PMP STUDY QUESTIONS: PROCESSES
Preparing test cases prior to implementing code changes helps improve the overall quality of the product
A customized secure VPN service is being developed for a healthcare organization. With each iteration, test cases are developed prior to implementing any code changes. The development is done in small iterations and feedback is quickly received from the organization. Once the feedback is received, any proposed changes to the service is implemented in another iteration down the road. Given this information, which of the following statements is true?
Meet with key staff and subject matter experts and brainstorm and analyze issues that could arise
A government organization has issued an RFP to build a custom payroll platform to replace a system that is over 20 years old. You have been asked to put together a potential budget for your organization so they can bid on the project. The budget you put together will directly be used to set pricing and will need to be as accurate as possible. You have been asked to anticipate any problems that could befall the development process and build it into your budget. Of the following methods, what one best accomplishes this task?
Update project records to reflect the final results
A project to create a new smartphone is ending. The project took nine months, spent two million dollars, and used five different sellers to create various parts for the smartphone. Which activity is performed at this point in the project?
Low power, high interest - keep informed
After a project kickoff meeting with key stakeholders, you try to quickly gauge what category your stakeholders fall into using a power interest grid. You are tasked with creating an onboarding platform for the Director of HR. A low-level employee within that office will be acting as a product champion for you within that department. Where should the employee be categorized?
Meet with the analytics team to discuss the conflicting user stories
After a recent release, the product backlog has ballooned with requests to have additional capabilities built into an online retailer's analytics platform. The requests are coming from the newly found analytics team and several of the requests are conflicting. How can a project manager best resolve this situation?
Workaround
Amy is leading a project that is several weeks into production. A flood has occurred near one of the storage facilities used to store materials for the project. The flood is preventing the workers from accessing the materials needed, and is threatening to delay the project finish date. Amy checks the risk response plan and determines that the flood was never identified as being a potential project risk. Therefore, a procedure to address the risk has not been documented. Which item should Amy use to address this issue?
Rough order of magnitude estimate
As a project manager for a project that your company has undertaken, you are responsible for determining project costs. Early in the project, you develop an estimate that has an accuracy range of 50 percent. Which type of estimate are you developing?
In a presentation
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?
Create a request for information and publish it in the local newspaper.
Donna, a project manager for a multi-million dollar organization, has determined that to complete the installation of a new fitness center at a local university she is going to have to outsource the work. After reviewing the procurement documents, she notices that there is no vendor list available. Which action should she do NEXT?
A retrospective
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?
Analyze the problems with the process to be improved
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?
Review the stakeholder register and update it with the new person's name
During project execution, you receive a call from the customer to let you know that a new person hired within the organization will be representing their company's interests in the project. What should you do FIRST?
Executing the resource management plan.
Fiona is the project manager for a software engineering firm that creates accounting software for dentist offices. She is currently negotiating with the manager of the product testing department for the use of one of his top performers. Which statement BEST describes the set of actions Fiona is engaged in?
Proposal evaluation
Helen, Irene, and John make up an organization's review committee for a project they are working on. They have received responses from various vendors to the procurement document package and are formally reviewing prospective vendors according to their capabilities to successfully complete the conditions of the contract. They have been authorized to select vendors prior to senior management approval. Which action is the review committee currently undertaking?
Review the issue log.
Jack is leading project team members through a difficult phase of a project. The project schedule was updated to allow additional work in the future to resolve a known problem with code used in the GPS software being developed. Two months later, no one from the project team remembers who was scheduled to do the rework. How can Jack determine who is responsible for the rework?
Recommend Mark take the rest of the day off and have another team member continue with the task.
Mark is a project team member currently working on a project task with medium priority. Lucy, the project manager, observes that Mark seems to be distracted and is falling behind on his work. Which action should Lucy take?
Direct and Manage Project Work
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?
By studying the results after performing a design of experiment on the pressure and temperatures used
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?
Salience model
The project charter has been completed on your current project and you are currently working on identifying all potential stakeholders. Company policy states that the classification method to be used needs to organize stakeholders based on their power, urgency, and legitimacy. Which classification method should you use?
Control chart
The project manager has asked you to check the performance of a process that is used for making circuit boards. Specifically, he wants to know if there are any negative trends appearing. Which tool should you use?
Determine the root cause
The project manager has determined that there is an issue with one of the project processes. You bring together team members familiar with the process to help solve the issue. The first thing the project manager does is to define the problem. What should be done NEXT?
The work can be completed within a reporting period.
Which indicator BEST shows that a work package is decomposed to an appropriate level?
Notify the group awarding the contract of a possible conflict.
You are a project manager for a company that is taking bids from marketing agencies for work to be completed on a project you are currently managing. You learn that a marketing agency owned by a friend is making a bid for the contract to handle the project's advertising. Which step should you take NEXT?
Perform a walkthrough of the finished product
You are a project manager for a construction firm that offers prefabricated or custom-built modular homes. In the past, a client contracted your company to build them a new home, and specified several unique customizations that they wanted. Approximately four months later, the house has been completed and some minor landscaping needs to take place. Which action should now take place with the customer?
Lessons learned
You are a project manager for a large organization. One of the projects that you are currently managing has been formally accepted by the customer. After completing several tasks involved with the process of officially closing a project, all that remains is to archive project information. Which of the following is information that is archived during this process?
Generating a change request
You are a project manager for a major golf club manufacturer and your team is working on developing a new line of golf clubs for the upcoming season. Based upon last year's performance reports, the design phase should have been completed three weeks ago. This will tentatively affect the project's completion date. As part of the Monitor Communications process, stakeholders were informed of this. Which option is a possible outcome of this problem?
To further engage stakeholders in the project
You are a project manager for a major golf club manufacturer. Your team is working on developing a new line of golf clubs for the upcoming season. It was planned that you will meet with the stakeholders after the first few production sets were ready and allow them to try the clubs. You are reviewing how effective this type of stakeholder meeting is. Why would this type of meeting take place?
Work performance
You are a project manager for a major tire distributor, and you are monitoring your team's performance for the summer tire campaign project. You are currently involved in the Monitor Communications process. Which information is distributed as part of this process?
Perform stakeholder analysis
You are a project manager for an electric utility company. A project has been authorized to create a new substation that will supply power to a newly developed industrial park. You have been assigned to the project, which is in the process of identifying individuals and groups that may have influence over any aspect of the project. You are finding that the list is getting quite large and may be difficult to manage. Which action should you take to help organize the list so that stakeholders receive the appropriate amount of attention from you?
Project records
You are a project manager for an organization that is moving from paper to a new payroll system where clients can access pay and tax statements online. The project is in its final phase. You wish to review information that was brought up by a specific project stakeholder during meetings, as you plan to follow up with them. Which asset would include this information?
End users have provided feedback that they need a separate area to enter special notes on customers to better prepare for future sales calls
You are a project manager in charge of developing a CRM solution for clients all over the globe. You have delivered several iterations of the project and you are going over the project backlog to determine what feature to add to your software next. Which of the following project backlog items should you prioritize?
Issue a change request to minimize the scope for the release
You are a project manager overseeing the development of a new console video game and are currently involved in the Monitor and Control Project Work process. A working beta of the game is supposed to be available in the next two weeks to demo at an investor's conference. However, it is behind schedule due to problems that occurred when adding bonus content. Which option is the BEST course of action?
Issue and defect management database
You are a project manager, and you are currently managing sellers, suppliers, and stakeholders. As well as developing deliverables so that the team can complete the project work outlined within the project management plan. Which of the following is an organizational process asset used during this process?
Does your decision to proceed with the request abide by the law
You are an expatriate working in a foreign country. You have been asked to offer a cash payment gift to the procurement manager at a company with whom you are bidding on work. Before you proceed further with the request what question should you ask first?
Answers: Refer to the risk register to determine the appropriate risk response
You are at a critical stage in your project. You have just been informed that the parts you require are no longer available from the supplier, with whom you have signed a contract to supply those parts. What should you do FIRST?
3
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?
The work can be completed within a reporting period.
You are creating the WBS for a project. Which indicator BEST shows that you have decomposed a work package to an appropriate level?
Basis of estimates
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?
Stakeholder register
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?
Control Costs
You are currently analyzing the consumption of funds compared to the work being performed. In which process are you currently involved?
RAM
You are currently developing the resource management plan for a project you are managing. Which tool is the BEST for linking work packages from the project's work breakdown structure to the resources listed in the organizational breakdown structure?
Make-or-buy analysis, expert judgment, market research
You are currently engaged in documenting the approach that will be used to acquire some widgets needed for a project that you are managing. Which methods are MOST likely to help you achieve this?
It identifies that the customer has accepted the deliverables.
You are currently in the closing phase of the project. As the project manager, you are tasked with providing the successful completion of the project deliverable to the customer. Which option describes the MOST important purpose of receiving formal acceptance from the customer?
A change request is created
You are currently managing a landscaping project. Due to an unpredicted heat wave, grass seed has been ineffectual. As a contingency plan, a sod supplier has been sourced. Which action is a result of implementing a contingency plan?
Product analysis
You are defining the scope of a project that you are managing. You need to discover the attributes and features that the project deliverables require. Which technique would be BEST to use?
Scope management plan
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:
The configuration management system will define procedures to control any changes.
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?
Quality management plan, quality metrics, and project documents updates
You are in the process of planning quality. By effectively identifying the projects quality specifications, which end result will come from planning project quality requirements?
Implementing defect repair
You are instructed to attach new arms on any of the widgets that have broken arms. What BEST describes what you are doing?
Schedule compression
You are managing a construction project that is creating a new set for a talk show. The show is set to premiere next month. Based upon work performance data, it is forecasted the set will not be ready on time. Which option can be used to find ways to shorten the schedule, but also ensure that commitments are met?
Resource leveling
You are managing a construction project that is creating a new set for a talk show. The show is set to premiere next month. The backdrop is nearing completion; however, the main stage is only 50 percent complete. You move a few of the human resources to the main stage team. Which technique did you use?
Project management plan
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?
Work performance data
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. You are re-evaluating a cost-related risk. Which documentation would include the project costs that have been incurred?
As part of the organizational process asset updates
You are managing a mission critical project for your organization. A seller was sourced to provide a high load winch system. You leased a winch that is rated at 1,000 pounds for the project. You are satisfied with the work and product that the seller has provided and would like to use their services in the future. How might this information be documented?
Monitor and Control Project Work
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?
Review the stakeholder engagement plan to determine how to manage Carl's expectations.
You are managing a project that is designed to create a new database system that will be used by members of the sales team. You have been informed that Carl, one of the team leads in the sales department, is concerned that the system will not provide all of the required functionality. What should you do FIRST?
Secondary risk
You are managing a project to create a drug that reduces the effects of arthritis. Four significant side effects have been identified with the current formula, so you have implemented a change to try to eliminate them. The change to the formula has reduced the number of side effects to two; however, it has introduced the risk of a new side effect that was not identified earlier. What type of risk is the new side effect?
Perform Integrated Change Control
You are managing the construction of a state-of-the-art hospital. As with any project, this one has had its share of problems. The project sponsors would like to add a new wing to the hospital and designate it solely for the use of diagnostic medicine. During which process is the project manager going to evaluate the impact of this request?
Check the communications management plan
You are managing the execution of project work on a job site to convert an old hospital to a new medical center for a customer. One of the contracted electricians has discovered the electrical wiring does not meet current wiring standards. You analyze the situation and discuss options with the project team members including the contractor. The best option in this situation is to replace the wiring. To ensure the project stays on schedule, the contractor will need to bring in four additional electricians. The cost for rewiring with additional help is $10,000. After documenting the issue in the issue log, you need to bring it to the attention of the customer. What should you do FIRST?
Agile
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?
Qualitative analysis
You are performing a preliminary analysis of the identified risks in the risk register, which entails prioritizing the risks based on the probability of occurrence and impact to the project. Which process are you currently performing?
Assignment Matrix
You are planning how project resources are going to be grouped, distributed, and managed. Which of the following tool or technique will be helpful in creating this plan?
RACI chart
You are reviewing the progress on the various work packages for a mission critical project when you notice that performance is not as expected for one of them. You need to identify the person in charge of the work package so that you can contact them. What is the BEST resource to use to locate this information?
Generate work performance data, execute approved changes, and document lessons learned
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?
Accepted deliverables
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?
Developing the final project report
You are the project manager at Diallonic. One of the projects that you are currently managing is near its end. You are in the process of documenting information related to the strengths and successes of the project, as well as creating a listing of recommendations made by the project's team members. In addition, you are detailing how successful the project was by identifying the project objectives that have been met. What are you in the process of doing?
Project schedule
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?
Inform stakeholders of the approved project charter.
You are the project manager for a clothing design company. You have just gained formal authorization to initiate a project designed to create a new line of swimwear. What should you do NEXT?
Benefit analysis
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?
Schedule crashing
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: Project management plan
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. Through a comparison, it has been determined that the project is ahead of schedule. Which option contained the data that was used in this comparison?
What-if scenario analysis
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 model. The personnel in charge of creating the woods are progressing ahead of schedule, the team developing the irons is behind schedule, and the team developing the wedges and putter are on schedule. As the project manager, you consider the ramifications of moving personnel from the woods and wedges team to the iron team. Which technique have you applied in this example?
Project schedule
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?
Formal acceptance
You are the project manager for your company. You have completed reviewing the new product with the customer and the support team that will be handling the new product after the transition is made. The verification and walkthrough was very positive. You schedule a follow-up meeting with the customer for the next morning to attain a sign-off on the new product. Which of the following BEST describes what is going to be accomplished at this follow-up meeting?
Politely refuse the tickets.
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?
Maintaining an information base detailing the video game through completion
You are the project manager overseeing the development of a new console video game and are currently involved in the Monitor and Control Project Work process. Which task would you be performing as part of this process?
Duration = 5, LS = 18
You are the project manager working on a project for your organization. You are currently working on the network diagram for the project. Refer to the exhibit. Which option presents the duration and the LS date for the activity presented in the diagram, assuming the first task starts on day 1?
Completing the construction in the dry season will reduce the number of days lost to rain.
You are working closely with your project sponsor to create the initiation documents required to get a construction project approved. The sponsor has provided you with a number of details that you want to organize for your project proposal. Which details would be considered to be risks to the project?
1122000
You are working on a construction project and have been keeping monthly earned value, actual cost, and cost performance index statistics. Refer to the statistics for the existing system. Month1: EV = $47,000, AC = $39,000, CPI = 1.20 Month2: EV = $177,100, AC = $168,500, CPI = 1.05 Month3: EV = $139,500, AC = $157,900, CPI = 0.88 Month4: EV = $151,800, AC = $160,750, CPI = 0.96< The budget for the project was originally set at $1,100,000 for an eight month duration. The project sponsors are worried about the final cost. Which option represents the approximate estimate at completion for this project, assuming the remaining work to be performed is at the same cumulative cost performance index (CPI) as that incurred by the project to date?
Review risk at regularly scheduled meetings
You are working on creating scheduling software for your company. The project sponsor has asked that the project be delivered to specification. You have conducted an initial risk assessment, but you are worried that other risks may come up during the development of the project. What should you do?
Sponsor
You have been asked to help develop the project charter for an internal project being performed by your organization. Your first task is to document any constraints on the project. Which of following is a potential source of this information?
A pre-kickoff meeting
You have been assigned a small team to start building a new version of your organizations flagship product. This is the first time many of the team members will be working on a high profile project. A few members of the team have privately expressed anxiety over the scope of the project. You want to help calm anxiety and set realistic expectations with the team for deliver. What tool would be best suited for this?
Determine if project risks have been identified.
You have been assigned to replace a project manager at the beginning of project execution. You are in the process of reviewing the activities completed by the previous project manager. You determine he has completed the schedule and budget. You also determine that the quality specifications were documented, and the communications management plan has been outlined. Based on what the project manager has completed during planning, what should you do NEXT?
Project management software
You have been contracted by an organic honey startup company to design a process for efficient honey gathering. It is a daunting task trying to maintain the schedule, as there are many variables to consider related to the bee's honey production. Which option can be used to reduce the complexity of this task?
37500
You have been contracted to oversee a project that is estimated to take 30 working days. The project is created to address the redesign of a recalled part and is budgeted for $75,000. You are halfway through the project, and it is one day behind schedule. The earned value of the project is $35,000. The cost variance of the project is -$2,500. Sponsors are providing three equal installments of $25,000 during the project duration. Funds have been spent proportionally throughout the project. Which option represents the actual cost of the project thus far?
Interview stakeholders to gather information about the requirements for the project
You have been recently assigned to manage a new project and have been asked to help develop the project charter. You have been given the business case and the project benefits management plan from the project sponsor. Which activity should be performed before moving forward?
Determine roles and responsibilities of the team
You have decided to sponsor an internal project for your organization whose goal is to provide greater flexibility when responding to service requests. The objective of the project is to create a new online application form that must be up and running by the end of the year. After the project charter has been created, which action should be performed next?
Create a histogram
You have identified a number of defects related to a component needed for a project deliverable. The project manager has asked you to determine the impact of each defect in a meaningful way. What should you do?
Cost Baseline
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:
Schedule a brainstorming session with project staff, key stakeholders, and the project owner
You have just been promoted to project manager and received your first vision statement. "Make every meal simple". You have been assigned a team of new recruits from management that are also working on their first project. The project team is scheduled to report to you on Monday. What should you do?
Functional managers, project manager, project sponsor
You have just finished creating the project management plan for a project that you are in charge of. Which group of stakeholders is BEST suited to approve the plan?
Perform a quantitative analysis
You have just finished prioritizing project risks based on the probability of occurrence and impact to the project. Which action should you do NEXT?
The project charter
You have just gained formal approval to initiate a project designed to create a new prototype of an environmentally friendly public transportation system. You need to ensure the stakeholders have a common understanding about the key project deliverables and their roles and responsibilities. Which of the following is the BEST source of this information?
Alert the sponsor and request that the project charter be built.
You have recently taken over a large mission critical project that has been underway for several months. Project work has begun. You are in the process of reviewing the documentation, but you are unable to locate the project charter. When you ask the project management team members where the charter is stored, they inform you that it does not exist. Which action is the BEST way to deal with this situation?
Perform data analysis
You need to determine relevant information about each stakeholder on your project. This information includes their level of knowledge, their interest in the project, and their contributions to the project. What should you do?
Funding limit reconciliation
You need to ensure planned expenditures never exceed planned funds-on-hand. Which method should you use to achieve this?
Technical performance analysis
You were managing a project that was commemorating the city's 200th anniversary. The park where the ceremony took place is approximately five miles from the fireworks site. You contracted a transit company to transport people from the party to the fireworks site. Focal points of the contract at the time were as follows: The amount of people that the transit service would be able to move within a given time period The amount of people that would fit in each vehicle The amount of trips that they would need to make These focal points were all compared to the original project plan. What is this scenario an example of?
Environmental regulations
You work as a supervisor for the Engineering department of an organization that mainly performs operational activities with the occasional project on the side. The organization is made up of both union and nonunion workers and most of the revenue is derived from the operational side of the business. The projects for your organization are normally handled by an external company that specializes in project work. However, due to budget constraints, you are currently working on a new project for your organization. The project charter has been created, identifying you as the project manager. However, no other team members have been assigned to the project. You have been working closely with the Human Resources department to identify the project roles and responsibilities that are going to be required on the project team. All of the following are possible constraints for this scenario EXCEPT:
A return on investment (ROI) study
Your organization has been looking to increase the market share of its high-end smart phone products. You have an idea that may provide a solution to this problem. He tells you that you will need to write a business case before they will look at your idea any further. Which item will you need to include in your business case?
Lessons learned documentation
Your team has recently completed building a desktop support toolkit and handed it over to operations. The project team has been returned to their operating groups and you are closing out the project. In development of the toolkit, you had run into delays because the network security team had to vet all systems changes. You want to make sure that projects in the future plan for this delay. What tool would be best for this?
