Enterprise resource planning (ERP)

Terms related to business, including definitions about project management and words and phrases about human resources, finance and vertical industries.

3PL (third-party logistics) - A 3PL (third-party logistics) provider offers outsourced logistics services, which encompass anything that involves management of one or more facets of procurement and fulfillment activities.
5 Whys (Five Whys) - Five Whys, sometimes written as '5 Whys,' is a guided team exercise for identifying the root cause of a problem.
70 percent rule for productivity - According to the 70 percent rule, which has its roots in athletics, employees are most productive when a majority of their time is spent working at a less intense pace.
70-20-10 (70-20-10 rule) - 70-20-10 is a formula that describes how someone learns to do their job.
ABC classification - ABC classification is a ranking system for identifying and grouping items in terms of how useful they are for achieving business goals.
account-based marketing (ABM) - Account-based marketing (ABM) is a business-to-business (B2B) strategy that focuses sales and marketing resources on target accounts within a specific market.
accountability - Accountability is an assurance that an individual or an organization is evaluated on its performance or behavior related to something for which it is responsible.
accounts receivable (AR) - Accounts receivable (AR) is an item in the general ledger (GL) that shows money owed to a business by customers who have purchased goods or services on credit.
acronym - An acronym (pronounced AK-ruh-nihm, from Greek acro- in the sense of extreme or tip and onyma or name) is an abbreviation of several words in such a way that the abbreviation itself forms a word.
action plan - An action plan is a document that lists what steps must be taken to achieve a specific goal.
advanced shipping notice (ASN) - An advanced shipping notice (ASN) is a document that provides detailed information about a pending delivery.
Agile project management (APM) - Agile project management (APM) is an iterative approach to planning and guiding project processes.
AIDA marketing model - The AIDA marketing model is a marketing, advertising and sales approach methodology designed to provide insight into the customer's mind and represent the steps needed to cultivate leads and generate sales.
Alphabet, Inc. - Alphabet, Inc.
Amazon Prime - Amazon Prime is a subscription membership to Amazon that offers customers premium services for a yearly or monthly fee.
ANSI/ISA-95 - ANSI/ISA-95, more commonly referred to as ISA-95, is an international standard for enterprise and control systems integration developed for manufacturers.
Apex (Salesforce) - Salesforce Apex is a Microsoft-certified framework for building software as a service (SaaS) apps on top of Salesforce's customer relationship management (CRM) functionality.
application portfolio management (APM) - Application portfolio management (APM) is a framework for managing enterprise IT software applications and software-based services.
Appreciative inquiry (AI) - Appreciative Inquiry (AI) is a change management approach that focuses on identifying what is working well, analyzing why it is working well and then doing more of it.
ASAP, ALAP and ATAP - ASAP, ATAP and ALAP are acronyms that stand for, respectively, as soon as possible, as timely as possible and as late as possible.
asset performance management (APM) - Asset performance management (APM) is both a strategy and a set of software tools for tracking and managing the health of an organization's physical assets.
availability bias - In psychology, the availability bias is the human tendency to rely on information that comes readily to mind when evaluating situations or making decisions.
B2B2C (business-to-business-to-consumer) - B2B2C (business-to-business-to-consumer) adds consumer e-commerce to the B2B (business-to-business) model, allowing a company to market its product or service more effectively by entering a B2B relationship with a company whose expertise is selling online.
BAI2 file format - BAI2 file format is a specialized and standardized set of codes used for cash management and bank reconciliations, and introduced by the Bank Administration Institute (BAI).
bank identifier code (BIC) - A bank identifier code (BIC) is a unique identifier for a specific financial institution.
Bank Secrecy Act (BSA) - The Bank Secrecy Act (BSA), also known as the Currency and Foreign Transactions Reporting Act, is legislation passed by the United States Congress in 1970 that requires U.
barcode (or bar code) - A barcode (sometimes seen as two words, bar code) is the small image of lines (bars) and spaces that is affixed to retail store items, identification cards and postal mail to identify a particular product number, person or location.
benefits administration - Benefits administration is the process of assembling and managing the benefits an organization provides to employees.
best practice - A best practice is a standard or set of guidelines that is known to produce good outcomes if followed.
Betteridge's law (of headlines) - Betteridge's law (of headlines) is an adage that states "Any headline that ends in a question mark can be answered by the word no.
Big 4 - The Big 4 are the four largest international accounting and professional services firms.
bill of materials (BOM) - A bill of materials (BOM) is a comprehensive inventory of the raw materials, assemblies, subassemblies, parts and components, as well as the quantities of each, needed to manufacture a product.
bimodal IT (bimodal information technology) - Bimodal IT is a two-tiered IT operations model that allows for the creation of IT systems and processes that are stable and predictable as well as agile and fast.
Bitcoin Cash (BCH) - Bitcoin Cash (BCH) is an altcoin version of the popular Bitcoin cryptocurrency.
blockchain economy - The blockchain economy is a scenario and potential future environment in which the technology replaces current monetary systems, potentially on a global basis.
book of business - Book of business is another name for an account or client list.
Bootstrap - Bootstrap is a free, open source front-end development framework for the creation of websites and web apps.
brainstorming - Brainstorming is a group problem-solving method that involves the spontaneous contribution of creative ideas and solutions.
brand ambassador - A brand ambassador is an advocate of a particular company's products and services.
brand recognition - Brand recognition is the extent to which a consumer can correctly identify a particular product or service just by viewing the product or service's logo, tag line, packaging or advertising campaign.
broken window theory - Broken window theory is the concept that each problem that goes unattended in a given environment affects people's attitude toward that environment and leads to more problems.
budgeting, planning and forecasting (BP&F) - Budgeting, planning and forecasting (BP&F) is a three-step strategic planning process for determining and detailing an organization's long- and short-term financial goals.
Bullwhip Effect - The bullwhip effect is a supply chain phenomenon describing how small fluctuations in demand at the retail level can cause progressively larger fluctuations in demand at the wholesale, distributor, manufacturer and raw material supplier levels.
business capability - A business capability is the ability of an organization to achieve a specific outcome or objective.
business case - A business case is a formal document or verbal value proposition that outlines the justification for commencing a project or undertaking a specific task.
business continuity management (BCM) - Business continuity management (BCM) is a framework for identifying an organization's risk of exposure to internal and external threats.
business continuity plan audit - A business continuity plan audit is a formalized method for evaluating how business continuity processes are being managed.
business impact analysis (BIA) - A business impact analysis (BIA) is a systematic process to determine and evaluate the potential effects of an interruption to critical business operations as a result of a disaster, accident or emergency.
business innovation - Business innovation is an organization's process for introducing new ideas, workflows, methodologies, services or products.
business integration - Business integration is a strategy whose goal is to synchronize IT and business cultures and objectives and align technology with business strategy and goals.
business metric - A business metric is a quantifiable measure businesses use to track, monitor and assess the success or failure of various business processes.
business plan - A business plan is a document demonstrating the feasibility of a prospective new business and providing a roadmap for its first several years of operation.
business process - A business process is an activity or set of activities that accomplish a specific organizational goal.
business process improvement (BPI) - Business process improvement (BPI) is a practice in which enterprise leaders analyze their business processes to identify areas where they can improve accuracy, effectiveness and efficiency and then make changes within the processes to realize these improvements.
Business Process Management Initiative (BPMI) - Established in August 2000, the Business Process Management Initiative (BPMI) is a nonprofit organization that promotes the standardization of common business processes, as a means of furthering e-business and B2B development.
business process mapping - Business process mapping is the visual display of the steps within a business process showing how it's done from start to finish.
business process modeling - Business process modeling, often called process modeling, is the analytical representation or illustration of an organization's business processes.
Business Process Modeling Language (BPML) - Business Process Modeling Language (BPML) is an XML standard metalanguage used to outline business processes in an easy-to-understand way.
business resilience - Business resilience is the ability an organization has to quickly adapt to disruptions while maintaining continuous business operations and safeguarding people, assets and overall brand equity.
business rules engine (BRE) - A business rules engine (BRE) is a software component that allows non-programmers to add or change business logic in a business process management (BPM) system.
business structure - A business structure is a category of organization that is legally recognized in a given jurisdiction and characterized by the legal definition of that particular category.
business sustainability - Business sustainability, also known as corporate sustainability, is the management of environmental, social and financial concerns by a company to ensure responsible, ethical and ongoing success.
BYOD (bring your own device) - BYOD (bring your own device) is a policy that enables employees in an organization to use their personally owned devices for work-related activities.
C-Level (C-Suite) - C-level, also called the C-suite, is a term used to describe high-ranking executive titles in an organization.
call center agent (call center representative) - A call center agent is a person who handles incoming or outgoing customer calls for a business.
call center schedule adherence - Call center schedule adherence is a standard metric used in business call centers to determine whether call center agents are working the amount of time they are scheduled to work.
candidate experience - Candidate experience reflects a person's feelings about going through a company's job application process.
Capability Maturity Model (CMM) - The Capability Maturity Model (CMM) is a methodology used to develop and refine an organization's software development process.
Capex (capital expenditure) - A capital expenditure (Capex) is money invested by a company to acquire or upgrade fixed, physical, non-consumable assets, such as buildings and equipment or a new business.
catchball - Catchball is an approach to decision-making in an organization or group where ideas are pitched from one individual to another throughout the group’s hierarchy and divisions.
CEO (Chief Executive Officer) - The chief executive officer (CEO) is the top position in an organization and responsible for implementing existing plans and policies, improving the company's financial strength, supporting ongoing digital business transformation and setting future strategy.
CFO (Chief Financial Officer) - CFO (Chief Financial Officer) is the corporate title for the person responsible for managing the company's financial operations and strategy.
change agent (agent of change) - A change agent, or agent of change, is someone who promotes and enables change to happen within any group or organization.
change control - Change control is a systematic approach to managing all changes made to a product or system.
change management - Change management is a systematic approach to dealing with the transition or transformation of an organization's goals, processes or technologies.
channel conflict - Channel conflict is a situation in which channel partners have to compete against one another or a vendor's internal sales department.
channel partner - A channel partner is a person or organization that provides services or sells products on behalf of a software, hardware, networking or cloud services vendor.
channel partner portal - A channel partner portal is a web-based application that provides a vendor's established partners (usually distributors, resellers, service providers or other strategic partners) with access to deal registration, marketing resources, pricing and sales information for products and services, as well as technical details and support that are unavailable to other end users.
chart of accounts (COA) - A chart of accounts (COA) is a financial, organizational tool that provides an index of every account in an accounting system.
chief customer officer (CCO) - A chief customer officer, or customer experience officer, is responsible for customer research, communicating with company employees and taking charge of customer experience (CX) metrics.
chief data officer (CDO) - A chief data officer (CDO) in many organizations is a C-level executive whose position has evolved into a range of strategic data management responsibilities related to the business to derive maximum value from the data available to the enterprise.
chief experience officer (CXO) - A chief experience officer (CXO) is an executive in the C-suite who ensures positive interactions with an organization's customers.
chief human resources officer (CHRO) - Chief human resources officer (CHRO) is a top-level management executive in charge of an organization's employees.
chief operating officer (COO) - A chief operating officer (COO) is the corporate executive who oversees ongoing business operations within the company.
chief procurement officer (CPO) - The chief procurement officer, or CPO, leads an organization's procurement department and oversees the acquisitions of goods and services made by the organization.
chief risk officer (CRO) - The chief risk officer (CRO) is the corporate executive tasked with assessing and mitigating significant competitive, regulatory and technological threats to an enterprise's capital and earnings.
Chief Strategy Officer (CSO) - A chief strategy officer (CSO), or chief strategist, is an executive charged with helping formulate, facilitate and communicate the overarching strategy of an organization, usually a large corporation.
Chief Technology Officer (CTO) - The chief technology officer (CTO) is the individual within an organization who oversees the current technology and creates relevant policy.
chief trust officer - A chief trust officer in the IT industry is an executive job title given to the person responsible for building confidence around the use of customer information.
CIO (Chief Information Officer) - A chief information officer (CIO) is the corporate executive in charge of information technology (IT) strategy and implementation.
circular economy - A circular economy is a model of production and consumption, where items and products are reused whenever possible rather than discarded.
CKO (chief knowledge officer) - Chief knowledge officer (CKO) is a corporate title for the person responsible overseeing knowledge management within an organization.
clean desk policy (CDP) - A clean desk policy (CDP) is a corporate directive that specifies how employees should leave their working space when they leave the office.
closed loop control system - A closed loop control system is a mechanical or electronic device that automatically regulates a system to maintain a desired state or set point without human interaction.
cloud computing - Cloud computing is a general term for the delivery of hosted computing services and IT resources over the internet with pay-as-you-go pricing.
cloud ERP - Cloud ERP is a type of enterprise resource planning software that runs on a provider's cloud computing platform, rather than on premises on an enterprise's own computers.
cloud service provider (cloud provider) - A cloud service provider, or CSP, is a company that offers components of cloud computing -- typically, infrastructure as a service (IaaS), software as a service (SaaS) or platform as a service (PaaS).
cloud sourcing - Cloud sourcing is an arrangement in which a company pays a third-party cloud hosting provider to deliver and support IT services that could be provided in-house.
communication plan - A communication plan is a policy-driven approach to providing company stakeholders with certain information.
competitive differentiation - Competitive differentiation is a strategic positioning tactic an organization can undertake to set its products, services and brands apart from those of its competitors.