The entire project-management knowledge ecosystem on 22 A3-landscape posters, in one file. Each poster shares the same anatomy — Purpose → Visual Map → Key Concepts → Relationships → Exam Concepts → Executive View → Industry Example → Memory Hooks → 60-second Daily Review — and a colour spine coded by domain so the printed wall is navigable at a glance. All content is original instructional design in standard PMI terminology.
Colour code: ■ Master/Strategy ■ PMBOK 7 / Project ■ Business Analysis / Value ■ Risk ■ EVM / Formulas ■ Program ■ Portfolio ■ OPM
SECTIONS 1–3
SECTIONS 4–6
SECTIONS 7–10
Print all, hang in spine-colour order, and drill Poster 22 daily.
Sentence mnemonic (in order 1–12):
Stewards Tend Stakeholders' Value · Systems Lead Tailored Quality · Complexity, Risk, Adaptability, Change
| Domain | Intent | Target outcomes | Measures / indicators | Watch-out |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 · Stakeholders | Build productive relationships & the right level of engagement. | Stakeholders aware, engaged & supportive; conflicts surfaced & managed. | Engagement level (unaware→leading); satisfaction; open issues. | A hidden or under-engaged stakeholder. |
| 2 · Team | Grow a high-performing, shared-ownership team & distributed leadership. | Trust, safety, shared ownership, capability growth. | Stable velocity; retention; morale / safety pulse. | Hero culture & burnout. |
| 3 · Development Approach & Life Cycle | Choose predictive / iterative / incremental / adaptive / hybrid & a fitting life cycle & cadence. | Approach matches the deliverable & context; delivery cadence set. | Fit-for-context check; release cadence. | Forcing one approach onto every deliverable. |
| 4 · Planning | Organise & coordinate the work progressively & proportionately. | Coordinated, "just-enough" plan; estimates that evolve. | Forecast accuracy; plan/baseline stability. | Over-planning & big-bang plans. |
| 5 · Project Work | Run efficient processes — resources, procurement, communications, learning. | Smooth flow; informed stakeholders; capable, supplied team. | Throughput; WIP; lead / cycle time. | Invisible work & bottlenecks. |
| 6 · Delivery | Deliver the scope & quality that achieve the intended outcomes. | Requirements met; acceptance & quality criteria satisfied; value delivered. | Acceptance %; defect/escape rate; scope completion. | Shipping output that produces no outcome. |
| 7 · Measurement cross-cutting | Assess performance vs plan/value & act on it. | Reliable information; timely, evidence-based decisions. | EV · CPI · SPI; leading vs lagging KPIs; dashboards. | Vanity metrics & gamed numbers. |
| 8 · Uncertainty cross-cutting | Navigate risk, ambiguity, complexity & volatility. | Threats reduced; opportunities captured; resilience built. | Risk exposure (EMV); reserve burn; variability. | Ignoring opportunity; false precision. |
Order mnemonic (1–8):
Some Teams Develop Plans, Producing Deliverables Measured (under) Uncertainty
The system is governed as a whole. Feedback loops from operations & customers continually re-shape strategy and the portfolio — value delivery is circular, not a one-way pipeline.
The funnel narrows from a broad starting point to a precise fit, then loops — step 4 feeds learning back into steps 1–3 throughout delivery. You tailor the life cycle, processes, engagement (people), tools, methods & artifacts — but the 12 principles always apply.
| Dimension | Pushes toward Predictive ▸ | ◂ Pushes toward Adaptive |
|---|---|---|
| Requirements | Stable, clear, well understood | Emerging, uncertain, fast-changing |
| Risk & regulation | Safety-critical, heavily regulated | Low regulatory burden |
| Cost of change | Expensive to change late | Cheap & easy to change |
| Delivery cadence | One large, integrated delivery | Frequent small increments |
| Customer involvement | Limited / milestone-based | Continuous & collaborative |
| Size & duration | Large, long, many interfaces | Small-to-medium, shorter |
| Team & culture | Distributed, low agile maturity | Co-located/empowered, agile-fluent |
Stakeholder Engagement and Traceability & Monitoring run continuously across the others; Elicitation ↔ Analysis iterate as a tight loop. The chain is shown left→right but the work is iterative, not strictly sequential.
| Lens | Business Analyst | Project Manager |
|---|---|---|
| Core question | Are we building the right thing? | Are we building the thing right? |
| Owns | Needs, requirements, solution scope, value | Time, cost, resources, delivery, risk |
| Key outputs | Business case, requirements, traceability, evaluation | Charter, plans, baselines, status reports |
| Shared ground | Scope · stakeholders · change control · quality · communication | |
The gap between current and future state defines the solution scope. Options are screened on feasibility — operational, technical, financial, schedule — before one is recommended.
Good requirements are: clear · concise · complete · consistent · feasible · unambiguous · testable · traceable. Transition requirements are temporary — they retire once the solution is live.
| Business need / objective | Stakeholder req. | Solution req. | Design / build | Test case | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cut line defects 50% | Operator alert on fault | FR-12 fault alarm <2s | PLC module M4 | TC-12 | Verified |
| Cut line defects 50% | Trace each reject | FR-15 log reject + cause | MES report R7 | TC-15 | Implemented |
Forward tracing = need → requirement → build → test (coverage). Backward tracing = test/feature → originating need (no orphans, no gold-plating). The RTM is the backbone for impact analysis & scope control.
| Term | Means | Not to be confused with |
|---|---|---|
| Risk | Uncertain — may happen (future) | Issue — has already occurred (now) |
| Threat | Risk with a negative effect | Opportunity — risk with a positive effect |
| Individual risk | One discrete event/condition | Overall risk — aggregate effect of all uncertainty |
| Secondary risk | Created by a response | Residual risk — left after a response |
Identify and Monitor never stop. Quantitative analysis is optional — used on larger/complex efforts to size overall risk and justify reserves; qualitative is the fast triage every time.
| Level | Risk is about… | Primary focus | Horizon | Owner |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Portfolio | Strategic objectives & the balance/mix of components; aggregate exposure vs risk capacity | Doing the right mix | Long / strategic | Portfolio governance |
| Program | Risks between components & their interdependencies; threats to benefits & integration | Coordinated benefits | Medium | Program manager |
| Project | Risks to scope, schedule, cost, quality of a specific deliverable | Reliable delivery | Short / tactical | Project manager |
Escalation & cascade: a project risk beyond the PM's authority escalates up to program or portfolio; strategic decisions and constraints cascade down. Consolidated reporting rolls individual risks into an overall picture at each level.
EMV = Σ (probability × impact); impacts are signed (− threat, + opportunity).
Feed EMVs into a decision tree to choose the option with the best expected value (e.g. build vs buy).
| Prob ↓ / Impact → | Low | Medium | High |
|---|---|---|---|
| High | Medium | High | High |
| Medium | Low | Medium | High |
| Low | Low | Low | Medium |
Score = probability × impact → a priority that drives response order & depth.
EV below PV ⇒ behind schedule; EV below AC ⇒ over budget. The vertical gaps to EV are the variances.
SV = EV − PV
+ ahead · − behind
CV = EV − AC
+ under · − over
SPI = EV ÷ PV
>1 ahead · <1 behind
CPI = EV ÷ AC
>1 under · <1 over
| Item | Value |
|---|---|
| BAC | $100k |
| PV (planned 50%) | $50k |
| EV (40% complete) | $40k |
| AC (spent) | $45k |
| SV = 40−50 | −$10k behind |
| CV = 40−45 | −$5k over |
| SPI = 40/50 | 0.80 |
| CPI = 40/45 | 0.89 |
| Assumption about the remaining work | EAC formula | Reading |
|---|---|---|
| Current variance was a one-off / atypical | EAC = AC + (BAC − EV) | finish the rest at the budgeted rate |
| Current cost efficiency continues (the default) | EAC = BAC ÷ CPI | today's CPI holds to the end |
| Both cost & schedule pressure continue | EAC = AC + (BAC − EV) ÷ (CPI × SPI) | schedule drag worsens cost |
| Original estimate is no longer valid | EAC = AC + bottom-up ETC | re-estimate the remainder |
ETC = EAC − AC
what's left to spend
VAC = BAC − EAC
+ under · − over at end
TCPI = (BAC − EV) ÷ (BAC − AC)
to still hit BAC
TCPI = (BAC − EV) ÷ (EAC − AC)
to hit the new EAC
| From Poster 14 | Value |
|---|---|
| BAC / EV / AC | 100 / 40 / 45 |
| CPI / SPI | 0.89 / 0.80 |
| EAC = BAC/CPI | $112.5k |
| ETC = EAC−AC | $67.5k |
| VAC = BAC−EAC | −$12.5k |
| EAC (cost×sched) | ≈ $129k |
| TCPI→BAC | 1.09 |
| Lens | Manages… | Delivers | Question |
|---|---|---|---|
| Project | a defined scope | an output / deliverable | build it right |
| Program | related components & their interdependencies | benefits & capabilities | realise the benefit |
| Portfolio | all work, related or not | strategic alignment | the right mix |
Why a program (not just projects)? synergy · manage interdependencies · optimise shared resources · deliver outcomes too big for one project.
Components produce outputs → integrated into capabilities → used to create outcomes → realised as benefits. Projects stop at outputs; programs push through to benefits.
The benefits realisation plan & benefits register are the living artifacts. Each benefit has an owner and leading/lagging measures. Sustainment is the giveaway that programs care about value beyond the program's own life.
The five domains run concurrently throughout; the phases are the timeline; governance gates sit between phases and at component boundaries.
The portfolio is the organisation's whole investment basket — and it is ongoing, not temporary.
| Lens | Program | Portfolio |
|---|---|---|
| Grouped by | Relatedness & synergy | Strategic alignment |
| Components | Must be related | May be unrelated |
| Goal | Coordinated benefits | Optimal value & balance |
| Duration | Temporary (has an end) | Ongoing |
| Question | Realise the benefit | The right mix |
The portfolio is the bridge between strategy and delivery: it converts intent into a funded, balanced plan, then feeds performance back to continuously realign as strategy shifts. Artifacts: portfolio strategic plan, charter & roadmap.
Categorisation enables apples-to-apples comparison; evaluation uses weighted scoring against strategic criteria; balancing optimises the whole mix — not each component in isolation. The loop never closes.
OPM is the layer that makes good delivery systematic rather than heroic. Organisational enablers — a PMO, consistent & tailored methodology, governance, capability development, knowledge management — are what turn one good project into a repeatable capability.
Maturity = the ability to deliver consistently & predictably. The improvement cycle repeats:
Progression of practice: Standardise → Measure → Control → Continuously Improve (SMCI), built from best practices → capabilities → outcomes → KPIs.
SV = EV − PV
+ ahead · − behind
CV = EV − AC
+ under · − over
SPI = EV ÷ PV
>1 ahead
CPI = EV ÷ AC
>1 under budget
CV% = CV ÷ EV
SV% = SV ÷ PV
EAC = BAC ÷ CPI
current trend (default)
EAC = AC + (BAC − EV)
variance was one-off
EAC = AC + (BAC−EV) ÷ (CPI×SPI)
cost & schedule
EAC = AC + bottom-up ETC
re-estimate
ETC = EAC − AC
VAC = BAC − EAC
TCPI = (BAC−EV) ÷ (BAC−AC)
to hit BAC
TCPI = (BAC−EV) ÷ (EAC−AC)
to hit EAC
PERT (Eₑ) = (O + 4M + P) ÷ 6
beta / weighted
σ = (P − O) ÷ 6
std deviation
Variance = ((P − O) ÷ 6)²
Triangular = (O + M + P) ÷ 3
Ranges: ±1σ ≈ 68% · ±2σ ≈ 95% · ±3σ ≈ 99.7% of outcomes.
Total Float = LS − ES = LF − EF
Free Float = ESₙₑₓₜ − EF − 1
Forward: EF = ES + Dur − 1
Backward: LS = LF − Dur + 1
Critical path = longest path = zero total float. (Drop the −1 / +1 if you count from day 0.)
Channels = n(n − 1) ÷ 2
EMV = Σ (Probability × Impact)
− threat · + opportunity
PTA = ((Ceiling − Target Price) ÷ buyer share) + Target Cost
Point of total assumption — above it, the seller bears all extra cost (incentive contracts).
Money & direction flow down ▼; value & information flow up ▲. Risk spans every level; OPM wraps the whole thing; Business Analysis runs across it finding the right problem & proving value.
| Pair | The difference |
|---|---|
| Project / Program / Portfolio | output · related→benefits · aligned→mix |
| Output / Outcome / Benefit / Value | thing made · change · gain · worth |
| Risk vs Issue | future & uncertain · now & certain |
| Threat vs Opportunity | negative risk · positive risk |
| Validation vs Verification | right thing · thing right |
| Contingency vs Mgmt reserve | known, PM · unknown, management |
| Pair | The difference |
|---|---|
| Qualitative vs Quantitative | subjective P×I · numeric model |
| Appetite / Tolerance / Threshold | willing · acceptable variation · trigger |
| Predictive vs Adaptive | stable, plan-driven · uncertain, iterative |
| Leading vs Lagging | predicts · confirms |
| Accuracy vs Precision | close to true · repeatable |
| Roadmap vs Schedule | why-when · what-when |