project. They become your project plan.
Action Items are those parts of a project that make up a to-do list. They are usually assigned to a Person and they require a certain amount of time to be completed, so they also have a start and a due date.
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What is an Asset?
Assets are anything used by a project. A company car, projector or a laptop are all examples of assets.
Some projects need to keep track of what assets were used, how and by whom.
Assets may also have an associated cost when they are used by a project. If a project gets charged for using an asset, you need to keep track of that cost.
ProjectTrack allows you to create Assets with their associated costs and assign them to projects.
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What is a Change?
Dealing effectively with Changes is one of the most important aspects of any project because Changes are generally something that affects the cost or timeline of a project. They are the little (or big) fires that start during the execution of a project. They may arise from something that was not in the project plan and needs to get done. These changes can be the result from unspoken assumptions on the part of one or both parties. A change may also be something that was in the project plan but that needs to be done differently than expected.
Project managers need to track changes because they cost time and money. Changes result in changes to the face and/or scope of a project. If our plan was based on some assumptions (i.e. we were going to train 20 people) and those assumptions changed (i.e. we now need to train 200 people) the plan is no longer accurate and we need to deal with that.
Changes need to be acknowledged and costs need to be analyzed. A change normally needs to be approved by the customer or the sponsor before it is activated.
As a project manager you need to keep track of changes. Dealing with changes is one of the most important, and difficult parts, of a successful project.
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What are Documents?
Projects tend to generate documentation and keeping it organized saves time and money.
ProjectTrack allows you to keep all your Documents under control.
Every single item in ProjectTrack can have Documents and Links attached to it. This allows you to keep all the documents where they belong.
ProjectTrack can link to a document, link to a link and even store documents in its database.
You can open and email documents directly from ProjectTrack.
Using ProjectTrack filtering and searching abilities you can find Documents quickly, and even email them directly from the program. You will not need to remember the location of any document because you can keep right with the project.
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What is a Decision?
A decision, also called a minute in some environments, is a resolution a choice or a conclusion normally taken during a meeting. Decisions need to be recorded, along with the circumstances surrounding them.
ProjectTrack allows you to record the decisions taken during meetings.
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What is an Initiative?
An initiative is a very high level project, normally dictated by the highest levels of an organization, that focuses the project in some way or to which a project plays a role in the whole.
Initiatives are groups of Programs, the same way that Programs are groups of Projects which in some way connect with one another or serve a larger purpose.
This can be used by organizations wanting to organize their Projects in a portfolio.
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What is an Issue?
An Issue is a problem (or opportunity?) that needs to be resolved. Anything that may affect the normal outcome of your Project is an Issue.
Every Project has Issues of one type or another.
You want to track Issues to ensure you have a record of them and to track them until they are resolved. Recording Issues and how they are resolved provides an excellent record. It is important to communicate defined issues and their resolution.
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What is the Journal?
The project Journal helps keeps a record of the events in your Project.
There are events in a Project that cannot be considered a Task, or an Issue, or a Change, or anything else and that you want to keep track of for future reference.
A phone conversation, an idea, a conversation in the hallway; if they are related to the project you may want to keep them in the Journal.
The Journal will help you remember who said what and when.
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What is a Meeting?
Meetings, when they are well done, allow teams to reflect on the progress of a project and take action to keep the project on track.
With ProjectTrack, you can keep a record of your meetings and everything that happened during them, including new Action Items, Issues, risks, decisions, etc.
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What is a Milestone?
Milestones are important dates in a Project when certain activities need to be completed.
Every Project has Milestones. You can think of them as due dates for an important delivery in your Project. If your Project is divided in phases, the end of each phase is a Milestone.
You decide what Milestones your Project will have. They need only be meaningful to you, your team and your customer.
In general, a group of completed Tasks marks a Milestone or, in other words, the Milestone is completed when all the associated Tasks have been completed.
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What is a Program?
Programs are groups of projects related to each other in some way. If you need to organize your information by Program, you can do it at the Company level.
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What is a Risk?
A risk is an issue waiting to happen. It is something bad that has not happened yet to your project and that if you are not careful will hit you.
Every project has risks and as a project manager you need to manage those risks, minimize their likelihood and if they happen, you need to have a plan, so your project can move ahead.
Risk management is a tough job and the sooner you start managing your project's risks the better. Just keeping track of them and creating a contingency plan can make a world of difference.
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What is a Resource?
Resources are people. They can also be called contacts.
Resources can be assigned to Action Items, Projects, etc. They might be someone on your team or someone related to the project that works for the same company or that for whom you are doing the project.
When you create a New Person, you can choose if you want to associate him/her to a Company or not.
Click on the Resources tab to see the People assigned to this Company.
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What is a Team?
A team is made up of the people most intimately associated with a project. They are the people on whom a manager depends to make the project a success. This does not imply that they are the only people who have something to do with the project; those people would be considered Resources. Your team is made up of your key people.
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FAQ - Project Management Definitions 