PMP Part 2

Question 1

Project manager Mary was informed by the team that the constant conflicts in the project have slowed down the team so that they are now behind in the work. Mary is not sure what she did wrong while planning the project. She used a RACI chart to assign roles to each team member. She has assigned each activity to at least two people who will be held accountable for the work. What best explains the conflicts in the project?

Answer 1

Only one person should be held accountable for an activity when using a RACI chart

When using a RACI chart, only one person should be held accountable per task on the chart, which applies to using a kind of tool to assign resources. When more than one person is held accountable, the team members will blame each other for work that was done incorrectly or not at all.

Question 2

A project manager decided to ensure that all team members on the project do not work on more than one activity at a time. This way, the team doesn’t get burned out and can work at a steady pace. The schedule may increase due to this policy, which is okay with the sponsor. What technique best describes this action?

Answer 2

Resource leveling

Resource leveling is done when resources on a project are over-allocated; it removes resources that are working on two activities at the same time.

Question 3

A project manager has completed the project status report. The report states the CPI is 1.1 and the SPI is 1.14. The report was given to the project sponsor, who has become very upset about the project’s progress and has requested an immediate meeting with the project manager. What should the project manager report in the meeting?

Answer 3

The project is progressing on schedule and on budget

A SPI and CPI of 1 and greater tell us that the project is actually under budget and ahead of schedule. All other choices are reporting wrong information.

Question 4

The datacenter redesign project is currently 30% complete. The project manager is not happy with the way processes are being followed by the team in ensuring that the network wiring will meet its quality requirements. What process should the project manager do to improve the processes so as to meet the quality requirements with the network wiring?

Answer 4

Manage quality

Manage quality is an executing process where you will improve processes by conducting audits and process analysis. All other choices are monitoring and controlling processes that will be used to measure the work against the project management plan.

Question 5

Which of the following is an XP practice that helps to create a shared vision between the developers and the customers?

Answer 5

Metaphors

A metaphor is using XP to explain designs and create a shared vision between customers and the development team.

Question 6

What is the difference between the product backlog and the iteration backlog?

Answer 6

Product backlog contains all work needed to be completed on the project and the iteration backlog willl contain all work that will get done in the next iteration

The product backlog will contain all the work needed to complete the project, while the iteration backlog will contain the work that will get done in the next iteration.

Question 7

When using different prioritization technique what is the most important aspect that the agile project manager should communicate to the customers?

Answer 7

Don’t worry too much about the specifics, it’s more important to get the relative prioritization correct

When using any prioritization technique is important to ensure the customer understands not to worry too much about the specifics of the technique but to understand that it is done prioritize the features based on relative value.

Question 8

The project team is working with the customers to write the user stories. The customers have refused as they claim this would add no value to the project. What would be the best step to resolve this?

Answer 8

Educate the user why the user stories are valuable

When managing an agile project user stories will produce a lot of value to both the team members and the customers, as such it would be best to educate them on the value of the user stories.

Question 9

The project manager has met with the project team and has informed them that his team performance assessments are done, and he would like to speak with each of them individually about the results. What process group is this?

Answer 9

Executing

During the executing process group, the project manager will assess the team’s performance and try to improve it through the executing process of developing and managing the team.

Question 10

Your company has decided to roll out a new Wi-Fi network for the staff. The sponsor has informed you that encryption on the network is mandatory. Where will the project manager document that the encryption was mandated by the sponsor?

Answer 10

Requirements traceability matrix

The requirements traceability matrix will trace the requirements back to their origins. The project scope statement, scope baseline, and requirements documentation will not include where requirements came from.

Question 11

While working on the network upgrade project, the project manager receives many ideas about what to include in the project. The ideas seem to be very scattered and not logically grouped. What tool can best help the project manager group these ideas?

Answer 11

Affinity diagrams

An affinity diagram is used to group large number of ideas to review and analyze. A histogram is used to show frequencies over time. A flowchart is used to visually view a process for improvements. An ideas matrix is a made-up term.

Question 12

The agile project team has determined that many of its processes has a lot of waiting and would like to remove all of the waste in the processes. What would be the best tool the agile team can use to improve their processes?

Answer 12

Value stream map

A value stream map is a visual representation of the flow of information through a process in which you can identify waste such as waiting time and optimize the process.

Question 13

The project manager and the project team are reviewing the completed deliverables to see if they meet the performance requirements outlined in the requirements documentation. This is done so that when the customers are invited to inspect the deliverable, there will be no issues. What is the best output of this process?

Answer 13

Verified deliverables

The process of quality control is when the deliverables are inspected to see if they meet the quality requirements. The output of this process is verified deliverables. Control quality is generally done before the process of validate scope, where the deliverables will be inspected by the customers for a formal acceptance. The project management plan, accepted deliverables, and requirements documentation are not outputs of the control quality process.

Question 14

Define a project

Answer 14

Projects are temporary endeavors to create a unique product, service, or result.

Per the PMBOK definition, a project is a temporary endeavor to create a unique product, service, or result. Projects are not ongoing and are not only done to improve a business.

Question 15

The project manager has been informed that the company’s senior management would like a meeting about the status of the project. What should the project manager take to display the current schedule of the project?

Answer 15

Milestone chart

A milestone chart is a high-level view of major accomplishments on a project. These are best used when presenting a quick view of data and the project schedule to management personnel. All other choices would give you a detailed view of the project schedule and work.

Question 16

When an organization is considering a project, what are some of the factors that can influence why a project should get done?

Answer 16

Meeting regulatory, legal, or social requirements

Reasons a project should get done include meeting regulatory, legal, or social requirements, satisfying stakeholders’ needs, and implementing business changes. The other choices pertain to operational work, which is more day-to-day and ongoing.

Question 17

You are having an issue with the software crashing consistently on the project. What should you use to identify the cause of this issue and the effect it may have on your project?

Answer 17

Isikawa Diagram

Ishikawa diagrams, or cause-and-effect diagrams, are used to identify probable causes and sub-causes of a particular problem. A histogram is a bar chart and a flowchart is used to represent a process graphically. Continuous improvement is a theory that is used to continuously improve a product over its life cycle.

Question 18

You’re currently working on a large new building development project. The project team is currently breaking down the deliverables listed in the project scope statement into work that is more manageable. What process best describes this scenario?

Answer 18

Create WBS

During the create WBS process the project team will use the tool of decomposition to break down the project deliverables into work packages. These work packages will then be used to help estimate the time and cost of the project. Define activities is a process of decomposing the work packages into activities, not the deliverables. Define scope is used to create the scope statement which will have a list of the deliverables. Define WBS is not a process.

Question 19

You are currently working on a large building demolition project. There are many requirements for the potential vendors on the project, and you would like to ensure that they all receive the same information. What is the best tool or technique to ensure all vendors receive the same information about the project?

Answer 19

Bidder conference

A bidder conference is held by inviting all the potential sellers and reviewing the requirements for the project with them. This will ensure that no vendor receives more or less information than the others. The scope statement, requirements traceability matrix, and requirements documentation are generally written before vendors are invited to learn about the project.

Question 20

The product owner has added three new changes to the product backlog. The agile project manager has met with the team and they have decided immediately how to implement these new changes, although these changes will be implemented in three iterations from now. The product owner informs the agile project manager that he is not happy about this. What should the agile project manager do?

Answer 20

Tell the team they should not have committed to doing these changes until they were ready to implement them

One of the core principles of agile is to defer decisions. What this means is to make decisions about potential changes or features until the very last minute.

Question 21

The project manager is currently working on a large building renovation project. The project team is almost done with planning when the project sponsor informs the project manager that due to new regulations, the project will need to be completed within 6 months; if not, they will not be able to open the building to the public. What best represents this?

Answer 21

Constraints

A constraint is something that limits a project, which can include time or cost. In this question, the constraint is a limitation on the time needed to get the project done. Deliverables, assumptions, and work packages are not constraints on a project.

Question 22

What is considered the single most important skill a project manager should have?

Answer 22

Communication

Communication skills are the most important skills a project manager should have. Projects are done by people, not technology.

Question 23

The project team has completed the server deployment project. They have tested the server to ensure that it works according to the requirements given to them, and it seems to be functioning correctly. What process group has the team just completed?

Answer 23

Executing

The outputs of all the executed processes combined, including directly executing the process and managing project work, are the project deliverables. The output for planning would be the project management plan. The output for closing would be the final product service or result transition and the final report. The output for monitoring and controlling would be the accepted deliverables and the work performance reports.

Question 24

The project manager has been informed that the cost of building a new room in the office will be $15,000, +/- 65%. The project manager wants to know why there is such a large variance in the estimate. The builder said they have not seen the space and it’s just a high-level estimate. What kind of estimate does this best represent?

Answer 24

Rough order of magnitude estimate

A rough order of magnitude estimate has a variance of -25% to +75%. It is usually done in the early phases of the project. Definitive estimates are between -5% to +10%. Detail estimate and materials estimate are made-up terms.

Question 25

The project sponsor has signed off on the project charter and has spoken to the project manager, who then has to keep the cost down on the project. The project manager agrees to try his best to keep cost down and to finish the project under budget. What should the project manager do next?

Answer 25

Meet with the stakeholders to gather the requirement

Once the project charter is created, the next step would be to collect the requirements and then create the scope statement and the WBS. You cannot meet with the team to reduce cost if you don’t know the requirements. There is no such thing as a cost reduction program in PMBOK.

Question 26

The project manager, Mark, overheard that the project team is not satisfied with the way the budget was created. They strongly believe the project will be over budget at the end. What is the next best step for Mark?

Answer 26

Bring the team together to attempt to understand why they feel this way

A project manager should not take action on issues they overhear without first finding out why stakeholders feel a certain way. This ensures that the project manager has a detailed understanding of the issues.

Question 27

After many years of following the agile principles the project team has implemented a few new methods in addition to the agile methods in order to increase the efficiency of the project. This will be known as?

Answer 27

Process tailoring

Process tailoring is done to amend the agile methodology to better fit the project environment.

Question 28

Your company has just started a project to allow remote workers to join the network using a virtual private network (VPN). During the execution of the project, one of the VPN servers completely fails, and the team will need to replace it as soon as possible. Fortunately, the project team anticipated that this might happen and has a plan for replacing the server. What should the project manager do next?

Answer 28

Implement risk response

Implement risk response is a process in the executing process group, where the project manager implements the preplanned responses to any risks that may have taken place. Plan risk responses is done to determine the team’s response if a risk happens, perform qualitative risk analysis is used to rank risks, and conduct risk response is not a PMBOK process.

Question 29

The agile project team has completed the Sprint planning meeting. What would be the output of this meeting?

Answer 29

Sprint backlog

The output of the Sprint planning meeting is the Sprint backlog which will outline all work to be done in the next Sprint.

Question 30

The project team has completed a bidder conference for the office renovation project. Over 15 different construction companies came to the conference. Directly after the conference, all the companies submitted their bids immediately. What is the next step the project team should take?

Answer 30

Select the seller

A bidder conference is a tool used for conduct procurement, and the output of this process is to select the seller and receive an agreement. Rewriting the scope statement or updating the scope baseline may come after you have selected the seller.

Question 31

While managing a datacenter project, a few customers requested a feature be added to the project that will enhance the security system in the datacenter. The change was submitted to the change control board and was denied due to the high cost of the security system. A few months later another customer submitted the same change back to the project manager. What is the best step the project manager can take in this scenario?

Answer 31

Inform the customers a change cannot be done

The best thing to do in this scenario would be to inform the customer that the change cannot be added due to the fact that it was already rejected by the change control board. You should not add changes to a project management plan without it being first approved, and there is no need to inform the change control board again since its members have already denied it.

Question 32

While managing a product development project, the project manager met with the team to determine some of the key tasks that will ensure they produce a high-quality product. What should they consider the most important concept in quality?

Answer 32

Quality is about preventing

Quality management is about preventing defects from getting into the hands of the customers. It’s more important to have high quality than high grade. More prevention will lead to less inspection. The cost of quality includes all prevention and inspection costs.

Question 33

The project manager has brought the project team together to explain what the project will be about and what their roles will be. The team members introduce themselves to each other and learn about the different skill sets each of them brings to the project. What stage on Tuckman’s ladder best represents this?

Answer 33

Forming

In the forming stage of Tuckman’s ladder, the team is formed and learns about each other. In the norming phase, they stop storming and come to an agreement on how to conduct the work. Performing is when the team actually builds the deliverables. Storming is when they disagree on how to conduct the work.

Question 34

The project has just been initiated, and the project sponsor calls the project manager and asks approximately when he thinks the project will be completed. The project manager replies that they have been unable to thoroughly analyze the work needed to complete the project and that he is not very knowledgeable about this kind of work. The sponsor insists on receiving a high-level estimate. The project manager responds that it will take approximately 3 months to complete the work based on his experience working on a project very similar to this one. What technique best represents this estimate?

Answer 34

Analogous estimates

Analogous estimation, also known as a top-down estimate, is usually a high-level estimate that is based on previous projects. These estimates are done very quickly, but they’re generally less accurate than others. Bottom-up estimates, parametric estimates, and expert judgments will need a lot more planning and understanding of the work to be completed, as they are considered very accurate.

Question 35

Which of the following would be considered a waste on a project?

Answer 35

Waiting

Waiting is considered waste on a project, as it represents time when no work is getting done.

Question 36

The project manager is working on a project for which the scope, time, and cost are known during the early parts of the project planning. What life cycle will the project manager consider on this project?

Answer 36

Predictive lifecycle

A predictive life cycle is used when the scope, time, and cost are generally determined in the early phases of the project. In this life cycle, changes to the scope must be managed correctly; if not, there may be scope creep. In an iterative life cycle, the scope is generally known in the early parts of the project, but the cost is updated as the project progresses.

Question 37

While conducting procurement on a project, the project manager has received many different bids with a wide variance of estimated cost for the work. What can the project manager use to best determine which vendor has given a realistic price?

Answer 37

Independent estimate

An independent estimate is usually done by an outside entity to help give the project manager a more independent understanding of what certain project work will cost. Inspections and audits are done after the seller is selected to ensure the work stays on contract. Screening and weighing systems are done to help select sellers.

Question 38

While working on an agile project, the project manager has met with the project team members to discuss what they had done the day before and what they plan to do today. What is the name of this meeting?

Answer 38

Daily stand-up meeting

A daily stand-up meeting is done on a daily basis to answer the 3 questions: What have you done since yesterday, what will you do today, and are there any roadblocks? A sprint planning meeting is done to determine what work will be done in a sprint. A sprint review is where the customers review the work that was done in the sprint. There is no such meeting as a project review meeting.

Question 39

While working on a network upgrade project, a team member installed the network connection and is now configuring the router in order to work with the network connection. The network connection must be done before the router can be configured. This is an example of what kind of dependency?

Answer 39

Mandatory dependency

Mandatory dependency is when activities must be done in a certain order. For example, you must complete A then complete B. Internal dependencies are things that are under the control of the project team, and external dependencies are things that are outside the control of the project team, such as getting a permit. Discretionary dependency is when two activities can be done in any order and they’re not dependent upon each other.

Question 40

Senior management has requested an update to the current product upgrade project. The project manager knows she has to keep the information high level and as short as possible. Which resource would be the best to show senior management?

Answer 40

Milestone chart

A milestone chart shows only the major start and end of the major deliverables. All other choices such as the WBS, WBS dictionary, and the network diagram are very detailed.

Question 41

When managing a small construction project, the project manager has informed the project team members that they are using too many materials to complete the project work. The project manager feels the team members could utilize a lot less materials to accomplish the work they’re currently doing. What process describes this scenario?

Answer 41

Control resources

Control resources is a process that ensures the physical resources are being utilized correctly. Manage team and develop team are used to manage the project team and not the physical resources. Monitor resources is a made-up process.

Question 42

The project manager has calculated the SPI of the project to be .7 and the CPI is .9. When reporting the progress of the project to the company stakeholders, what should the project manager say about the project to the stakeholders?

Answer 42

The project is delayed and overbudget

A CPI and SPI of under 1 are bad. A CPI of under 1 represents a project that is over budget. An SPI of under 1 represents a project that is behind schedule.

Question 43

The project manager is working on a top-secret company project and would like to ensure all the correct security measures are in place for communications regarding the project. What tool would the project manager use?

Answer 43

Communication technology

Communication technology factors include sensitivity and confidentiality of the information on the project, which will require the project manager to assess the security needs of the project information. Communication models are used when looking at the communication processes. Encryption is not a tool in the PMBOK.

Question 44

The project manager and the team have worked endless hours to calculate the amount of time it will take to conduct each activity. They would like to document some of the assumptions they made and the constraints they may face when the project is executed. What document will they use for this?

Answer 44

Basis of estimates

The basis of estimates documents what they used estimate the activities, such as assumptions, constraints, range of estimates, and the confidence level of the estimates. The duration and cost estimates will not have these components. The project schedule will outline how long the project will take, which includes a network diagram, Gantt chart, and the milestone chart.

Question 45

A project manager working in a large multinational corporation has been assigned to upgrade the company’s website. This project will require inputs for many functional managers across the organization from different countries. Each functional manager would like one of their representatives to be present on the project team. What would be the best tool or technique for handling this scenario in a cost-effective way?

Answer 45

Using virtual teams

Virtual teams are used in the acquire resources process. Virtual teams are a cost-effective way to build multinational teams. Collocation is when you bring everyone into a single space to accomplish work. Although this may sound like a good solution, it is not cost-effective to have everyone fly to one location. If you were to visit each functional manager, this would not solve the problem of having the functional managers’ representatives on your project.

Question 46

During a new workstation rollout project, a stakeholder asked for a change to some of the software being installed. The change was submitted to the Change Control Board but was rejected due to the high increase in cost of the software being requested. What should the project manager do next?

Answer 46

Update change log

Once a change has been denied, the next step is to update the change log with the status of the change. That can include whether it was approved or denied. Because this change was denied, it is not considered an issue on the project. The Change Control Board has already denied the change, so there is no need to perform additional analyses or resubmit it.

Question 47

While working on a complex software development project, the team is having a difficult time understanding a process used to code a particular report. They find the process to have many different paths and if/then scenarios. They have asked the project manager for a tool that can help them see the process on a large white board or on paper. What’s the best tool the project manager can recommend for the team to help visualize the process?

Answer 47

Flowchart

A flowchart is a tool that is used to help visually display a process. It can show decision points, loops, or paths. A scatter diagram is used to show a relation between two variables. A fishbone diagram is used to help identify potential causes for defects, and a histogram is a bar chart that shows the frequency of things, such as a Pareto chart.

Question 48

The risk management plan generally outlines the steps the project will take to conduct risk management processes on the project. Which of the following will the risk management plan not include?

Answer 48

Positive risks that could affect the project

The risk register lists both positive and negative risks, not the risk management plan. The risk management plan includes the risk breakdown structure that categorizes risks, roles, and responsibilities for the team members and the methodology they would use to perform the risk processes on the project.

Question 49

During the datacenter development project, the project manager has noticed that some of the work being done on the project is not in the baseline scope. The project manager has analyzed the work completed by the project team and then compared that to the project management plan to see where the differences are. What process best describes the work of the project manager?

Answer 49

Control scope

Control scope is a process where you compare the work that has been completed to the project management plan to see if they line up. If there is a variance, the project manager should initiate actions to fix the variance. Validate scope is a process where stakeholders formally accept the project deliverables. Monitor and manage scope are made-up processes.

Question 50

After the project manager has collected the requirements and received approval for the scope statement, what process should the project manager do next?

Answer 50

Create WBS

The create WBS process is generally done after the scope statement has been created, as it will decompose the deliverables in the scope statement. You cannot define activities or sequence activities until the WBS is complete, as you will need to know work packages to create the activities. Create scope baseline is a made-up term.

Question 51

There have been many disputes on the project with the current contractor. The contractor claims the project team is always asking that work not be listed in the contract, and the team claims that the contractor has not been doing the work listed in the contract. What should the project manager do first?

Answer 51

Review the contract

The first step would be to review the contract to ensure he understands what the original agreement was, and then he should meet with the team and contractor. If needed, he should then contact the claims administration.

Question 52

As an agile project manager, you have encountered many issues with the product owner. The product owner has refused to prioritize the product backlog stating that all items are equally important. After educating the product owner about the value of prioritization he still refuses. What should the agile project manager do?

Answer 52

Continue to educate the product owner

One of the core task of being an agile project manager is to educate and promote the values of agile practices even when stakeholders are reluctant to follow the principles.

Question 53

After a project manager is assigned to the project with the project charter, he continues to identify the stakeholders on the project. In this process, he creates the stakeholder register. Which of the following statement is false about the stakeholder register?

Answer 53

It’s only updated in the initiating phase of the project

The stakeholder register is updated throughout the project, not just during the initiation phase of the project. All other choices are true.
**

Question 54

The project team is having a very difficult time deciding what method they should use when programming the new functions in the application. They can choose between four different methods, and the team is evenly split regarding which method to choose. The project manager has decided that he will choose the method for them and will take the responsibility in case it is not the best way to program functions. What best describes this technique?

Answer 54

Autocratic

In autocratic decision making, an individual makes the decision for the team and takes responsibility for the decision. Voting is when the team votes on a potential decision, and multi-criteria decision is when they use a different criteria are used to evaluate a decision. Leadership refers to skills for managing the team.

Question 55

Project manager Mark is working to create the project scope statement for a sales management software. Many stakeholders have requested that a feature be added to enable automated call -backs to leads that come through the website. Mark realizes this feature would not be possible due to the fact that the company’s current network lacks the required hardware. What is the best approach for Mark to take?

Answer 55

Add the feature as an exclusion to the scope statement

A project scope statement not only contains the project’s deliverables but also the exclusions, which are features the project will not accomplish. Mark should not add the feature due to the company’s inability to install it.

Question 56

Team members Mark and Bill are currently experiencing conflict in the office move project. Mark believes that it would be best if they moved the furniture first and then the computers, whereas Bill believes it’s best to move the computers and then the furniture. This conflict is causing a serious delay to the project, and both Mark and Bill have decided they will make a decision on what to move first at a later date. What conflict resolution technique best describes this scenario?

Answer 56

Withdrawal

The conflict resolution technique Illustrated in this question is withdrawal, which is when they postpone the issue to a later date to be better prepared. Compromise is when the two sides reach an agreement but both sides have to give up something. Postponing is a made-up term.

Question 57

While working on the workstation upgrade project, the project sponsor informs the team that they have to stop the project immediately and start working on a router upgrade project. The sponsor wants the router upgrade project to start in as little as 2 days. What should the project manager do next?

Answer 57

Conduct the close project or phase process for the current project and write the final report

When a project is terminated, the project manager will need to formally close the project. This usually involves paying all the project bills, releasing the team, documenting the lessons learned and recording what was completed in the project’s final report.

Question 58

Project manager Mark is currently working on a new office automation project and is consistently being asked for updates and meetings with the project sponsor. Mark informs the sponsor that the constant meetings disrupt his work, and his project is starting to fall behind schedule. The sponsor responds by saying that that is his management style. What best describes the sponsor’s management style?

Answer 58

Theory X

Theory X is a management theory in which the manager does not trust his or her workers and will micromanage them. This theory generally leads to the team being unhappy. Theory Y refers to when a manager believes people want to do the work and trusts them. Theory Z refers to when employees are committed to a business and will generally stay with that business for a long period of time. Maslow’s hierarchy of needs specifies what a company must have in order for employees to stay motivated.

Question 59

What activity can the agile team do to list the reasons for why a particular process was failing during iteration?

Answer 59

Fishbone analysis

A Fishbone analysis is done during the step of generate insight in a retrospective to show the reasons for why something would have failed.

Question 60

While working on a project, the project manager has been inspiring the team members to do the best they can. Also, the project manager has been regularly communicating the project’s vision to the team. What skill does this best describe?

Answer 60

Leadership

Leadership skill is part of interpersonal and team skills. It is used to inspire people and to communicate the project’s vision.