Portfolio Planning
Help Center: Glossary
| Term | Kiplot Defintion |
|---|---|
| Actual | The expenses incurred during the execution of the initiative based on spend. |
| Available Capacity | The remaining effort of a team or individual within a period, excluding reserved capacity and capacity allocated to scheduled work. |
| Budget | The predefined allocation of money set aside for the initiative, representing the maximum amount of money available to spend. |
| Business Unit | Business Units serve as operational segments within the organizational structure, each with distinct focuses and objectives. Initiatives, outcomes, and teams can be assigned to these segments, which can be visually displayed as swim lanes on the Initiative Roadmap. |
| Custom Fields | A field that users can create. This allows users to define specific data points with tailored field types, enhancing flexibility without altering Kiplot's core functionality. |
| Delivery Status | Delivery Status is a metric for an outcome, indicating whether the task is in the "To Do," "In Progress," or "Done" stage. This is set by the user. |
| Department | A way to group teams into broader divisions. For example, Team A and Team B belong to the Finance Department. This grouping can be applied as a filter in the Outcome Planner. |
| Dependency | Dependencies can be established between outcomes or initiatives, representing the relationship and direction between these entities (blocked/blocked by). The dependency type can also be defined, including “finish to start”, “start to start”, “start to finish”, or “finish to finish”. |
| Dependency Risk | A view of the risk of a dependency in the given prioritisation and scheduling None = The dependency is planned to start in a period after the predecessor outcome (same or different team) Low = The dependency is planned to start in the same period as the predecessor outcome (in the same team) Medium = The dependency is planned to start in the same period as the predecessor outcome (in a different team) High = The dependency is planned to start in a period before the predecessor outcome is scheduled to be completed (same or different team) |
| Effort | The numeric measure of capacity required to complete an outcome, assigned to a specific team. |
| Estimate | A proposed commitment of effort by one or more skills within a team to accomplish an outcome, which collectively forms the overall estimate. |
| Field Types | The category that data fields can be configured as. These fields define the type of data that can be stored against a field. Kiplot has the following field types: 1. Text: Stores alphanumeric characters 2. Long Text: Accommodates larger amounts of text and formatting 3. Date: Captures date values 4. List: Presents predefined options for selection as single-select or multi-select (checklist/tags) 5. Account: Links to specific user accounts within Kiplot 6. Number: Stores numerical values |
| Field Mapping | Field mapping, essential in integration setup, aligns data fields (system, optional or custom) between the integrated systems to ensure precise data transfer, with consideration for field types during configuration. |
| Forecast | A projection or estimate of the anticipated expenses or costs related to an initiative. |
| Impact | The consequences or severity of a risk event if it were to occur, or of an issue that has occurred. |
| Initiative | A significant undertaking aimed at achieving the business objectives. These initiatives are expansive in scope and often require collaboration among multiple ARTs working together to deliver value. Usually 6-18 periods long. |
| Initiative Effective Start Period | The earliest start period for the planned outcomes associated with the initiative. Visualized as a dotted line encircling the initiative on the initiative roadmap, this precedes the scheduled start period. |
| Initiative Effective End Period | The latest end period for the planned outcomes associated with the initiative. Visualized as a dotted line encircling the initiative on the initiative roadmap, this supersedes the scheduled finish period. |
| Integration | An integration establishes bidirectional connectivity with external systems (e.g. Jira), facilitating seamless and real-time data exchange that can be configured for read, write, or bidirectional access. Setup requires the relevant credentials from the external system to establish connectivity. |
| Issue | An adverse effect to the initiative that has materialized. An issue is a risk with a 100% probability, and a defined impact. |
| Key Result | A measurable outcome that describes the desired impact, within a given timeframe, to an objective. |
| Measure | A specific quantifiable metric used to track progress towards achieving a key result. Measures are value driven and indicate whether the key result is being successfully accomplished (actuals). |
| Objective | A clear statement of the outcomes that the organization aims to achieve. It is recommended to follow the SMART format when setting objectives. |
| Objective Group | A way of grouping the objective, to provide the strategic focus for the business. These themes ultimately provide the prioritization of the portfolio, ensuring that initiatives are directed toward key, long-term goals. |
| Outcome | A smaller package of work, delivering business value and contributing to the initiative. Outcomes address specific functionality or user stories, have estimates against them and are delivered by a single team. Usually 1-2 periods long. Outcomes can be Planned, Unplanned, or Scheduled. Planned Outcome = The Outcome has both a team and a date (start, end or both) assigned Unplanned Outcome = The Outcome may have a team assigned but has no date (start or end) assigned Scheduled Outcome = An outcome that has a date (start, end, or both) assigned but does not have an assigned team |
| Outcome Effort Risk | A metric that is used to categorize the level of risk associated with successfully completing an outcome within the period, determined by the consumption of capacity. |
| People | A list of people or Kiplot users that can be associated with skills. |
| Period | A length of time defined by the customer (Eg. 31 days, 8 weeks). This framework is used to plan Initiatives and Outcomes in the roadmap. |
| Plan | A saved forecast representing a point in time. |
| Probability | The likelihood or chance that a specific risk event will occur. |
| RAG Status | "RAG" stands for Red, Amber and Green, with each color serving as a visual indicator for the status of an initiative or outcome. This is set by the user. |
| Reserved Capacity Percent | A set percentage of a team's total capacity, reserved for specific tasks or commitments, ensuring resources are available for planned work while allowing flexibility. For example, if a team has 100 units of capacity and reserves 20%, 20 units are dedicated, leaving 80 units for other tasks. |
| Risk | An adverse effect to the initiative that might materialize in the future. A risk has a probability and impact. |
| Skill | A specific expertise possessed by individual team members. Capacity allocation can occur at both the team and individual skill level. |
| Sub Business Unit | Sub Business Units operate within the framework of the overarching business unit and contribute to the overall objectives of the larger business unit while maintaining a more targeted or specialized role within the organization. |
| System Field | A preset field that is managed by the application. These fields can store operational information (e.g. delivery status) or metadata (e.g. timestamps) against an outcome, initiative or Team. |
| System Optional Field | A preset field (see System Field) that can be optionally utilized (enabled/disabled) to cater for specific additional requirements that users may have. |
| Total Capacity | The available effort of a team or individual that can be allocated to work within a specified period. |
| Team | A group of individuals working together towards a common goal or objective. These teams are organized to deliver specific outcomes within the framework and are expected to consume capacity while doing so. |
| Value Forecast | Associating an initiative or outcome with an OKR, depicting the anticipated achievement of that OKR. |
| Value Plan | Input manually into Kiplot to outline the intended values for achieving an OKR. |
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