A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge Fourth Edition

Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK)
Introduction a Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK® Guide) is a recognized standard for the project management profession. A standard is a formal document that describes established norms, methods, processes, and practices. As with other professions such as law, medicine, and accounting, the knowledge contained in this standard evolved from the recognized good practices of project management practitioners who contributed to the development of this standard. The first two chapters of the PMBOK® Guide provide an introduction to key concepts in the project management field. Chapter 3 is the standard for project management. As such, it summarizes the processes, inputs, and outputs that are considered good practices on most projects most of the time. Chapters 4 through 12 are the guide to the project management body of knowledge. They expand on the information in the standard by describing the inputs and outputs as well as tools and techniques used in managing projects. The PMBOK® Guide provides guidelines for managing individual projects. It defines project management and related concepts and describes the project management life cycle and the related processes.