411 exam

In a weighted scoring model, the sum of the weights of all the criteria must total _____ percent.

100

What is a project? What is a project constraint? Identify and describe the triple contraints of project management discussed in class.

A project is a temporary endeavor undertaken to create a unique product, service, or result. A project constraint is a projects limitations.There are 3 constraints in project management which are Scope: the work that will be done, Cost: cost to complete project, and Time: amount of time to complete the project.

Which of the following is a pre-initiation task?

Developing a business case for a project

_____ involves working with stakeholders to create the document that formally authorizes a project.

Developing the project charter

Which of the following is true of return on investment or ROI?

It is always a percentage.

Which of the following is true about the agile method?

It uses several iterations or deliveries of software instead of waiting until the end of the project to provide a product.

A _____ is an organizational group responsible for coordinating the project management function throughout an organization.

Project Management Office

What is project management? Identify and briefly describe the 5 main project management process groups (phases) discussed in class.

Project management is "the application of knowledge, skills, tools and techniques to project activities to meet project requirements. The 5 main project management process groups are initiating, planning, executing, monitoring and controlling, and closing. Initiating is when the project is first being defined. This means evaluating skills, activities and processes. In the planning phase, project managers are looking for ways to maximize work flow, gathering up all the necessary items, and just basically planning the rest of the project. The executing phase, which is the most important phase, is where most of the energy and time should be spent. In this phase project managers are making sure every process is on time and reaching designated goals. In the monitoring and controlling phase project managers handle unforeseen changes, budget constraints, and the best way to handle them without affecting the time-line of the project. In the last step, which is the closing step, the project manager makes sure the project comes to a proper closing, meaning all the papers are documented and every one is happy with the results.

"A shortage of qualified personnel is one of the main reason that companies outsource. A project may require experts in a particular field for several months and planning for this procurement ensures that the needed services will be available for the project." Which of the following benefits does this characteristic of outsourcing provide an organization?

Provides access to specific skills

A customer issued solicitation to attract interested contractors to develop and submit proposed solutions.

RFP

A formal document outlining specific requirements for the project or service so contractor can propose appropriate solution.

RFP

A customer issued solicitation for contractor to supply specific products or services

RFQ

The _____ is a description of the work required for a procurement.

SOW

What is the System Development Life Cycle? Describe, compare and contrast the predictive (traditional) and adaptive (agile) models.

The SDLC is a framework for describing the phases involved in developing and maintaining information systems. Predictive is when the scope of the project can be clearly explained and the time and budget can be predicted. Adaptive is when the requirements aren't clear.

Identify the 10 knowledge areas in which all project managers must be competent.

The ten knowledge areas are project integration, quality, human resource, scope, time, cost, communications, procurement, risk, and stakeholder management.

An important tool for project scope management is _____.

a work breakdown structure

A decision process conducted by contractors.

bid / no bid

Project procurement management mainly involves:

buying goods and services for a project from outside the performing organization.

A Gantt chart is a standard format for displaying project schedule information by listing project activities and their corresponding start and finish dates in a ____ format.

calendar

Benefits minus costs is known as the _____.

cash flow

Should be included in contracts to take into account issues unique to the project.

clause

Administrative activities, such as archiving project files, closing out contracts, documenting lessons learned, and receiving formal acceptance of the delivered work as part of the phase or project, are often involved in _____ processes.

closing

In project procurement management, which of the following processes involve completion and settlement of each contract, including resolution of any open items?

closing procurements

A mutually binding agreement that obligates the contractor to provide the specified products or services and obligates the customer to pay for them.

contract

Creates and submits a proposal.

contractor

Tends to have higher risk in a fixed-price type contract.

contractor

In which of the following areas of management is payback analysis most likely to be used?

cost

Creates and issues an RFP.

customer

Tends to have higher risk in a cost-reimbursement type contract.

customer

A(n) _____ refers to a product or service, such as a technical report, a training session, a piece of hardware, or a segment of software code, produced or provided as part of a project.

deliverable

The first step in determining the NPV is to _____

determine the estimated costs and benefits for the life of the project and the products it produces

A critical path:

determines the earliest completion date of a project.

One of the main outputs of the initiation process is _____.

developing the project charter

The majority of time on a project is usually spent on _____, as is most of the project's budget.

execution

In Rizzati Corp, vice presidents in departments such as engineering, manufacturing, IT, and human resources report directly to the chief executive officer and undertake their tasks independently of each other. The staffs of these departments have specialized skills in their respective disciplines.Rizatti Corp can be said to have a _____ organizational structure.

functional

During _____ processes for a new project, the organization recognizes that a new project exists, and completes a project charter as part of this recognition.

initiating

A drawback of outsourcing is that:

it can make an organization become overly dependent on particular suppliers.

A common _____ process is reporting performance, where project stakeholders can identify any necessary changes that may be required to keep the project on track.

monitoring and controlling

_____ analysis is a method of calculating the expected net monetary gain or loss from a project by discounting all expected future cash inflows and outflows to the present point in time.

net present value

In a _____organizational structure, program managers, rather than functional managers or vice presidents, report to the CEO. Their staffs have a variety of skills needed to complete all required tasks within their programs.

project

Project managers have the most authority in a pure _____ organizational structure.

project

In the _____ stage of selecting information technology projects, organizations define project scope, benefits, and constraints.

project planning

The role of a _____ is to provide direction and funding for a project.

project sponsor

It should contain technical, management and cost sections describing in detail the contractor's proposed solution for addressing the customer's needs.

propasal

A contractor produced response to an RFP.

proposal

Payback occurs when:

the net cumulative benefits equal the net cumulative costs.

The first step in the planning process is _____.

to tie the information technology strategic plan to the organization's overall strategic plan