Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK)
Project Management Institute (PMI) Professional Development Units (PDU) Category
Structure
A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK
Guide) is a project management guide that provides the fundamentals of project
management as they apply to a wide range of projects, including construction,
software, engineering, automotive, etc. The purpose of the PMBOK is to provide
and promote a common vocabulary within the project management profession for
discussing, writing, and applying project management concepts.
History
 A Guide
to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK® Guide) was first
published by the Project Management Institute (PMI) as a white paper in 1987
in an attempt to document and standardize generally accepted project
management information and practices.
Content
The PMBOK Guide is process-based, meaning it describes
work as being accomplished by processes. This approach is consistent with
other management standards such as ISO 9000 and the Software Engineering
Institute's CMMI. Processes overlap and interact throughout a project or its
various phases. Processes are described in terms of:
- Inputs (documents, plans, designs, etc.)
- Tools and Techniques (mechanisms applied to inputs)
- Outputs (documents, products, etc.)
The Guide recognizes 42 processes that fall into five
basic process groups and nine knowledge areas that are typical of almost all
projects.
The five process groups are:
- Initiating
- Planning
- Executing
- Controlling and Monitoring
- Closing.
The nine knowledge areas are:
- Project Integration Management
- Project Scope Management
- Project Time Management
- Project Cost Management
- Project Quality Management
- Project Human Resource Management
- Project Communications Management
- Project Risk Management
- Project Procurement Management
Each of the nine knowledge areas contains the processes
that need to be accomplished within its discipline in order to achieve an
effective project management program. Each of these processes also falls
into one of the five basic process groups, creating a matrix structure such
that every process can be related to one knowledge area and one process
group.
The PMBOK Guide is meant to offer a general guide to manage
projects. |
