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Quiz Session - Attempts With Random Questions

PMI PMP Exam Questions

Page 5 of 56

81.

You are working on an Agile project and are trying to determine how you can showcase the progress your team has made to the project stakeholders. In an adaptive/Agile project, what is the primary measure of progress?

  • Working software

  • Team velocity

  • Team composition

  • Benefits realization

Correct answer: Working software

On an adaptive or Agile project, the primary measure of progress is "working software," which can also be delivered as "working product" or "working service."

Team velocity is the sum of the story points completed for the features in an iteration. Although this choice is closely related to the answer to this question, working software is the best answer based on how the question is stated.

Team composition refers to the makeup of the team, including the roles and skills of its members. It is not a direct measure of progress.

Benefits realization refers to the achievement of the project's intended benefits, such as increased revenue or improved customer satisfaction. It is a long-term measure and is not directly tied to the delivery of working software.

82.

The project manager of a series of design projects created an environment that motivated his team and facilitated teamwork. The team members of his current project are in the adjourning stage of the Tuckman ladder. Which of the following BEST describes what is happening with the team?

  • The project work is done, and the team is moving from this project to the next one.

  • The team works as a cohesive unit.

  • The team is getting to know their roles and responsibilities.

  • The team has started to address the technical decisions of the project.

Correct answer: The project work is done, and the team is moving from this project to the next one.

In the steps of the Tuckman ladder (forming, storming, norming, performing, adjourning), adjourning is the phase when the project work is completed, and the team moves on from the project.

The team gets to know their roles and responsibilities and works as a cohesive unit in the forming stage.

They start to address the technical decisions of the project in the storming stage.

83.

You are in a meeting with key project stakeholders and are briefing them on the processes to be carried out during project execution. You display the slide on Close Project or Phase process, and the members voice their curiosity. What should you tell the stakeholders?

  • This is the last process to be done during the project.

  • This is not used if the project is terminated.

  • This is done as an administrative process.

  • All procurements should be closed during this process.

Correct answer: This is the last process done during the project.

The Close Project or Phase is the process that finalizes all project activities. The information is archived, the work is complete, and the organizational team resources are released. This process is used even if the project is terminated before completion. It establishes the procedures to investigate and document the reasons for actions taken when a project is terminated before completion. While this process does have administrative components, it is not solely an administrative process. All procurements should be closed during this process, but this is not the only thing that should be done during this process.

84.

In his role as a project manager for a construction project with multiple vendors, Igor learns from a team member during a status meeting that there are concerns about a vendor's ability to complete their work on schedule. What is the MOST effective action for Igor to take to assess the vendor’s progress accurately?

  • Conduct a walkthrough

  • Talk to the vendor's leaders

  • Conduct an audit

  • Conduct an Earned Value Analysis (EVA)

Correct answer: Conduct a walkthrough

Igor's most effective course of action is to conduct a walkthrough of the vendor's work. This approach allows for a direct and comprehensive review of the work being performed by the vendor on-site. Walkthroughs in construction projects are particularly valuable as they provide an opportunity for firsthand observation of the progress and quality of the work. During these walkthroughs, both the vendor and the customer (or their representatives) are typically present, which facilitates clear communication and ensures that all parties have a synchronized understanding of the work in progress. This method is not only practical for validating the current status of the work but also for identifying any potential issues or delays early on, allowing for timely corrective actions. Walkthroughs serve as an essential tool for project managers to maintain control over project execution and ensure adherence to the schedule.

Talking to the vendor's leaders will not provide a comprehensive view of the vendor's ability to complete their work on schedule. Additionally, it is very likely that the vendor's leaders don't have a complete understanding of the vendor's progress or won't be forthcoming about any potential issues.

Conducting an audit will provide valuable information about the vendor's progress, but it will be time-consuming and costly.

Conducting an Earned Value Analysis in this case is not the best approach since it is possible that the data to be used is not accurate.

85.

You are part of an organization that has a project management office (PMO). The senior project manager believes that a systems upgrade project is needed and aligns with the long-term business strategy of the organization. A steering committee meeting is scheduled to take place.

What is the senior project manager's BEST course of action?

  • Build the business case

  • Choose a project manager to run the project

  • Choose a project sponsor

  • Present the details of the system upgrade at the meeting

Correct Answer: Build the business case

The senior project manager's best course of action in this situation is to build the business case. Building the business case involves identifying the problem or opportunity that the project aims to address, analyzing the costs and benefits of the project, and presenting a compelling argument for why the project should be undertaken. By building a strong business case, the senior project manager can demonstrate the value of the systems upgrade project and gain support from the steering committee and other stakeholders.

Presenting the details of the system upgrade at the meeting will be premature without first building a strong business case to support the project.

Choosing a project manager to run the project is not the best course of action until the project has been approved and authorized.

Choosing a project sponsor is also not the best course of action until the project has been approved and authorized.

86.

A project team member checked in with another team member after implementing a solution they had collaborated on the week before. She told him about the solution's success, thanked him for his earlier collaboration, and informed him that a concern he had expressed was helpful as she was implementing the solution. She displayed which interpersonal and team skill?

  • Emotional intelligence

  • Conflict management

  • Decision making

  • Compromise/reconcile

Correct answer: Emotional intelligence

Emotional intelligence is the means to evaluate and manage one's own emotions, those of others, and those of a group collectively.

"Conflict management" is incorrect because it is the process of assessing and resolving conflict within a team or project.

"Decision making" is incorrect because it is the skill of negotiating and affecting the project management team.

"Compromise/reconcile" is incorrect because it is a technique used to resolve conflict that somewhat satisfies all parties.

87.

You are managing a healthcare software project with an initial budget of $500,000. Project activities thus far have cost $400,000, though your plan shows you should have spent $430,000 to complete them. You consult your schedule and see that the project activities are ahead of schedule. What is the CV (Cost Variance)?

  • $30,000

  • $100,000

  • -$30,000

  • -$100,000

Correct answer: $30,000

CV (Cost Variance) is calculated by subtracting the AC (Actual Cost) from the EV (Earned Value): 

EV - AC = CV

$430,000 - $400,000 = $30,000

88.

Mufasa has begun a project to establish a plastic manufacturing plant that is located in a different country. Shortly after, he is informed that the company acquired a well-known organization specializing in plastic manufacturing. What should Mufasa do next?

  • Terminate the project

  • Continue with the project

  • Update the issue log

  • Update the stakeholders engagement plan

Correct Answer: Terminate the project

The situation suggests that there is no need to continue with the intended project. An organization has been acquired into the existing company that specializes in the line of work. The project will need to be terminated because the company no longer needs it.

Continuing with the project is not the best course of action because the acquisition will have a big impact on the project and its stakeholders.

Updating the issue log is not the best course of action because the acquisition is not necessarily an issue that needs to be logged.

Updating the stakeholders engagement plan is incorrect as the project will be canceled.

89.

You are managing a project that involves creating a software application. The coding portion can only be done after determining what application is being made. Which is the BEST description of the logical relationship between coding and the creation of an application?

  • Finish-to-Start (FS)

  • Start-to-Start (SS)

  • Finish-to-Finish (FF)

  • Start-to-Finish (SF)

Correct answer: Finish-to-Start (FS)

In this situation, the coding activity can happen only after the application idea has been confirmed. The best relationship between the two is Finish-to-Start (FS).

Finish-to-start (FS)*

This relationship means Task A must be completed before Task B can begin. This is the most common relationship.

0 method: B(S) = A(F)

1 method: B(S) = A(F) + 1

Start-to-finish (SF)

This relationship is unusual and is rarely used. It requires Task A to start so that Task B may finish. It is also known as just-in-time (JIT) scheduling.

Lead: B(F) = A(S) - 1 day

Lag: B(F) = A(S) + 1 day

Start-to-start (SS)

This relationship means Task A must start before Task B can start. This relationship allows both activities to happen in tandem.

B(S) = A(S)

Finish-to-finish (FF)

This relationship means Task A must be completed before Task B is completed. Ideally, two tasks must finish at the same time, but this is not always the case.

B(F) = A(F)

90.

A 10-month project is 50% complete and has an overall budget of $1 million. The budget is spread evenly across the 10 months of the schedule. So far, $750,000 has been spent. Which of the following is true?

  • The project is over the planned cost.

  • The project is under the planned cost.

  • The project is at the planned cost.

  • The project is ahead of schedule.

Correct answer: The project is over the planned cost.

The project has a budget of $1 million and is 50% complete. The earned value (EV) is $500,000 (50% of the total budget), but the actual cost (AC) is $750,000. The cost variance (CV) is EV ($500,000) - AC ($750,000), which is -$250,000. Therefore, the project is $250,000 over budget.

91.

Caleb is managing a billboard project and is given authorization to let his designers work in the company's 4th floor unoccupied office. He secures the office for the designers for the remainder of the project. By having all his designers in one area, they are able to collaborate effectively. Caleb is using what type of tool or technique?

  • Colocation

  • Storming

  • Forming

  • Conforming

Correct answer: Colocation

Colocation places the project team in a common area to improve communication, relationships, and productivity. Colocation is a tool or technique of the Develop Team process.

"Storming" and "Forming are not the answer. They are two of the 5 stages of teams' development.

"Conforming" is incorrect. An output or artifact is conforming when it complies with the expected quality.

92.

You are managing a project with 6 remaining activities. Activity 1 is the finish-to-start predecessor of Activities 2, 3, and 4 and has a duration of 3 weeks. Activity 2 has a 1-week duration, Activity 3 has a 2-week duration, and Activity 4 has a 4-week duration. Activities 5 and 6 are both dependent on the completion of activities 2, 3, and 4 to begin. Activity 5 has a duration of 3 weeks, and Activity 6 has a duration of 2 weeks. Which activities represent the critical path?

  • 1, 4, 5

  • 1, 3, 5

  • 1, 2, 3, 4, 5

  • 1, 3, 5, 6

Correct answer: 1, 4, 5

The critical path is the longest path through a project that shows the shortest possible schedule. In this project Activity 1 is the start-to-finish predecessor of Activities 2, 3, and 4, so it starts the critical path. Activity 4 has the longest duration of Activities 2, 3, and 4 and they are all start-to-finish predecessors for Activities 5 and 6, so Activity 4 represents the next step on the critical path. Since Activities 5 and 6 both rely on the completion of Activity 4, and Activity 5 has a duration that is longer than Activity 6, the final step in the critical path is Activity 5.

93.

You have just started the planning phase of a hotel construction project at the edge of a lake. You instruct the project team to develop a checklist and detailed traceability matrices for use during the evaluation of the quality objectives throughout the project.

What documents have you instructed the project team to develop?

  • Test and evaluation documents

  • Change requests

  • Quality control reports

  • Organizational performance documents

Correct answer: Test and evaluation documents

These are contained in the Manage Quality process and are inputs to Control Quality. The purpose of these documents is to evaluate quality objectives, which includes checklists and traceability matrices.

Change requests are documents used to request changes to the project scope, schedule, or budget.

Quality control reports are documents used to report on the results of quality control activities, such as inspections and testing.

Organizational performance documents are documents used to report on the performance of the organization as a whole, such as financial reports and strategic plans.

94.

A team wants to deliver value to the customer as quickly as possible. They know the customer's market share depends on their being first to market with software updates. The team decides to use Extreme Programming (XP) development practices to achieve their goals. They frequently incorporate new and updated code into the repository.

Which of the following BEST describes the technique the team is using?

  • Continuous integration

  • Spikes

  • Test at all levels

  • Behavior-driven development

Correct answer: Continuous integration

Of the options, only continuous integration involves integrating code into a constantly evolving repository.

"Spikes" is incorrect because it refers to time-boxed research or experiments that are used for learning.

"Test at all levels" is incorrect because it involves using different types of tests for portions or the whole of a product.

"Behavior-driven development" is incorrect because it involves writing automated tests before a product is created.

95.

Grant is a project manager working for a company that manufactures fishing equipment and accessories. They make everything from lures and hooks to life preservers. Some of the projects he manages have very detailed quality management plans with lots of documentation about compliance, while others are short and informal. Which of the following BEST explains why this could be?

  • Some of the products the company makes have industry and regulatory standards.

  • Some quality management plans are more broadly framed than others.

  • Some projects do not have quality management objectives.

  • Some projects are a lower priority for the company.

Correct answer: Some of the products the company makes have industry and regulatory standards.

Lures and hooks are fairly simple in terms of manufacturing, and the projects that produce those products may not need to document governmental safety regulations as part of their quality management plans. However, the manufacture of life preservers is governed by a set of standards for safety that are required by the government and the industry. A project's quality management plan includes any quality standards, especially those required by safety and regulatory compliance.

Some quality management plans are more broadly framed than others, but this is not the best explanation for Grant's particular situation because we know some of his projects involve regulatory compliance.

Even if the quality management plan is informal and brief, all of Grant's manufacturing projects need quality management objectives.

Even if it were true that some projects are a lower priority for the company, it would not explain why one quality management plan would be any more or less comprehensive than another.

96.

Gary, a project manager, has been assigned to an informatics project. Although there is a limited number of key stakeholders, there are a lot of other stakeholders involved in this project. Gary has a few questions. Which of the following is the BEST way to quickly obtain responses from a large number of stakeholders?

  • Questionnaire

  • Focus group

  • Meeting

  • Interviews

Correct answer: Questionnaire

Questionnaires offer a quick way of obtaining responses from a large group of people, especially when the questions are known in advance.

Focus groups, meetings, and interviews are not intended for a large number of people.

97.

You have been assigned a new project and the sponsor asks you for the Resource Breakdown Structure (RBS) to present to their management during a weekly sync meeting. All sub-management plans have been completed, and the RBS has not been produced. To develop the RBS for the sponsor, what process must be completed?

  • Estimate Activity Resources

  • Plan Procurement Management

  • Plan Scope Management

  • Create WBS (Work Breakdown Structure)

Correct answer: Estimate Activity Resources

Estimate Activity Resources estimates physical and team resources to execute the project tasks. The Resource Breakdown Structure (RBS) is a product of Estimate Activity Resources. The RBS is involved with planning, controlling, and managing the expected project work.

"Plan Procurement Management" is incorrect. This process involves identifying and documenting project procurement requirements and developing a procurement management plan. While procurement may involve resources, it does not involve creating the Resource Breakdown Structure (RBS).

"Plan Scope Management" is incorrect. This process involves developing a scope management plan that documents how the project scope will be defined, validated, and controlled. While scope management is important for project planning, it does not involve creating the Resource Breakdown Structure (RBS).

"Create WBS (Work Breakdown Structure)" is incorrect. It is a hierarchical structure that defines unique work elements arranged and completed during the project sequentially, in parallel, or in the specific order necessary to accomplish project outcomes.

98.

Helen is managing a team and is concerned about their productivity. What activity can she have her team avoid that would cause an agile team's productivity to drop 20-40%?

  • Task switching

  • Swarming

  • Multitasking

  • Being blocked

Correct answer: Task switching

Agile recommends that a team be dedicated to the project. Working on more than one project can cause several issues. According to the Agile Practice Guide, "People experience productivity losses somewhere between 20%-40% when task switching. The loss increases exponentially with the number of tasks."

Similar issues of productivity losses are also experienced with multitasking, but there is no specific data on productivity loss percentage.

Swarming is a technique used in Agile development where the entire team works together on a single task. This can actually increase productivity and collaboration among team members.

Being blocked refers to a situation where team members are unable to make progress on a task due to external factors, such as waiting for input from another team or stakeholder.

99.

The project manager told his team they would have to work over the weekend if they did not get their assigned tasks completed. Which of the following project manager powers does this best describe?

  • Punitive or coercive

  • Expert

  • Reward-oriented

  • Positional

Correct answer: Punitive or coercive

Punitive or coercive is the project manager's power best related to the example given. Punitive or coercive is the project manager's power that comes from their ability to penalize the team.

Expert is the project manager's power that comes from being a technical or project management expert.

Reward-oriented is the project manager's power that comes from providing rewards.

Positional is the project manager's power based on his/her position within the organization.

100.

Cruz is managing an Agile project and has just begun consolidating the project deliverables. The sponsor elaborates on the significance of having stakeholders notified of the progress more often. What is Cruz's BEST course of action?

  • Provide a product demonstration at each iteration

  • Perform earned value analysis

  • Provide weekly data analysis

  • Capture the information in the stakeholders engagement plan

Correct answer: Provide a product demonstration at each iteration

The situation dictates that the best possible action is to hold an iteration review. This meeting is an Agile event to keep stakeholders informed of the value gained. It is recommended the team demonstrate the product at each iteration to provide value to the customer.

While earned value analysis is an important tool for measuring project performance, it won't directly address the sponsor's concern about stakeholders being notified of the progress more often. It is more focused on measuring the project's performance against the project plan.

While providing weekly data analysis may help keep stakeholders informed about the project's progress, it won't be as effective as providing a product demonstration at each iteration. Data analysis can be difficult for stakeholders to interpret, whereas a product demonstration provides a tangible representation of the project's progress.

While capturing information in the stakeholders engagement plan is important for managing stakeholder expectations, it won't directly address the sponsor's concern about stakeholders being notified of the progress more often. It is more focused on managing stakeholder relationships and meeting their needs.

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