PMI-ACP Practice Test 14 — 15 Questions

Question 1

Which THREE traits of a leader are essential for coaching an agile team? (Choose THREE)

Accepted Answer

Patience, recognizing that growth takes time.. Option A (Patience, recognizing that growth takes time) is correct because coaching an agile team involves developing people iteratively, much like agile delivery itself, so a leader must allow team members to learn through experimentation and even failure rather than demanding instant mastery. Option B (Acting as a role model for agile values and behaviors) is correct because agile coaching depends on modeling the very principles being taught—such as collaboration, transparency, and self-organization—since teams learn more from observed behavior than from instruction alone. Option D (Active listening to understand the team's perspective) is correct because effective coaching requires genuinely hearing the team's concerns, ideas, and impediments so the leader can ask powerful questions and guide the team toward its own solutions instead of imposing answers. Option C is incorrect because a leader who must always supply every answer undermines the team's self-organization and ownership, which are core agile principles. Option E is incorrect because focusing only on output while ignoring personal growth neglects the people-development aspect that defines coaching and sustains long-term team performance.

Answer

Always being the one with the answers to every problem.

Answer

Focusing only on the team's output, not their personal growth.

Question 2

A team is hesitant to share their 'Velocity'. Why might this be?

Accepted Answer

They fear it will be used against them as a productivity metric.. Velocity is a planning and forecasting tool, not a productivity measure, and teams often resist sharing it because they've seen or fear it being weaponized in performance reviews or cross-team comparisons. That fear is rational: once velocity becomes a management metric, teams start gaming it by inflating estimates rather than improving delivery.

Answer

They are lazy.

Answer

They are hiding secrets.

Answer

They don't know what it is.

Question 3

Which TWO of the following are effective ways to handle 'change'?

Accepted Answer

Communicate the change impact to stakeholders transparently. Option A is correct because transparently communicating the change impact to stakeholders ensures everyone understands the consequences, maintains trust, and allows informed decisions about priorities and trade-offs. Option B is correct because assessing the impact on the current iteration determines whether the change can be absorbed without jeopardizing the sprint goal or requires re-planning, which is essential for effective change management. Option C is incorrect because accepting every change unconditionally leads to scope creep, destabilizes the iteration, and undermines planning discipline. Option D is incorrect because implementing changes silently without informing the team creates misalignment, hidden work, and risks quality and delivery. Option E is incorrect because rejecting all changes ignores legitimate feedback and market shifts, making the process rigid and unresponsive.

Answer

Always say yes to every change requested

Answer

Implement the change silently without telling the team

Answer

Reject all changes to protect the original plan

Question 4

Which TWO actions should a practitioner take when the team is consistently failing to meet the Definition of Done?

Accepted Answer

Review and potentially refine the Definition of Done to ensure it is achievable and clear.. Option B is correct because when a team consistently misses the Definition of Done, the DoD itself may be ambiguous, overly ambitious, or misaligned with the team's actual capabilities, so reviewing and refining it to be clear and achievable is a legitimate corrective action. Option C is correct because a retrospective is the standard agile ceremony for inspecting the team's process and identifying the root cause of repeated failures, enabling data-driven improvement rather than blame. Option A is wrong because firing the team is punitive and does nothing to diagnose or fix the underlying process problem. Option D is wrong because lowering standards to match poor output degrades quality and undermines the purpose of the Definition of Done rather than addressing the cause. Option E is wrong because public shaming is destructive, unprofessional, and counterproductive to team psychological safety and continuous improvement.

Answer

Fire the team.

Answer

Lower the standards to match current output.

Answer

Publicly shame the team.

Question 5

Which THREE traits are characteristic of a servant leader in an Agile team?

Accepted Answer

Removing impediments that prevent the team from achieving their goals.. Option A is correct because a servant leader's core duty is to clear obstacles and blockers so the team can meet its goals, which is the essence of removing impediments. Option C is correct because servant leadership prioritizes growing people, so investing in team members' personal and professional development is a defining trait. Option D is correct because shielding the team from external interruptions and distractions preserves their focus and autonomy, a hallmark of servant leadership. Option B is not correct because dictating exactly how team members perform daily technical tasks is directive, command-and-control management, the opposite of servant leadership. Option E is not correct because unilaterally making all product architecture decisions concentrates authority in the leader rather than empowering the self-organizing team.

Answer

Directing the team on exactly how to perform their daily technical tasks.

Answer

Making all final decisions regarding the product architecture.

Question 6

Which TWO aspects of team culture are most important for optimizing flow?

Accepted Answer

Psychological safety.. Psychological safety (A) is correct because when team members feel safe to speak up, admit mistakes, and raise impediments without fear of blame, problems surface early and flow is not blocked by hidden issues or silent bottlenecks. Collective ownership (B) is correct because shared responsibility for the whole value stream, rather than hand-offs between siloed specialists, reduces wait times, rework, and the "not my job" gaps that interrupt the smooth, continuous delivery of work. By contrast, individual competition (C) incentivizes local optimization and knowledge hoarding, which creates queues and conflict rather than flow. Strict hierarchy (D) slows decision-making and communication through approval layers, adding delays and hand-offs. High-pressure deadlines (E) push teams toward multitasking, shortcuts, and burnout, which increase work in progress and variability, all of which degrade flow.

Answer

Individual competition.

Answer

Strict hierarchy.

Answer

High-pressure deadlines.

Question 7

Which TWO factors make a team 'self-organizing'?

Accepted Answer

The team takes collective responsibility for outcomes. Option A is correct because a self-organizing team owns its results collectively, meaning the whole team—not a single lead or manager—is accountable for delivering the outcome, which is a defining characteristic of self-organization. Option B is correct because self-organization requires genuine autonomy: the team itself decides how to approach, sequence, and execute the work rather than being told the method by an external authority. Together, collective ownership (A) plus autonomy over the 'how' (B) are the two factors that make a team self-organizing. Option C is wrong because isolation is the opposite of a team; self-organizing teams collaborate and coordinate internally. Option D is wrong because a manager making all decisions describes a command-and-control structure, which removes the team's autonomy. Option E is wrong because rigid adherence to an original plan prevents the team from adapting its own approach, which self-organizing teams are expected to do.

Answer

Each team member works in complete isolation

Answer

The manager makes all the decisions

Answer

Strict adherence to the original plan

Question 8

When optimizing end-to-end flow, which THREE of the following metrics help identify and mitigate waste in the delivery process?

Accepted Answer

Lead Time.. Lead Time (A) is correct because it measures the total elapsed time from when a work item is requested to when it is delivered, exposing delays and queueing waste across the entire value stream. Cycle Time (C) is correct because it measures the time from when work actually starts to when it finishes, revealing bottlenecks and process inefficiencies within the delivery flow. Flow Efficiency (E) is correct because it is the ratio of active work time to total lead time, directly quantifying the waste of waiting and blocked time in the process. Individual Story Point Accuracy (B) is not a flow metric; it assesses estimation precision rather than process waste. Team Velocity (D) measures throughput per iteration for forecasting, but it does not identify where waste or delays occur in the end-to-end flow.

Answer

Individual Story Point Accuracy.

Answer

Team Velocity.

Question 9

Which TWO approaches help a leader coach a team through change? (Choose TWO)

Accepted Answer

Clearly articulate the 'why' behind the change.. Option C is correct because clearly articulating the 'why' behind the change gives the team purpose and context, which reduces resistance and helps them commit to the new direction rather than merely complying. Option D is correct because providing ongoing support and time for the team to adapt recognizes that change involves a learning curve, and sustained coaching, resources, and patience are essential for the team to build new habits successfully. In contrast, option A is wrong because forcing an entire process change in one day ignores the need for gradual adoption and overwhelms the team. Option B is wrong because ignoring concerns erodes trust and leaves legitimate issues unaddressed, which undermines the transition. Option E is wrong because framing change as mandatory and unquestionable shuts down dialogue and fails to build the buy-in that effective coaching requires.

Answer

Force the team to change their entire process in one day.

Answer

Ignore the team's concerns to keep the transition fast.

Answer

Tell the team that the change is mandatory and cannot be questioned.

Question 10

Which THREE artifacts are commonly used in agile delivery?

Accepted Answer

Burndown Chart.. A Burndown Chart is correct because it is a standard agile artifact that tracks remaining work (typically story points or hours) against time within a sprint or release, giving the team daily visibility into progress toward the sprint goal. B Product Backlog is correct because it is the single, ordered, emergent list of all product requirements, features, and fixes owned by the Product Owner, serving as the primary source of work in Scrum and other agile methods. D Sprint Backlog is correct because it is the set of Product Backlog items selected for the sprint plus the plan for delivering them, owned by the Development Team and updated daily during the Daily Scrum. C Annual Financial Report is not an agile delivery artifact; it is a statutory corporate accounting document produced on an annual cycle, unrelated to iterative product development. E Individual Performance Review is not an agile artifact either; it is an HR management process, and agile teams typically favor team-based metrics over individual performance appraisals.

Answer

Annual Financial Report.

Answer

Individual Performance Review.

Question 11

Which THREE activities help a leader facilitate better team collaboration? (Choose THREE)

Accepted Answer

Encouraging pair programming or mob programming.. Option B is correct because pair programming and mob programming are collaborative practices where two or more developers work together on the same code, enabling continuous knowledge sharing, real-time code review, and reduced single points of failure. Option C is correct because visual boards (such as Kanban or Scrum task boards) make work items, workflow stages, and blockers transparent to the whole team, which improves coordination and shared situational awareness. Option D is correct because facilitating open communication channels—such as dedicated chat channels, regular stand-ups, or shared documentation—breaks down information silos and ensures team members can quickly exchange context and raise impediments. Option A does not belong because assigning tasks purely to individuals emphasizes personal accountability rather than collective collaboration, and can even discourage shared ownership. Option E does not belong because limiting team meetings reduces opportunities for synchronization and alignment, which typically harms rather than helps collaboration.

Answer

Assigning tasks to individuals to ensure accountability.

Answer

Limiting team meetings to avoid wasting time.

Question 12

Which TWO factors are critical for an agile leader when resolving team conflicts? (Choose TWO)

Accepted Answer

Ensuring a safe environment where all parties feel heard.. Option A is correct because an agile leader must create psychological safety so every party feels heard, which enables open dialogue and constructive resolution rather than suppressed dissent. Option E is correct because the leader should act as a neutral, unbiased facilitator who guides the team toward its own solution instead of imposing one, preserving the team's self-organization and ownership. Option B is wrong because forcing a solution is directive and undermines the team's autonomy and commitment. Option C is wrong because escalating every conflict to senior management bypasses the team's ability to resolve issues and erodes trust. Option D is wrong because ignoring conflict allows it to escalate and damage collaboration and performance.

Answer

Forcing the team to accept your solution to end the conflict quickly.

Answer

Reporting all conflicts to senior management immediately.

Answer

Ignoring the conflict until it reaches a critical point.

Question 13

Which TWO strategies can a leader use to promote psychological safety? (Choose TWO)

Accepted Answer

Encouraging team members to speak up, even if their opinion is unpopular.. Option A is correct because psychological safety is built when leaders actively invite dissenting and unpopular viewpoints, signaling that speaking up will not be punished; this is the core behavior of a psychologically safe environment. Option D is correct because framing mistakes as learning opportunities normalizes error reporting and experimentation, which reduces fear and encourages transparency, a key pillar of psychological safety. Option B is incorrect because public criticism of errors increases interpersonal risk and shuts down open communication. Option C is incorrect because demanding conformity suppresses the diverse input and candor that psychological safety requires. Option E is incorrect because rewarding only those who never err creates a blame culture and discourages honesty about mistakes.

Answer

Publicly criticizing team members for their errors.

Answer

Demanding total conformity to the team's existing views.

Answer

Rewarding only the team members who never make mistakes.

Question 14

Which THREE of the following reflect 'embracing change'?

Accepted Answer

Pivoting the strategy after a failed experiment. Option C is correct because pivoting the strategy after a failed experiment demonstrates a willingness to learn from outcomes and adapt direction rather than clinging to a failing approach, which is central to embracing change. Option D is correct because refining requirements iteratively throughout the project accepts that needs will evolve and incorporates feedback continuously instead of freezing scope upfront. Option E is correct because prioritizing the product backlog based on new market trends shows responsiveness to external shifts, allowing value delivery to stay aligned with current conditions. Options A and B are incorrect because ignoring customer feedback and rigidly sticking to the original plan both resist change and reject the adaptive, feedback-driven mindset that embracing change requires.

Answer

Ignoring customer feedback to stay on track

Answer

Sticking to the original project plan at all costs

Question 15

Which TWO methods are effective for gathering stakeholder feedback?

Accepted Answer

Observing users while they use the product.. Option A is correct because direct observation of users interacting with the product (e.g., usability testing or contextual inquiry) yields firsthand, unbiased behavioral data about real pain points, workflows, and unmet needs that stakeholders may not articulate in words. Option D is correct because sprint reviews are a formal Scrum inspect-and-adapt event where the team demonstrates a potentially shippable Increment to stakeholders, who then provide structured feedback that feeds directly into the Product Backlog for the next Sprint. Option B is wrong because ignoring feedback does not prevent scope creep—it merely hides requirements and risks delivering a product that fails to meet stakeholder needs. Option C is wrong because relying on a single stakeholder produces a biased, unrepresentative view and excludes other legitimate perspectives. Option E is wrong because collecting survey data without analyzing the results generates no actionable insight and wastes stakeholders' time.

Answer

Ignoring feedback to prevent scope creep.

Answer

Asking only one stakeholder for their opinion.

Answer

Sending a survey and never looking at the results.