If we make the assumption that project management practices and methods help people manage software and system projects effectively and efficiently and we must believe this since we re so good at expecting project personnel to employ such practices then it s logical to also assume that project management practices and methods can be used in any endeavor that meets our definition of a project. In fact, people who use the principles and practices defined in PMBOK ^[16] assume this axiom to be true since it is used by managers of many types of projects from building construction to oil exploration to software and systems development.

So the next question is, what do we mean by the term project ? There are many published definitions for a project and you certainly shouldn t reinvent the term. However, a commercial-off-the-shelf (COTS) definition for project may have to be tweaked to meet your organization s needs. (Don t worry, there are no Definition Police running around arresting people for modifying the meanings of words and phrases used in the public domain!)

The two most applicable places to look for a COTS definition for project are the CMMI Glossary and PMBOK. But no matter where you find your definition, you ll find just about everything ever called a project met the following four criteria:

1. It has a start date and an end date.

2. It will deliver something that can be defined, measured, or tested.

3. It will be allocated defined resources.

4. A...