What is the critical path?

The critical path is the longest chain of dependent tasks in a project. Its total duration sets the shortest possible time the project can finish, and every task on it has zero float — any delay there delays the whole project.

What is earned value management?

Earned value (EV) is the budgeted cost of the work actually completed. Comparing it to planned value (PV) and actual cost (AC) gives the Schedule Performance Index (EV/PV) and Cost Performance Index (EV/AC), so you can see whether a project is ahead or behind on time and money.

How does PRINCE2 differ from PMBOK terminology?

PRINCE2 uses governance-focused terms like business case, stage gate, tolerance and exception report, and a product breakdown structure instead of a WBS. PMBOK leans on process and knowledge-area language. Many concepts overlap but the labels differ.

What is velocity in Agile?

Velocity is the amount of work, usually measured in story points, that a team completes in a sprint. Averaging velocity over several sprints lets the team forecast how much of the backlog it can deliver in future iterations.

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Project Management Term Reference

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One vocabulary across three frameworks

Project management spans several methods — PMBOK, PRINCE2 and Agile — that often describe similar ideas with different words. This reference defines the core terms from each so you can read a plan, a status report or a sprint board and know exactly what is meant. Search by keyword or filter by framework to find the term you need.

How it works

Project terms cluster around three jobs: defining scope, tracking progress and controlling change.

Define scope    → WBS / product breakdown structure, baseline, milestone
Track progress  → critical path, earned value (SPI = EV/PV, CPI = EV/AC), velocity, burndown
Control change  → tolerance, exception report, change request, risk register

Earned value links scope and progress numerically: an SPI below 1 means the project is behind schedule, and a CPI below 1 means it is over budget. PRINCE2 adds governance gates so a project board can stop or redirect work between stages.

Tips and notes

A task on the critical path has zero float — protect those tasks first when resources are tight.
SPI and CPI are ratios: 1.0 is on plan, above is good, below needs a recovery plan. They are most useful tracked as a trend, not a single snapshot.
PRINCE2 tolerance defines how far a stage can drift before it must escalate — set it deliberately so the board isn’t flooded with exception reports.
Agile velocity is a planning aid, not a productivity score; comparing teams by velocity is meaningless because story points are relative to each team.