IT capacity planning glossary
29 terms defined
Last updated :
What does this glossary cover?
This glossary defines in plain language the terms used by CIOs, PMOs, and capacity managers: capacity, workload, allocation, planned vs actual, showback, PPM. Each entry gives a short definition, an explanation, a formula, and a worked example.
A
- Allocation rate
- Allocation rate (planned occupancy) measures the share of a person's capacity already assigned to projects: 100% means all their available time is planned.
- Available capacity
- Available capacity is the time truly usable on projects, after subtracting leave, public holidays, absences, training, and run or support work.
B
- Bench
- The bench is the people or capacity not assigned to a project during a period: available resources that can absorb new demand.
C
- Capacity planning
- IT capacity planning compares the available capacity of teams (in days or FTEs) with the demand from projects and run work, so leaders can anticipate overload and decide what to staff, postpone, or hire for.
- CAPEX / OPEX
- CAPEX (capital expenditure) funds the creation of durable assets, such as a capitalized project; OPEX (operating expenditure) covers ongoing running costs.
- Chargeback
- Chargeback actually bills business units for the IT cost they consume through internal charge entries, unlike showback, which is informational only.
D
- Daily rate (TJM)
- The daily rate (TJM in French) is the average cost or price of one working day for a person or profile, used to value project workload and compare internal staff with contractors.
F
- Focus factor
- The focus factor is the share of working time actually devoted to production after meetings, interruptions, and side tasks. It typically ranges from 60 to 80%.
- FTE (full-time equivalent)
- FTE (full-time equivalent) expresses workload or capacity as a number of full-time people: 1 FTE equals one person working 100% of the period.
O
- Overallocation
- Overallocation occurs when the planned workload of a person or team exceeds their available capacity over a period, meaning an allocation rate above 100%.
P
- PI Planning
- PI Planning is the SAFe planning event where all teams in an agile release train jointly plan objectives and capacity for the next Program Increment (often 8 to 12 weeks).
- Planned vs actual (PvA)
- Planned vs actual (PvA) compares the effort planned in the allocation plan with the effort actually spent according to timesheets, to measure variance and improve forecasts.
- PMO (Project Management Office)
- A PMO (project management office) is the function that standardizes methods, consolidates reporting, and coordinates the portfolio of projects of an organization or IT department.
- Portfolio arbitration
- Portfolio arbitration is the committee decision to start, prioritize, postpone, or stop projects based on their value and the available capacity.
- PPM (Project Portfolio Management)
- PPM (project portfolio management) is the discipline of selecting, prioritizing, and steering all of an organization's projects to maximize value under budget and capacity constraints.
R
- RACI
- RACI is a matrix that states, for each activity, who is Responsible (does the work), Accountable (answers for it and decides), Consulted, and Informed.
- Resource conflict
- A resource conflict occurs when several projects claim the same person, or the same scarce skill, in the same period beyond what they can provide.
- Resource leveling
- Resource leveling shifts or spreads tasks or projects so that workload never exceeds available capacity, even if it extends the schedule.
- Resource planning
- Resource planning assigns named people to projects or tasks on specific dates. It shows who works on what, when, and at what percentage of their time.
- Run vs Build
- Run covers activities that keep services operating (operations, support, maintenance); Build covers those that create or transform (projects, new capabilities).
S
- Showback
- Showback shows business units the cost of the IT resources and services they consume without actually billing them, making IT spend visible and encouraging accountability.
- Skills matrix
- A skills matrix lists each person's skills and proficiency levels so you can assign the right people to the right projects and spot gaps.
- Stage-Gate
- Stage-Gate splits a project's life into phases separated by gates (decision points) where a committee approves continuing, correcting, or stopping, based on defined criteria.
- System of record (SoR)
- A system of record (SoR) is the tool that is authoritative for a given piece of data: other sources take it from there rather than re-entering it.
T
- Timesheet
- A timesheet records the time each person actually spends on projects and activities, by day or week, and submits it for approval.
U
- Utilization rate
- Utilization rate measures the share of capacity actually consumed, based on logged time, on productive (project) or billable activities.
V
- Velocity
- In agile, velocity is the amount of work (in story points) a team completes on average per iteration. It is used to forecast what the team can deliver, not to compare teams.
W
- What-if scenario
- A what-if scenario simulates the effect of a decision (starting a project, moving a deadline, hiring, losing a resource) on capacity and workload without changing the live plan.
- Workload
- Workload is the amount of work (in days, hours, or FTEs) demanded of a person, team, or skill over a given period by projects and run activities.
From definition to practice
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