Application Area Knowledge, Standards and Regulations
　　應(yīng)用領(lǐng)域知識、標(biāo)準(zhǔn)與規(guī)章制度
　　Application areas are categories of projects that have common elements significant in such projects, but are not needed or present in all projects. Application areas are usually defined in terms of:
　　應(yīng)用領(lǐng)域是本類項目具有明顯的（但并非所有項目所具備或所必須具備的）共同因素的項目類型。應(yīng)用領(lǐng)域一般按以下方式定義：
　　Functional departments and supporting disciplines, such as legal, production and inventory management, marketing, logistics, and personnel
　　職能部門和輔助學(xué)科，如法律、生產(chǎn)和庫存管理、營銷、物流和人事管理。
　　Technical elements, such as software development or engineering, and sometimes a specific kind of engineering, such as water and sanitation engineering or construction engineering
　　技術(shù)因素，如軟件開發(fā)或工程，有些時候是一種具體的工程，如給水排水工程或土建工程。
　　Management specializations, such as government contracting, community development, and new product development
　　管理專門化，如政府合同、社區(qū)開發(fā)或新產(chǎn)品開發(fā)。
　　Industry groups, such as automotive, chemical, agriculture, and financial services.
　　工業(yè)集團，如汽車、化工、農(nóng)業(yè)或金融服務(wù)。
　　Each application area generally has a set of accepted standards and practices, often codified in regulations. The International Organization for Standardization （ISO） differentiates between standards and regulations as follows:
　　每一個應(yīng)用領(lǐng)域一般都有一套公認(rèn)的經(jīng)常以規(guī)章制度形式頒布的標(biāo)準(zhǔn)和做法。國際標(biāo)準(zhǔn)化組織（Iso）把標(biāo)準(zhǔn)和規(guī)章制度做了如下區(qū)分（ISO/IEC Guide 2: 1996）:
　　A standard is a “document established by consensus and approved by a recognized body that provides, for common and repeated use, rules, guidelines or characteristics for activities or their results, aimed at the achievement of the optimum degree of order in a given context.” Some examples of standards are computer disk sizes and the thermal stability specifications of hydraulic fluids.
　　標(biāo)準(zhǔn)是一個“在經(jīng)常和反復(fù)的使用中構(gòu)成了活動或其結(jié)果的規(guī)則、原則或特征，并由共識確立或者公認(rèn)機構(gòu)批準(zhǔn)的文件，其目的是在既定的環(huán)境中實現(xiàn)最佳程度的秩序”。標(biāo)準(zhǔn)的一些例子有，電腦磁盤的尺寸和液壓流體的熱穩(wěn)定性。
　　A regulation is a government-imposed requirement, which specifies product, process or service characteristics, including the applicable administrative provisions, with which compliance is mandatory. Building codes are an example of regulations.
　　規(guī)章制度是一個“政府機構(gòu)施加的要求。這些要求可能會決定產(chǎn)品、過程或服務(wù)遵守政府強制要求的特征，包括適用的行政管理條文”。建筑法規(guī)就是規(guī)章制度的一個例子。
　　There is an overlap in the concepts of standards and regulations that cause confusion. For example:
　　標(biāo)準(zhǔn)和規(guī)章制度這兩個概念因有重復(fù)之處會引起混亂，例如：
　　Standards often begin as guidelines that describe a preferred approach and later, with widespread adoption, become generally accepted as if they were regulations
　　標(biāo)準(zhǔn)常常以描述一項為多數(shù)人選用的最佳方案的準(zhǔn)則形式開始，然后，隨著其得到廣泛采用而得到了普遍公認(rèn)，如規(guī)章制度一樣。
　　Different organizational levels can mandate compliance, such as when a government agency, the management of the performing organization, or the project management team establishes specific policies and procedures.
　　不同的組織層次可能要求強制遵守，如當(dāng)政府機構(gòu)、實施組織的管理層，或者項目管理團隊確立了具體的方針和程序時。

Understanding the Project Environment
　　理解項目環(huán)境
　　Virtually all projects are planned and implemented in a social, economic, and environmental context, and have intended and unintended positive and/or negative impacts. The project team should consider the project in its cultural, social, international, political, and physical environmental contexts.
　　幾乎所有的項目都是在某種社會、經(jīng)濟和環(huán)境的條件下對之進行規(guī)劃與付諸實施的，因此都會產(chǎn)生意料之中的和未曾意料的積極和消極影響。項目團隊?wèi)?yīng)當(dāng)將項目置于其所處的文化、社會、國際、政治和自然的環(huán)境及其同這些環(huán)境之間的關(guān)系中加以考慮。
　　Cultural and social environment. The team needs to understand how the project affects people and how people affect the project. This may require an understanding of aspects of the economic, demographic, educational, ethical, ethnic, religious, and other characteristics of the people whom the project affects or who may have an interest in the project. The project manager should also examine the organizational culture and determine whether project management is recognized as a valid role with accountability and authority for managing the project.
　　文化與社會環(huán)境。項目團隊需要理解項目與人們之間是如何相互影響的。要做到這一點，也許要求理解項目影響或?qū)ζ溆欣﹃P(guān)系人群的經(jīng)濟、人口、教育、道德、種族、宗教狀況，以及其他特征。項目經(jīng)理還應(yīng)當(dāng)研究組織文化并確定組織是否已經(jīng)承認(rèn)管理該項目是有正當(dāng)手續(xù)的，可以向各方面說明情況并獲得了管理權(quán)限的角色。
　　International and political environment. Some team members may need to be familiar with applicable international, national, regional, and local laws and customs, as well as the political climate that could affect the project. Other international factors to consider are time-zone differences, national and regional holidays, travel requirements for face-to-face meetings, and the logistics of teleconferencing.
　　國際與政治環(huán)境。某些團隊成員需要熟悉相應(yīng)的國際、國家、地區(qū)和當(dāng)?shù)氐姆珊土?xí)慣，以及可能影響本項目的政治氣候。需要考慮的其他國際因素是舉行面對面會議時的時區(qū)差別、國家與地區(qū)節(jié)假日、旅行出差要求與電話會議的后勤保證問題。
　　Physical environment. If the project will affect its physical surroundings, some team members should be knowledgeable about the local ecology and physical geography that could affect the project or be affected by the project.
　　自然環(huán)境。如果項目影響到自然環(huán)境，某些團隊成員應(yīng)當(dāng)具備有關(guān)能夠影響本項目或受本項目影響的當(dāng)?shù)厣鷳B(tài)系統(tǒng)與地理的知識。