5.0 Project Scope Management (Multiple Choice)

You are conducting an inspection to determine if the work satisfies the requirements and product acceptance criteria. What is the objective of this process? A. Obtaining formal acceptance of the project's deliverables B. Ensuring correctness of work results C. Obtaining approval to proceed with project execution D. All of the above

Answer: A Monitoring - Scope Management The question is describing the Validate Scope process. Inspections are a tool and technique that can be used to secure formal acceptance of the project's deliverables. B describes Control Quality and C describes the Project Charter.

Your sponsor has recently left the company, and an executive from the company has been designated as the new sponsor. This person was not previously involved in the project, and needs to get up to speed. She is a definitive stakeholder and has a reputation for being difficult to work with. She calls for a meeting and during your conversation asks you for a summary of what the project will produce and the work required to get there. To which document should you refer her? A. Scope Statement B. Project Charter C. Requirements Documentation D. Project Management Plan

Answer: A Planning - Scope Management The Scope Statement should provide a detailed description of the project's deliverable and the work necessary to produce them (as opposed to the Charter, which contains a broad, high-level discussion of the project's goals).

A new project manager has been brought in to replace the prior PM who just retired from a long and distinguished career. Eager to make a good impression and to fill the shoes of such a high-performer, the new PM asks to see the scope baseline for the project so that she can immediately begin to control scope creep. What is included in the scope baseline? A. Project scope statement, WBS, and WBS dictionary, planning package B. Scope management plan, and project scope statement C. Scope management plan, project scope statement, WBS, and WBS dictionary D. WBS and WBS dictionary

Answer: A Planning - Scope Management The scope baseline includes the project scope statement, WBS, and WBS dictionary and planning package.

You are reviewing the project deliverables and developing your checklist of project requirements. You can typically find the requirements for acceptance in which of the following documents? A. Plan Project Scope Statement B. Acceptance Criteria C. Work breakdown structure D. Project Charter

Answer: B Monitoring - Scope Management Acceptance Criteria, part of the Scope Statement, will specify the terms for product acceptance. Project Scope Statement is correct also, but Product Acceptance Criteria is more focused and the better answer.

A CRM software project has entered the closure phase following customer acceptance of the software. On reviewing project performance and deliverables, the project manager determines that the software delivered exceeds the performance criteria as well as provides functional features over and above the ones specified in the requirements specifications approved by the customer. Which of the following is a true assessment of the project performance?

Answer: B Monitoring - Scope Management The project is unsuccessful because it has been gold plated. The situation described does not talk about cost and schedule baseline performance. Customer delight is a goal but should be achieved without gold plating the project.

You have just completed the design phase of the project and are meeting with the customer to ensure that the project requirements are reflected in the deliverables. Which tool or technique are you performing? A. Audits B. Inspection C. Decomposition D. Project Performance Appraisals

Answer: B Monitoring - Scope Management The question is describing the Validate Scope process, which is when the sponsor, customer or other person with sign-off authority would use inspection to ensure the project requirements have been achieved. Validate Scope can be performed at the end of each project phase in the project life cycle to get sign-off or acceptance of phase deliverables before moving to the next phase.

The work breakdown structure (WBS) provides a foundation for the project to later develop a responsibility assignment matrix (RAM) and to allocate resources. Which of the following statements about a WBS is false? A. It is a key project-planning tool. B. It is used to build a project schedule. C. It is a hierarchical representation of deliverables. D. With each lower level it breaks a project into greater detail.

Answer: B Planning - Scope Management A work breakdown structure is not a way to build a project schedule. Answers A, C, and D are true statements about the WBS.

Which of the following processes is concerned with identifying and documenting the specific activities required to produce the project deliverables? A. Define Scope B. Define Activities C. Create WBS D. Collect requirements

Answer: B Planning - Scope Management Identifying and documenting specific activities that must be performed to meet the project deliverables is known as Define Activities. It is an extension of the WBS, but is not part of that process.

You are the project manager for a large media/entertainment company. You are currently managing a project to build a new amusement park in the Fuji Islands. You are having discussions on exactly what rides and attractions to create that will blend with the local culture and environment. Inputs to the Define Scope process include which of the following? A. Product Analysis, Alternative Generation, Expert Judgment, Facilitated Workshops B. Scope Management Plan, Organizational Process Assets, Project Charter, Requirements Documentation C. Project Management Plan, Requirements Documentation, Requirement Traceability Matrix, Verified Deliverables D. Organizational Process Assets, Project Scope Statement and Requirement documentation

Answer: B Planning - Scope Management Inputs to the Define Scope process include the Scope Management Plan, Organizational Process Assets, Project Charter and Requirements Documentation.

You're using techniques such as value engineering, value analysis and quality function deployment. What tool and technique of Define Scope are you utilizing? A. Benefit/cost analysis B. Product analysis C. Earned value analysis D. Benchmarking

Answer: B Planning - Scope Management Product analysis is a tool and technique of Define Scope which uses techniques such as product breakdown analysis, systems engineering, value engineering, value analysis, function analysis, and quality function deployment, all in an effort to integrate the requirements most effectively into a deliverable.

You and the project team cannot completely define the WBS because the results of early project work will determine the outcome of future deliverables. This is concerning since this is a high visibility and strategically significant project. What approach can you and the project team take in this situation? A. Decompose all of the project scope before the project work begins B. Use rolling-wave planning C. Decompose the packages as far you can and assume that risks will not affect the project D. Begin the project without a WBS and complete the WBS as soon as possible

Answer: B Planning - Scope Management Rolling-wave planning will allow you and the project team to start the project, and then further define the WBS as more information becomes available to decompose the remaining components.

You are facilitating a meeting to discuss a specialized area of your project where your knowledge is lacking. It is vital that a decision be made quickly so the project can proceed. You gather a team of experts in the area to help you make the decision, however, the meeting is not going according to plan. There seems to be much contention between the experts and there are widely-varied opinions on how to proceed. Some members in the meeting are even going so far as making false accusations of others and you notice that the opinion of one member is constantly being rejected. What would be the best approach to try and come up with a resolution? A. Institute a voting method to reach the decision quickly B. Immediately halt this meeting and then use the Delphi technique to reach a decision C. Immediately halt the meeting and engage in team building exercises D. Immediately halt the meeting and set up guidelines for conduct during the meeting, and re-iterating the agenda of the meeting

Answer: B Planning - Scope Management The Delphi technique is useful where there is hostility amongst a group of experts, and especially where personal differences are tainting people's reception of others' ideas.

You are managing a new software development project. Other members of your project management team believe you should skip the WBS and simply proceed with the work outlined in the Scope Statement. You are explaining the ways in which the WBS helps with scope planning. Which of the following is not accomplished by creating a WBS? A. Understanding the full scope of project work B. Understanding the resources required to complete the deliverable C. Identifying all deliverables of the project D. Allocating work packages to the appropriate budget section

Answer: B Planning - Scope Management The WBS helps to understand and map out the full scope of the project work and deliverables, and also helps track costs to their appropriate budget categories. It will also be useful in other areas of planning, such as identifying risk and designating work assignments.

You are talking with other project managers at a PMI local chapter dinner. The topic of work breakdown structures comes up and there is debate regarding the usefulness of this methodology. Why do projects have a work breakdown structure (WBS)? A. The WBS shows activities of the project. B. The WBS organizes and defines the project scope. C. The WBS identifies areas of the project that require additional planning. D. The WBS identifies the project.

Answer: B Planning - Scope Management The correct answer is B -- the WBS organizes and defines the project scope.

Which of the following best describes the process of controlling and tracking changes to the project's deliverables? A. Change control board B. Change management plan C. Configuration Management Plan D. Contract change procedure

Answer: C Monitoring - Scope Management Configuration management is a procedure to identify and document the functional and physical characteristics of an item or system and ensure the deliverable reflects all implemented changes.

You are managing a project to develop a new software platform for one of your top customers. In past projects, there were often additional, unrequested features added to the scope in order to "wow" the customer, but the stakeholders have made it very clear that this should not be done in this case, as the budget and schedule are very tight. You are also dealing with more limited resources than usual. As you develop your project management plan, you should pay particular attention to which of the following in order to prevent this sort of gold plating from re-occurring? A. Project Charter B. WBS C. Scope management plan D. Cost Management Plan

Answer: C Planning - Scope Management The scope management plan would outline controls for ensuring that gold plating (extra functionality, not part of agreed upon project scope) is prevented, while ensuring that all approved requirements are included in the deliverable.

Which of the following cannot be tracked using the WBS? A. Time B. Cost C. Quality D. Work hours required

Answer: C Planning - Scope Management Time, cost and amount of work (scope) can be tracked using the WBS. You cannot track quality using the WBS.

You are a project manager at a large international airport. You are managing the expansion of your airport and will be responsible for adding a new terminal. Numerous stakeholders have confronted you with various needs. Which of the following is not needed to define the project scope? A. Project charter B. Organizational process assets C. Risk management plan D. Requirements documentation

Answer: C Planning - Scope Management You do not need the risk management plan for project scope definition, but the remaining options are inputs to this process.

Your project had a difficult time receiving formal approval for the project management plan because there were so many stakeholders whose requirements were not approved for inclusion in the project. These stakeholders argued and held up the project while they held meeting after meeting about their requirements. The project was finally approved and work began seven months ago. All of the following would be wise actions to take given the circumstances, except for which of the following? A. Keep a file on the requirements that were not included in the project. B. Make sure the change control process is not used as a vehicle to add back the rejected requirements into the project C. Maintain an issue log D. Hold meetings with the stakeholders to go over work that will not be added to the project

Answer: D Executing - Scope Management Spending valuable time in meetings to discuss abandoned requirements would not add value, and would likely only serve to further frustrate the stakeholders. You should keep a file on such requirements, however, to help clarify what is and what is not part of the project (which will assist with change control matters, stakeholder management, etc.)

You are the project manager for a biotech company. You are working with a challenging client who likes to add requirements throughout the execution of the project. Previous projects have been late and over budget due to the dynamic nature of client requirements. Scope creep is a real issue with this client. Which of the following documents would prevent scope creep on work packages? A. Work breakdown structure B. Statement of work C. Work authorization system D. WBS dictionary

Answer: D Monitoring - Scope Management The WBS dictionary provides a detailed description of the work to be performed for each work package. A clearly defined WBS dictionary would help prevent scope creep on work packages.

You are working on a software design project that will support your company's accounting and reporting functions. You are not an accounting expert, but as the project manager you need to ensure the project's main objectives are met. Previous projects have failed to meet requirements due to conflicting stakeholder expectations. Your organization is very risk averse and you are operating under tight schedule constraints. With whom should you be consulting as you work to define the scope of the project? A. Sponsor B. Project team and previous project managers C. Industry Experts D. All key stakeholders, plus subject matter experts as needed

Answer: D Planning - Scope Management Here you need to establish the scope of the project, and you must consult with those people being affected by this project to ensure their needs are met. Subject matter experts are also needed to help translate requirements into practical applications.

You are the project manager for a small start-up company. Your company is new and your project management processes are not well defined. You are discussing with a peer project manager the importance of the scope baseline. The scope baseline is an input to all of the following processes except which one? A. Perform Qualitative Risk Analysis B. Estimate Cost C. Identify Risk D. Plan Communications Management

Answer: D Planning - Scope Management The scope baseline is not an input to the Plan Communications Management process. The inputs to the Plan Communications Management process are stakeholder register, project management plan, enterprise environmental factors and organizational process assets.

Which of the following provides a basis for defining activities, as well as, estimating resources, time, and cost? A. Activity list B. Individual tasks C. Scope statement D. Work packages

Answer: D Planning - Scope Management Work packages are the control points on the WBS that are used for breaking down the work into the schedule of activities. Work packages are a defined set of deliverables used to estimate cost, time, and resources.