chap 16

66. Which of the following is not characteristic of adding safety time in the critical chain approach? a) Probability and statistics provide no insights into the adding of safety time. b) It can be added by basing time estimates on pessimistic experiences. c) It is added at the end of the critical path. d) It can be added by having more safety factors added at each level of management. e) It can be added to offset possible global reductions in project length made by top management

a

13. Actions that consume resources and/or time are project ______________________. a) events b) activities c) nodes d) arrows e) tasks

b

18. The critical path is the sequential path of interrelated activities which has the ____________________. a) most activities b) longest time c) most nodes d) most events e) most arrows

b

22. When we are unsure about the duration of project activities, we use _____________________ time estimates. a) variable b) probabilistic c) estimated d) deterministic e) cumulative

b

25. The process of calculating LS and LF _____________________________. a) requires only a forward pass through the network b) requires only a backward pass through the network c) requires both a forward and backward pass through the network d) cannot be accomplished until slack is first determined e) is sufficient for calculating the critical path

b

3. Which of the following is not characteristic of a project? a) has a life cycle b) uses no resources c) involves a unique, one-time event d) consists of several tasks e) typically some activities may be done simultaneously

b

30. In making a backward pass through a network, activity L has an activity time of 4 and immediately precedes activities M, P, and T. The late start times for activities M, P, and T are 22, 17, and 27, respectively. The late finish times for activities M, P, and T are 29, 27, and 33, respectively. What is the late finish time for activity L? a) 13 b) 17 c) 22 d) 33 e) 37

b

38. Which of the following can be calculated for an activity once ES, EF, LS, and LF have been calculated for the activity? a) expected project duration b) slack time c) potential for crashing d) variance in project duration e) the relative time position for when the activity will be completed

b

41. With probabilistic time estimates, when we calculate the expected time for an activity, we treat each activity time estimate as a random variable derived from a ______________ probability distribution. a) normal b) beta c) gamma d) Poisson e) uniform

b

47. An activity in a network diagram has an optimistic time estimate of seven days, a most likely time estimate of 11 days, and a pessimistic time estimate of 19 days. Its variance is _________. a) 2 b) 4 c) 6 d) 12 e) 24

b

48. There are four activities on the critical path, and they have standard deviations of 1, 2, 4, and 2. The standard deviation of the critical path is ______. a) 3 b) 5 c) 9 d) 16 e) 25

b

51. The probability of completing a project in a specified amount of time is being calculated. For a particular path through the project, the ______________ shows the path's number of standard deviations that the specified time is past the expected path completion time. a) m-value b) z-value c) sigma-value d) s-value e) alpha-value

b

6. Which phase in the project life cycle involves evaluating expected costs, benefits, and risks? a) conception b) feasibility analysis or study c) planning d) execution e) termination

b

60. Shortening a project is called ______________ the project. a) reducing b) crashing c) cutting short d) wrecking e) shaking

b

65. Which of the following is not characteristic of the critical chain approach? a) It can help get projects done faster and more consistently at or before the project due date. b) The focus is on project milestones. c) The idea is that project activities are uncertain. d) Safety time is added to project time estimates. e) Safety time is placed at the end of the critical path.

b

70. Removing safety time from the individual activities and putting the total safety time at the end of the critical path creates a(n) ___________________. a) project safety net b) project buffer c) overconfident project manager d) activity shortage e) larger number of activities

b

71. PERT is credited with reducing the duration of the Polaris missile project by _________________. a) one year b) two years c) three years d) four years e) five years

b

11. Which of the following is not a benefit of network planning techniques? a) graphical display of the project, including the relationships and sequence of activities b) estimate of the expected project length c) resources are clearly identified d) identification of activities that are critical to the timely completion of the project e) identification of the amount of slack associated with individual activities

c

16. What does AON stand for? a) action-oriented-network b) activity-on-network c) activity-on-node d) activity-oriented-network e) activity-overrun-network

c

2. Which of the following is not characteristic of a project? a) has a specific objective b) has multiple activities c) typically performed by external consultants d) activities have defined precedence relationships e) to be completed in a specified time period

c

21. The sum of the activity times on the critical path determines _____________________. a) total slack available b) total labor time required for the project c) minimum time to complete the project d) the number of milestones e) amounting of crashing that needs to be done

c

26. The last project activity ES and LS times are: a) different b) calculated using termination rules c) the same d) required probabilistic calculations e) involving risk analysis

c

36. Given this information about an activity: ES = 10, EF = 18, LS = 28, and LF = 36. The amount of slack associated with the activity is ____________________. a) 38 b) 8 c) 18 d) 26 e) 10

c

37. Given this information about an activity: ES = 10, EF = 20, LS = 29, and LF = 39. The amount of slack associated with the activity is ____________________. a) 29 b) 9 c) 19 d) 38 e) 10

c

39. With probabilistic time estimates for activities, (o) denotes the _______________________. a) median time b) original time c) optimistic time d) pessimistic time e) most likely time

c

42. The formula to calculate an activity's probabilistic expected time is a) ET = ( M+4*O+P)/6 b) ET = ( P+4*O+M)/6 c) ET = ( P+4*M+O)/6 d) ET = ( P+3*M+O)2/6 e) ET = ( M+3*O+P)/4

c

43. An activity in a network diagram has an optimistic time estimate of five days, a most likely time estimate of seven days, and a pessimistic time estimate of 15 days. Its expected time is _________________. a) 5 days b) 7 days c) 8 days d) 10 days e) 15 days

c

57. You may be able to speed up completion of a project by _______________________. a) reducing the standard deviation of activities b) recalculating the critical path c) making additional resources available d) adding slack to critical activities e) redoing some of the activities

c

59. Shortening the total time for completing a project by incurring higher costs from shortening activities is ________. a) normal cost b) backward pass c) crashing d) leveling e) project control

c

68. A feeding buffer protects a ______ path from delays in a __________. a) shortest, buffer overflow b) noncritical, critical path c) critical, noncritical path d) critical, longest variance e) noncritical, longest variance

c

7. Which phase in the project life cycle involves analyzing the work to be done and developing time estimates for completing each of the activities? a) conception b) feasibility analysis or study c) planning d) execution e) termination

c

73. Who is responsible for the success and failure of a project? a) CEO b) Program Manager c) Project Manager d) Project Sponsor e) Functional Manager

c

9. There are four activities on the critical path, and they have variances of 1, 2, 4, and 2. The variance of the critical path is _______. a) 3 b) 5 c) 9 d) 16 e) 25

c

Which phase in the project life cycle involves analyzing the project risk? a) conception b) feasibility analysis or study c) planning d) execution e) termination

c

15. Project managers use network planning techniques to ________________________. a) evaluate costs b) assign resources to activities c) estimate how long it will take to assign activities d) calculate the expected completion time of the project e) invert activities

d

23. We use _____________________ time estimates when we can make a reliable estimate. a) variable b) probabilistic c) estimated d) deterministic e) cumulative

d

1. What is a unique, one-time event that is intended to achieve an objective in a given time period? a) a project b) a job c) a task d) an activity e) an event

A

58. Which of the following is not an example of a method that can be used to reduce the time to complete an activity? a) work on other activities b) faster shipments of materials c) use special equipment d) work overtime e) work around the clock

a

62. Which of the following is not included in the approach for crashing projects? a) Determine which activity requires the most time. b) Crash the least expensive activity first. c) Determine how much the project needs to be reduced. d) Calculate the total costs associated with crashing the project. e) Determine which activities on the critical path can be reduced.

a

52. Crashing a schedule is reducing a project completion time by ___________________. a) renegotiating with management b) realign tasks in parallel c) rearranging all tasks d) throwing additional resources to the critical path e) throwing less resources to the critical path

e

12. Two type of network diagramming notation include: a) AON and AOA b) AON and Node c) AON and NOA d) Node and AOA e) Node and Arrow

a

17. Which of the following is not a step involved in using network planning techniques? a) define deliverables b) describe the project c) diagram the network d) monitor the project's progression e) estimate the project's completion time

a

19. If a delay in an activity will delay completion of the whole project, the activity ____________________. a) is on the critical path b) has slack c) is costly d) is a dummy e) is represented by a node

a

24. The process of calculating ES and EF ______________________________. a) requires only a forward pass through the network b) requires only a backward pass through the network c) requires both a forward and backward pass through the network d) cannot be accomplished until slack is first determined e) is sufficient for calculating the critical path

a

31. In making a backward pass through a network, activity L has an activity time of 4 and immediately precedes activities M, P, and T. The late start times for activities M, P, and T are 22, 17, and 27, respectively. The late finish times for activities M, P, and T are 29, 27, and 33, respectively. What is the late start time for activity L? a) 13 b) 17 c) 22 d) 33 e) 37

a

32. In making a backward pass through a network, activity T immediately precedes three activities. What is the late finish time for activity T? a) the smallest LS for the three activities that activity T immediately precedes b) the largest LS for the three activities that activity T immediately precedes c) the smallest LF for the three activities that activity T immediately precedes d) the largest LF for the three activities that activity T immediately precedes e) the activity time for activity T

a

34. In critical path scheduling, slack is computed as the difference between ______________________. a) latest and earliest times b) optimistic and pessimistic times c) mean and modal times d) finish and start times e) observed and predicted times

a

46. In monitoring the progress of a project, it is important to focus on _____________________________. a) activities on the critical path b) activities with long completion times c) activities with large slacks d) initiating events e) terminating events

a

5. Which phase in the project life cycle involves identifying the need for the project? a) conception b) feasibility analysis or study c) planning d) execution e) termination

a

27. In making a forward pass through a network, three activities are immediate predecessors for activity T. What is the early start time for activity T? a) the smallest ES for the three activities that are immediate predecessors for activity T b) the largest ES for the three activities that are immediate predecessors for activity T c) the smallest EF for the three activities that are immediate predecessors for activity T d) the largest EF for the three activities that are immediate predecessors for activity T e) the activity time for activity T

d

28. In making a forward pass through a network, activities L, M, and P are immediate predecessors for activity T, which has an activity time of 7. The early start times for activities L, M, and P are 22, 17, and 27, respectively. The early finish times for activities L, M, and P are 29, 27, and 33, respectively. What is the early start time for activity T? a) 17 b) 24 c) 27 d) 33 e) 40

d

35. Given this information about an activity: ES = 10, EF = 15, LS = 26, and LF = 31. The amount of slack associated with the activity is ____________________. a) 32 b) 5 c) 21 d) 16 e) 11

d

4. Which of the following would probably not benefit from the use of critical path scheduling? a) constructing a new bridge over the Mississippi River b) moving the company's credit card center to a new city c) building a new natural gas pipeline d) receiving orders for the company's products by phone e) developing a new computer system for financial planning

d

40. With probabilistic time estimates for activities, (p) denotes the _______________________. a) median time b) probable time c) optimistic time d) pessimistic time e) most likely time

d

44. Joe's radio tower fabrication company has developed the following milestone project schedule. What is the expected time duration for the project? a) 9 b) 10 c) 14 d) 14.33 e) 17.33 f) 21

d

45. What can be used to display graphically the scheduled times for activities? a) an AOA network diagram b) an AON network diagram c) a project structure tree d) a Gantt chart e) an affinity diagram

d

50. Which functional group is not concerned with project management outcomes? a) Marketing b) Operations c) Purchasing d) Administration e) Information Systems

d

54. Joe's tower fabrication company client would like to know what the probability is of completing the project in 60 days rather than the 58 estimated days. Based on Z values what is the probability that Joes' tower fabrication will be able to meet the request if the variance is 1.25? a) -1.6 b) 1.6 c) -1.79 d) 1.79 e) 2

d

55. In calculating the estimated probability of completion value a negative number is obtained. This means: a) your calculation is wrong. b) the project will be delayed. c) the specified completion time is later than the expected completion time. d) the specified completion time is earlier than the expected completion time. e) the variance is incorrect.

d

56. Which of the following is not a valid reason for reducing the time spent finishing a particular project? a) deadlines b) promised completion dates c) penalty clauses for late completion d) the project started too early e) the need to put resources on a new project

d

64. In the critical chain approach, the focus is on _______________________. a) deliverables b) making activity times certain c) project milestones d) the final due date of the project e) individual activities

d

67. One way of wasting safety time in the critical chain approach is multitasking, which involves ___________. a) waiting until the last minute to start a project b) interaction among project activities c) having the computer operating system do everything d) using a person or resource for more than one project e) reversing the order of the activities

d

9. Which phase in the project life cycle involves carrying out the activities that make up the project? a) conception b) feasibility analysis or study c) planning d) execution e) termination

d

10. Which phase in the project life cycle involves ending the project? a) conception b) feasibility analysis or study c) planning d) execution e) termination

e

14. _____________________ structure the sequencing of activities. a) Evaluation of costs b) Crashings c) Work breakdowns d) Backschedules e) Precedence relationships

e

20. The longest connected route through the path network is the ______________________. a) planning matrix b) final deliverable c) crash path d) connector e) critical path

e

29. In making a forward pass through a network, activities L, M, and P are immediate predecessors for activity T, which has an activity time of 7. The early start times for activities L, M, and P are 22, 17, and 27, respectively. The early finish times for activities L, M, and P are 29, 27, and 33, respectively. What is the early finish time for activity T? a) 17 b) 24 c) 27 d) 33 e) 40

e

33. Activities on the critical path _______________________________________. a) are the ones with the longest activity times b) always are connected directly to dummy activities c) have LS equal to LF d) have ES equal to EF e) have no slack

e

53. For projects whose activities have probabilistic time estimates, the probability of completing the project in a specified amount of time is determined by __________________________. a) the expected time for the critical path only b) the standard deviation for the critical path only c) the expected time and standard deviation for the critical path only d) the expected times for all paths e) the expected times and standard deviations for the critical path and paths whose expected times are close to that of the critical path

e

61. Which of the following information about activities is not needed in determining how to crash a project? a) the normal cost b) the crash cost c) the crash time estimate d) the normal time estimate e) how many dummy activities there are

e

63. An approach for getting projects done faster and more consistently at or before the project due date is ____________________. a) business process reengineering b) PERT c) project inversion d) backcasting e) the critical chain approach

e

69. An activity has eight weeks allotted to it, but we should be able to do it in five weeks. Waiting three weeks before getting started on it is an example of the _____________________. a) project buffer approach b) common sense approach c) professor approach d) academic approach e) student syndrome

e

72. Which of the following represents a way to waste safety time? a) dependencies between activities b) multitasking c) student syndrome d) waiting until the last minute to do a task e) all of these answer choices are correct

e