Project Management Terminology - R

RECURRING COSTS   Expenditures against specific tasks that would occur on a repetitive basis. Examples are hire of computer equipment, tool maintenance, etc. 

RELATIONSHIP   A logical connection between two activities. 

REMAINING DURATION   Time needed to complete the remainder of an activity or project. 

REQUEST FOR CHANGE   A proposal by the project manager for a change to the project as a result of a project issue report. 

REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL   A bid document used to request proposals from prospective sellers of products or services. 

REQUEST FOR QUOTATION   Equivalent to a Request for Proposal but with more specific application areas. 

REQUIREMENTS   A negotiated set of measurable customer wants and needs. 

REQUIREMENTS DEFINITION   Statement of the needs that project has to satisfy. 

RESOURCE   Any variable that is required for the completion of an activity and may constrain the project. 

Note1: A resource may be non-storable so that its availability has to be renewed for each time period (even if it was not utilized in previous time periods) 

Note2: A resource may be storable so that it remains available unless depleted by usage. 

Such a resource may also be replenished by activities producing credited and storable resource. 

(Resources can be people, equipment, facilities, funding or anything else needed to perform the work of a project) 

RESOURCE AGGREGATION   Summation of the requirements for each resource, and for each time period. 

Note: Where the earliest start time of an activity is used alone, it is often termed an 'early start' aggregation. Similarly a 'late start' aggregation uses the latest start times. 

RESOURCE ALLOCATION   Scheduling of activities and the resources required by those activities, so that predetermined constraints of resource availability and/or project time are not exceeded. 

RESOURCE ANALYSIS   The process of analysis and optimizing the use of resources on a project. Often uses resource leveling and resource smoothing techniques. 

RESOURCE ASSIGNMENT   The work on an activity related to a specific resource. 

RESOURCE AVAILABILITY   The level of availability of a resource, which may vary over time. 

RESOURCE BREAKDOWN STRUCTURE   A hierarchical structure of resources that enables scheduling at the detailed requirements level, and roll up of both requirements and availabilities to a higher level, and roll up of both requirements and availabilities to a higher level. 

RESOURCE CALENDAR   A calendar that defines the working and non-working patterns for specific resources. 

RESOURCE CONSTRAINT   Limitation due to the availability of a resource. 

RESOURCE CUMULATION   Process of accumulating the requirements for each resource to give the total required to date at all times throughout the project. 

RESOURCE DRIVEN TASK DURATIONS   Task durations that are driven by the need for scarce resources. 

RESOURCE HISTOGRAM   A view of project data in which resource requirements, usage, and availability are shown using vertical bars against a horizontal time scale. 

RESOURCE LEVEL   A specified level of resource units required by an activity per time unit. 

RESOURCE OPTIMISATION   A term for resource leveling and resource smoothing. 

RESOURCE PLAN   Part of the definition statement stating how the programme will be resource loaded and what supporting services, infrastructure and third party services are required. 

RESOURCE PLAN   Part of the definition statement starting how the programme will be resource loaded and what supporting services, infrastructure and third party services are required. 

RESOURCE PLANNING   Evaluating what resources are needed to complete a project and determining the quantity needed. 

RESOURCE REQUIREMENT   The requirement for a particular resource by a particular activity. 

RESOURCE SCHEDULING   The process of determining dates on which activities should be performed in order to smooth the demand for resources, or to avoid exceeding stated constraints on these restraints. 

RESOURCE SMOOTHING   Scheduling of activities, within the limits of their float, so that fluctuations in individual resource requirements are minimised. (In smoothing, as opposed to resource leveling, the project completion date may not be delayed. 

RESPONSIBILITY MATRIX   A document correlating the work required by a Work Breakdown Structure element to the functional organizations responsible for the accomplishing the assigned tasks. 

RETENTION   A part of payment withheld until the project is completed in order to ensure satisfactory performance or completion of contract terms. 

REVENUE COST   Expenditure charged to the profit and loss account as incurred or accrued due. 

RISK   Combination of the probability or frequency of occurrence of a defined threat or opportunity and the magnitude of the consequences of the occurrence. 

Note: Combination of the likelihood of occurrence of a specified event and its consequences.

(Potential occurrences or threats that would jeopardize the success of a project. The probability of an undesirable outcome.) 

RISK ANALYSIS   Systematic use of available information to determine how often specified events may occur and the magnitude of their likely consequences.

(A technique designed to quantify the impact of uncertainty) 

RISK ASSESSMENT   The process of identifying potential risks, quantifying their likelihood of occurrence and assessing their likely impact on the project. 

RISK AVOIDANCE   Planning activities to avoid risks that have been identified. 

RISK EVALUATION   Process used to determine risk management priorities. 

RISK EVENT   A discrete occurrence that effects a project. 

RISK IDENTIFICATION   Process of determining what could pose a risk. 

RISK MANAGEMENT   Systematic application of policies, procedures, methods and practices to the tasks of identifying, analyzing, evaluating, treating and monitoring risk. 

RISK MANAGEMENT PLAN   A document defining how Project Risk Analysis and Management is to be implemented in the context of a particular project and with impact and likelihood in columns. 

RISK PRIORITISING   Ordering of risks according first to their risk value, and then by which risks need to be considered for risk reduction, risk avoidance, and risk transfer. 

RISK QUANTIFICATION   Process of applying values to the various aspects of a risk.(Evaluating the probability of risk event effect and occurrence) 

RISK RANKING   Allocating a classification to the impact and likelihood of a risk. 

RISK REDUCTION   Action taken to reduce the likelihood and impact of a risk. 

RISK REGISTER   Formal record of identified risks. (A body of information listing all the risks identified for the project, explaining the nature of each risk and recording information relevant to its assessment and management.) 

RISK RESPONSE   Contingency plans to manage a risk should it materialize.(Action to reduce the probability of the risk arising, or to reduce the significance of its detrimental impact if it does arise) 

RISK SHARING   Diminution of a risk by sharing it with others, usually for some consideration. 

RISK TRANSFER   A contractual arrangement between two parties for delivery and acceptance of a product where the liability for the costs of a risk is transferred from one party to the other. 

RISK TREATMENT   Selection and implementation of appropriate options for dealing with risk.