Overview
ISO 21506:2024 - "Project, programme and portfolio management - Vocabulary" is an international standard that defines the authoritative terms and definitions used across project, programme and portfolio management. Applicable to any organization (public or private), any sector and projects of any size, complexity or duration, this first edition replaces ISO/TR 21506:2018 and aligns terminology with related ISO management standards. ISO 21506:2024 is a reference for consistent use of project management vocabulary in documents, guidance, contracts and tools.
Key topics
The standard provides clear definitions for core project, programme and portfolio management concepts, including:
- Scope and applicability: terms for project, programme and portfolio, project lifecycle and project scope.
- Planning and control: baseline, performance measurement baseline, control account, work package, resource loading.
- Cost and schedule metrics: planned value, earned value, earned value management, estimate at completion, budget at completion, cost variance.
- Risk and quality: risk, residual risk, risk assurance, quality assurance, quality control.
- Governance and roles: governance, project governance, portfolio manager, programme manager, project manager.
- Deliverables and benefits: deliverable, output, outcome, benefit, programme benefit.
- Supporting artefacts: business case, change request, issue register, communication plan, management information system.
- Terms for decomposition and structures such as work breakdown structure, product breakdown structure, organizational breakdown structure.
Practical applications
ISO 21506:2024 is primarily a vocabulary resource - it does not prescribe processes but standardizes language that supports:
- Consistent documentation and reporting across projects, programmes and portfolios.
- Clear contract and procurement wording to reduce ambiguity.
- Configuration of project management tools and dashboards (earned value metrics, baselines).
- Training, certification and onboarding materials that rely on common definitions.
- Internal and external audits, governance reviews and performance measurement alignment.
- Development of organizational standards, policies and PMO frameworks.
Who should use it
- Executive sponsors and governing bodies seeking consistent governance terms.
- Project, programme and portfolio managers for uniform communication and reporting.
- Project Management Offices (PMOs) and tool administrators.
- Standards developers, trainers and auditors working in project management.
Related standards
ISO 21506:2024 aligns terminology with other ISO guidance in the 21500-series (for example ISO 21502, ISO 21503, ISO 21504 and ISO 21511), and references ISO 9000 where applicable - useful when integrating vocabulary across quality, programme and portfolio standards.
