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39 Cards in this Set
- Front
- Back
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During which of the following processes project key stakeholders get engaged with the project for the first time?
A. Develop Project Charter B. Collect Requirements C. Identify Stakeholders D. Plan Stakeholder Management
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Project stakeholders are involved in each of the project management processes. The Develop Project Charter is the first project management process where the key project stakeholders get engaged for the first time. Stakeholders provide expert judgment and participate in facilitated sessions during the charter development. [PMBOK 5th edition, Page 71]
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A fundamentally functional organization creates a special project team to handle a critical project. This team has many of the characteristics of a project team in a project organization and has a Project Manager dedicated to the project. Such an organization is called: A. A composite organization B. A functional organization C. A projectized organization D. A strong matrix organization |
This organization is called a composite organization. [PMBOK 5th edition, Page 25]
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Which of the following statements most accurately describes a project scenario? A. Staffing peaks during the execution phase of a project. B. The next phase of a project should never start until the deliverables for the previous phase have been completely reviewed and approved.
C. Changes in project scope during the initial phases of the project are very expensive.
D. The influence of the stakeholders is the same all through the project. |
Staffing is typically highest during the execution phase of the project. The other three responses may not hold true. Projects can move forward into subsequent phases without the deliverables of the prior phase being completely approved; this is known as fast tracking. Changes during the initial phases of the project are the least expensive. The influence of the stakeholders is highest during the start of the project and declines as the project moves to completion. [PMBOK 5th edition, Page 40]
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If you are influencing factors that create changes to the cost of the project, which process are you using? A. Negotiate Costs B. Control Costs C. Estimate Costs D. Determine Budget |
Control Costs is the process of managing the project's costs and the changes that threaten the bottom line. [PMBOK 5th edition, Page 215]
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During the Manage Stakeholder Engagement process, a project manager refers both to the stakeholder management plan and the communications management plan. Although there are some overlapping areas in these plan, some areas are specific to each plan. Which of the following sections is specific to the project communications management plan? A. Time frame and frequency of information distribution B. Reasons for information distribution C. Issue escalation process D. Information to be distributed to stakeholders |
The issue escalation process is explicitly documented in the communications management plan. The rest of the choices are the sections that appear both in the communications management and the stakeholder management plans. [PMBOK 5th edition, Pages 296, 403]
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Project requirements are determined during the Collect Requirements process through various tools and techniques. These requirements form the basis for defining the project scope. One of the responsibilities of a project manager is to identify key project deliverables during this exercise. Where are the key project deliverables documented? A. Requirements Management Plan B. Project Scope Statement C. Scope Management Plan D. Requirements Management Plan |
The project scope statement provides the product description, acceptance criteria, key deliverables, project boundaries, assumptions, and constraints about the project. The scope management plan and the requirements management plan are the subsidiary plans of the overall project management plan and they detail how the project team needs to manage the project scope and requirements respectively. These plan do not document the actual scope of the project. Accepted Deliverables is the wrong answer since deliverables are accepted post completion and validation, the identification of the key deliverable is done early during the planning phase of the project. [PMBOK 5th edition, Page 202]
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Which of the following is a hierarchical representation of project risks? A. Risk categories B. Risk Register C. Risk Breakdown Structure D. Risk Mitigation |
The Risk Breakdown Structure (RBS) is a hierarchical presentation of the project risks sorted by risk categories. [PMBOK 5th edition, Page 560] |
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If an investment in a project returns 15% annually, how much should you invest in order to get $5 million by the end of the 5th year? A. 2501376 B. 2485884 C. 2857143 D. 2685292 |
Present Value = Future Value / (1 + rate)^period Present Value = 5,000,000 / (1 + 15%)^5 = 2,485,884 [PMBOK 5th edition, Pages 195, 198] Calculator steps: Step 1 - 5,000,000.00 FV Step 2 - 15 i Step 3 - 5 n Step 4 - PV Step 5 - 2,485,883.68 round up to 2,485,884 |
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A business is considering over a dozen of infrastructure upgrade projects. These projects, once delivered, will add to the overall performance of the organization but will not contribute to any of the revenue streams. Prior to initiating any such project, the value of the project to the organization must be determined. Which of the following is the most important factor to be considered in such a scenario? A. Investment requirement B. Internal Rate of Return (IRR) of the projects C. Alignment with the strategic goals D. Net Present Value (NPV) of the projects |
Projects help in achieving organizational goals whey they are aligned with the organization’s strategy. If the projects are misaligned with the organizational strategic goals, they are most likely to produce undesirable results either in the short-term or the long-term. NPV and IRR calculations are great measures, however, these are not applicable since these projects will not contribute to any of the revenue streams. Investment requirement is important but is useless on the projects that are not aligned with the strategic goals of the organization. [PMBOK 5th edition, Pages 12, 198]
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If a project manager believes that a particular subcontract needs to be terminated. Which of the following can provide guidance on the termination procedures? A. Finish to Start B. Start to Finish C. Start to Start D. Finish to Finish |
Each contract is unique and so are its obligations, provisions and clauses. Any contract that need to be terminated must be terminated in accordance with the termination clause of that contract. These contract termination provisions are agreed and signed off by both parties at the time of the contract award. [PMBOK 5th edition, Page 381]
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A contractor is currently constructing a new building for your organization on a cost-plus-incentive contract. You have just received the project status report from the contractor’s project manager. According to the report, the project’s CPI is 1.5. You are shocked as you believe that the project costs are out of control. Upon investigation you find out that the $1 million advance payment(20% of the estimated project cost) to the contractor at the start of the project has been included in the earned value of the project. Further the cost of the inventory at the project site has been excluded from the total actual costs. According to the contract, your company only reimburses the costs for the completed deliverables and not for the supplies in the project’s inventory. In this scenario, the reported project’s CPI is incorrect because: A. Earned value has been overstated and actual cost has been understated B. Both the earned value and the actual cost have been overstated C. Earned value has been overstated D. Actual cost has been understated |
In this scenario the earned value has been overstated while the reported actual cost is ok. Earned value should be the sum of PVs of all completed activities. The initial 20% advance should not be part of this. Further, since the buyer is not liable for the inventory cost and only reimburses the costs associated with completed deliverables, the cost of the inventory does not become part of the actual cost until that inventory is consumed during the construction process. The inventory is an asset for the contactor until it is consumed on the project and at that time it becomes a cost for the project. [PMBOK 5th edition, Page 218]
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Each critical project communication requirement must be carefully analyzed. One good way is to use a communication model to design effective communications. What is the sequence of steps in a basic communication model? A. Decode -> Encode -> Transmit -> Acknowledge -> Feedback B. Encode -> Decode -> Transmit -> Acknowledge -> Feedback C. Decode -> Encode -> Transmit -> Acknowledge -> Feedback D. Encode-> Transmit -> Decode -> Acknowledge -> Feedback |
Encode -> Transmit -> Decode -> Acknowledge -> Feedback is the right sequence. [PMBOK 5th edition, Page 293]
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It is a project management best practice to conduct periodic performance reviews for each project procurement. A procurement performance review is a structured review of the seller’s progress to deliver project scope and quality, within cost and on schedule, as compared to the contract. Which of the following is generally not an activity that is performed during a typical procurement performance review? A. Review of seller-prepared documentation and buyer inspections B. Determining progress against procurement statement of work C. Review procurement process originating from the Plan Procurement Management through Control Procurements D. Identify performance successes or failures |
A review of procurement process originating from the Plan Procurement Management through Control Procurements is conducted during the Close Procurements process and not during the Control Procurements process. Procurement performance review is a tool and technique of the Control Procurements process and includes activities such as reviewing seller-prepared documentation and buyer inspections, identifying performance successes or failures, and determining progress against procurement statement of work. [PMBOK 5th edition, Pages 383, 388]
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During the Plan Stakeholder Management process, a project manager is recommended to develop a stakeholders engagement assessment matrix. Through this analytical process, gaps between the current and desired stakeholder engagement levels can be identified. Which of the following techniques can be used to identify the actions required to close these gaps? A. Interpersonal skills B. Communication C.Expert Judgment D. Trust building |
Communication, trust building, and interpersonal skills are the actions used to close the gaps. Please note that the question is asking about a technique that can be used to identify these actions. PMBOK recommends expert judgment as an appropriate identification technique in this situation. [PMBOK 5th edition, Page 403]
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The Requirements Traceability Matrix helps in tracing all of the following except: A. Requirements to test strategy B. Organizational process assets C. Requirements documentation D. Bill of Material (BOM) |
Requirements Traceability Matrix is an output of the Collect Requirements process. It is used for tracing requirements to project scope, objectives, and test strategy. Tracing requirements to project risk is not a valid use. [PMBOK 5th edition, Pages 117, 118]
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During the Plan Risk Management process, assigning ___________ will help you and the project team identify all important risks and work more effectively during the identification process. A. Risk factors B. Risk categories C. Risk mitigation plans D. Blame |
Risk categories provide a structure that ensures a comprehensive process of systematically identifying risks and that contributes to the effectiveness and quality of the process. [PMBOK 5th edition, Page 317]
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If you are creating a new WBS for your project, what should you do to save time during the creation process? A. Project Charter B. Bill of Material (BOM) C. Work Breakdown Structure (WBS) D. Requirements Breakdown Structure (RBS) |
The WBS is a hierarchical decomposition of the work to be performed by the project team. It defines the total scope of the project. It represents the work specified in the currently approved project scope statement. [PMBOK 5th edition, Page 126]
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You are the project manager in your organization. You have little authority over the projects you manage, and you are primarily engaged in project coordination activities. You are currently struggling with obtaining the required human resources for your project during the Acquire Project Team process. To obtain these resources, with whom do you need to negotiate? A. Functional Manager B. The project sponsor C. The customer D. The project sponsor |
Since you have little authority over the projects you manage, you are working for a weak matrix organization. In such organizations, the functional managers have more authority. To obtain the required resources from the functional managers, you need to use the “Negotiation” tool and technique from the Acquire Project Team process. [PMBOK 5th edition, Page 270]
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Kevin is assigned to a software development project that will be started in the near future. Kevin is currently tailoring the PMBOK processes to satisfy the specific needs of the project. Kevin wants to introduce a new process “Identify Key Deliverables” to the existing six project scope management processes. Although Kevin understands that project deliverables identification is already included in the PMBOK scope management processes, he believes that having a dedicated process will stress on the importance of determining and agreeing key project deliverables. The best position for the new “Identify Key Deliverables” process should be between which of the following two processes? A. Define Scope and Create WBS B. Plan Scope Management and Collect Requirements C. Collect Requirements and Define Scope D. Create WBS and Validate Scope |
The identification of key project deliverables can only be done once the project requirements are collected, analyzed and documented. This is done during the Collect Requirements process. Further, the key project deliverables are documented in the project scope statement which is an output of the Define Scope process. The best position of the newly proposed “Identify Key Deliverables” process should be between the Collect Requirement and Define Scope processes. [PMBOK 5th edition, Pages 110, 120]
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When would Rolling Wave Planning be useful in a project? A. You should use Rolling Wave Planning to help you organize team member's activities within a large project group. B. You should use Rolling Wave Planning to determine the correct sequencing for long term items. C. You should use Rolling Wave Planning to help you determine which activities are more important and should be done first. D. You should use Rolling Wave Planning to help you achieve the appropriate level of detail in each work package at the right time. |
Rolling Wave Planning is a technique used to create a more detailed work plan while keeping the right level of detail for each activity: Activities happening sooner have more detail than those further in the future. [PMBOK 5th edition, Page 152]
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A project stakeholder is anybody whose interest can be negatively or positively affected by the outcome of the project or who may be able to affect the success or failure of the project. Which of the following examples is of a negative stakeholder? A. The chief financial officer of the company believes that the project’s NPV is zero. B. The sponsor wants to add resources to the project to complete the project on time. C. The operation manager believes that legacy technology is being deployed. D. The marketing manager is expecting increased revenue as an outcome of the project |
The sponsor and the marketing manager are supportive of the project. The chief financial officer is neutral since the NPV is zero. However, the operations manager has a negative attitude since he believes that the technology being deployed is outdated. [PMBOK 5th edition, Page 30]
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Most project management software packages use a method of constructing a project schedule network diagram known as: A. Project Diagramming Method B. Precedence Diagramming Method C. Project Diagramming Method D. Activity Diagramming Method |
PDM uses Nodes to represent Activities and connects the activities with Arrows to show dependencies. This is the method most commonly used by project management software packages.[PMBOK 5th edition, Page 156]
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When a negative unplanned risk occurs in a project, a response to it would be called: A. Failure planning B. Backup planning C. A workaround D. Disaster recovery |
A workaround is a response to a negative unplanned risk that has occurred. It differs from a contingency plan in that a workaround is not planned in advance of the occurrence of the risk event. [PMBOK 5th edition, Page 567]
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Martin is the project manager of a project that is in an early phase. He needs to estimate costs but finds that he has a limited amount of detailed information about the project. Which of the following estimation techniques would be least suited to his requirements? A. Budgetary Estimating B. Top-down Estimating C. Bottom-up Estimating D. Analogous Estimating |
Bottom-up estimating is a technique that can be applied only when there is a sufficient amount of detail available to the project manager. [PMBOK 5th edition, Page 205]
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You are looking at various process improvement models. Which of the following is not a process improvement model? A. Organizational Project Management Maturity Model (OPM3)® B. Malcolm-Baldrige C. Shewhart-Deming D. Capability Maturity Model Integrated (CMMI®) |
Shewhart and Deming were quality management experts. The other choices are process improvement models. [PMBOK 5th edition, Page 229]
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Which of these statements correctly links project and product life cycles? A. The last life cycle for a project is generally the product's retirement. B. A project life cycle is generally contained within a product life cycle. C. A product life cycle is generally contained within a project life cycle. D. A product life cycle is the same as a project life cycle. |
The product life cycle usually consists of sequential, non-overlapping product phases. The project life cycle is typically contained within one or more product life cycles. [PMBOK 5th edition, Pages 12, 13, 38]
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A management control point where scope, budget, actual cost and schedule are integrated and compared to earned value for performance measurement is called a: A. Control packages B. A planning package C. Code of accounts D. Account Plan |
This is a control account. Control accounts are placed at selected management points of the Work Breakdown Structure (WBS). Each control account may include one or more work packages, but each of the work packages must be associated with only one control account. [PMBOK 5th edition, Page 132]
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You are defining the schedule activities for your project and identifying deliverables at the lowest level in the Work Breakdown Structure (WBS). You find that there is insufficient definition of the project scope to decompose a branch of the WBS down to the work package level. You now look at using the last component in that branch of the WBS to develop a high-level project schedule for that component. Such a planning component is called: A. Control system B. Control element C. A planning package D. A planning packet |
The correct response is a planning package. Control accounts and planning packages are two planning components used when there are insufficient details of the project scope. [PMBOK 5th edition, Page 132]
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As a project manager of a project, you are analyzing the costs which have been incurred. Which of the following costs cannot be classified under cost of non-conformance? A. Warranty costs B. Quality Assurance Costs C. Rework costs D. Costs due to loss of reputation |
The Quality Assurance Costs are part of the cost of conformance. The cost of non-conformance includes the failure costs. [PMBOK 5th edition, Page 229]
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The WBS represents all product and project work. The total work at the lowest levels should roll up to the higher levels so that nothing is left out and no extra work is performed. This principleis also called the: A. 80/20 rule B. Pareto's rule C. Ground rule D. 100%rule |
The WBS represents all product and project work. The total work at the lowest levels should roll up to the higher levels so that nothing is omitted and no extra work is performed. This principle is also called the 100% rule. [PMBOK 5th edition, Page 131]
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A technical team can begin editing a large document 15 days after they begin writing it. What kind of dependency would this be represented as? A. Start-to-start with a 15-day lead B. Start-to-start with a 15-day lag C. Finish-to-start with a 15-day lag D. Finish-to-finish with a 15-day lead |
The relationship between the two tasks would be represented as a start-to-start with a lag of 15 days. A lag directs a delay in the successor activity. [PMBOK 5th edition, Page 156]
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According to the PMBOK guide, the Control Procurements is the process of managing procurement relationships, monitoring contract performance, and making changes and corrections to contracts as appropriate. However, effective procurement control involves integration of the Control Procurements process with other project management processes. Which of the following PMBOK process is not integrated with the Control Procurements process in order to ensure effective procurements administration and control? A. Perform Integrated Change Control B. Direct and Manage Project Work C. Control Quality D. Validate Scope |
The Direct and Manage Project Work is integrated with Control Procurements to authorize the seller’s work at the appropriate time. The Control Quality is integrated with Control Procurements to inspect and verify the adequacy of the seller’s product. The Perform Integrated Change Control is integrated with Control Procurements to assure that changes are properly approved. On the other hand, Validate Scope is a customer-focused process. The verified deliverables obtained from the Control Quality process are reviewed with the customer or sponsor to ensure that they are completed satisfactorily and have received formal acceptance of the deliverables by the customer or sponsor. The Validate Scope process differs from the Control Quality process in that the former is primarily concerned with acceptance of the deliverables with the project customer or sponsor, while quality control is primarily concerned verifying the correctness of the deliverables with the project team or the vendor/subcontractor/supplier. [PMBOK 5th edition, Pages 134, 381] |
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In a strong matrix organization, where the team members report to both a functional manager as well as a project manager, whose responsibility is it to manage the dual reporting relationship? A. Team members B. Project manager C. Functional manager D. HR manager |
In a matrix organization, where the team members are accountable to both a functional manager as well as a project manager, the management of the project team can be complicated. In matrix organizations, the role of the project manager varies from a coordinator's role to a directive project manager's role. In a strong matrix organization, it is considered the responsibility of the project manager to manage this dual reporting relationship and handle the coordination. [PMBOK 5th edition, Page 23]
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Nancy is carrying out cost-benefit analysis for a project. If undertaken, the project will start in January next year and end by December. The project will incur a constant cost of $10,000 each month (payable by the end of each month) giving a total cost of $120,000 for the project. The revenue from the project will be collected on a quarterly basis. The total revenue for the project by the end of December will be $200,000. The opportunity cost of the project is 12% which is the bank interest rate Nancy can get if she does not invest in this project. The total present value of all cash outflows is $112,551, while the total present value of all cash inflow is $185,721. What is the benefit-to-cost ratio for the project? A. 1.65 B. 0.6 C. 1.61 D. 1.67 |
Benefit-to-cost ratio (BCR) = PV of inflows ($185,721)/ ($185,721) PV of outflows = 1.65 The gross BCR can also be calculated as Total Revenue / Total Cost. However, since the total present value of both the inflow and outflow is given, this must be used for a more accurate calculation. [PMBOK 5th edition, Pages 195, 198, 235, 535]
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It is not practical, and usually not necessary, to engage with all stakeholders with the same level of intensity at all times. A project manager must prioritize stakeholders depending upon on who they are, what level of influence they have on the project, and what are their interests. Which of the following techniques helps in stakeholder prioritization? A. Stakeholder engagement matrix B. Stakeholder register C. Classification models D. Stakeholder register |
Stakeholder classification models are used during stakeholder analysis to rank stakeholders based on their power, influence, interest, and impact. [PMBOK 5th edition, Page 396]
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Once the project charter is authorized, it is the project manager’s duty to distribute the charter to all key stakeholders and ensure common understanding of the key deliverables, milestones, and their roles and responsibilities. During which of the following processes the project charter is distributed to the project stakeholders? A. Manage Stakeholder Engagement B. Direct and Manage Project Work C. Manage Communications D. Develop Project Charter |
Although the Manage Communications and Manage Stakeholder Engagement are processes involving stakeholder communication, these processes are from the executing process group. Project charter is developed during the project initiating and must be communicated to all key stakeholders as soon as it is authorized. The Develop Project Charter process produces the project charter and this output must be shared with the stakeholders at the end of this process. [PMBOK 5th edition, Page 66] |
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A manager asks you to evaluate four new projects that he has suggested for next year. You review the projects and notice that one is actually not a project but an operational task. Which of these is not a project? A. Manage a set of people for the next year to deliver the desired productivity results. B. Respond to a customer request for different product packaging. C. Change the product to enable increased consumer usage. D. Resolve a space constraint issue by building a new addition to the plant. |
Managing an operating team does not meet the project definition because it is not temporary or unique. [PMBOK 5th edition, Page 3]
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Which of the following Project Scope Management processes documents a configuration management system? A. Define Scope B. Control Scope C. Verify Scope D. Plan Scope Management |
Configuration management activities are documented as part of the requirements management plan which is an output of the Plan Scope Management process. [PMBOK 5th edition, Page 110]
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