Project Management Quizzes

This response is used when an identified opportunity is not actively pursued. Exploit Escalate Share Accept Enhance

Accept (the outcome is accepted but not pursued; whatever happens, happens)

You have just been given a project that has a specific completion date. After a discussion with top management you find that while the date is important the cost is more important and a slip in delivery would be acceptable if required to meet the cost targets. The completion date is best classified as: constrained. reduced. accepted. limited. optional.

Accepted (can be pushed back/modified to meet other criteria)

When developing project networks, which of the following is not a reason for delineating technical dependencies first before doing resource dependencies? An effort to examine the interactions between technical/logical constraints and resource limitations frequently uncovers surprising problems. The interrelationships and interactions among time and resource constraints are complex for even small project networks. Even if resources are known, one cannot assess the impact of limited resources until a resource-neutral schedule is created. All of these alternatives are reasons for delineating technical dependencies first before doing resource dependencies. Resource availability may not be known until the initial schedule is completed.

All of these alternatives are reasons for delineating technical dependencies first before doing resource dependencies.

At the project level, which of the following is a factor that should influence the choice of project management structure? The size of the project The novelty of the project Budget and time constraints The strategic importance of the project All of these are factors that should influence the choice of project management structure

All of these are factors that should influence the choice of project management structure

All of the following are usually included in a work package EXCEPT: work to be done. the time needed to complete the work. a single person who is responsible for its completion. all the costs for the work package. All of these are included in a work package.

All of these are included in a work package

If, for some reason, the project must be expedited to meet an earlier date, which of the following actions would the project manager take first? Check to see which activities have the most slack. Check to see which activities cost the least. Check to see which activities have the longest duration. Check to see which activities are on the critical path. Check to see which activities have the highest risk.

Check to see which activities are on the critical path

From the following information identify the critical path. Find the critical path and how many days the project will take: ID, Activity, Predecessor, Time. A, Survey Site, None, 2 B, Excavate site, A, 4 C, Install power lines, B, 3 D, Install drainage, B, 5 E, Pour foundation, (C,D), 3

Critical Path: A, B, D, E Project Duration: 14 days

Which structure would be most appropriate for developing a new, highly innovative product that has strict time constraints? Functional organization Balanced matrix Dedicated project team Strong matrix Weak matrix

Dedicated project team

Five steps are involved when defining a project. Which of the following is the first? Establish project priorities Define the project scope Verify the budget available Assign team members to work on the project

Define the project scope

This response is used to increase the potential effect of an identified opportunity. Enhance Accept Exploit Escalate Share

Enhance

A project professional has just been assigned manager of a project to develop a new advertising campaign for an established product. What is the second step the project manager should do? Establish project priorities. Define the project scope. Verify the budget available. Assign team members to work on the project. Determine the required completion date.

Establish project priorities. (***The second step, not the first step***)

Which of the following is NOT a disadvantage of organizing projects within a matrix arrangement? Dysfunctional conflict between functional managers and project managers Expensive. Infighting. Stressful. Longer project duration.

Expensive

If testing cannot be completed any earlier than four days after the prototype has been built, what type of lag exists? Finish to Start Any of these could be correct Start to Start Start to Finish Finish to Finish

Finish to Finish

Which of the following is NOT one of the bottom-up approaches to estimating project time and cost? Estimates for the WBS work packages Learning curve Range estimates Parametric procedures applied to specific tasks Template method

Learning curve

Which constraint category should be considered before all others? Logical and technical constraints Equipment resource constraints Material resource constraints Time constraints Human resource constraints

Logical and technical

Which constraint category should be considered before all others? Time constraints Logical and technical constraints Material resource constraints Equipment resource constraints Human resource constraints

Logical and technical constraints

Which of the following is an advantage of a functional project management organization? Maximum flexibility in the use of staff Good integration across functional units Shorter project duration Strong motivation of project team members Longer project duration

Maximum flexibility in the use of staff

Which of the following is the correct order for the strategic management process? Strategies, mission, objectives, projects Objectives, projects, mission, strategies Mission, strategies, objectives, projects Objectives, mission, strategies, projects Projects, mission, strategies, objectives

Mission, strategies, objectives, projects

The estimating factor that considers the prevailing belief in some firms that detailed estimating takes too much time and is not worth the effort is an example of the ___________ factor. planning horizon project complexity people padding estimates organizational culture

Organizational culture

Which of the following is NOT a reason why project management has become a standard way of doing business? Increased need for skilled management of stakeholders outside of organization. Projects need to be done faster. Organizations are doing more project work in-house instead of outsourcing. Organizations are executing more and more projects.

Organizations are doing more project work in-house instead of outsourcing

Which of the choices listed below is NOT considered a project? Developing a new software program Production of automobile tires Developing a new advertising program Preparing the site for the Olympic Games

Production of automobile tires (When there is no end date, it is a program/not a project)

Which of the following is NOT one of the factors that need to be considered to improve quality of estimates for project times and costs? planning horizon padding estimates people profit project structure

Profit

From the list below, which is NOT a primary characteristic of organizational culture? Control Team emphasis Profitability Conflict tolerance Risk tolerance

Profitability

A project manager is looking over the actual results of projects and comparing them to what was estimated. She notices that the projects that took six months or longer to complete were noticeably more off the estimates. Which of the following factors is she recognizing? Padding estimates Project structure People Project duration Organization culture

Project duration

Which of the following statements is true? Project management is far from a standard way of doing business. Project management is increasingly contributing to achieving organizational strategies. Project management is being used at a consistent percentage of a firm's efforts. Project management is a specialty that few organizations have access to.

Project management is increasingly contributing to achieving organizational strategies.

The _________ is used to assist in making project trade-offs among schedule, budget, and performance objectives. responsibility matrix work breakdown structure project priority matrix work package criterion matrix

Project priority matrix

A technology firm has assigned a project manager for each of the five new-product teams. The managers, as well as the project team members, work on the projects on a full-time basis. The structure being used is ________: organization. functional balanced matrix weak matrix strong matrix projectized

Projectized Organization

Project management is ideally suited for a business environment requiring all of the following EXCEPT: Repeatability. Innovation. Flexibility. Accountability.

Repeatability

A(n) ________ constraint addresses the sequence in which project activities must occur even after considering resource constraints. successor serial technical or logic predecessor hard

Technical or Logic

A(n) ________ constraint addresses the sequence in which project activities must occur even after considering resource constraints. serial successor hard technical or logic predecessor

Technical or logic

Regardless of the criteria differences among different types of projects, typically the most important criterion for project selection is: how the project will balance risk within the project portfolio. the project's fit to the organization strategy. compliance. nonfinancial. profit.

The project's fit to the organization strategy

A project leader's boss has indicated that their project is very important. If the critical path is delayed, the lead will be given whatever is needed to get it back on schedule. The project is classified as ________ constrained. quality time resource cost performance

Time

When someone uses experience and/or information from others to determine the project duration and total cost, ____________ estimating is being used. professional estimation experiential reference class bottom-up top-down

Top-down

A purchasing agent is responsible for ordering hardware for a custom home his company is building. The contractor installing the hardware is scheduled to start in 5 working days, but the hardware is on backorder and will not arrive for another 9 working days. Fortunately, the purchasing agent has 10 days of slack; however, he shares this slack with the hardware installer. He will have to let the contractor know that the hardware will be ready 4 days later than expected and that the slack for the installer has been reduced by 4 days. The purchasing agent and the installer share 10 days of shared slack. critical slack. functional slack. total slack. free slack.

Total slack

The amount of time an activity can be delayed and yet not delay the project is termed total slack. float pad. slip pad. free slack. critical float.

Total slack

Which of the following questions does the organization's mission statement answer? What are our long-term strategies? What are our long-term goals and objectives? How do we operate in the existing environment? What do we want to become? All of these are answered by the mission statement.

What do we want to become?

Scope definition is among the first tasks that must happen in projects. How is project scope defined? The length of your project and how much it will cost The deliverables or outputs during the course of the project The range of resources you have available and their capabilities What you expect to deliver to your customer when the project is complete The range of customer expectations

What you expect to deliver to your customer when the project is complete

Which of the following activities might you consider adding a time buffer to? Activities with scarce resources Noncritical activities with very little slack You might consider adding a time buffer to any of these activities. Activities with severe risks Merge activities that are prone to delays

You might consider adding a time buffer to any of these activities

A project screening matrix typically contains all of the following EXCEPT: the list of available projects. specific criteria. weights assigned to specific criteria. costs to complete each project. All of these are typically contained.

costs to complete each project

Including the change control system within the ________ is a key to a successful project. project baseline and risk management plan work breakdown structure and project baseline work breakdown structure project baseline risk management plan

work breakdown structure and project baseline