D2-5-Quiz

17. You've just completed a requirements-gathering session for an agile software implementation team. It became apparent that an outside vendor team must be brought onto the project. You are working with the legal department to draw up a contract for the vendor. What type of contract is best for an agile project? A. A contract that accommodates changes B. A fixed-price contract C. A graduated fixed-price contract D. A time and materials contract

A. Agile contracts need to accommodate changes that take into account the difficulty of defining the requirements in advance. B, C, and D are incorrect because agile contracts can also be used with fixed-price, graduated-fixed price, and time and materials contracts, but with the understanding that they have some sort of limits, whether it be a fixed timeframe or dollar amount.

4. The agile team for which you are the project manager has determined several key values to deliver to the customer. How should these tasks be tackled by the team? A. The tasks should be prioritized, tested, and delivered incrementally. B. The tasks should be delivered while in progress, whether tested or not, to gather feedback. C. The tasks should be delivered according to the project plan. D. All deliverables should be presented at the end of the project.

A. One of the most important agile themes ties together many fundamental concepts, such as prioritization, incremental delivery, and test-driven development. This is an essential component of agile methods, and lends credence to the early delivery of business value. B is incorrect because tasks should never be delivered before being tested. C is incorrect because agile projects don't utilize a project plan like predictive projects. D is incorrect because presenting all deliverables at the end of a project is setting up the entire project for failure.

14. Agile teams practice frequent verification and validation during and at the end of each iteration. Which one of the following is not a benefit of this method? A. It enables the team to catch mistakes and mismatched expectations early. B. It keeps everyone busy. C. It is easy to manage since there are multiple feedback loops. D. It reduces project cost overruns since mistakes are found early prior to additional tasks being built upon a faulty foundation.

B. Busywork does not add value to the project. A, C, and D are incorrect because a key practice on an agile team is frequent verification and validation. Having a gap between requested and delivered features will lead to rework, project delays, and cost overruns. It is important to discover the discrepancy early to adjust the direction of the development. This method enables the team to catch mistakes and mismatched expectations early, is easy to manage because it provides multiple feedback loops, and reduces project cost overruns since mistakes are found before tasks are built upon a faulty foundation.

15. You are on an agile software implementation project with a very short deadline. How do agile teams shorten the time between identifying a defect and resolving the defect? A. Daily build and smoke tests B. Continuous integration C. Usability testing D. Exploratory testing

B. Continuous integration executes far more tests per day than the other options, and less time passes before a problem is identified. A is incorrect because daily build and smoke tests don't shorten the resolution of a defect. C is incorrect because usability testing requires planning and participants to test the software. D is incorrect because exploratory testing allows testers to explore and test different facets of the software. Continuous integration is done several times throughout the day.

8. A great visual to see your project's progress is an earned value management (EVM) chart. Knowing that an agile project is different than a non-agile project in that the initial plan is likely to change, you still see a benefit in using this visual since an EVM chart is a forward-looking indicator and could be used to assist in predicting which of the following? A. Number of team members required B. Completion dates and final costs C. Quality of deliverables D. Timings to begin new iterations

B. EVM looks forward, trying to predict completion dates and final costs, in addition to scope, schedule, and cost performance. A and D are incorrect because the number of team members and when iterations will start and stop are fluid dimensions and not easily tracked. Answer C is incorrect because quality of deliverables can be tracked, but not in an EVM chart.

9. When working on an agile project, "risk" most likely means something different than it does on a traditional project. Agile sees risks as potential events or circumstances that could have a negative impact on the project, whereas a non-agile project may define a risk as a "good risk" that could present opportunities for the project. How does an agile project deal with risk? A. The team identifies risks and then tackles them at the end of the project so that they can all be addressed at once in a separate task. B. The iterative nature of agile allows the team to schedule the high-risk activities early in the project so that they are tackled sooner rather than later. C. The team keeps the risk-finding results within the team so that the team can address the risk without any outside interference. D. Early in the project planning, to ensure that the project won't be cancelled, the team does not relate risks to value, so that there is no chance of showing how the project could be delayed or cost more than planned.

B. Iterative development allows high-risk work to be addressed early in the project, to avoid problems further down the road. Agile teams engage the development team, business partners, customers, and other relevant stakeholders to draw on lessons learned, risk logs, and likely risks for the project from multiple views. Risks are directly related to the value of the project, since negative risks will most likely add time, which relates to the cost of the project. A is incorrect because risks are reserved for the end of the project; in fact, high-risk items are often prioritized to determine project feasibility. C is incorrect because outside subject matter experts and stakeholders are often needed to contribute to risk management. D is incorrect because risks are assessed as anti-value, not ignored. A failure to address risk can actually cause project costs to increase.

7. You have been tasked to evaluate the financial metrics of a potential project. You plan to evaluate the percent of the benefit of the investment to the money invested. This is which of the following financial assessment metrics? A. Net present value (NPV) B. Return on investment (ROI) C. Internal rate of return (IRR) D. Future value (FV)

B. ROI measures the amount of return on an investment relative to the investment's cost. A is incorrect because NPV is defined as the present value of cash flow over a series of time periods. The drawback to using the NPV approach is that designating what the inflation rate and interest rate will be in the future is just a best guess. C is incorrect because IRR is the discount rate at which project revenues and project costs equal zero. When a company is selecting which project to invest in, it will calculate the expected rate of return for each project and select the one that is projected to yield the highest IRR. D is incorrect because future value determines what a present amount of funds today is worth in the future.

11. While meeting with the customers or business owners, they introduce several pieces of new functionality into the priority list. Since the deadline date cannot be moved out, how should the team react to these additions? A. Stand firm and tell the customers the project will not be delivered on time B. Be sure the customers understand that lower priority tasks or functionality may drop off the project completely C. Cancel all vacations and days off and let the team know there will be many long days of work ahead to deliver the project on time D. Agree with the customers to have all new items put into a separate category that will be completed if time allows

B. The agile team can certainly accept changes either early or late during the project duration because of the iteration methodology. But the team still needs to work within the timeframe and budget of the project, so the customer must understand that although the new pieces of functionality can be added to the project, it can only be done at the expense of a lower-priority work item. Agile teams are committed to being "agile," so dictating timeframes or lack of work/life balance are not part of the agile methodology. Project managers must not overwork the project team to maintain the pace of the project work. A is incorrect because lower-priority requirements should be dropped from the project scope to accommodate higher-priority items to balance the fixed constraints of time and costs. C is incorrect because it's poor management to cancel vacation days and time off as this will affect team morale and team support of the project. D is incorrect because requirements should be prioritized into the product backlog, not a separate list of requirements. The existing product backlog will already map to the fixed time constraint.

5. The agile team for which you are the project manager has identified the highest-value features of the project and wants to deliver them as soon as possible. Why is this a good idea? A. It gets the features out of the way. B. The longer the project goes on, the value of a feature may be compromised. C. Delivering the most intense tasks could shorten the project duration. D. It proves the team's understanding of value.

B. The longer high-value features take to deliver, the longer the horizon becomes for risks that can reduce value. Maximize success by delivering as many high-value features before things change. Value-driven delivery means making decisions that prioritize the value-added activities and risk-reducing efforts of the project, then accomplishing the tasks based on the priorities. A is incorrect because the goal isn't to simply get features out of the way, but to deliver value based on the prioritized backlog. C is incorrect because delivering intense tasks first doesn't support completing the requirements with the most value and won't necessarily shorten the project duration. D is incorrect because while understanding value is important, this doesn't best answer the question as delivering value.

6. As a member of the PMO, you have been analyzing upcoming projects and have identified one particular project that you believe project teams will push back on. You understand this project is meant to implement safety standards for an off-shore manufacturing plant. Some project teams may not understand the value of this project. How do you avoid a long, drawn-out process of getting this project approved to move forward? A. Attempt to make the teams understand why it is important B. Have the project outsourced to avoid the pushback C. Make the project mandatory D. Take the project off the list of projects for the year and try to implement it at a different time

C. Assessing the value in financial terms is usually where a project begins. The organization would look at the financial ramifications of not undertaking a project, such as fines that might be assessed, lawsuits the business may be subjected to, and the risk of the business shutting down. To avoid spending time trying to make teams understand the project's importance (A), spending money to outsource (B), or worse, deferring the project to another time (D), the project should be marked as mandatory.

16. With all the different methods of testing, either a software or product deliverable, when should the team determine what method of testing should be performed? A. When the first iteration is complete B. When a deliverable is available for testing C. Before the product is developed D. At the end of the project

C. If acceptance tests are designed before the development of a deliverable, you are more likely to end up with tests for the majority of the work. A, B, and D are incorrect because determining the method of testing after the project has started means you are trying to fit the developed product into a test scenario.

12. You are working with an agile team that is developing and delivering a software solution to your company's HR group. Several minimum viable product (MVP) releases are scheduled throughout the duration of the project. Why is this a good idea? A. To show the progress being made by the development team B. To enable the users to test the product for the development team C. To enable the business to begin to get value from the project prior to the project ending D. To shorten the duration of the project

C. Incremental releases can allow for some ROI while the team develops the remaining functionality. A is incorrect because releasing the MVP is to deliver value, not to show the project progress is being made. B is incorrect because the software should be fully tested and functional before being released to the user community. D is incorrect because utilizing MVP releases will not shorten the duration of the project, since the MVPs are defined in the project life cycle.

13. The agile team you are working with utilizes a whiteboard and writes tasks on sticky notes. Initially, you feel like they've taken a step backward by not utilizing an electronic project planning tool. After a period of time, you come to value the whiteboard system more and more. Why do you think this method is beneficial? A. It is easy to disregard a sticky note and bypass a task. B. No one takes sticky notes seriously. C. It is visual, and at a glance shows the progress of the project. D. Many people have access to the board and can move notes to their advantage.

C. Since the whiteboard is usually located in the team's area, meetings can be held around the whiteboard and the team's WIP is easily visible along with any tasks that may be falling behind. It is also valuable to the business partner to see a growing collection of completed work. This is an example of a high-touch/low-tech tool. A is incorrect because the whiteboard approach will utilize a pull system to pull the next prioritized item into WIP, not bypass the item. B is incorrect because agile teams consistently use sticky notes as part of the high-touch/low-tech tool. D is incorrect because the team follows the rules of the pull system and does not reorder the requirements or identified tasks.

19. You are attending the kick-off meeting with the agile team and the business owners. The business owners have decided to use MoSCoW as a priority tool. What are the categories for this method? A. Priority 1, Priority 2, Priority 3, Priority 4 B. Low, medium, high C. Must have, should have, could have, would like to have D. Point method, assigning the most points to the highest priority item

C. The MoSCoW method of prioritization labels tasks as must have, should have, could have, and would like to have but not at this time. Any method can be used on an agile project, but the MoSCoW labels are clear in many members' opinions. A, B, and D are incorrect because they are not the MoSCoW categories. MoSCoW is a good method to avoid the tendency to label too many items as priority 1 or high priority or the most points assigned, which becomes ineffective. A business partner will rarely ask for a new feature to be assigned a lower priority, because they know it most likely won't get done. While point systems can be effective, MoSCoW challenges the stakeholders to identify priorities rather than assigning points.

18. Approximately midway through an agile project, the business partner asks, "If we stick to the agreed-upon scope, when do you think the project will be done, and how much will it cost?" How will you gather the information necessary to answer the business partner? A. By reviewing the Kanban board B. By checking progress on the backlog C. By analyzing the key performance indicators D. By having a team meeting and logging everyone's status

C. The most reliable metrics to use are the key performance indicators (KPIs). This will give you the rate of progress, remaining work to be completed, the likely completion date, and the likely costs remaining. A, B, and D are incorrect because the Kanban board, backlog, and statuses will give you only bits of information, whereas the KPIs will provide a broader picture of the project at any given time.

1. You have been identified as a team member on a project. When you begin gathering requirements, what is a logical first question that should be asked and answered? A. How much is in the budget? B. How long will the project last? C. What is the business value? D. How many team members will participate?

C. The reason projects are carried out is to generate business value. The business risk and the impact of not undertaking the project must be considered. A, B, and D are incorrect because the budget, duration, and member participation will be determined once the value-driven delivery is identified.

10. The agile team you are working with has just finished an iteration and all tasks are completed. You are ready to move to the next iteration. How do you determine which iteration should be next? A. The team follows the project plan developed early in the project. B. The PMO has already determined how the project should progress. C. The customer continuously prioritizes the backlog. D. The team leader determines the next iteration.

C. The teams works through a list of items that have identifiable value and have been prioritized by the customer. A is incorrect because agile teams understand that the plan developed in the beginning of the project is fluid and is subject to change, so trying to follow an early developed plan is probably not feasible. B is incorrect because the project management office doesn't determine how the project should progress. D is incorrect because the team leader doesn't determine the next iteration.

20. Agile teams use different methods to manage work in progress (WIP). What is a drawback of not having limits to WIP? A. There is typically enough work to keep everyone busy. B. It keeps the project moving forward. C. Too many tasks are taken on all at once. D. Fail to fully utilize everyone's availability.

C. Without limits on WIP, a project team may undertake too many different tasks at once. A is incorrect because there is typically enough work for everyone to contribute. B is incorrect because not setting a limit on WIP can cause too many tasks to be in motion at one time. D is incorrect because setting the WIP limit doesn't prevent everyone from contributing, but encourages the idea of generalizing specialists.

2. You are the project manager of an agile project. An agile team's focus is to maximize value. When the team needs to make a decision, what question should be the first to be asked? A. How long will it take to test? B. Will the decision made derail the project? C. What will it cost in man hours? D. What is the value to the customer?

D. The focus on delivering value drives many of the activities and decisions on an agile project. This is the crucial goal of many practices in the agile toolkit. A, B, and C are incorrect because answers to questions regarding duration, impact, and cost of the decision will be determined after the value to the customer is defined.

3. Most agile software developers use continuous integration tools to test code. These tools tell them whether the code passed or failed by communicating what status? A. Red-Yellow-Green B. Pass/Fail C. Go/No Go D. Red-Green-Refactor

D. The process of writing a test that initially fails, adding code until the test passes, then refactoring the code is known as Red-Green-Refactor (or Red-Green-Clean). A, B, and C are incorrect because CI tools do not use these terms to communicate status.