AXELOS MSP® - Managing Successful Programmes

accountable : Personally answerable for an activity. Accountability cannot be delegated, unlike responsibility.
aggregated risk : The overall level of risk to the programme when all the risks are viewed as a totality rather than individually. This could include the outputs of particular scenarios or risk combinations.
as-is state : The current operating structure and performance of the parts of the business which will be impacted by a programme.
assumption : A statement that is taken as being true for the purposes of planning, but which could change later. An assumption is made where some facts are not yet known. There is a risk that assumptions are not correct.
assurance : All the systematic actions necessary to provide confidence that the target (system, process, organization, programme, project, outcome, benefit, capability, product output, deliverable) is appropriate. Appropriateness might be defined subjectively or objectively in different circumstances. The implication is that assurance will have a level of independence from that which is being assured.
baseline : A reference level against which an entity is monitored and controlled.
benefit : The measurable improvement resulting from an outcome perceived as an advantage by one or more stakeholders, and which contributes towards one or more organizational objective(s).
benefits management : The identification, definition, tracking, realization and optimization of benefits within and beyond a programme.
benefits register : Summary document that contains key information from the benefit profiles.
best practice : A defined and proven method of managing events effectively.
border : The time-bound limitations of a tranche, i.e. when end-of-tranche reviews are held and the programme receives endorsement to move into the next tranche.
boundary : The scope of what a programme will cover; the extent of its influence and authority.
business as usual (BAU) : The way the business normally achieves its objectives.
business case management : The manner in which a programme's rationale, objectives, benefits and risks are balanced against the financial investment, and how this balance is maintained, adjusted and assessed during the programme.
business change authority : An individual who represents a group of business change managers, similar to a senior BCM or business change sponsor.
business change manager (BCM) : The role responsible for benefits management, from identification through to realization, and for ensuring that the implementation and embedding of the new capabilities are delivered by the projects. Typically allocated to more than one individual and also known as 'change agent'.
business change team : A group of specialists appointed to support a business change manager in the business change management aspects of benefits realization.
capability : The completed set of project outputs required to deliver an outcome; this exists prior to transition. It is a service, function or operation that enables the organization to exploit opportunities.
change manager : Reports to the business change manager (BCM) and may operate at a project level to support benefits realization, namely focus on the realization of a particular benefit.
configuration : A generic term used to describe a group of products or items that work together to deliver a product or service, or a recognizable part of a product or service. A configuration may be configuration item of a larger configuration.
configuration item : An asset that is subject to configuration management. The asset may be a component of a product, a product, or a set of products in a release.
configuration management : Technical and administrative activities concerned with the creation, maintenance and controlled change of configuration throughout the life of a product.
consult : To give groups or individuals the opportunity to contribute to and make recommendations on an action or document.
corporate governance : The ongoing activity of maintaining a sound system of internal control by which the directors and officers of an organization ensure that effective management systems, including financial monitoring and control systems, have been put in place to protect assets, earning capacity and the reputation of the organization.
corporate portfolio : The totality of the change initiatives within an organization; it may comprise a number of programmes, standalone projects and other initiatives that achieve congruence of change.
corporate portfolio board : One name for the body within the organization that has authority to make decisions about the composition and prioritization of the organization's portfolio of programmes and projects. This may be the corporate board, and in MoP (Management of Portfolios) it is also referred to as the 'portfolio direction group' or 'investment committee'.
cross-organizational programme : A programme requiring the committed involvement of more than one organization to achieve the desired outcomes; also referred to as a 'cross-cutting' programme.
dependency : An activity, output or decision that is required to achieve some aspect of the programme. It can be internal or external to the programme.
dis-benefit : A measurable decline resulting from an outcome perceived as negative by one or more stakeholders, which reduces one of more organizational objective(s).
emergent programme : A programme that subsumes one or more pre-existing projects into a coherent alignment with corporate policy and strategy.
end goal : The ultimate objective of a programme - the same as the 'to-be state' or 'future state'.
feedback log : A document that is used to capture, track and ensure that all stakeholder feedback is dealt with.
gated review : A structured review of a project, programme or portfolio as part of formal governance arrangements carried out at key decision points in the lifecycle to ensure that the decision to invest as per the agreed business case remains valid.
governance : The functions, responsibilities, processes and procedures that define how a programme is set up, managed and controlled.
inform : In the context of a RACI table, to advise a group or individual of a change or a decision. In MSP, this is typically used in the context of something that affects activities or document creation.
issue : A relevant event that has happened, was not planned and requires management action. It could be a problem, query, concern, change request or risk that has occurred.
key performance indicator (KPI) : A metric (either financial or non-financial) that is used to set and measure progress towards an organizational objective.
leadership : The ability to direct, influence and motivate others towards a better outcome.
margin : The flexibility that a programme has for achieving its blueprint, benefits and business case.
opportunity : An uncertain event that could have a favourable impact on objectives or benefits.
outcome : The result of change, normally affecting real-world behaviour or circumstances. Outcomes are desired when a change is conceived. Outcomes are achieved as a result of the activities undertaken to effect the change; they are the manifestation of part or all of the new state conceived in the blueprint.
output : The tangible or intangible artefact produced, constructed or created as a result of a planned activity.
P3M3 : The Portfolio, Programme and Project Management Maturity Model that provides a framework with which organizations can assess their current performance and put in place improvement plans.
plan : A detailed proposal for doing or achieving something, detailing the what, when, how and by whom.
policy : A course of action (or principle) adopted by an organization; a business statement of intent, setting the tone for an organization's culture.
portfolio : The totality of an organization's investment (or segment thereof) in the changes required to achieve its strategic objectives.
product : An input or output, whether tangible or intangible, that can be described in advance, created and tested; also known as an output or deliverable.
programme : A temporary flexible organization structure created to coordinate, direct and oversee the implementation of a set of related projects and activities in order to deliver outcomes and benefits related to an organization's strategic objectives. A programme is likely to have a life that spans several years.
programme assurance : Independent assessment and confirmation that the programme as a whole or any one of its aspects is on track, that it is applying relevant practices and procedures, and that the projects, activities and business rationale remain aligned to the programme's objectives. See also gated review.
programme board : A group that is established to support an SRO in delivering a programme.
programme management : The coordinated organization, direction and implementation of a dossier of projects and transformation activities (i.e. the programme) to achieve outcomes and realize benefits of strategic importance.
programme manager : The role responsible for the set-up, management and delivery of a programme; typically allocated to a single individual.
programme office : The function providing the information hub and standards custodian for a programme and its delivery objectives; it could provide support for more than one programme.
programme organization : How a programme will be managed throughout its lifecycle, the roles and responsibilities of individuals involved in the programme, and personnel management or human resources arrangements. Also known as programme organization structure.
project : A temporary organization that is created for the purpose of delivering one or more business outputs according to a specified business case.
project register : An alternative term for 'projects dossier' (see Appendix A) - the document that records the list of projects.
proximity : (Of risk) the time factor and how close an event is; i.e. risks will occur at particular times, and the severity of their impact will vary depending on when they occur.
quality : The degree to which the features and inherent or assigned characteristics of a product, person, process, service and/or system bear on its ability to show that it meets expectations or stated needs, requirements or specification.
quality assurance : The planned systematic process that will be used to provide confidence that outputs will match their defined quality criteria.
quality control : The process of monitoring specific results to determine whether they comply with the relevant standards, and of identifying ways to eliminate causes of unsatisfactory performance.
quality management system : The complete set of quality standards, procedures and responsibilities for a site or organization.
register : A formal repository that is managed and requires agreement by the board on its format, composition and use.
responsible : Used to describe the individual who has the authority and is expected to deliver a task or activity; responsibility can be delegated.
risk : An uncertain event or set of events that, should it occur, will have an effect on the achievement of objectives. A risk is measured by a combination of the probability of a perceived threat or opportunity occurring and the magnitude of its impact on objectives.
risk appetite : The amount of risk the organization, or subset of it, is willing to accept.
risk assessment : The identification and evaluation of risks.
risk estimation : The estimation of probability and impact of an individual risk, taking into account predetermined standards, target risk levels, interdependencies and other relevant factors.
risk evaluation : The process of understanding the net effect of identified threats and opportunities on an activity when aggregated together.
risk identification : The determination of what could pose a risk; a process to describe and list sources of risk (threats and opportunities).
risk management : The systematic application of principles, approaches and processes to the tasks of identifying and assessing risks, and then planning and implementing risk responses.
senior responsible owner (SRO) : The single individual with overall responsibility for ensuring that a project or programme meets its objectives and delivers the projected benefits.
sponsor : The main driving force behind a programme or project. Some organizations use the term sponsor instead of SRO.
sponsoring group : The driving force behind a programme, which provides the investment decision and top-level endorsement for the rationale and objectives of the programme.
stakeholder : Any individual, group or organization that can affect, be affected by, or perceives itself to be affected by, a programme.
stakeholder map : A diagrammatic representation of the stakeholders relevant to an organizational activity and their respective interests.
stakeholder register : A document that contains a summary of the information in the stakeholder profiles.
strategy : An approach or line to take, designed to achieve a long-term aim. Strategies can exist at different levels in an organization - in MSP there are corporate strategies for achieving objectives that will give rise to programmes. Programmes then develop strategies aligned with these corporate objectives against particular delivery areas.
threat : An uncertain event that could have a negative impact on objectives or benefits.
to-be state : The future planned state of an organization as described by the blueprint.
tranche : A programme management term describing a group of projects structured around distinct step changes in capability and benefit delivery.
transformation : A distinct change to the way an organization conducts all or part of its business.
transition plan : The schedule of activities to cover the 'transition' phase of the benefits realization plan.
vision : A picture of a better future that will be delivered by the programme.
workstream : The logical grouping of projects and activities that together enable effective management. Workstreams may delineate projects against a variety of criteria.