Question Set 3: Project Management Fundamentals and Core Concepts

Questions 1. The collection of generally sequential and sometimes overlapping project phases
differentiated by a distinct work focus is known as what? A. Project management information system B.
Project management methodology C. Project management office D. Project life cycle 2. All of the
following are basic characteristics of the project life cycle except? A. Closing the project B. Checking the
project work C. Starting the project D. Carrying out the project work 3. Sayed is looking at his project
budget and notices that the cost and staffing levels are high. At which point in the project would this
generally be? A. Starting the project B. Organizing and preparing C. Carrying out the work D. Closing the
project 4. What is the name of the document that lists any problems that stakeholders may have and
records what is being done about them? A. Change log B. Issue log C. Stakeholder register D.
Stakeholder management plan 5. Sumith and his project team are currently breaking down all the
project deliverables into the smallest useful units so that they can then estimate costs for each of these
units and then aggregate these estimates into a total project cost estimate. What is the name of the
technique that Sumith and his team are using to estimate costs? A. Parametric estimating B. Bottom-up
estimating C. Low-level estimating D. Project management software 6. While developing individual cost
estimates for work packages on his project, Varun uses a technique that requires him to use a statistical
relationship between historical data and other variables to calculate a cost estimate for a schedule
activity resource. What is this estimating technique more commonly referred to as? A. Statistical
estimating B. Bottom-up estimating C. Parametric estimating D. Top-down estimating 7. Marissa’s
project sponsor has asked her to provide a cost estimate quickly to give the project steering group an
idea of what the costs for a particular work package will be. Which of the following estimating
techniques would Marissa choose to use? A. Analogous estimating B. Parametric estimating C. Resource
rate estimating D. Bottom-up estimating 8. Daryl has completed his activity list and is explaining to his
team members what it contains. Which of the following is not contained in the activity list? A. Milestone
list B. Scope of work description C. All schedule activities required on the project D. Activity identifier 9.
Assad’s project has been underway for nine months when a major problem occurs that is not included in
the risk register. What is his best course of action? A. Conduct perform qualitative risk analysis and then
perform quantitative risk analysis. B. Conduct perform quantitative risk analysis and then perform
qualitative risk analysis. C. Create a workaround. D. Contact his project sponsor. 10. Lenell is the project
manager for the GBK Project. This project affects a line of business, and the customer is anxious about
the success of the project. Which of the following is likely not a top concern for the customer? A. Project
priorities B. Schedule C. Cost D. Personality conflicts 11. Brenda is the project manager of the PLN
Project. She is using a RACI chart to organize roles and responsibilities for project assignments. In a RACI
chart, what is the maximum number of people that can be accountable for an assignment? A. One B.
Two C. Two, if one of the two people is also responsible D. As many people that are on the project team
12. Aileen knows she can present project information in many different ways. Which one of the
following is not a method Aileen can use to present project performance? A. Histograms B. S-curves C.
Bar charts D. RACI charts 13. The project team is experiencing some trouble with a new material that the
project will use. The project manager, Ali, gathers the team to lead an active problem-solving session.
Which one of the following is the best definition of active problem-solving? A. Define the problem and
the desired solution. B. Discern the cause and the effect of the problem. C. Document the problem and
its characteristics to see the whole effect. D. Test the materials to identify the solution. 14. Amer is the
project manager of the BHY Project. His project customer has demanded that the project be completed
by December 1. December 1 is an example of which one of the following? A. A constraint B. An
assumption C. A project boundary D. Product acceptance criteria 15. Alicia is the project manager on a
project to develop a new piece of customer management software for an external client. Through the
approved change control process, Alicia is considering a request to alter the scope of the project. While
considering the impact of the request upon the project scope, she must also consider the impact upon
other areas of the project such as quality, schedule, budget and risk. These other areas that Alicia is
considering represent what to the project? A. Opportunities B. Constraints C. Constrictions D. Risks 16.
Although people may say they can identify, assess, and manage their personal feelings, many teams
experience tension and uncooperative behaviors among teammates. Nicole has recognized this on
projects where she has been a team member, especially virtual teams. Now that she is a project
manager, Nicole wants to establish an environment in which teammates can reduce tension and
increase cooperation. Which of the following is a best practice to promote such an environment? A. Use
emotional intelligence to control the sentiments of team members. B. Focus on goals to be served and
ask that emotions be left outside the project. C. Emphasize areas of agreement rather than areas of
difference. D. Maintain a good relationship with the project sponsor. 17. Project sponsors have the most
influence on the scope, quality, schedule, and cost of the project during which phase? A. Initiation B.
Planning C. Execution D. Closure 18. While working as a project manager for a secret government
agency, Doc discovers that a previous project that was very successful had a stakeholder, Winston, who
was unhappy with the benefits received. Winston can have a significant impact on Doc’s current project.
What should Doc do next? A. Review the stakeholder register to determine exactly how much impact
Winston has. B. Communicate and work with Winston to meet his needs and expectations. C. Ensure
that the communications management plan addresses Winston’s information needs. D. Review the
stakeholder management plan to determine Winston’s engagement level. 19. Teresa and her project
team have produced a requirements traceability matrix that links requirements to their origin and traces
them throughout the project life cycle. Which statement describes the purpose of the requirements
traceability matrix? A. It describes in detail the project’s deliverables and the work required to create
those deliverables and includes product and project scope description. B. It ensures that requirements
approved in the requirements documentation are delivered at the end of the project and helps manage
changes to the product scope. C. It is a narrative description of products or services to be delivered by
the project and is received from the customer for external projects. D. It provides the necessary
information from a business standpoint to determine whether the project is worth the required
investment. 20. Kevin has just joined your project and asks what is involved in this project. You refer him
to the project scope statement, which contains all the following except: A. Deferred change requests B.
Product scope description C. Project assumptions D. Product acceptance criteria Answers 1. D. Knowing
the project life cycle and how projects and project management fit gives you context and provides a
basic framework for managing a project, regardless of the specific work involved. Do not confuse this
with the product life cycle. A is incorrect because the project management information system is an
example of an organizational process asset and does not refer to a collection of overlapping phases. B is
incorrect because project management methodology is a prescribed and standardized approach to
project management and does not describe overlapping project phases. C is incorrect because a project
management office (PMO) is the center of excellence for project management within an organization
and does not refer to a collection of overlapping phases. 2. B. The generic level of the project life cycle
features four key characteristics: starting the project, organizing and preparing, carrying out the project
work, and closing the project. Checking the project work is part of Deming’s plan-do-check-act (PDCA)
cycle, which elaborates on the basic characteristics of a project life cycle. A is incorrect because closing
the project is the final step in the project life cycle. C is incorrect because starting the project is the first
step in the project life cycle. D is incorrect because carrying out the project work is a characteristic of the
project life cycle. 3. C. Generally speaking, cost and staffing levels are highest during the phase in the
project life cycle where work is being carried out. A, B, and D are incorrect because the costs associated
with each of these phases of the project life cycle are not as high as the costs of carrying out the project
work, which has the greatest assignment of resources and activities. 4. B. The issue log records any
issues that stakeholders may have and what is being done about them. A is incorrect because the
change log records information about change requests and their status. C is incorrect because the
stakeholder register records specific information about each stakeholder but does not list any problems
or issues they may have. D is incorrect because the stakeholder management plan sets out how
stakeholders’ expectations and engagement will be proactively influenced and managed. 5. B. Bottom-
up estimating is a technique for estimating the cost of individual work packages with the lowest level of
detail. A is incorrect because parametric estimating is an estimating technique that uses a statistical
relationship between historical data and other variables to calculate an estimate for activity parameters.
C is incorrect because low-level estimating is not a term referenced in the PMBOK Guide. D is incorrect
because project management software may be useful for developing cost estimates, but it is a tool, not
a technique. 6. C. Parametric estimating is a technique that uses a statistical relationship between
historical data and other variables to calculate an estimate for activity parameters. A is incorrect
because statistical estimating is not a term referenced in the PMBOK Guide. B is incorrect because
bottom-up estimating is a technique for estimating the cost of individual work packages with the lowest
level of detail. D is incorrect because top-down estimating (aka analogous estimating) is a macro
estimating technique that assigns costs to particular deliverables and work packages. 7. A. Analogous
estimating can be done faster than the other techniques and is generally less costly than other
estimating techniques, but it is also generally less accurate. B is incorrect because parametric estimating
requires access to estimating databases and as such generally takes longer than analogous estimating. C
is incorrect because resource rate estimating is a made-up term. D is incorrect because the time and
cost involved in decomposing the WBS in bottom-up estimating mean that it takes longer than
analogous estimating. 8. A. The milestone list would be found in your WBS dictionary. B is incorrect
because the scope of work description is contained in the activity list. C is incorrect because all schedule
activities required on the project are contained in the activity list. D is incorrect because activity
identifiers are contained in the activity list. 9. C. In this case the risk has occurred and created an impact
on the project, so there is no need to begin formal evaluation processes. Assad’s risk response plan
would identify that a workaround is the best option for unanticipated risks. A is incorrect because, given
that the question outlines that this is a major problem, Assad will not have time to evaluate the risk in
any manner. B is incorrect because, given that the question outlines that this is a major problem, Assad
will not have time to evaluate the risk in any manner (and if he were to do so, he would perform
qualitative analysis first). D is incorrect because, given that this has been identified as a major problem,
Assad’s best course of action in this instance is to create a workaround first and then contact his project
sponsor. 10. D. Personality conflicts may be a concern for the customer, but they are not as important or
as likely to be of concern as project priorities, schedule, and cost. The customer hired Lenell’s company
to solve the technical issues. A, B, and C are all incorrect. These are most likely the top issues for a
customer in a project of this magnitude. 11. A. In a RACI chart, which stands for responsible,
accountable, consulted, and informed, only one person can be designated as accountable for an
assignment. B, C, and D are incorrect because these choices enable more than one person to be
accountable for an assignment. 12. D. RACI charts do not show project performance, but instead show
accountability of the resources involved in the project. A, B, and C are incorrect because these choices
do present project performance. 13. A. Active problem-solving begins by defining the problem, which
requires discerning between the cause of the problem and the effect of the problem, accomplished
through root cause analysis. B, C, and D are incorrect because these approaches don’t first define the
effect and the causes, which is crucial to active problem-solving. 14. A. A definitive project deadline is an
example of a project constraint. B is incorrect because this deadline is a requirement, not an
assumption. C is incorrect because project boundaries define things that are within and outside of the
project scope. D is incorrect because product acceptance criteria are functions and features the product
must have to be acceptable to the customer. 15. B. Constraints is correct because central to any
successful project management is an awareness that a project manager must balance competing
constraints on the project. A change in one area can and usually does also mean a potential change in
another area. A is incorrect because opportunities are the opposite of constraints. C is incorrect because
the correct terminology is constraints, not constrictions. D is incorrect because risks refer to any areas of
positive or negative uncertainty on the project. 16. A. Emotional intelligence (the ability to manage your
emotions and others’ emotions) leads directly to reducing conflict and making positive decisions. B is
incorrect because focusing only on the goals is too “task” oriented and not enough “relationship”
oriented. C is incorrect because this is the definition of the smoothing technique used in conflict
resolution. D is incorrect because it is one of the factors that influence conflict resolution methods. 17.
A. The project sponsor is the key stakeholder in the initiation phase. The project charter is agreed to by
the project sponsor and represents what they want out of the project; it also drives the direction of the
project. B is incorrect because the project manager, not the sponsor, has the greatest influence during
the planning phase. C is incorrect because the execution phase is carrying out what has been agreed on
in the project charter during initiation and in the project plan during planning. D is incorrect because in
the closure phase the project deliverables have been created and scope, quality, schedule, and cost are
now actuals that can no longer be influenced. 18. A. The stakeholder register contains the stakeholder
classification, which includes the stakeholder engagement assessment matrix. B is incorrect because
meeting with Winston will enable you to identify the appropriate focus for his engagement, not his
impact on the project. C is incorrect because the communications plan describes how project
communications will be planned, structured, implemented, and monitored for effectiveness; it will be
used later. D is incorrect because reviewing the stakeholder management plan comes after you classify
stakeholders in the stakeholder register. 19. B. The requirements traceability matrix ensures that
requirements approved in the requirements documentation are delivered at the end of the project. The
requirements traceability matrix also provides a structure for managing changes to product scope. A is
incorrect because it describes the project scope statement. C is incorrect because this is the project
statement of work used in developing the project charter. D is incorrect because it describes the project
business case. Identifying all stakeholders is the only way to uncover all project requirements. 20. A.
Deferred change requests could be approved at some time in the future, but have not yet been
approved and do not authorize the work that implies a change in scope. B, C, and D are incorrect
because the detailed project scope statement does include the product scope description, project
assumptions (as well as deliverables, exclusions, and constraints), and product acceptance criteria.