PMP exam Study prep 2021 181

A project manager is looking to assign resources for various project activities and has a number of candidates to choose from with experience with smartphone cameras. One resource, Mike, is the best person to work on designing a new front facing camera for the new smartphone. He has the most experience, the necessary skills, and experience. However, Mike's department manager is not willing to let Mike work on the design. What should the project manager do NEXT? Answers A. The project manager should look for candidates external to the organization to work on the design of the new smartphone front facing camera. B. The project manager should look for other candidates within the organization to work on the design of the new smartphone front facing camera. C. The project manager should ask Mike to meet with his department manager to plead the case on why he is the only choice to work on the camera design. D. The project manager should setup a meeting with Mike's department manager to discuss the reasons why Mike is needed for the camera design. They should also discuss when he will be needed and how Mike's experience from the project can help his department's work in the future.

The project manager should setup a meeting with Mike's department manager to discuss the reasons why Mike is needed for the camera design. They should also discuss when he will be needed and how Mike's experience from the project can help his department's work in the future. In a situation where a possible team member's functional manager is initially unwilling to let one of their subordinates work on a project, the project manager should at the very least understand the situation and use their negotiating or influencing skills to help secure the resource. This is especially true if the person being withheld is the best person for the work.

You are a procurement specialist preparing a contract for a software development project. Through negotiations, it has been determined that a cost-plus-incentive-fee contract type will be used. The following criteria for the contract have been agreed upon: Target Project Cost: $200,000 Fee to the Seller: $30,000 Share Ratio: 80% Buyer, 20% SellerWhich final payout is appropriate if the project costs $220,000 to perform the work outlined in the contract? Answers A. 246000 B. 34000 C. 214000 D. 26000

$246,000 The formula used to calculate the final payout is Target cost + Fixed fee + Buyer share ratio * (Actual Cost - Target Cost).If the final costs are $220,000, the Buyer will pay 200,000 + 30,000 + 0.8 * (220,000 - 200,000) = $246,000.In this scenario, the seller earns $26,000, which is less than if the target cost was not exceeded. $246,000 (final payout) - $220,000 (actual cost) = $26,000 profit. In this case, the incentive is a negative value of -$4,000 that comes off the predetermined fee of $30,000 that was agreed upon.

You are the project manager for your office. You are currently in the final stages of project closure, and are creating the final project report.Which information should be included in the report? Answers A. Weaknesses that were directly related to process improvements B. The project's success as determined by comparing original estimates and project objectives C. Recommendations provided by team members D. Work breakdown structure dictionary Assistance Regardless of the format chosen, the final project report should contain recommendations that team members provided throughout the project's life cycle.

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Your project started with seven stakeholders. An additional three have been added. Which option represents the current number of potential communication channels among the stakeholders? Answers A. 24 B. 21 C. 90 D. 45

45 The formula for calculating the potential communication channels is n * (n - 1) / 2, where n is the number of stakeholders. In this case, you had seven stakeholders and you have added three stakeholders. You now have ten stakeholders.The correct calculation for ten communication channels is as follows:Potential communication channels with ten stakeholders:10 * (10 - 1) / 2454545

You are working on building the stakeholder register for a new project that has been authorized. Which item would you expect to include in the stakeholder register? Answers A. A comparison of the stakeholders current and desired engagements B. A plan to increase support and minimize obstruction for each stakeholder C. Work performance information D. A rating of the stakeholder's impact and influence on the project

A rating of the stakeholder's impact and influence on The stakeholder register is a document that is created during the Identify Stakeholders process and it is a compilation of all the relevant information gathered. While the information provided in the stakeholder register is tailored to suit the needs of your project, it should include the potential impact and influence ratings determined from stakeholder analysis.

You are trying to identify and document high-level risks, assumptions, and constraints to pinpoint project limitations. You have interviewed key stakeholders that have expertise in this area and looked at the current environment. Which other activity should you perform to complete your task? Answers A. Access the corporate knowledge base B. Assess current government and industry standards C. Examine your organizational structure and culture D. Review the high-level scope statement

Access the corporate knowledge base Your organization's corporate knowledge base includes historical and lessons learned knowledge bases. You would want to access these knowledge bases to locate information on previous projects. Specifically, you would want to look at information on project selection decisions from the past, their performance, and information on risk management. This will help you to identify and document additional high-level risks, assumptions, and constraints of your project.

Carmen is a project manager working on the development of a new sleeping aid, which is an enterprise-wide project. She reports to Bill, the program manager, who is in charge of five projects related to the development of five different sleeping aids. Which is Carmen's MOST applicable responsibility? Answers A. Achieving the objectives for the sleeping aid. B. Authorizing the development of the new sleeping aid. C. To perform the work in developing the new sleeping aid. D. To be ultimately responsible for the success of the development of the new sleeping aid.

Achieving the objectives for the sleeping aid. A project manager is assigned by an organization to achieve specific project objectives. For an enterprise-wide project, the project manager works closely with the program manager or portfolio manager to meet the project objectives. Therefore, Carmen would be responsible for achieving the objectives for the sleeping aid. To fulfill these objectives, Carmen must have an array of skills, including problem solving, communicating, negotiating, facilitating, budgeting, organizing, and planning.

You are working on a global project to implement a new software firewall solution. Your team is comprised of several programmers at headquarters and a few distributed members throughout the world. During the initial project meetings, your remote team members agreed as a group that they would make the daily stand-up meetings at the scheduled time. During a recent daily stand-up meeting on the video conference, you noticed several remote team members looked like they were watching videos on the internet instead of paying attention to the daily stand-up. You want to ensure that all team members are engaged during these meetings. What should you do? Answers A. Address the issue with each team member individually B. Ask IT for a copy of their browsing history C. During the next daily stand-up distribute a quiz afterwards D. Address the issue publicly during the next team meeting

Address the issue with each team member individually Remote team members could be attending meetings at awkward times for their locale. Whenever you have an issue with a team member or members, it is always best to meet with them 1-on-1 first. This avoids any embarrassing situations and allows the team members to explain themselves. There may be valid reasons for their disinterest, or the time zone issues could be creating problems for them. It is always best to facilitate a 1-on-1 discussion and encourage the team member to come up with a solution.

Glen is managing a team of software designers. He receives an update on the status of the design plans from one of the lead designers via email. Based on the information provided in the update and the project schedule, Glen has determined some project objectives will exceed the risk thresholds set by the organization. What should Glen do FIRST? Answers A. Accept that the project objectives will be missed. B. Implement a solution to put the project back on schedule. C. Advise the project sponsor of the situation. D. Determine a course of action to prevent the objective from being missed.

Advise the project sponsor of the situation. D. Determine a course of action to prevent the objective from being missed. Assistance As project manager, Glen manages his team to meet the project objectives as set out by senior management. However, the project sponsor is typically involved in determining the project objectives and handling any issues that are beyond the project manager's control. When the projects' objectives are going to be exceeded, it is the sponsor's responsibility to decide on a course of action. Since Glen has determined that some project objectives will exceed the organization's risk thresholds, he should advise the project sponsor of the situation.

William is planning and re-planning the scope of the project. He is also continuously assessing and refreshing team skills to meet needs of the project. Which methodology is William following? Answers A. Traditional B. Predictive C. Agile D. Waterfall

Agile Agile is the incremental or iterative approach to project management. Because the scope of the project is everchanging, the skills required is also changing and therefore continual assessment and upgrading team skills is required to meet the project needs.

Jim is taking over as project manager on a project to build a machine learning trading platform. The previous project manager left the organization abruptly. The team is in the middle of an iteration and several user stories are being developed. Jim is piecing together information from stakeholders, documents, and other team members. Jim is not sure what the plan currently is to finish this iteration and he is getting information in piecemeal. How can this situation be avoided? Answers A. An information radiator such as a burn-down chart would show the team's progress toward meeting the iteration goal B. The previous project manager should have been kept on this project at all costs C. The current iteration should have been scrapped and restarted D. Stakeholders should have been consulted and then redevelop the project plan from scratch on day 1

An information radiator such as a burn-down chart would show the team's progress toward meeting the iteration goal In Agile development the project plan should contain important information on the current iteration along with a broad plan for future iterations. The project plan document is a living document during the development cycle and should be updates with every change in the project. In this case, Jim needs a project plan document so he can see what the current plan is and what the current product roadmap looks like.

You're new to an organization and have been assigned a project team. You and your team have identified the stakeholders and started documenting and prioritizing expectations. What should you do next? Answers A. Monitor stakeholder engagement B. Engage each stakeholder by explaining the project goal C. Analyze the directions of stakeholder's influence D. Focus on the reporting tools for communication

Analyze the directions of stakeholder's influence Analyzing the directions of influence is one way to help understand the how and who can influence a project and its outcomes. You can classify stakeholders by their direction of influence. You can have upwards influence with sponsors and executives, downwards with the team, outwards with contractors and end-users, and sideward with peers of the Scrum Master or project manager. This helps you understand and determine the levels of decision-making authority and influence.

As the project manager for your organization, you often manage several projects simultaneously. Upon completion of a project, various tasks must be completed. One of the final tasks that needs to be completed during formal closure of a project is to gather and assemble all of the project records. Which of the following closing activities BEST describes what happens to the collected and assembled project records? Answers A. Collected as lessons learned B. Distributed to the project sponsor C. Archived for future projects D. Distributed to key stakeholders

Archived for future projects D. Distributed to key stakeholders Assistance The project records are archived for future reference after they have been collected and assembled. This historical information can now be used by project managers in the organization who will be managing similar projects in the future. This information can include helpful documents such as warranties on assets purchased or services provided. The information may also be part of a legal compliance obligation.

Jennifer is working on a new payment processing system. The system is being developed in sprints. During a recent sprint two project team members got into a verbal altercation. Since that altercation, the team has struggled to accomplish story points and stand up meetings have become uncomfortable for everyone. You have tried to mediate the situation, but the team appears to have split between the two team members and are actively working against each other. What could have best been done to avoid this situation? Answers A. Pick a team member's side during the altercation B. Move the two team members to other projects C. At project launch, allow the team as a group to set the rules for the project D. Remove the team member who has the lower performance

At project launch, allow the team as a group to set the rules for the project Product launch is the opportune time to set the rules for the team. This process in Agile development is done as a group to best ensure buy-in. Project staff are asked what rules they feel should be considered for the project, and the rules are enforced by the project team. In this case had the rules been set ahead of time, they dispute would have likely been addressed in a different manner.

Marianne is a project manager currently working on a project to upgrade workstations, servers, networking equipment, and software during the week from Monday to Friday from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. She schedules a meeting every other Friday to meet with Bob, the head of the IT department, to discuss project progress and costs. Bob's secretary and accountant are also present as they are being used a couple of days a week by Marianne. The project team members, made up from Bob's staff, report to both Marianne and Bob. Within which type of organization is Marianne working? Answers A. Weak matrix B. Projectized C. Balanced matrix D. Strong matrix

Balanced matrix Marianne is working within a balanced matrix organization. In a balanced matrix organization, the project manager works full time and power is shared between the functional manager and the project manager, including control of the budget and reporting structure. We know from the scenario that Marianne is a full-time project manager. We also know control of the budget is shared equally between Marianne and Bob, and team members report to both of them. In addition, the project administrative staff work part time in a balanced matrix organization. This is also true for this scenario since Bob's secretary and accountant are being used by Marianne a couple of days a week.

You are creating the budget for a project you are managing and you need to review the assumptions related to the activity costs. Which item is the BEST source of this information? Answers A. The risk register B. Project funding requirements C. Basis of estimates D. Reserve analysis

Basis of estimates The basis of estimates is a documented record of how you arrived at activity cost estimates. This is important because it identifies any assumptions made. For example, the cost of a required resource could be based on the availability of the resource at a particular time.

You are the project manager for an automotive manufacturing company. You need to confirm that the project you are undertaking aligns with the organization's business strategy. What is BEST used to accomplish this? Answers A. Stakeholder analysis B. Benefit analysis C. Requirements documentation D. Design of experiments

Benefit analysis A benefit analysis would be included as part of the business case, which would be used to create the project charter. It is used during project selection method to justify the project. It also confirms that the project aligns with the organization's business strategy and that it is expected to add value to the business.

Calvin, the project manager, has scheduled a meeting for his team to discuss problems that have developed over the course of the project. Lou, a team member responsible for assisting with updating the project schedule, expresses his concern about the time constraints over the next month. He is concerned there will not be enough time to attend the upcoming training seminar on how to use a new software program that is designed to help him with his tasks for maintaining the project schedule. Lou maintains that it is of the utmost importance to be able to attend the training. Jane, who is part of the project management team, needs Lou to be available to work on some key tasks. Jane reminds Lou and Calvin that the training seminar is important, but it will be presented three months from today's date and Lou can attend it when there is more flexibility in the project schedule. Calvin responds by agreeing that the training seminar is important and needs to be attended by Lou. Which part did Calvin play in this situation? Answers A. Calvin forced a solution B. Calvin was a collaborator C. Calvin avoided the problem D. Calvin was accommodating

Calvin was accommodating Assistance By agreeing that the training seminar is important and needs to be attended by Lou, Calvin was accommodating in this situation. In general, accommodating is a conflict resolution technique used to show importance on where parties agree instead of focusing on their differences.

Calvin, a project manager, has scheduled a meeting for his team to discuss problems that have developed over the course of the project. Lou, a team member responsible for assisting with updating the project schedule, expresses his concern about the time constraints over the next month. He is concerned there will not be enough time to attend the upcoming training seminar on how to use a new software program. This program is designed to help him with his tasks for maintaining the project schedule. Lou maintains that it is of the utmost importance to be able to attend the training. Jane, who is part of the project management team, needs Lou to be available to work on some key tasks. Jane reminds Lou and Calvin that the training seminar will be presented three months from today's date and Lou can attend it when there is more flexibility in the project schedule. Which action should Calvin take? Answers A. Agree with Lou and let him attend the upcoming training seminar B. Take into account Lou and Jane's points and let the team members come to a consensus C. Consider all aspects of the situation and check with key project stakeholders D. Let Lou decide when to take the training seminar Assistance Considering all aspects of the situation and checking with key project stakeholders is a form of collaboration. It is important as a project manager that Calvin gets the viewpoint from all key project stakeholders, including the other project management team members, when it comes to important decisions that could result in introducing project risk.

Consider all aspects of the situation and check with key project stakeholders Considering all aspects of the situation and checking with key project stakeholders is a form of collaboration. It is important as a project manager that Calvin gets the viewpoint from all key project stakeholders, including the other project management team members, when it comes to important decisions that could result in introducing project risk.

Feedback is sought out from stakeholders for evaluating their satisfaction with the project's final result. Before a final report can be created, which additional activity should be performed as part of closing the project? Answers A. Submit a change request to have project team members reassigned to a new project B. Consult the risk report for open risks C. Update the issue log with changes to project stakeholders attitudes D. Obtain formal acceptance documentation from the customer for the project deliverables

Consult the risk report for open risks The risk report is a document that provides summary information about individual risks and identifies sources of overall project risk. It is checked throughout the project to ensure that open risks are properly managed. The risk report is reviewed during project closing to ensure there are no open risks when the project ends.

Grace, a project manager for a multinational corporation, has chosen the people for the project team roles identified in the human resource plan for a project developing a new accounting program. The team members are geographically dispersed across multiple continents. The communications management plan identifies the technologies to be used by the team members when communicating amongst each other. Which is the GREATEST obstacle that must be overcome to build an effective team? Answers A. Disparate tools and technologies B. Different time zones C. Local human resource policies D. Cultural differences

Cultural differences When leading and managing a global team, cultural differences pose the greatest challenge to Grace because attitudes towards authority, rank, and position vary greatly by geographic region. These challenges may be tied to a variety of items such as differences in language, religion, gender roles, business practices, or local customs. Grace should put cultural issues on the agenda early to increase team awareness of these differences and to allow team members to express their concerns.

You have been developing a project to build an autonomous risk management toolkit that will allow your finance department to facilitate locking in commodity pricing. The project is being developed in sprints and is being monitored closely by several members of the finance team. The quick feedback you have received after each iteration has allows this project to be successful thus far. Your team consists mainly of staff at headquarters along with 2 virtual team members. One of these team members recently told you in confidence that they don't feel like part of the team, even though they have virtually attended every stand-up meeting. What should you do? Answers A. Let the team member go B. Discuss the issue with the remote team member and decide on a plan of action C. Discuss the issue as a team and decide on a plan of action D. Give the team member the option to move on-site

Discuss the issue with the remote team member and decide on a plan of action Agile teams rely on teamwork to fulfill project goals. Often Agile teams will have a mixture of on-site and remote employees. To ensure project success it is important that remote team members feel included as a part of the project culture. In this case, you would want to discuss possible solutions with that team member directly. This can help keep the individuals concerns confidential while coming up with a solution to their problem.

You've implemented individual training programs for each of your team members. You've noticed that most of the team is taking the online portions at their desk during work hours. You never clarify when the training should be taken. What should you do? Answers A. Ask them to take it during lunch hour B. Halt the training programs C. Ask them to take it afterhours D. Do nothing

Do nothing Do nothing, as supporting the team's training is crucial in developing and investing in the team. In fact, allocating time for training should be part of the Scrum Master or project manager's responsibility. Ideally, let the entire team know how you will support their training and development. There should be a commitment to them as roles change within the team. In fact, it may be against the law in some jurisdictions to force training outside of work hours.

Amanda works for company that has been built on the principles of providing secure solutions. She has been assigned a project for a mobile medical lab application. This is a new field of business for the company, and it is important that this project is successful. During the first iteration, a developer has included an encryption methodology that has been known to have flaws. The methodology was chosen because it reduced the complexity of the project and the processing overhead. The problem was identified by a client after the fourth iteration of the project and re-work will be required. The issue has hurt client trust and some clients have stopped utilizing the mobile application. How could this situation have best been avoided? Answers A. During interation planning, ensure the a Definition of Done accompanies each product backlog item B. Hold staff publicly accountable for their mistakes C. Ask clients to conduct penetration testing if they have concerns D. The project charter should have included organizational principles

During interation planning, ensure the a Definition of Done accompanies each product backlog item A clear Defintion of Done will help to minimize misunderstandings and disagreements about whether the product increment meets requirements after each iteration. The Definition of Done should include funtional requirements as well as non-functional requirements, such as the security requirement that was mentioned in this scenario.

While developing a new type of bearing that was meant to replace a recalled model, a major quality problem was discovered. Only ten percent of the bearings manufactured have been within the control limits. The process activities need to be reviewed to see where the process went wrong. Which type of diagram can be created to gather this information? Answers A. Pareto chart B. Flow chart C. Cause and effect diagram D. Control chart

Flow chart A flow chart is a visual representation of the steps in a process. Elements that are included in a flow chart are activities, decision points, and the way activities are sequenced. Flow charting can be used to predict where problems may occur.

You are currently managing a project that you took over halfway through due to the previous project manager leaving. The project is finally nearing completion after a large amount of delays over schedule conflicts for team members and budget restraints. The customer is satisfied with the final deliverable, although they made it clear that they were not happy with all of the problems during the project lifecycle. Which of the following is a requirement to close the project when a customer has stated their acceptance with the final project deliverable? Answers A. Project team satisfaction B. Formal sign off from the customer C. All validated changes D. Work performance information

Formal sign off from the customer A formal sign off from the customer is still required to close the project. If the customer has stated that they are satisfied with the deliverable, this would indicate that they are ready to begin the final process of signing off on the deliverables.

You are the newly appointed project manager for a project. Both the project management and change management plans have been completed. Which activities do you now need to perform as part of the Direct and Manage Project Work process? Answers A. Implement corrective actions, issue change requests, and release resources B. Generate work performance data, execute approved changes, and document lessons learned C. Generate work performance reports, implement corrective actions, and document lessons learned D. Approve requested changes, manage approved changes, and release resources

Generate work performance data, execute approved changes, and document lessons learned The Direct and Manage Project Work process falls within the Project Integration Management knowledge area. Project Integration Management is all about integrating the different aspects of a project. This means the activities that make up the Direct and Manage Project Work process span across other knowledge areas. Some important activities performed during the Direct and Manage Project Work process are as follows: - generating work performance data - executing approved changes - issuing change requests - documenting lessons learned

Corrective action has been taken for an issue that could have affected the project completion date. Which method of communication should be used when conveying this information to a key stakeholder? Answers A. By e-mail B. By a note C. In a memo D. In a presentation

In a presentation Notifying a key stakeholder about a corrective action taken should be done in a formal way due to its importance. An example of this would be in a presentation.

Jim is managing a project that has been underway for several weeks. A problem has been encountered that may cause a conflict between some of the project stakeholders. Where would you document who is responsible for resolving the problem? Answers A. Stakeholder register B. Communications management plan C. Issue log D. Stakeholder engagement plan

Issue log The issue log enables you to keep track of identified and potential issues as they arise to limit their impact on the project and to ensure a common understanding. You give each issue a tracking number and describe its impact if it is not resolved. You also identify who the issue has been assigned to for resolution. All the relevant dates, such as when the issue originated, when it should be resolved, and the date of actual resolution are also recorded. Lastly, you list the action status of the issue.

You have been selected as the project manager for a new project that is being performed for your organization. The initiator of the project has signed off on the project initiation documentation. How does this documentation benefit you? Answers A. It includes detailed project requirements that will aid you in the creation of the work breakdown structure. B. It provides you with a list of the key stakeholders on the project and their level of influence. C. It associates the project to the strategic plans of your organization and its operations. D. It provides you with the power to allocate funds and assign corporate resources.

It provides you with the power to allocate funds and assign corporate resources. Assistance One of the main benefits of having proper project initiation documentation such as an approved project charter is that it names the project manager and their authority on the project. This provides you with the power to spend money and assign corporate resources to project activities. Typically, in most corporate structures, resources report to their functional manager and not to the project manager. Without this official approval, it may be difficult for a project manager to obtain the necessary resources and funds.

You work in an organization with multiple project managers who get together in the company's lounge to relax or talk about the day's events. One of the project managers starts discussing with you the need for some processes and practices to be more efficient. What approach is normally taken to achieve the results that the project manager is describing? Answers A. Reserve analysis B. SWOT analysis C. Kaizen D. Gold plating

Kaizen To help make processes and procedures more efficient, continuous improvement is one approach that can be taken. Continuous improvement improves quality, of which efficiency is an example. Kaizen is another term for continuous improvement.

You are working on a project developing AI for lead generation that will change how your sales staff interacts with new clients. The product has just had the first major release and sales associates are working feverishly on new leads. You have a few user stories planned for this iteration to cover some feature requests made during earlier brainstorming sessions. What is the best action for the project team to take? Answers A. Put the current iteration on hold until the sales team has a chance to provide feedback B. Write your lessons learned documentation C. Keep producing the current iteration while collecting and analyzing data D. Finish the current iteration and start closing out the project

Keep producing the current iteration while collecting and analyzing data Agile development relies on data and feedback to generate user stories. As a project manager, you will constantly be evaluating the best way to deliver business value with each iteration and actively adjusting the iterations accordingly. The best step, in this case, is to keep going on the current story points while collecting and analyzing data. It is acceptable if a key data point comes up that changes the current iteration.

Project planning has completed and you are managing the execution of the project. One day, the customer meets with you to bring up an issue. You document the issue in the issue log and explain to the customer that you understand their concern and will address it next week. What are you currently engaged in with the customer? Answers A. Responding to risks B. Determining communication channels C. Distributing information D.

Managing stakeholder expectations The issue log is used to document issues that arise as well as manage stakeholder expectations. In this case, you document the issue in the issue log and explain that the issue will be addressed next week. This is managing the expectations that the customer has about when the issue will be resolved.

You are currently executing the activities for a project to produce an effective and safe drug that can be sold to pharmacies around the world. One of the ingredients in the drug is only manufactured by a few suppliers, two of which are reputable and one that is known for quality control issues. The supplier with the quality control issues sells the ingredient at a cost of 50% less than the two reputable suppliers. The customer wants you to change suppliers to purchase the ingredient from the supplier that sells the ingredient at a cheaper price point, as costs for the ingredients from your current supplier have increased. You explain the risks that are known with this supplier and the benefits of buying the ingredient from one of the other suppliers. You remind the customer that one of the major goals for the project is to produce an effective and safe drug. You address their cost concerns and help resolve the issue. Which activity BEST describes what you are you currently engaged in? Answers A. Controlling costs to meet the project's goals B. Making relevant information available to the customer C. Managing the customer's expectations D. Ensuring the ingredient meets the specifications

Managing the customer's expectations The activity described in the overall scenario is managing the customer's expectations. Managing stakeholder expectations begins with having a good understanding of the stakeholder's needs and desires for the project. This process involves negotiating with and influencing stakeholder decisions to help better meet their expectations and to ensure that the goals of the project are met.

Samantha has been hired to rescue a project that has been stuck in development for over a year without any major releases. During that time several iterations had been completed, but in reviewing the project roadmap is appears that the project teams is continuously jumping from user story to user story without any clear plan. It appears that product backlog has not been updated since the initial project kickoff meeting. What should Samantha do? Answers A. Assign story points to each item on the product backlog B. Discuss the possibility of starting fresh with the project owner and rebooting the project back to day 1 C. Review the project roadmap to ensure each product backlog item is accounted for D. Meet with key stakeholders and review the product backlog with an emphasis on assigning priority to items

Meet with key stakeholders and review the product backlog with an emphasis on assigning priority to items The product backlog requires that the project manager be in constant communication with key users to ensure that features are being prioritized based on business value. It shows that there are communication breakdowns in receiving feedback when the product backlog has not been updated. The project artifacts require consistent review and update in order for the project manager to best ensure that business value is delivered.

While creating the schedule for a project you are managing, you need to prepare appropriate contingency and response plans for risks that may be encountered that would delay the project. Which method is the MOST appropriate to achieve this? Answers A. Root cause identification B. Reserve analysis C. Monte Carlo analysis D. Delphi technique

Monte Carlo analysis The most common simulation technique used is the Monte Carlo analysis. A Monte Carlo analysis is used to test the feasibility of the draft schedule by assessing a series of worst-case scenarios, based on activity assumptions. The results of this technique are used to prepare appropriate contingency and response plans, outlining how the project can finish on time despite possible delays.

You have been assigned as the project manager for a new project. A lot of the high-level planning and requirements have been completed and this information is provided to you by the project sponsor. You coordinate initiating efforts with all key stakeholders, including the customer. Together you determine the initial project organization, the milestones required, project success criteria, and how the scope is to be controlled. Which activity should be completed FIRST before proceeding with the project? Answers A. Perform stakeholder analysis B. Obtain project charter approval C. Perform product analysis D. Develop the human resource management plan

Obtain project charter approval One of the first tasks that must be completed with any potential project is the creation of the project charter. A project is officially authorized when the project charter is signed by the project sponsor or initiator. In this scenario, you are completing initiating activities that are required before you finalize the project charter and obtain formal approval for the project. Once formal approval is obtained, more detailed planning can begin.

You are a project manager for a non-governmental organization. You have been assigned to a project that is in its earliest stages of development and involves providing a water purifying system for a small town in a developing country. Your company has completed similar projects in the past. Where would be the BEST place to start gathering information to document the preliminary scope of the project? Answers A. Organizational process assets B. Project management information system C. Enterprise environmental factors D. Progressive elaboration

Organizational process assets Organizational process assets (OPAs) can be any process-related asset that can be used to influence the project's success. These assets can come from any organization that is involved with or that can influence the project. OPAs can be grouped into two categories: processes and procedures, and the corporate knowledge base.In this scenario, it states that your company has completed similar problems in the past, so you would want to check your corporate knowledge base for historical information from previous projects, past project files, and for documented lessons learned.

You are the project manager of a large IT project. A manager from a company contracted to work on the project offers you free tickets to a local sporting event. The tickets are expensive, but your organization has no formal policy regarding gifts. Which response is the BEST way to handle the offer? Answers A. Accept the tickets since there is no policy. B. Refuse the tickets and report the offer to your employer. C. Politely refuse the tickets. D. Analyze the directions of stakeholder's influence D. Focus on the reporting tools for communication Assistance Analyzing the directions of influence is one way to help understand the how and who can influence a project and its outcomes. You can classify stakeholders by their direction of influence. You can have upwards influence with sponsors and executives, downwards with the team, outwards with contractors and end-users, and sideward with peers of the Scrum Master or project manager. This helps you understand and determine the levels of decision-making authority and influence.

Politely refuse the tickets. The best way to handle this type of offer is to politely reject the offer. Taking gifts can be viewed as personal gain and may affect your integrity as a project manager, and open you and your organization to complaints of improper conduct

You are working to re-cable the networkA project to build a payroll system has been assigned to you. The project is being developed for internal use, and should only be delivered to accounting upon completion. The project requirements are specific and it will need to be built to specification. What project management methodology should you use? Answers A. Predictive B. Waterfall C. Agile D. Constructed

Predictive Projects that are developed to a specification and delivered upon full completion are best suited for the predictive model of development. The predictive model allows for projects to follow a predictable path to completion within a specified budget. The plan is designed around ensuring all specifications are met and the project has a clearly defined end date.

You are managing new staff members who are performing work to create a particular procurement item. On your personal schedule for the day, you have a meeting set up to meet with the new staff. You arrive in the meeting room to discover that no staff members have arrived. After waiting thirty minutes, you leave to attend another meeting. The next day, you meet with a couple of the staff members and ask why they did not show up to the meeting. They mention that they were not aware that they had to attend any meetings. Which document should have outlined the meeting requirement? Answers A. Procurement statement of work B. Project charter C. Resource calendar D. Business case

Procurement statement of Work The procurement statement of work needs to clearly outline all the work required for the procurement, including the required meetings.

A manager in the finance department put in a feature request for the payment software a few months ago and she was told that it was added to the product backlog. She wants a quick update for a planned release, what tool would she be able to use to see this information? Answers A. Product backlog B. Release register C. Project plan D. Product roadmap

Product roadmap The product roadmap is a living document that provides a high level overview of when planned features are scheduled to be implemented and what the tentative release date is. This allows stakeholders to verify where on the product roadmap the project manager is and where a current feature is on the priority list.

You are the project manager for your organization. During the closing stage of your project, a team member who is training to become a project manager asks which documents are typically referenced during the closing of a project. Which of the following is the BEST answer to the team member's question? Answers A. Scope statement B. Project baselines C. Final project report D. Project management plan

Project management plan The project management plan is the best tool to use when measuring project completion status. The project management plan contains information such as the scope statement, various baselines, and any other relevant information or documentation required to measure project completion.

You are managing a landscaping project for the city. The project's purpose is to decorate the park to commemorate the city's 200th anniversary. The official flower is in short supply due to a heat wave in the area in which they are grown. Therefore, the price per plant will be higher than originally planned. While a potential supplier shortage was an identified risk, it was not due to a heat wave causing a shortage in the supply chain. You are in the process of reassessing the project risks, but need to know what the tolerances for the original project risks were. Where do you find this information? Answers A. Risk reviews B. Risk audit C. Project management plan D. Risk register

Project management plan D. Risk register Assistance The project management plan, which contains the risk management plan, includes the risk tolerances. It also identifies the assignment of resources to the project risks. The project management plan is a consolidation of all the subsidiary management plans.

You are a project manager who has been recently hired by a large projectized organization. You have been assigned to an internal project and you are working closely with the project sponsor to develop the documentation that will formally authorize the first phase of the project. Who is responsible for providing information on the business needs? Answers A. External customer B. Users C. Project manager D. Project sponsor

Project sponsor In this scenario, the project manager and sponsor are in the process of developing the project charter, which will be used to formally authorize a project or an individual phase of a project. One of the key inputs to creating a project charter is the business case, which includes information on the business needs for the product or service.

Marianne is the project manager for a project. The project team has begun performing the activities outlined by the project plan during the week from Monday to Friday from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Bob provides the funds for the project and resources are always available to Marianne. Meetings are scheduled every other Friday to meet with her staff of designers, network engineers, and software engineers. At the end of every month, Marianne and her staff meet with the project managers from her organization and their staff for a fun night out. Within which type of organization is Marianne working? Answers A. Projectized B. Balanced matrix C. Weak matrix D. Strong matrix

Projectized Marianne is working within a projectized organization. In a projectized organization, the project manager is full time, has staff that reports directly to them with no functional managers, and is one of many project managers within the organization. We know that Marianne works full-time hours during the week. We also know that she has her own staff of designers, network engineers, and software engineers. Also, because she meets with other project managers and their staff and no functional managers are described, it is clear she works in a projectized organization.

As the project manager in charge of a mission critical project, it is important that you identify and categorize as many potential risks as possible. Which of the following would NOT help with this? Answers A. Risk register B. SWOT analysis C. Delphi technique D. Brainstorming

Risk register The risk register is an output of the Identify Risks process; it would not be used to help in identifying project risks. The risk register is a document that contains the results of the other risk management processes, including the information gathered during risk identification. It also includes a list of potential responses to be used in the event that an identified risk occurs.

The sprint review revealed significant setbacks. The team is overestimating their throughput and is placing blame on others. The product owner is highly stressed over the backlog and argues with the team. You are frustrated at the situation and defend the team. The team disperses and the product owner is angry and demands more resources, or he will quit. How should you handle this situation? Answers A. Retreat from the situation B. Let him quit C. Accommodate the product owner D. Find a creative compromise

Retreat from the situation Retreating from a highly volatile situation would be best in this situation. If you or the product owner are prone to outbursts, it is better to withdraw from the situation and allow some time to calm down and reflect. It may be better to postpone an issue than to deal with it with clouded emotion. Keep in mind, failing to address the issue eventually will cause more conflict overtime.

What is the first step in leading your project team? Answers A. Set a clear vision and mission B. Define a project management style C. Encourage performance D. Cultivate collaboration

Set a clear vision and mission Setting a clear vision and mission is core to effective project leadership and should be the first step in leading your team. You need to build and share a common vision and mission so the team can identify with the goals of the project and work towards them. Projects should use SMART objectives, ones that are specific, measurable, achievable, relevant and timeboxed.

You are working on a project to build an encrypted messaging platform. The platform has undergone several iterations and recently your organization has expanded. As part of this expansion you will be taking on two junior developers. You have been asked to bring them up to speed on the project quickly and ensure that they get all the support required for them to move into senior developer positions in due time. You want to make sure that their needs are met. What should you do? Answers A. Schedule training for the junior developers B. Assign the junior developers easy tasks C. Set up a regularly scheduled meeting with the junior staff to discuss performance and improvement D. Assign the junior developers to a senior developer

Set up a regularly scheduled meeting with the junior staff to discuss performance and improvement As a project manager, you will often be put in a situation where you must mentor new staff and help them achieve their career goals. In order to be successful at this, it is best to use performance management techniques like reviewing performance and improvement plans with staff on a regular basis. In this case, you will want to give the junior developers enough freedom to learn on their own, but provide mentorship to them on what they should best spend their time learning.

You have recently initiated a project that is designed to create a new process that will be used by the manufacturing department in your organization. You need to provide the project team with information about how to engage the users in the manufacturing department to ensure that their needs are met. Which management plan is the BEST place to enter this information? Answers A. Requirements management plan B. Stakeholder engagement plan C. Resource management plan D. Communications management plan

Stakeholder engagement plan The stakeholder engagement plan is a subsidiary of the project management plan. It outlines how to communicate with different stakeholders, based on their interests, influence, and attitudes toward the project. It documents the communication requirements of project stakeholders based on an analysis of their needs. This includes identifying who needs what information, how it is to be distributed, and the frequency of the communications.

You are the project manager for a large organization, and often manage several projects simultaneously. One of the projects that you are currently working on is nearing completion, and you have already attained formal acceptance of the deliverables from the customer. One of the remaining tasks is to complete the collection of lessons learned. You have already collected a large assortment of information relating to the project. Which of the following information is contained in the lessons learned documentation? Answers A. Work performance information B. Stakeholder feedback C. Final project report D. Procurement file

Stakeholder feedback Stakeholder feedback can be very important for future projects. It ensures that the things that went well during the project, such as communication methods, will continue on into other similar projects. This is why stakeholder feedback is part of the lessons learned documentation.

You are the project lead overseeing a project to create a new wireless media streaming device. An LCD display was used that does not match the original project scope. During a stakeholder meeting, the customer expresses that they are upset and the screen should be changed. Your CEO is worried about the costs associated with the replacement of the screens and believes the product is fine as it is. Functional managers are concerned about the additional time it will take the workers to replace the screens and suggest a revised model slightly after product release. Other upper management suggests releasing a standard version with the current LCD and a deluxe model with another LCD. As the manager, you need to settle this dispute. In whose favor should this dispute be resolved? Answers A. Your CEO B. Functional managers C. Upper management D. The customer

The customer Although the customer is not always right, they are one of the most important stakeholders. Without the customer, there would be no project. Their interests should be handled with great importance. In the event where all things are equal, disputes should be resolved in favor of the customer. If the customer was making unnecessary demands, or asking for more than they paid for, then the situation would go another way.

You have been assigned to a project and have been asked to help develop the project charter. You need to identify any risks, assumptions, and constraints that are the result of the current environment. Which of the following should be considered? Answers A. Standardized process definitions that are used by your organization B. Form templates that are used by your organization C. Plans outlining economic factors from the previous project D. The skills and availability of human resources

The skills and availability of human resources The skills and availability of human resources is an enterprise environmental factor (EEF) that should be considered. The lack of availability of skilled workers can lead to potential risks, assumptions, and constraints on the project.

You have been working on an iteration that will add several user stories to a cloud-based video editing suite. You have received feedback on a recently released feature from a previous iteration. The team has decided to re-work that user story to meet the feedback received by clients. This will require a modification the current schedule. What method of modifying the scope of this iteration would be best? Answers A. Update stakeholders on the proposed changes and update the burn-down chart to show that the user story is being reworked B. Update the project charter to include the changes for this iteration C. Push the changes to the next iteration and maintain the current schedule D. Consult your change control board on the proposed changes and update your project plan accordingly

Update stakeholders on the proposed changes and update the burn-down chart to show that the user story is being reworked The project should be driven by customer/user demand and if the previously release feature is a priority for clients, it will need to be reworked. Adding it to the current iteration is the best option, but to do so the project manager should update key stakeholders on the change in schedule and scope. The project manager should also update the burn-down chart to show the changes in the iteration.

Evan is leading a project team in the development of a piece of software used for tracking bird migrations. Evan sees a potential problem with the interface that John, the customer, wants. Evan has some ideas about how to fix the issue, but he is unsure if John will support the necessary changes to the product as it will add additional time to the project schedule. Evan needs to address these concerns before it becomes an issue. What should he do FIRST? Answers A. Refer to the stakeholder management plan. B. Update the project schedule to include additional time for the extra work. C. Review the procurement statement of work. D. Set up a face-to-face meeting with John.

Update the project schedule to include additional time for the extra work. Evan should first refer to the stakeholder management plan. The stakeholder management plan directly outlines the different approaches to be taken to improve stakeholder support and to help reduce possible obstacles. This will help guide Evan when he addresses the issue with John.

Two project team members are observed in a heated discussion about the results of the project review of the lessons learned collated throughout the first phase of the project. The team member who observer the argument thinks that this issue is will negatively affect the attitudes of other team members not involved and informs the project manager. What should the project manager do NEXT? A. Observe later interactions between the project team members involved in the argument to see if there are lasting effects. B. Ignore the advice from the project team member and continue managing the project C. Call the team members by phone separately to let them know they are no longer needed to work on the project D. Have a face-to-face meeting with both project team members involved in the disagreement at the same time to get the two members to work out their issues

.Observe later interactions between the project team members involved in the argument to see if there are lasting effects. Since the project manager is hearing this information second hand, they cannot be sure whether the two-team members are too emotional to be able to work out their differences. Therefore, the project manager should monitor the situation by observing later interactions between the project team members to see if there are lasting effects.

You are planning the procurement of some widgets that will be needed for a project that you are managing. You need to ensure that any contract-related risk falls on the seller. Which contract type will meet your needs? A. A cost-plus-fixed-fee contract B. A firm fixed-price contract C. A cost-plus-incentive-fee contract D. A fixed-price with economic price adjustment contract

A firm fixed-price contract With a fixed-price contract, the buyer pays an agreed price. Firm fixed-price contracts are the simplest and most common. The seller offers a product or service at a price and the buyer agrees to pay the price. A seller's profits are equal to this fixed price minus any costs. So a seller bound by a firm fixed-price contract is vulnerable to changing market forces. With a firm fixed-price contract, the seller carries all the risk.

During a project, a piece of working software has been completed and tested. After, the project team members get together to discuss the effectiveness of unit testing. Although the unit testing was successful, they discuss how the process for unit testing can be improved in the future. What does this situation describe? A. Data gathering B. Defect repair C. Gold platting D. A retrospective

A retrospective Agile retrospectives are a powerful tool when used by agile teams. They are special meetings that take place at the end of a specific period of work, usually at the end of a sprint, or iteration, or at the end of a release. It gives the project team an opportunity to analyze results. For example, are we delivering the quality that we expect to be delivering within an iteration? It also helps to identify ways for improving processes.

Bill's team is defining and agreeing on the core working hours and flextime Fridays. They also work out ground rules for meetings and agree to raise issues as soon as individuals are aware. They agree to take ownership of tasks they are assigned. What is Bill's team trying to create? A. A social contract B. A project contract C. A dynamic contract D. A employment contract

A social contract A team's social contract, also known as a team charter, outlines ground rules for the team. It covers items including core working hours, working agreements, and expected behaviors in meetings. Social contracts are ideal for Agile teams to define their own standards and unite the team with a sense of ownership.

You are creating a network diagram for the project schedule you are currently working on. You need to identify the amount of free float that is available for the activities. Refer to the exhibit.How much free float is associated with Activity B?

A. 3 The free float for Activity B is the duration it can be delayed before it delays the start for Activity C. The formula used to calculate the free float for an activity is the early start (ES) date of the successor activity minus the early finish (EF) date of the current activity minus 1 (Free Float = ES - EF - 1) when the first day of the project begins on day 1. Therefore, the following calculation is used:Free Float = 6 - 2 - 1Free Float = 3

Steve is managing a project to deliver an energy management solution for industrial clients. The project has undergone several releases. The next iteration will require the onboarding of several team members that will work remotely. These team members each specialize in electrical systems within the different regions they represent. They will be responsible for delivering new functionality based on user stories in this iteration along with being a point of contact for questions concerning development of other user stories. These specialists will work at off hours and may not be able to meet during regular scheduled meetings. What should you do? A. Meet with the new team members and establish a formal method of communication B. Hold several stand-up meetings per day to accommodate staff C. Update the project management plan with the new requirements and distribute it to the remote employees

A. Meet with the new team members and establish a formal method of communication In this case you will want to meet with the new team members and establish a formal method of communication that works for them. Due to time zones, they may be unable to meet during the daily stand-up meeting but should be made aware of what is happening with the project, daily. Additionally, these staff members will need to communicate with other staff to provide insight in relationship to their specific role. A formal agreed upon method of communication is the best solution.

Your department head lets you know they have a small budget for training this quarter. He's asked for you and the rest of the project leads to identify one person to send for training. You all want to invest in your Agile organization. What characteristics would you look for in the individual? Answers A. Ability to handle ambiguity B. Conservative mindset C. Technical skills D. Confidence

Ability to handle ambiguity Among other traits, the ability to handle ambiguity is a key characteristic. Agile organizations should seek, support, and grow individuals with a growth mindset where they don't need every detail defined before they start a project. You should also consider the level of agreeableness, or the ability to collaborate and work collectively to a common goal.

You are the project lead overseeing a project to create a new wireless media streaming device. The working model has been created and you are meeting with the customer to ensure that it meets the specifications. Upon inspection, the customer informs you that the LCD output screen does not meet the requirements that were originally agreed upon; however, they will tolerate the change. Which action will MOST likely result from this? Answers A. Accepted deliverables B. Technical performance measurement C. Variance analysis D. Closed project or phase

Accepted deliverables The action that is being described in the question is product inspection, which is a technique of the Validate Scope process. In the event that a deliverable meets the customer's criteria, the resulting action is an accepted deliverable. However, in the event that the product does not meet the requirements, a formal change request is submitted.

The current project is based on a hybrid organization. The project manager is reviewing the usage of the project team members. The project manager notices that one on the team members that works in the finance department is underperforming. The project is now behind schedule by two days and cannot be delayed any further without delaying the project end date. The project manager determines that the team member was not trained to use the scheduling software. What should the project manager do NEXT? Answers A. Add a new team member trained using the software B. Analyze the situation C. Provide training for the current team member D. Find out what the problem is in this situation

Add a new team member trained using the software After analyzing the problem, possible solutions need to be identified and implemented to see if the problem can be resolved. Since the project schedule can no longer be delayed, the only viable solution is for the project manager obtain a new team member trained using the software. Since this is a hybrid organization, the project manager may need to negotiate with the functional manager of the finance department to obtain a different resource.

You are working on a project to implement an automated system for customer check-in for a hotel chain. The project budget is $10 million and you have a schedule of 8 months to build and implement the product. The new system is estimated to be used by 70% of all customers by the end of the first year. During a risk assessment brainstorming session, a staff member mentioned the risk of harming the organizational culture. The hotel chain was built on customer service and automating the system may drive customers away as it removes that opportunity for customer satisfaction. After the meeting you felt that the staff member may be correct. What should you do to best evaluate the impact the project will have on the organization? A. Add the risk to the risk register as low impact and low severity and accept the risk B. Add the risk to the risk register as high impact and high severity and come up with a plan of action C. Add the risk to the project plan as high impact and high severity and accept the risk D. Add the risk to the project plan as low impact and high severity and come up with a plan of action

Add the risk to the risk register as high impact and high severity and come up with a plan of action The risk register is a document designed to help evaluate risk to the project and to the organization. The risk of losing business because of the project is a real risk, and it should be classified as high impact and high severity. Key stakeholders should meet to discuss the risk and come up with a plan to help mitigate or reduce the impact of the risk to the overall business.

You are part of a small organization developing mobile project management suite. The project will need to be adapted during the project execution phase in order to meet any changes in business needs. The project is to be ongoing as clients may request new features at any time. What project management methodology should you use? A. Predictive B. Constructed C. Agile D. Waterfall

Agile A project that requires the team to be adaptive to change is best suited for the Agile methodology. The Agile methodology embraces change and delivers high value items first. It is best suited for projects that can be built upon.

Helen, a project sponsor, has chosen Brad to lead a project team of engineers and people from other departments in the development of new materials that can be used for various applications. Brad knows from past experience that the engineers can be distracted by non-work related discussions. Senior management has also warned Brad that the engineers have been disruptive in the past to other departments within the organization and that it cannot happen again. So, Brad schedules a meeting with the project team to set the expectations on how they should act when working on the project. Once the rules are in place, who should enforce them? Answers A. All project team members B. Helen C. Brad D. Engineers

All project team members This situation describes the ground rules for how project team members should act as a team. Everyone on the project team is responsible for enforcing the ground rules that are implemented; not just people from specific departments or the project manager.

During a project, you notice that a particular process is under performing. To address this issue, you and the members from the quality audit team complete a process improvement plan. The plan identifies what the existing process actually does and what the results should be. What should they do NEXT? Answers A. Inspect the current process B. Document the steps in the new process C. Gain consensus with the team members on the best solution D. Analyze the problems with the process to be improved

Analyze the problems with the process to be improved Based on the information that was defined in the process improvement plan, the next step is to perform process analysis. Analyzing the problems with the process to be improved is part of performing process analysis. Without studying the problems with the current process, you will not be able to perform the activities to make a change to the process.

You are working on developing a mobile app for a large appliance manufacturer. The mobile app will allow customers to run diagnostics on their appliances and put in for warranty repairs. The project is being developed in sprints with an emphasis on delivering the highest business value first. You have finished a brainstorming session with a mixture of users, project team members, and marketing staff. Your team has a good product backlog developed to being kickoff. How should you best ensure the highest business value is delivered first? A. As a group create a ranking of the user stories based upon total business value delivered and organize them into a Fibonacci sequence B. Prioritize the user stories from marketing first C. Rank the user stories based on what you believe will deliver the most overall business value D. Prioritize the user stories from customers first

As a group create a ranking of the user stories based upon total business value delivered and organize them into a Fibonacci sequence In Agile projects, user stories can be ranked depending upon complexity or business value. This ranking is often done using a Fibonacci sequence and is designed to ensure that priority is given to the deliverable that has the highest business value or highest complexity. This is done within a group setting to best ensure that different opinions on the ranking are heard. In this case, it would be best to rank the project based on total business value delivered as a group.

During an entire sprint, your team argues over the test cases being used to test the user stories. They've tried their own approaches with no success. You've had extensive experience with this. How should you handle this? A. Ask the stakeholders for advice B. Let them work it out C. Make them collaborate D. Ask the team to take your approach

Ask the team to take your approach If individuals have tried failed approaches, the project manager should take a more directive leadership style and lead the team. A directive leadership style favors more ownership or authoritative approaches to get the work done. On the other hand, a collaborative leadership style facilitates and supports the project team is useful in situations requiring more input from the team in decision-making, and so on.

Steve is working on a project to build a lead generation and quotation app for a client. The app will allow mobile sales representatives to connect back to the corporate office in real-time. The sales representatives will be able to connect into the local product database and put live pricing data in front of clients. The platform should help increase remote sales by up to 20% and reduce the lag time between lead generation and sale by 50%. You have just finished your first sprint and are ready to test the app in the field. What can you use to best demonstrate the value of the app to your sales team? A. Hold a meeting with key stakeholders to discuss the improvements B. Use key performance indicators and benchmarks to show the business improvement C. Add an analytics platform as a user story to a future iteration D. During onboarding, mention the improved speeds to your clients

B. Use key performance indicators and benchmarks to show the business improvement Agile and waterfall methodologies both use key performance indicators to demonstrate the value of the product. In this case, the performance indicator could be compared to a benchmark to show the improvement over time. By using key performance indicators and baseline data, you are giving the product users real data that shows the improvement over the previous methodology or product.

Your Scrum team just found out through office chatter that 4 of the 9 members may be reassigned to another project in the next few days. You knew this was going to happen but wanted to keep the team focused on delivering the current sprint. The stakeholders are asking for updates. What should you do? A. Deny the change until the sprint is complete B. Direct them to the other project sponsor C. Be positive about the change D. Be honest and take ownership

Be honest and take ownership Stakeholders and team members alike respect honesty and leaders that take ownership. They expect the project manager to lead by be accountable, predictable, and reliable. The best project managers or Scrum Masters lead by relating to the team and understanding the needs of the stakeholders. Keeping people informed, whether it be positive or negative, will help the project stay focused and address issues, immediately.

You are the project manager responsible for creating a new version of your company's flagship toaster. You have been given 4 months and a budget of $350,000 to come up with a prototype. The project sponsor would like you to create one model that can service several regions. The prototype will need to meet regulatory compliance in several jurisdictions. Your team of engineers all have backgrounds working in North America. During your risk assessment, you have highlighted the risk that lack of regulatory knowledge in Europe could cause issues. What should you do? A. Bring in a specialist that understand the European regulations B. Task an engineer to read up on European guidelines C. Monitor the risk through product development D. Assume they are similar in nature and update your assumptions document

Bring in a specialist that understand the European regulations Sometimes as a project manager, you may not have the expertise on staff to complete certain tasks. In this case, the risk of losing out on sales in an entire market would be significant and the best mitigation would be to bring in a subject matter expert. This will ensure that the produce is compliant with all regulations needed to be sold in that market.

The audit team has determined that by modifying the pressure and temperature for a process, they can improve the structural integrity of the materials created. How did they come about their conclusion? A. By studying the results after performing a design of experiment on the pressure and temperatures used B. Using the flowcharting process to see where the temperature and pressure could be changed C. Performing a force field analysis on the temperature and pressure at varying levels D. Taking measurements from a control chart at discrete intervals for pressure and temperature and analyzing the resulting data

By studying the results after performing a design of experiment on the pressure and temperatures used By studying the results from the design of experiments on the pressure and temperatures used, the audit team could arrive at their conclusion. In general, the design of experiments technique is used to see how changes in multiple variables can work together to improve process results.

Sarah has been working on a project to build a financial reporting tool for a corporate client. The project is being managed in small iterations and has had several successful releases. Recently Sarah received notice that the cloud provider chosen will be closing down operations. The project will need to find a new cloud provider. Sarah has chosen a new cloud provider, but will need to ensure that regulatory compliance is assured. What should Sarah do to best understand the effect that changing cloud providers will have? A. Update the risk register B. Forward the specs of the cloud provider to the compliance officer C. Conduct a brainstorming meeting with the project team and a subject matter expert to discuss threats to compliance D. Meet with the former cloud provider to discuss an extension of service

C. Conduct a brainstorming meeting with the project team and a subject matter expert to discuss threats to compliance Whenever there is a change to a project there is a risk that compliance may become an issue. In this case, it would be best to meet with the project team and a subject matter expect to discuss threats to compliance. This will best ensure that all possible threats are considered and accounted for prior to moving forward with the next iteration.

After a delay in receiving parts, a team member has finished assembling the final product for the activity they were working on. What should be done NEXT? A. Have the customer formally approve the product. B. Let the customer know the product is finished and ready to be approved. C. Check that the product meets the quality specifications. D. Have the quality assurance department review the procedures for assembling the product.

Check that the product meets the quality specifications. Once the product has been assembled, the product should be checked to ensure that it meets the quality specifications. After receiving this confirmation, the activity is considered to be completed.

Wayne's team takes the XP approach. He's used pair programming to share knowledge. He has frequent interactions with the customer and end user to understand their expectations. What else could help Wayne encourage knowledge sharing in this environment? A. Complete documentation B. Historical records C. Code standard D. Locked-down requirements

Code standard The Agile or XP approach to knowledge sharing is to conform with coding standards. It helps reduce the transfer time by sidestepping debates of modeling styles. Customer tests and collective code ownership are a few other examples of ways to maintain knowledge transfer by understanding customer expectations and sharing code with all developers, respectively.

Several stakeholders are in disagreement over the features that must be included within the new product, and what features may not be completely necessary. As the project manager for the project, you have convened a meeting to discuss some possible methods of resolving the problems. You would like the stakeholders to come up with a solution that will allow each party to come to a permanent agreement. The stakeholders come up with a solution that will involve each party giving something up. Which conflict resolution method does this BEST describe? A. Forcing B. Problem solving C. Smoothing D. Compromising

Compromising Compromising occurs when disagreeing parties agree to give up something, and then agree to a solution including aspects of both parties' positions. This solution is moderately good for relationships and provides a permanent solution.

Bob is leading a project rescue process. He's established control, improved the communication with the team and stakeholders. The product is stabilized, and performance seems to be improving. What can help Bob verify performance improvements? Answers A. HR system B. Product backlog C. Annual performance reviews D. Consistent on-the-job reviews

Consistent on-the-job reviews Consistent on-the-job reviews can help Bob verify the performance improvements. You can also use meetings, whether in-person or video conferencing. Collaboration tools, project documents, and project management information systems can also help you verify performance improvements.

You are the project manager for a large manufacturing organization. You are currently managing a project designed to create a new line of fishing boats. Several weeks into the project, you are informed that John, the head of marketing, is concerned that the new boats will not provide any sales advantage over the current offerings. What is the FIRST thing you should do? A. Consult the stakeholder engagement plan to determine how to gain John's support for the project. B. Contact John to determine the basis of his concerns and what can be included in the project to meet his expectations. C. Refer to the communication management plan to determine the escalation process for John's concerns. D. Update the stakeholder register with information about John's concerns.

Consult the stakeholder engagement plan to determine how to gain John's support for the project. The stakeholder engagement plan is a subsidiary of the project management plan. It contains information about how to involve the different stakeholders in the project and gain their support. It also outlines how to communicate with different stakeholders, based on their interests, influence, and attitudes toward the project. The first thing you should do in this scenario is consult the stakeholder engagement plan to determine how to manage John's expectations and gain his support for the project.

You have identified the risks associated with a project that you are managing. You now need to perform a qualitative analysis on the risks. All of the following will help you with this, EXCEPT: Answers A. Cost baseline B. Risk management plan C. Organizational process assets D. Risk register

Cost baseline One way to measure the impact of a risk is in terms of how it will affect project costs based on the starting point of the cost baseline. For this reason, the cost baseline is an important input during quantitative risk analysis. The cost baseline is used as an input to the Perform Quantitative Risk Analysis process. However, it is not used as an input to the Perform Qualitative Risk Analysis process.

The project lifecycle will vary between different projects because of the deliverables and activities that occur within the different projects. However, there is a general life cycle structure that will apply to most projects. Which statement is TRUE regarding the planning of project costs? Answers A. Cost levels are high toward the end of the project B. Cost levels are at their highest as the work is carried out C. The cost of changes decreases toward the end of the project D. Cost levels are high near the start of the project

Cost levels are at their highest as the work is carried out It is true that cost levels are the highest as project work is carried out. Once planning is complete and project work begins, material and staff costs are typically at their highest or ramping up to their high point.

A project manager has recently left the organization after a recent iteration. The iteration introduced several customer-facing issues that have had a negative impact on the business. In taking over, you noticed that several user stories did not have any test cases created for quality assurance. You need to fix the issues quickly so the business can recover. What should you do? A. Bring in additional quality assurance resources B. Create a performance improvement plan for the developers that have been skipping test cases C. Create the test cases and meet with staff to discuss the impact that non-compliance can have on a project D. Create a user story to fix the bugs

Create the test cases and meet with staff to discuss the impact that non-compliance can have on a project Test cases need to be created so that quality assurance testing is done properly. When test cases are not created issues can quickly find their way into a project. The team members that have not been creating test cases need to understand the negative impact that it is having on the project. The group should try to come to a consensus on how to handle the creation of test cases.

As a Scrum Master, you're always striving to build the right product, efficiently. You set the ground rules, aspects the team agrees to. They understand the objectives and overall project goals. You want to ensure they are committed to the team and their performance. How should you measure the team's performance? Answers A. Punctuality B. Lines of code developed C. Training sessions attended D. Current velocity

Current velocity Velocity is the total points for completed user stories during an iteration. It is a critical metric to track the progression of the work. It is also an opportunity for the team to see how process changes affect their productivity, and accurately forecast the number of stories that can be complete in an iteration, and therefore, predict product completion. Other metrics or tools to measure performance could be burndown charts, the product backlog, and comparing estimates to actuals.

You are managing a project designed to create a new bearing type that will replace an older recalled type. You are currently involved in the Control Quality process. Which item would be a primary input into this process? Answers A. Risk register B. Quality control measurements C. Deliverables D. Requirements traceability matrix

Deliverables Deliverables are one of the primary inputs of the Control Quality process. During this process, deliverables are reviewed and verified to ensure that they conform to quality standards.

One of the roles as a project manager is the implementation of process improvement activities that have been approved. During which process would you perform these activities? A. Monitor and Control Project Work B. Direct and Manage Project Work C. Perform Integrated Change Control D. Develop Project Management Plan

Direct and Manage Project Work Requests for process improvements are submitted as change requests to the Perform Integrated Change Control process. Once approved, they are input into the Direct and Manage Project Work process as approved change requests. The approved change requests are then scheduled to be implemented by the project team.

A change request to modify one of the deliverables has been approved. In which process will the change be implemented? A. Monitor and Control Project Work B. Direct and Manage Project Work C. Close Project or Phase D. Perform Integrated Change Control

Direct and Manage Project Work The Direct and Manage Project Work process is responsible for a number of activities for integrating the different aspects of a project, including executing approved changes.

As a project manager, you have completed planning for the project and are two months into project execution. You have scheduled a project team meeting with four items on the agenda. Which item should have the highest priority? A. Discussing risks not considered before and review risk response strategies B. Informing team members about changes in staff that will occur as work is complete and new work begins C. Ensuring team members are accurately submitting their expenses D. Team members updating what they have accomplished and what they will be doing next

Discussing risks not considered before and review risk response strategies How you plan for and manage risk is of the utmost importance when it comes to a project being successful or not. When setting up project team meetings, discussing new risks and reviewing risk response strategies for their continued relevancy should be given the highest priority.

Your project team has been building a server room in a highly classified government building. The server room is planned to meet a specific criteria and has a 6 month timeline for delivery. Midway through the project, the client has informed you that regulatory changes will require you to change out the Halon gas suppression system for a new system. This has created an issue as the entire room was designed around using gas suppression. What should have been to avoid this? A. The enterprise environment factors should have flagged the possible risk B. During project planning the risk of regulatory changes should have been identified and planned for C. The project charter should have identified the risk D. The initial project plan should have been designed around a different fire suppression system

During project planning the risk of regulatory changes should have been identified and planned for Part of ensuring compliance in a project is planning for potential risks to compliance during the execution phase. A brainstorming meeting is a great tool to help identify potential risks and ensure that they are entered into the risk register and planned for. In this case, any planned regulatory changes should have been investigated during the planning phase and a risk mitigation strategy planned.

Sally is an experienced project manager and has been overseeing the training program across her matrixed organization. She is weighing the training costs and the benefits. Which is the best result-based metric to use in this scenario? A. Supervisor reports B. Employee turnover rate C. Test scores after training D. Employee feedback

Employee turnover rate Employee turnover rate or employee retention is an example of a results-based metric. The Kirkpatrick training evaluation model considers the learner's reaction to training, the knowledge gained, the learner's performance, and finally the tangible results.

You have been assigned a project to implement a new helpdesk system into your IT operations. The project sponsor has indicated that she wants this system to help reduce the number of password reset tickets. You have completed the project schedule and are ready for kickoff. The project sponsor has asked you to ensure that the benefits of the project are realized so that she can use it in her annual report to the board of directors. How can you best accomplish this? A. Purchase the advanced reporting feature of the helpdesk system and implement it B. Create a custom reporting feature for the project sponsor C. Ensure a baseline number of password reset tickets is taken and run a comparison after the system is implemented D. Use surveys before and after the project to determine the effectiveness

Ensure a baseline number of password reset tickets is taken and run a comparison after the system is implemented When projects are delivered, they often are oversold on the benefits to the organization. Ensuring that a project has a solid baseline that is measurable to compare to after the project is finished is an important part of project management. The measurement of the success of a project isn't simply that it came in on time and on budget. Projects are often measured on business value delivered over time and baselining key metrics prior to project start can measure the total business value delivered.

You are the sole project manager for a small company, which means that you often manage several projects simultaneously. One of the projects that you are managing is nearing completion.After meeting with the customer and project sponsor to attain formal acceptance of the project deliverables, you can officially begin to close the project.You have completed several processes required for closing the project, including gathering lessons learned, updating and filing project documents, and releasing several staff members who will be assigned to tasks on other projects.Now that the company has received formal signoff and payment for the successful project, which of the following would be the most appropriate NEXT step to take as the project manager? Answers A. Complete closing processes as soon as the customer has paid for the deliverables. B. Inform managers immediately after team members are released from the project team. C. Ensure that project expense accounts are closed at the end of the project. D. Release all project team members once the customer has paid for the deliverables.

Ensure that project expense accounts are closed at the end of the project. You should avoid rushing through the closing processes, or you may overlook important details. It is important to ensure that project expense accounts are closed at the end of a project, because it ensures that no more spending is charged against a closed project.

You have identified the risks associated with a project that you are managing. You now need to perform a qualitative analysis on the risks. Which of the following will help you with this? A. Cost management plan B. Schedule management plan C. Monte Carlo analysis D. Enterprise environmental factors

Enterprise environmental factors Enterprise environmental factors (EEFs) is used as an input to the Perform Qualitative Risk Analysis process. One EEF used for this process are industry studies performed on similar projects.

You have been assigned to lead a project soon after it was selected by your organization's project management office. The project sponsor has provided you with a completed business case and benefits management plan, in addition to your organization's historical information on a similar project. Which tool or technique are you going to use to assess this information? Require the remote team members to make the daily stand-up meeting A. Organizational process assets B. Focus groups C. Expert judgment D. Project management information system

Expert judgment Once a project has been selected, a project charter needs to be created and approved before moving forward with more detailed planning. Expert judgment is one of the most common techniques used throughout the project's lifecycle. In this process, expert judgment is used to assess the inputs, including the business case and the benefits management plan, that are going to be used to create the project charter. It can be provided by an individual or a group who has been trained or who has specialized knowledge in a particular area. This expertise would be applied to evaluate and assess any technical or management elements throughout this process.

Bill is leading a project team in the development and building of a new hotel. He has assembled his project team members for the project's kick-off meeting. The team members are highly experienced in developing and building hotels. Bill provides the team members with his background. Bill explains that he started out as a construction worker helping to build houses, malls, hotels, and business offices. He decided to go back to college to get a degree in business administration. He worked his way through various management levels and eventually became a project manager for a multi-national company. He also mentors other employees of the company who are training for project management positions, and regularly attends project management seminars. Which form of power will Bill MOST likely express during this project? A. Coercive power B. Referent power C. Reward power D. Expert power

Expert power Bill possesses expert power, and would most likely express that during the project. Expert power is based on a person's technical knowledge, skill, and credibility. We know from Bill's background in the construction industry that he has helped on many building projects, that he is also a mentor to up and coming project managers, and has project management experience. He also regularly attends project management seminars. This indicates he has a great amount of technical knowledge and skill.

Joe is the marketing manager and has high power or influence but very little interest in the project. He prefers the team to handle all situations. He places trust in the team and product owner and wants to be left off any project updates. What should you do? A. Do nothing B. Figure out what is important to Joe C. Be respectful and keep Joe off project updates D. Continue sending updates for full disclosure

Figure out what is important to Joe You should figure out what is important to Joe to ensure there is nothing that could potentially derail the project. High power or influence and low interest stakeholders need to be informed and involved to ensure project changes will not negatively impact their interest, and the project.

Janet is a project manager for a multinational corporation. She has chosen the people for the project team roles identified in the resource management plan for a project developing a new accounting program. The team members are geographically dispersed across multiple continents. The communications management plan identifies the integrated nature of the technologies, including video and teleconferencing to be used by the team members when communicating amongst each other. What is a benefit to this type of team? Answers A. Provides the project manager with complete authority over the project B. Forming project teams with resources who work different shifts C. Collocation of team members D. Ability to make use of local human resource policies

Forming project teams with resources who work different shifts In this particular situation, where team members are geographically dispersed across multiple continents, the project members form a virtual team. One of the benefits of virtual teams is the ability to form project teams with individual members who work different shifts. This is made possible because correspondence between virtual team members is done via video and telephone conferencing.

You are managing a project where the project work has been in progress for six months. In the last month, the number of changes has jumped from 10 per month to 100. What is the BEST course of action? Answers A. Do nothing, as you expect the increase in changes was an isolated incident. B. Monitor the situation over the next month to see if the trend continues. C. Have the business case re-evaluated to determine if the project is still viable. D. Analyze the variance in the number of changes for the situation and implement a solution.

Have the business case re-evaluated to determine if the project is still viable. When an excessive number of project changes occur during a given period of time, the project manager should be concerned about the health of the project. It is necessary to review and re-evaluate the business case to ensure that the project remains viable.

You are the project manager for the construction of a new shopping center. Which of the following are activities that you will perform when directing and managing project work? Answers A. Correcting scheduling issues B. Collect work performance information C. Identifying and updating risks D. Making sure that accurate and timely progress information is available

Identifying and updating risks During directing and managing project work new risks maybe identified and risks previously identified maybe updated. These new risks and risks updated are done in the risk register.

You are a project manager in charge of putting together a one-day weekend concert for four musical acts in a small town. The concert is to take place on August 1. During planning, it was decided that the concert would take place in a field that was offered for free by a local farmer. This location was chosen with the assumption that there would be less than a 60% chance of rain in the weather forecast for the concert date. An alternate location at the town's community center was chosen if the chance of rain is 60% or higher and would be provided for free. Regardless of the location chosen, it will not affect the schedule. The actual vendor location used will have to be decided and approved by end of day July 28. Once the decision has been made and approved, what should you do NEXT? Answers A. Implement a risk response plan to ensure availability of the alternate venue location. B. Plan how to setup for the concert at the chosen venue location. C. Update the issue log to reflect the changed venue location. D. Submit a change request to have the venue changed to the chosen location.

Implement a risk response plan to ensure availability of the alternate venue location. With the short period of time between choosing the location and the concert, a risk response plan should be implemented to ensure availability of the alternate location. If an issue arises with the chosen location, you would want to have the option to move the concert to the alternate location.

Heather is leading a project team for a software engineering firm. The project is designed to create customer tracking software for call centers. She has scheduled an instructor-led training session for the team to learn the newest features available in the development platform recently purchased. Which action is Heather in the process of doing? Answers A. Identifying the skills required to complete product development B. Improving the skill set of the project team members C. Conducting a team building activity D. Executing the resource management plan

Improving the skill set of the project team members By scheduling an instructor-led training session for the team to learn new features for the development platform, Heather is in the process of improving the skill set of the project team members. When project team members are weak in specific areas, those skills may be developed through formal or informal training. This is a technique used in the Develop Project Team process.

A project to implement new accounting software is underway. You have been working on the project and recently achieved a major milestone. During a recent project status update a stakeholder has mentioned that they felt left out of the decision-making process and that the solution being implemented will not work. In consulting your stakeholder register, you notice the individual has medium interest and low influence on the project. You are concerned that the individual may start to convince other stakeholders that the project is doomed for failure. What should you do? Ignore the comment and move on with the project B. Update the risk register to show a risk of change aversion and create a mitigation strategy C. Update the stakeholder register to medium influence on the project and take input from the stakeholder, as required D. Conduct a 1-on-1 meeting with the stakeholder and implement their proposed changes to the project

In traditional project management, the stakeholder register contains a list of key stakeholders along with their interest and impact on the project. In this case, the individual may have initially been assessed as low impact, but it is important to get ahead of potential project problems. Negativity can have a large impact on a project, and it should be carefully managed. You should update the stakeholder register accordingly and begin asking the individual for input. C. Update the stakeholder register to medium influence on the project and take input from the stakeholder, as required

Your organization is undertaking a new high-profile project that is designed to improve several processes deemed to be outdated. The sponsor approaches you and asks if you will take on the role of project manager. You have been looking for the opportunity to show that you have the skills required to lead high-profile projects in your organization. After you have a chance to review the outline for the project charter and a list of potential contractors, you notice that one of the deliverables will require outsourcing some work. One of the potential contractors is related to you. Which method is the BEST way of handling this situation? A. Accept the position and prevent a conflict of interest by ensuring the outsourcing is not awarded to your relative. B. Accept the position and prevent a conflict of interest by refraining from providing any input into the decision process for outsourcing. C. Inform the sponsor of the potential conflict of interest and defer the decision of whether to accept the project manager position to the sponsor. D. Inform the sponsor of the conflict of interest and turn down the position.

Inform the sponsor of the potential conflict of interest and defer the decision of whether to accept the project manager position to the sponsor. The Project Management Institute Code of Ethics and Professional Conduct addresses conflicts of interest within the fairness area of responsibility. When a conflict of interest exists, whether real or perceived, it must be fully exposed to the appropriate stakeholders. Furthermore, you cannot be involved in any decision making processes until a mitigation plan has been created, and approved by the appropriate stakeholders.

You are managing a project that is developing a prototype of a new form of lowering spring for use on street cars. A change request was created to resolve an issue that involved the bump stop on the car. After the issue was resolved, the springs were reinstalled on the test vehicle. Which activity is likely to take place NEXT? Answers A. Benchmarking B. Quality checklist C. Inspection D. Statistical sampling

Inspection An inspection is a technique used in the Control Quality process. An inspection ensures that the product conforms to documented standards. Inspections are also used to confirm that defect repairs, such as the bump stop issue, have been resolved.

You run into the senior product manager. She asks you how the inventory management project is going and have being meaning to speak to you, she has a customer that wants to make a minor tweak to the reporting feature. What should you do in this situation? Answers A. Politely decline B. Ask for more information C. Adjust the product backlog D. Involve the product owner

Involve the product owner Involving the product owner is the best option. The product owner may add the tweak to the next sprint planning meeting during discussions about priority. Technically, anyone can add to the product backlog, but the product owner should be involved. Often, people say 'yes' to small features to satisfy stakeholders, but it could have larger implications. The job of the project manager or Scrum Master is to not only address and remove roadblocks for the team, but to guard against increased scope and project risks.

You are in the process of identifying stakeholders that you want support from on your project. You have already identified some stakeholders using the key stakeholder list. What additional source of information can be used to help identify stakeholders? Answers A. Stakeholder engagement plan B. Issue log C. Milestone list D. Project charter

Issue log Identifying stakeholders typically occurs prior to or in parallel with creating the project charter. During this time, a limited number of documents are available. However, as the project progresses more stakeholders may be identified as additional documents become available. One such resource is the issue log. The issue log is initially created to help address project issues when directing and managing work. It contains information on who raised the issue and when. The person who raised the issue could be a previously unidentified stakeholder.

You are in the process of selecting vendor for a project. Which of the following statements are true regarding a prequalified seller list? A. It is used as a tool in the Conduct Procurements process. B. Is used to determine which sellers will receive a procurement contract award. C. It defines the source selection criteria. D. It is part of the project management plan.

It is part of the project management plan. Assistance Prequalified sellers for a project are entered into the procurement management plan. The prequalified seller list is part of the project management plan which is an output of the Plan Procurement Management process.

You are the project manager for a new project. You need to introduce project ground rules to the project team. How should you convey the project ground rules to the team? Answers A. Project staff assignments B. Kickoff meeting C. Team-building activities D. Training

Kickoff meeting A kickoff meeting is used to introduce team members, identify the purpose of the project, discuss the project plan, and identify the ground rules that are expected of the project members. The kickoff meeting is also used to discuss the change, risk, communication, and quality management plan requirements.

ou have been managing the execution of the project plan for a month when you overhear a conversation between two of the project team members. Based on what you heard, you learn that these team members are exhibiting ethnocentric views. Which action should you take? A. Implement leadership training to help improve the project team members' leadership skills B. Reward the team members as an example of the attitude that other team members should strive for C. Perform a team assessment to gauge the project team's attitude overall D. Look into providing cultural sensitivity and diversity training for your project team members

Look into providing cultural sensitivity and diversity training for your project team members Ethnocentrism can be seen as not accepting other cultures. This can result in negative stereotypes towards other ethnic groups. To proactively handle this type of situation, you should look into providing cultural sensitivity and diversity training for your project team members.

You are the project manager and you have noticed that project efficiency and effectiveness levels have decreased. Which process is MOST closely associated with continuous process improvement? Answers A. Manage Quality B. Perform Qualitative Risk Analysis C. Define Scope D. Define Activities

Manage Quality Manage Quality is one of three processes in the Project Quality Management knowledge area. It is the means by which you audit the quality requirements established during the Plan Quality Management process and the results from quality control measurements made during the Control Quality process. It also acts as an umbrella for continuous process improvement. Manage Quality is most closely associated with continuous process improvement.

You are in the process of integrating and consolidating the subsidiary plans and baselines created from the various planning processes. Which of the following documents will become part of the project management plan? Answers A. Assumption log B. Milestone list C. Management reviews D. Change log

Management reviews Management reviews are a component of the project management plan that is developed as part of the Develop Project Management Plan process. Management reviews specify the points in the project when key stakeholders, such as the project manager, review the progress of the project. At that time, the current performance is compared to what was planned and corrective or preventative actions are implemented if necessary.

While managing the execution of a project, one of the project stakeholders comes to you worried about the availability of materials for fabricating an air frame from the regular vendor. You let the stakeholder know that you will check into this further for him. A couple of days later, you respond back to him that you are waiting for a call from the supplier and have been in contact with several other vendors. The other vendors who supply the same materials have plenty in stock. What are you currently engaged in with the stakeholder? A. Managing expectations of a stakeholder B. Identifying stakeholder requirements C. Planning how to deal with the possibility that the materials may not be available D. Removing any obstacle that may prevent acquiring the necessary materials

Managing expectations of a stakeholder Addressing concerns that have not turned into full blown issues is an activity the project manager should perform to manage stakeholder expectations.

You are a project manager for a large project-oriented organization. You are currently working on a project proposal and are considering potential stakeholders that may influence the project. Which stakeholders are the MOST critical at this point in the project? A. Support function representatives B. End user representatives C. Managing stakeholders D. Team members

Managing stakeholders Project proposals are created during project initiation. When you are working on a project proposal, you need to try and identify all potential project stakeholders. While there are many stakeholders that are essential to your project, the most critical stakeholders at this early stage of the process are the managing stakeholders. The managing stakeholders include the project manager, the project sponsor or customer, and the portfolio manager. The project sponsor or customer are responsible for providing funding for the project, so they have significant influence on deciding if the project moves forward to planning.

You have been developing a new mobile game for your company. Your project team consists of 5 developers and you are adding features to the game in iterations. When the team first came together a working agreement was developed as a group. It has come to your attention that a staff member has violated a core component of the working agreement and has not asked teammates for help when getting stuck. This has caused performance issues and you want to correct this. What should you do? A. Punish the individual as per the working agreement B. Meet with the individual staff member and discuss the rule violation C. Assign the individual lower difficulty tasks D. Meet with the team and discuss the rule violation

Meet with the individual staff member and discuss the rule violation Agile teams will often come together at the project outset and develop a working agreement. The working agreement is the set of rules that the team will abide by. If a team member is violating one of the rules in the working agreement, then the project manager should meet with that individual and discuss the violation. There may be a good reason for the violation and a plan to rectify the situation should come from the infracting staff member.

You are working to deliver a project to the finance department in your organization. This new product will allow them to view real-time expenditures and conduct simulations to project future budgets. You have already had several releases, but a change in management in the accounting department is threatening the project. The new accounting manager does not see the business value being delivered and wants the project reworked to fit new needs. The project kickoff came from the Chief Financial Officer, but ownership was never formally declared. You have been reporting to both the manager and the CFO during development. What should you do? A. Cancel the project and work to kick off a new project that meets the Accounting Manager's needs B. Meet with the product owner and the new accounting manager and document ownership of the project and the reporting structure to ensure business value is delivered C. Finish the current user stories in the product backlog and then consider changes D. Inform the accounting manager that the project will continue on as planned

Meet with the product owner and the new accounting manager and document ownership of the project and the reporting structure to ensure business value is delivered Agile projects will typically have a product owner. The product owner acts similar to the project sponsor in waterfall projects. The owner is responsible for ensuring the project is implemented successfully and acting as a champion for the product within the organization. Occasionally product ownership will be delegated down within the organization to allow those closer to the customer level to deliver the most business value. Product ownership in this case needs to be formally documented so that any major changes can be approved prior to implementation. This can help ensure that the project remains within budget and scope.

The audit team is auditing the quality requirements for a process that can be improved. Senior management needs to know whether or not they should consider changing the process and require your input as a project manager. The audit team has identified issues and recommended a change to the process. What should you do FIRST to provide the most appropriate information for senior management to make a decision on this investment? A. Create a business case B. Perform a force field analysis C. Perform a cost-benefit analysis D. Create a balanced matrix

Perform a cost-benefit analysis You should perform a cost-benefit analysis first to provide the most appropriate information for senior management to make a decision on this investment. During a cost-benefit analysis, you determine whether the benefits of making the change outweigh the costs of making the changes.

Perform a cost-benefit analysis D. Create a balanced matrix Assistance You should perform a cost-benefit analysis first to provide the most appropriate information for senior management to make a decision on this investment. During a cost-benefit analysis, you determine whether the benefits of making the change outweigh the costs of making the changes.You have been working on implementing a new database system into a content management system for an advertising firm. The project has a budget of $5 million and a 10 month schedule. The content manager of the company abruptly left the organization and a new content manager has been hired from a competing firm. The new content manager comes from an organization that had publicly run into issues with the implementing a similar solution the year prior. How can you best evaluate the impact that the personnel change may have on the project? A. Meet with the project sponsor to discuss potential impact to the project B. Ask the change review board to review the change in personnel C. Continue on with the project as if nothing is changing D. Place the project on hold until the new content manager is onboard

Meet with the project sponsor to discuss potential impact to the project Whenever there is a potential risk to a project, a major project change, it is best to meet with the project sponsor to discuss the impact it could have. The project sponsor acts as the product champion within the company and will try to ensure that the project continues to go ahead, as planned. Changes in key stakeholders can often lead to scope changes and even project cancellation. The project sponsor is the one that should continue to champion the project.

Amanda has just finished the daily stand-up meeting. The team is developing a new video platform for smart televisions and devices. During the stand-up meeting, a staff member mentioned an issue he was having with implementing voice commands and some privacy concerns he had. Amanda brought this information to the attention of the product owner and product users to gain input. As a group, they suggested that the voice recording be reworked. How can Amanda best do to address the change in project scope? A. Move the user story to the next iteration B. Meet with the project team to discuss options for delivery C. Ask the project owner for a higher budget D. Move the user story to the product backlog

Meet with the project team to discuss options for delivery Any changes to project scope or the product backlog should be resolved as a group. Each person on the team may have a different idea on how to resolve the problem that could be valuable in finding a workable solution. In this case, the best option is to meet with the project team and rework the user story to address privacy concerns.

You are working on the third iteration for a product. The product has been very successful thus far, and you have recently landed a major client. The new client has finished the onboarding process with the product, and you have been assigned new stakeholders from the company. You want to ensure that the new client receives the most business value with each iteration without disrupting their daily routine. What should you do? Answers A. Include the stakeholders in all upcoming meetings B. Update your stakeholder register C. Ensure the stakeholders receive the weekly status updates D. Meet with the stakeholders and set expectations

Meet with the stakeholders and set expectations The stakeholders have finished the onboarding procedures with the product and will now need to be included in project decisions. The Agile methodology allows for the project manager to adapt the project to best suit the needs of clients. This new client may bring insight that could deliver business value to other clients that has not been realized. The stakeholder may also not want to have any input into the development process and simply want updates as they come. It is important to meet with new stakeholders to discuss their needs for communications and what level of engagement they would be comfortable with.

You have just started at a new company that specializes in providing contract services to the government. A new contract has been awarded to your company that has a specified budget and core set of deliverables. The project is to be developed in small iterations and releases, providing increasing functionality with each release. You have been assigned a liaison within the government to help facilitate development and answer any questions you have. You are concerned that the project requirements are restrictive, but any changes would require you to go through an approval process that can take several weeks. What should you do? Answers A. Build to specification B. Meet with the team early in the project to flag potential changes C. Ask the liaison to create a specialized process for this project D. Use the waterfall project methodology

Meet with the team early in the project to flag potential changes Some organizations are rigid in their project scope and budget requirements. Often you will be asked to deliver projects using the Agile methodology that are created using more traditional project requirements. When this happens, it is best to look at potential issues up front in a team environment to get a handle on what changes will likely need to take place. This will allow you to help manage any lag time in having changes to scope approved.

You are working on a project to create a mobile app for customer engagement. The app will require access to personally identifiable information and payment information. You are working on a new sprint that will see the connection to this information. Several user stories are actively in development. You are concerned about cyber security risk and the legal ramifications a breach would represent to your company. What should you do? A. Accept the risk until a later date after the product is in use B. Transfer the risk by purchasing cyber insurance C. Avoid the risk by cancelling the project D. Mitigate the risk by meeting with the team and discuss extra security controls

Mitigate the risk by meeting with the team and discuss extra security controls In smaller Agile teams, often times the project manager will need to assess risk and take appropriate action. In this case, the risk of exposing personally identifiable information and credit card data represents a significant legal risk to the company. As the project manager you should work with your team to explore methods to mitigate or reduce the risk while still delivering business value.

You are managing a project that has received bad publicity in the local news. This is due to the project being behind schedule, all personnel being devoted to production, and proper cleanup not being performed. There was an effort to bring the project back on schedule, but the public was more concerned with debris making a mess of community. The decision to move personnel from cleanup to production would have been made during which process? Answers A. Direct and Manage Project Work B. Perform Integrated Change Control C. Monitor and Control Project Work D. Validate Scope

Monitor and Control Project Work The primary focus of the Monitor and Control Project Work process is the project manager managing how the scope is executed. It was determined in the scenario that the work was behind schedule. Therefore, by means of control project work, personnel were taken from one task and put on the primary task.

A new project team has been assembled to create a new flagship program for your organization. You have been asked to manage the project to deliver the most value with each version release. The last project you managed, the team got stuck in the storming phase and it caused delays in delivery. On this new project, you want to ensure that the project team works as a cohesive unit from day 1. What should you do? A. Conduct teambuilding exercises B. Allow your team to go through the forming, storming, norming, performing phases naturally C. Interview staff to ensure they fit the team culture you want to exhibit D. Negotiate a working agreement as a team

Negotiate a working agreement as a team There are several tools you can use to help teams move through the forming, storming, norming, and performing phases. Negotiating a working agreement as a team is an exercise that allows the team members to create their own rules for how the project will run. When the team creates their own rules as a group there is natural buy-in to those rules and all team members have a stake in ensuring that the rules are maintained.

You have recently started working at a company as a senior project manager. Some junior project managers have been asking you for assistance in dealing with some work-related issues. Which course of action would BEST fulfill your responsibility? Answers A. Do nothing; it was not in your job description to mentor other employees. B. Offer to conduct periodic coaching sessions for the employees seeking assistance. C. Tell the junior project managers that you will take care of the issues. D. Look at replacing the junior project managers with more skilled project managers.

Offer to conduct periodic coaching sessions for the employees seeking assistance. Project managers have a responsibility to share their knowledge with others. Offering to conduct periodic coaching sessions for the employees seeking assistance would help you fulfill this responsibility. Coaching typically entails a series of training or development sessions given by an experienced employee to a novice. The sessions would be customized to meet the needs of the individual.

Monty is building a project team. He's considered the project complexity, team size, and location. What else should Monty consider when building a team against project resource requirements? Answers A. Organization distribution B. Prioritized requirements C. JIT modeling D. Executable specifications

Organization distribution Organization distribution, where the team is source from, can impact how a project team is built. Risk increases if the project requires individuals from varying departments or a variety of external resources. Writing in details in contracts may only act as small print and can put the project at risk. A focus on collaboration and cohesion amongst the team will help reduce risks.

Phil's training needs assessment identified regression testing as a weakness. He wants to fill the gap right away. What would you offer? Answers A. Instructor-led B. Workshop C. Code review D. Pair programming

Pair programming Pair programming is the best way to train individuals on a specific skill. One person codes while the other person observes. It allows the person coding to explain what they are doing and then switch roles so the other person can practice and learn. It's the quickest way to train an individual on a specific task while still getting work done.

You are engaged in the quality management processes of a project designed to build the world's smallest car. The development of the car has been plagued with issues. There is a month remaining before you must unveil the car to the project sponsors. You have decided to deal with the three biggest problems before this milestone date. Which resource can be used to identify three problems that generate the most defects? Answers A. Pareto chart B. Run chart C. Scatter diagram D. Ishikawa diagram

Pareto chart The Pareto chart is used to show what problems will cause the most defects. It does this by ranking the defects. The Pareto rule states that 80% of problems spawn from 20% of the causes. Since this chart rates the problems from greatest to least, the top three can be focused on.

You are providing the funding for a potential project for your organization. Which of the following is one of your responsibilities during the initiation stage of the project? Answers A. Authorize project work at the appropriate times B. Prioritizes the constraints of the project C. Approve or reject changes or assign a change authority D. Train and manage project team members

Prioritizes the constraints of the project The project sponsor is responsible for setting priorities between any constraints identified for the project during project initiation. This activity may be completed by the customer if the project is external to the organization. In this case, the project is internal to the organization, so the sponsor is also the customer.

You are the project manager for one of the top golf equipment producers in the world, and you are currently overseeing the development of this year's club models. You are currently reviewing information to ensure that the project is on track and within schedule. Which project document would be updated as a result of this? Answers A. Schedule baseline B. Project schedule C. Cost baseline D. Schedule management plan

Project schedule The project schedule is considered to be a project document, and it is updated as an output of the Control Schedule process. The newly generated schedule will be based upon the data that is collected in this process.

You are the project manager at Diallonics, a large consulting firm. For ease of scheduling and organization purposes, it is important to ensure that all major goals, deadlines, and key dates are identified within the project schedule. Which document outlines the actual dates for project milestones? A. Variance analysis B. Schedule network diagram C. Work performance data D. Project schedule

Project schedule The project schedule would be updated as the project progresses and any changes, such as a change to milestone dates, would be reflected in the updated schedule. Therefore, the actual dates of project milestones would need to be collected from the project schedule.

The team continually hits roadblocks. Acceptance testing is taking longer than expected causing conflict within the team. One developer is unexpectedly reassigned to another project and another is taking an extended vacation. An MVP was deployed to various customer locations is met with criticism. What could have prevented this situation? Answers A. Align project to business processes B. Proper planning at the outset C. Clear definition of future iterations D. Specific training and coaching

Proper planning at the outset Even though Agile project management is based on iterative planning, a project is doomed to fail if little consideration is placed on resources and scheduling. Proper planning at the outset could have help predicted or alleviate resource and schedule issues. Reviewing and fine-tuning the plan often will help address any issues that are unexpectedly taking longer than necessary.

A member on your team has been doing great work until recently. You've noticed he's been late, every day for the last 2 weeks. Other teammates have found 5 defects in the last week. How should you handle the situation? A. Generalize the feedback B. Give feedback on the last 2 weeks C. Provide immediate and specific feedback D. Wait until he's improved

Provide immediate and specific feedback Providing immediate and specific feedback is the best to approach this situation. There may be a reason for the degradation of the quality of work and the tardiness. Feedback is a powerful tool for positive and corrective action, if used effectively. Delaying, being non-specific, or only giving negative feedback can have negative effects.

You are discussing the various types of project stakeholders with one of the junior project managers in your organization. You are in the process of identifying the responsibilities of the different levels of management associated with projects. Which distinguishing factors can you tell them are inherent to a portfolio manager? Answers A. Provides governance for a group of projects, provides advice to project managers on individual projects, leads the project selection process B. Provides the finances required by the project, leads the project until it is formally authorized, identifies risks related to undertaking the project C. Provides the finances required by the project, communicates with all stakeholders, leads the project selection process D. Provides governance for a group of projects, leads the project selection process, identifies a project's return on investment

Provides governance for a group of projects, leads the project selection process, identifies a project's return on investment Portfolio managers are responsible for managing an organization's portfolio. An organization's portfolio is comprised of projects or programs that are grouped together to facilitate business objectives. Grouping the projects together allows the projects to be managed more effectively. Portfolio managers are responsible for high-level governance of the projects within their portfolios. They lead the project selection process for the organization by identifying the value of the project to the organization, and as such, identifying the projected return on investment. They also have a mandate of identifying potential risks associated with taking on the project.

Which statement is true concerning quality audits? Answers A. Quality audits should be performed during the executing and closing phases of a project. B. Quality audits are structured reviews that examine whether an organization's policies and procedures are being applied correctly. C. Quality audits should be performed using statistical sampling. D. Quality audits involve monitoring specific results from a project and determining if they meet acceptable standards.

Quality audits are structured reviews that examine whether an organization's policies and procedures are being applied correctly. Quality audits are structured reviews that examine whether an organization's policies and procedures are being applied correctly and whether they achieve their purpose.

You are managing a project and require a seller that has a particular product and capabilities. Which source of information is the BEST for conducting procurements? A. RFI responses from potential sellers B. RACI chart from potential sellers C. Procurement SOW from each potential seller D. SWOT analysis from each potential seller

RFI responses from potential sellers Request for information (RFI) is a specific document used in procurements by a buyer to query a potential seller for information about their business, the products they provide, as well as their capabilities. RFI responses from potential sellers are the best source of information about the potential sellers, their products, and the services they provide.

You are working closely with the customer and sponsor to determine the high-level scope of the project. Which activity would you perform? Answers A. Record any assumptions on the scope and document any potential risks for further validation. B. Perform stakeholder analysis to determine expectations and to gain support for the project. C. Aggregate activity costs back to the work package level so that they can be controlled, measured, and managed. D. Create a Stakeholder Engagement Assessment Matrix to define the level of engagement for each stakeholder.

Record any assumptions on the scope and document any potential risks for further validation. Assumptions are made for certain details of a project when specifics are not known. These assumptions should be documented in an assumption log when determining the high-level scope so that they can be revisited during planning when more details become available. Any risks associated with an assumption should also be recorded.

Ann, who is a senior project manager, has taken over a project from a colleague just after they completed assembling the team. Before leaving, they indicated that several members of the team will need specialized training. Which action should Ann take NEXT to help guide her through selecting the appropriate training? Answers A. Refer to the resource management plan B. Review the work breakdown structure C. Reference the Project Management Body of Knowledge Guide D. Analyze the responsibility assignment matrix

Refer to the resource management plan Ann should refer to the resource management plan. There is a section in the Resource Management Plan called Training, which includes the training strategies for team members.

Mary is Scrum Master at a start-up. The company has a relatively small group of developers that move from project to project. She wants to help improve the capability and capacity of the teams and the individuals. What is the best tool to identify the skills they will likely need in future projects? Answers A. Team board B. Task matrix C. Skills matrix D. Kanban board

Skills matrix A skills matrix can help identify current and upcoming skillsets required on projects. Individuals identify and rate the skills they have. A collective list of the team will allow Mary to identify skill gaps and aim to fill them. This can focus the training efforts when building an Agile team.

You are working on a project to develop a machine learning platform to analyze X-rays in a clinical setting. The project is being managed in iterations, and the client focus is on ensuring both quality and regulatory compliance. You are implementing the module that will pull the information from the X-ray machine. Give this, what compliance category would best be used for this? A. Regulatory Compliance B. Health & Safety Compliance C. Social Responsibility D. Environmental Compliance

Regulatory Compliance Since the module will be pulling medical information from the system, it will need to conform to HIPAA compliance. This would best be flagged as regulatory compliance in your quality management system to ensure that appropriate considering is given during quality assurance testing. Additionally, you may also flag this as quality compliance to ensure that additional testing is undertaken to make sure the iteration does not create any issues.

You are a certified PMP working on a project in Africa. The project is nearing completion when the customer offers you a sizable gift. There are no laws in the country preventing you from accepting gifts and it is a sign of respect that you accept the gift that is offered. Your company's policy is not to accept any gifts. What should you do? A. Discuss the situation with your supervisor before you make a decision. B. Accept the gift as a sign of respect since it is legal and a custom within this country. C. Reject the gift and explain to the customer that it is against your company's policy to accept gifts. D. Tell the customer that you have to think it over as it goes against your moral standards.

Reject the gift and explain to the customer that it is against your company's policy to accept gifts. When situations such as personally receiving gifts from a customer (an example of personal gain) arise, you need to consider if there are any legal issues. You also need to consider whether the behavior is unethical in any way, and whether company policy will be broken. If any of these conditions are met, the correct decision is to not accept the gift. In this scenario, there are no laws preventing you from accepting the gift. It is clearly not a bribe, and the behavior is not unethical based on the country's customs. However, the scenario does state that it is against your company's policy to accept gifts. Therefore, the policy must be followed.

You have recently completed a major release and your team is working on the next iteration. The project team is actively working on backlog items that were selected for this iteration. You have received feedback form several stakeholders that one of the items remaining in the product backlog should be prioritized. The Product Owner has moved that item from the product backlog into this iteration and moved two items from this iteration to the next iteration. This will allow you to hit your goal for this iteration and ensure that the most business value is delivered to clients. Your team members will often work late at night when they are in a state of flow and miss the next daily stand-up meeting. As the leader on this team, what should you do? Answers A. Update the project plan with the new changes and distribute it to the team B. Send an email to all project staff regarding the changes C. Remove the story points from the board and add the new one from the product backlog D. Remind the team about the importance of maintaining a sustainable pace to avoid burnout and attendance at team events to maintain effective communication

Remind the team about the importance of maintaining a sustainable pace to avoid burnout and attendance at team events to maintain effective communication As an Agile leader, on of the key responsibilities is to promote Agile best practices that promote productivity and a shared understanding of the team's work. In this case, the leader should work with the team to reinforce Agile best practices and move away from bad habits such as frequently working overtime and skipping meetings. Agile teams will often undergo several changes during an iteration in order to facilitate delivering the best business value. These changes need to be communicated effectively in order to ensure there are no potential misunderstandings. For major changes in an iteration, the project manager should work diligently to ensure that each staff member understands the changes in a timely manner. In this case the project changes should be communicated to each staff member not in attendance directly to ensure that changes are understood by all staff.

There are quality issues with the last iteration and the stakeholders are not happy. Not only do they not meet the quality expectations, they demand additional security features on the site. Also, half your team maybe reassigned to a higher priority project. Which issue should you focus on? A. Security features B. Quality issues C. Stakeholders D. Resources

Resources You should focus on the resources first. If you don't have the resources, the rest of the issues will compound. All the issues can be dealt with appropriately but without a solid team in place, the project is in a critical situation. It is the responsibility of the project manager or Scrum Master to prioritize and address critical impediments.

You are working on a project to create a new piece of software. The client wants to incorporate a feature similar to one that a competitor has trademarked. They know that you were involved in developing the competitor's feature. They ask you to describe the details on how the feature was developed. You want to meet your stakeholder's needs. What should you do? Answers A. Tell them the step-by-step process that was followed to develop the new feature. B. Respectively decline to provide the information while letting them know that it would be a breach of client confidentiality. C. Inform the competitor that your current client is requesting information about the feature so that they can notify the proper authorities. D. Tell them that you will need to consult with your supervisor to get approval to divulge that information.

Respectively decline to provide the information while letting them know that it would be a breach of client confidentiality. In this case, you must respectively decline to provide the information while letting the client know that it would be a breach of client confidentiality. One of the aspects of acting with integrity and professionalism is respecting the property of others, and respecting current and former client confidentiality.

Stan is a project manager for a large construction company that builds residential homes and office buildings. The project he is currently leading involves the development of a new office complex in the downtown area of a large city. He requires building materials before he can continue with the project. While procuring the needed materials, which document will Stan be responsible for creating? A. Source selection criteria B. Correspondence C. Teaming agreements D. Proposals

Source selection criteria Stan would be responsible for creating the source selection criteria as the buyer. Source selection criteria are created by the buyer while they are creating the procurement documents. Source selection criteria details how you will choose the winning proposal or bid. These details may or may not be revealed to the potential sellers.

You are the project manager for one of the top golf equipment producers in the world and you are currently overseeing the development of this year's club models. The project has gotten off to a slow start and is behind schedule. Employees have agreed to work overtime. Which technique is overtime an example of? Answers A. Resource leveling B. Adjusting leads and lags C. Fast tracking D. Schedule crashing

Schedule crashing Crashing is a schedule compression technique that is commonly used to get a project back on schedule. It does this by having employees work overtime, or by adding resources to the project. Although crashing helps shorten the schedule duration, it typically increases costs at the same time.

You are in the process of creating the scope baseline for a project you are managing. You need to include all of the following EXCEPT: Answers A. Project scope statement B. Scope management plan C. WBS dictionary D. WBS

Scope management plan The methods that will be used in controlling the scope throughout the project are described in the scope management plan. It is developed by the project team during the Plan Scope Management process. It provides guidance on how the project scope will be defined, documented, verified, managed, and controlled. The scope management plan is not part of the scope baseline.

Amy has acquired her project team. The team members consist of employees from various departments in the same organization as Amy. Amy has never worked with these people before, so they are unfamiliar with her leadership style and what is expected from them. After letting each team member know what their roles and responsibilities are on the project, Amy outlines the guidelines for the project team members to follow when working on the project. Which action is Amy currently engaged in? Answers A. Setting ground rules for her team members B. Forcing team members to follow her leadership C. Training her team members D. Negotiating staff assignments for her team members

Setting ground rules for her team members Amy is setting ground rules for her team members. Ground rules are used to set expectations regarding team member behavior. For instance, requiring all team members to acknowledge receipt of email inquiries within one business day would be an example of an agreed upon expected behavior.

You are currently analyzing the communication requirements for a project you are managing. You need to identify the main expectations of each of the internal stakeholders to ensure that their communication needs are satisfied. Which resource should you consult to locate this information? A. Enterprise environmental factors B. Stakeholder register C. Organizational process assets D. Stakeholder management plan

Stakeholder register The stakeholder register contains a list of all the stakeholders that have been identified for a project. It includes information such as their names, role in the project, major requirements, expectations, and what influence they may have on the project. It also identifies whether the stakeholder is internal or external to the project. This is one of the main inputs to the Plan Communications Management process since it identifies all of the relevant stakeholders and their expectations.

You are currently defining how to manage team and physical resources. You are also working on a strategy to make sure that you have sufficient availability of resources to successfully complete your project. Which result of this process will include conflict resolution processes? A. Risk register B. Assumption log C. Resource management plan D. Team charter

Team charter In this scenario, you are in the Plan Resource Management process. One of the key outputs of this process is the team charter, which is used to establish your team's operating guidelines. This document includes information such as the conflict resolution process, team values, and meeting and communication guidelines.

You are in the process of performing integrated change control for a project you are managing. Which statement is true about the configuration management system? A. The configuration management system will define procedures to control any changes. B. The configuration management system is an organizational process asset that can influence the integrated control process C. The configuration management system is an essential part in creating quality control measurements. D. The configuration management system is the overall change management system.

The configuration management system will define procedures to control any changes. The configuration management system formally documents the physical characteristics that make up a product and the methods to control changes to the characteristics of the product. It also records and reports any changes to the products, and audits the products to verify conformance.

Your organization uses the benefit-cost ratio (BCR) economic model to select which project they want to initiate. You have received a report that contains the BCR results for a number of different initiatives. Which guideline should you follow when selecting a project to initiate? Answers A. The greater the BCR, the more attractive the initiative. B. A low BCR indicates a high value for sunk costs. C. A BCR of less than one is ideal. D. A BCR greater than one indicates accelerated depreciation.

The greater the BCR, the more attractive the initiative. A BCR is a comparison of the benefits, in this case the potential revenue, versus the cost of a particular initiative. So, a value greater than one indicates that the potential benefits of an initiative are greater than its cost. When looking at BCRs, the bigger the number, the more attractive the initiative.

Your team has been developing a new payroll system for unionized environments. The latest iteration has seen testing with small subset of live data. In conducting an audit of the data, it appears to be accurate in 95% of user cases. The product owner is thrilled with the progress as there are still many items in the product backlog and the goal was a 75% accuracy at the end of this iteration and the final release criteria is a 99.9% accuracy. The finance manager has expressed interest in going live with the current iteration and decommissioning the old system. Given the characteristics of the project, which statement is true? A. The project manager should introduce bugs into the system to make it compliant with the 75% goal for this iteration B. The project will need to test at 99.9% accuracy prior to release C. If the finance manager is willing to accept 95% accuracy, the product is ready to release D. The project can be handed over to operations and you can being closing the project

The project will need to test at 99.9% accuracy prior to release While the initial release criteria can change significantly throughout the lifecycle of an Agile project, this case only tested with a small subset of live data. This small subset may not represent all possible user cases and the 95% threshold may not be accurate. In this case, the best option is to maintain the 99.9% threshold prior to release into production.

Pam is leading a new project designed to create an internal web site for Imagenie, Inc employees that will allow them to view a company events calendar. The project team members work together in the same office building. Regular team meetings for all project team members are held in a single meeting room. Also, meetings that involve team members working on specific aspects of the project meet in different rooms throughout the office. For the most part, the project team members are meeting their targets and are on schedule. However, you notice that three team members who are grouped together are not sure how to complete their tasks. Which technique would be MOST helpful in this situation? Answers A. Training B. Colocation C. Brainstorming D. Mediation

Training In this scenario, training would be a team development technique that can be used to help train the three team members that are not sure how to complete their tasks. In general, training is an effective tool when team members lack the necessary skills to complete their tasks.

You are the project lead creating a new website for a major online retailer. Your team has put together a list of 40 features that should be implemented into the new website. What is one tool you can use to filter out possible features to find a minimum viable product? Answers A. Project charter B. Stakeholder register C. Work performance data D. User journey/story

User journey/story Part of understanding the project goals is to understand how the end product or service will be used by end users. When designing a minimum viable product it is helpful to create a user journey/story to determine the main functions that will be required as a base to build upon.

Gloria is a project manager for a multinational corporation. She has chosen the people for the project team roles that are identified in the human resource management plan for a project developing a new accounting program. The team members are geographically dispersed across multiple continents. The communications management plan identifies the technologies to be used by the team members when communicating amongst each other. Which factor listed is the LEAST challenging with respect to building an effective team? A. Different time zones B. Disparate tools and technologies C. Working from home D. Cultural differences

Working from home Virtual teams share a common project goal, but share little time in a traditional face-to-face business environment. The virtual team concept is made possible with electronic communication, and one of the benefits of such teams is the ability of members to work from home. Working from home poses the least challenge for Gloria with respect to building an effective team.