A mnemonic is a review aid, not a standard
Different authors use different lists under the title seven Cs of project management. There is no single universal list established by the primary references used here. This article offers an explicitly editorial checklist: clarity, customer, communication, coordination, capability, control and continuous learning. It should supplement, rather than replace, your organisation's required governance and the applicable examination outline.
Use the checklist to expose a decision or evidence gap. A project can score well on a vague self-assessment while still lacking an owner for a critical dependency. For each C, record one observable fact, one unresolved question and a next action. The usefulness lies in the conversation and follow-through, not the mnemonic itself.
Clarity and customer: define what success means
Clarity asks whether people agree on the problem, intended result, constraints and acceptance conditions. Customer asks whose outcome improves and how you will know. For a clinic-booking project, installing a new application is an output; reducing avoidable missed appointments may be the desired outcome. Confirm both rather than assuming one guarantees the other.
Write a short problem statement and test it with users and the sponsor. Ask what evidence supports the proposed solution and which needs have not been examined. Include operational staff, accessibility and support requirements where relevant. A feature list becomes more useful when each item has a clear connection to the agreed purpose.
Communication and coordination: enable the next decision
Communication asks whether the right people receive information they can act on. Coordination asks whether dependencies, responsibilities and decision authority are explicit. A long report distributed to everyone may be less useful than a short, targeted explanation of a choice and its consequences.
In the booking case, a data-migration delay affects testing and training. Identify the owner, receiving team, required date and acceptance evidence. Tell the sponsor which options require a decision, and tell operational staff what changes their preparation. Track whether the communication resolved the question; sending a message alone does not demonstrate that coordination happened.
Capability and control: make the plan credible
Capability asks whether the necessary skills, capacity, access and supplier support are available. Control asks whether progress, change and risk are handled through a decision process people understand. Neither means that the project manager must personally perform every specialist task or approve every change.
For the case, check migration expertise, test environments and staff availability before promising a release. Define how a newly discovered privacy issue will be assessed and who can authorise the response. Review completed and accepted work rather than only effort spent. Make uncertainty visible so governance can respond while options remain available.
Continuous learning: close the feedback loop
Continuous learning asks whether observations lead to useful adjustment. After a pilot, compare missed appointments, support demand and unintended effects with the baseline. If customers receive duplicate reminders, investigate the cause and change the process or product before expanding. Capture a lesson with an owner and a future use, rather than only adding it to an archive.
At each review, revisit the seven questions and identify the most consequential gap. Choose a small action, agree responsibility and inspect the result at the next review. For certification preparation, return to the issuer's actual syllabus: this checklist is a practical learning device and does not establish seven official domains, eligibility requirements or guaranteed project outcomes.
Official references
Certification requirements and programme terms can change. Use the issuer’s current page and your account to confirm details before applying or paying.