PMP Practice Test 12 — 15 Questions

Question 1

A project manager notices that a team member consistently submits deliverables late. The project manager suspects the team member is overburdened. What should the project manager do first?

Accepted Answer

Schedule a one-on-one meeting to discuss workload and any challenges.. The first step in addressing a potential performance issue is to gather information through a private, respectful conversation. The project manager should schedule a one-on-one meeting to understand the team member's workload and challenges before taking any corrective action, aligning with the PMI's emphasis on servant leadership and emotional intelligence.

Answer

Reassign the tasks to another team member immediately.

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Reprimand the team member in the next team meeting as a warning.

Answer

Issue a formal written warning about performance.

Question 2

You are the project manager for a portfolio of projects. One project is consistently underperforming and missing milestones. The steering committee asks you to recommend whether to continue or cancel the project. What should you do first?

Accepted Answer

Conduct a benefits review and assess if the project still aligns with organizational strategy. The correct first step is to conduct a benefits review and assess alignment with organizational strategy (Option C). This ensures the decision is based on an evaluation of whether the project still delivers value and fits strategic goals, rather than reacting prematurely. Option A (cancelling) is premature without analysis; Option B (escalation to sponsor) bypasses due diligence; Option D (recovery plan) is a subsequent step if the review indicates continuation.

Answer

Recommend cancelling the project to free up resources for other projects

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Escalate to the sponsor for decision

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Ask the project team to create a recovery plan

Question 3

During a sprint, you observe that a team member is consistently underperforming, missing tasks, and producing low-quality work. They have been a reliable performer in the past. What should you do FIRST?

Accepted Answer

Have a private, empathetic conversation with the team member to understand any personal or professional challenges. The first step in addressing a sudden performance decline from a previously reliable team member is to have a private, empathetic conversation to uncover root causes. This aligns with the PMP's servant leadership approach, which prioritizes understanding personal or professional challenges before taking corrective action. Jumping to documentation or reassignment without this dialogue violates the principle of leading with empathy and could damage trust and team morale.

Answer

Escalate the issue to the functional manager for disciplinary action

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Formally document the underperformance and initiate a performance improvement plan

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Reassign their tasks to other team members to maintain sprint velocity

Question 4

You are managing a software development project using a hybrid approach. During a sprint review, the customer requests a major feature addition that would extend the timeline by two weeks. The team is already working at capacity. What should you do FIRST?

Accepted Answer

Submit a change request through the Integrated Change Control process and assess the impact on scope, schedule, and cost. The correct action is to submit a change request through the Integrated Change Control process. PMI requires formal assessment and approval before implementing any change that impacts scope, schedule, or cost. Proceeding without change control violates the project management plan.

Answer

Ask the team to start working on the feature immediately to satisfy the customer

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Inform the customer that the feature is out of scope and cannot be added

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Add the feature to the product backlog and schedule it for a future sprint without further analysis

Question 5

You are the project manager for a marketing campaign project using a hybrid approach. Mid-sprint, the product owner asks the team to add a new feature that increases customer engagement. The team has capacity, but the new feature was not in the approved business case. What should you do first?

Accepted Answer

Submit a change request to evaluate the impact on the business case and obtain approval. Any change that impacts the business case must go through the change control process. Option A bypasses approval, option B is premature without analysis, option D escalates without proper documentation.

Answer

Ask the sponsor for permission to proceed

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Allow the team to add the feature since they have capacity

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Refuse to add the feature because it was not in the business case

Question 6

You are managing a pharmaceutical research project using a predictive approach. A new regulation requires additional clinical trials that will extend the project by 6 months. The sponsor wants to know how this affects the business case. Which THREE documents should you review to provide an informed response?

Accepted Answer

Risk register. (Risk register) is correct because the risk register contains assumptions, constraints, and risks that may be affected by the regulatory change. The impact of the regulation on project risks should be assessed. Option B (Business case) is correct because it documents the justification and financial analysis; the sponsor wants to know how the change affects the business case. Option E (Project management plan schedule and cost baselines) is correct because the schedule and cost baselines are needed to quantify the extension and cost increase to inform the business case. Option C (Stakeholder register) is incorrect; it lists stakeholders and their interests but does not contain financial or schedule information needed to assess impact on the business case. Option D (Work breakdown structure dictionary) is incorrect; it defines work packages and deliverables, not the business case impact.

Answer

Stakeholder register

Answer

Work breakdown structure dictionary

Question 7

During a project status meeting, an executive stakeholder informs the team that they have instructed a developer to add a new feature to the product without going through the change control process. The developer has already completed the work. What should the project manager do NEXT?

Accepted Answer

Document the change and submit a retroactive change request to the change control board. The project manager should document the change and submit a retroactive change request to the change control board to formally assess the impact and validate the work. This ensures proper governance while acknowledging the completed work. Option A is wrong because ignoring the change without documentation sets a bad precedent and bypasses change control. Option B is wrong because removing the new feature without assessment may cause rework and stakeholder dissatisfaction. Option C is wrong because asking the executive to reverse immediately may damage the relationship and does not address the need for formal assessment.

Answer

Inform the executive that this violates the change control process and ignore the change

Answer

Remove the new feature from the product

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Ask the executive to reverse the change immediately

Question 8

A project team is in the storming stage of development. The project manager wants to help the team move to the norming stage. Which action would BEST support this transition?

Accepted Answer

Facilitate a team session to establish ground rules and clarify roles.. The storming stage is characterized by conflict and uncertainty about roles. Facilitating a session to establish ground rules and clarify roles directly addresses the root cause of storming by creating structure and mutual understanding, which is the key to moving into norming where collaboration begins. This action aligns with Tuckman's model and the PM's role as a servant leader.

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Enforce strict adherence to the project schedule to keep the team focused.

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Reassign team members who are causing conflict to different teams.

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Encourage team members to avoid discussing disagreements to maintain harmony.

Question 9

In a hybrid project, the development team is using Scrum, and the project manager is responsible for overall coordination. During a sprint, the product owner asks the team to add a high-priority user story that was not included in the sprint planning. The team is concerned about overcommitment. What should the project manager do?

Accepted Answer

Ask the product owner to add the story to the product backlog and prioritize it for the next sprint.. In a hybrid project using Scrum, the product owner should manage the product backlog and prioritize work for future sprints. Adding a new story mid-sprint violates the sprint commitment and can destabilize the team's velocity and sprint goal. The project manager should facilitate the product owner's decision to defer the story to the next sprint, preserving the integrity of the current sprint.

Answer

Remove a lower-priority story from the sprint to make room for the new one.

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Allow the team to add the story if they can accommodate it without affecting the sprint goal.

Answer

Escalate to the project sponsor to resolve the conflict.

Question 10

You are the project manager for a software development project using a hybrid approach. During a sprint review, the product owner requests a change that would add a new feature to the current release. The team estimates it will take two additional sprints. What should you do first?

Accepted Answer

Submit a change request through the Integrated Change Control process to assess the impact on scope, schedule, cost, and quality. Any change that impacts scope, schedule, or cost must first go through Integrated Change Control (ICC) to assess its impact before approval. This aligns with PMI's change management best practices. Option A bypasses formal control, Option C is too rigid for a hybrid approach, and Option D delays analysis but does not initiate proper governance.

Answer

Ask the team to start working on the new feature immediately to meet the stakeholder's needs

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Explain that no changes can be made after the sprint review to maintain the schedule

Answer

Add the feature to the backlog and prioritize it for the next release without further analysis

Question 11

You are the project manager for a large infrastructure project. The project's CPI is 0.85 and SPI is 0.9. The team is working hard, but the project manager suspects that the cost performance is due to inaccurate estimates rather than inefficiency. The project sponsor is concerned about the budget overrun and asks you to cut costs by reducing quality inspections. What should you do?

Accepted Answer

Explain to the sponsor that reducing inspections could lead to higher rework costs and request a meeting to review the estimate accuracy instead. Reducing quality inspections to cut costs could lead to increased defects and rework, worsening the cost overrun in the long run. Instead, the project manager should discuss with the sponsor the possibility that the cost variance is due to inaccurate estimates, not inefficiency. This approach aligns with the PM's responsibility to manage quality and communicate risks. Option B is wrong because agreeing without analysis violates the project manager's duty to protect the project from harmful decisions. Option C is wrong because escalating to the PMO should not be the first step; the PM should first address the issue directly with the sponsor. Option D is wrong because reducing inspections with a plan to increase later still risks quality issues and rework costs.

Answer

Agree to reduce inspections to satisfy the sponsor's request for cost savings

Answer

Escalate the sponsor's request to the PMO for a decision

Answer

Reduce inspections as requested, but increase them later if quality issues arise

Question 12

Your construction project is 40% complete. The Earned Value Analysis shows CPI = 0.85 and SPI = 0.90. The project budget is $5M. A key vendor just informed you they cannot deliver a critical component on time, causing a 3-week delay. The component is on the critical path. What is the BEST action?

Accepted Answer

Evaluate schedule compression options (crashing or fast-tracking) and submit a change request to the CCB. Since the project is already over budget and behind schedule, and the vendor issue affects the critical path, the best action is to evaluate options such as schedule compression techniques and then submit a change request to address the delay.

Answer

Meet with the vendor to negotiate a new delivery date and update the schedule baseline accordingly

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Immediately authorize overtime for the team to make up the delay

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Consult the risk register to see if this risk was identified and if a response plan exists

Question 13

During a sprint retrospective, the team identifies that the daily standups are taking too long and are not productive. Several team members suggest canceling them to save time. As the scrum master, what is the best course of action?

Accepted Answer

Facilitate a discussion to identify the root cause of the unproductive standups and agree on improvements.. The scrum master should facilitate a discussion to improve the standup rather than cancel it. Option C is correct because it addresses the issue constructively.

Answer

Shorten the standup time to 5 minutes without discussion.

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Cancel the daily standups as suggested and replace them with a weekly meeting.

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Keep the standups as they are; the team will adapt over time.

Question 14

Your project team is struggling with low morale due to a heavy workload and unclear priorities. As a project manager, which TWO actions would BEST help improve team motivation? (Choose two)

Accepted Answer

Recognize and celebrate team achievements publicly. Options B and E are correct. Recognizing and celebrating team achievements (B) directly boosts morale through positive reinforcement, a key motivator according to Herzberg's theory. Clarifying priorities and removing non-essential tasks (E) reduces confusion and workload stress, addressing the root cause of low morale. Option A (monetary bonuses) is not the best here because financial incentives are often short-term and less effective for ongoing motivation. Option C (empowering self-organization) is generally beneficial but does not directly solve the immediate issues of unclear priorities and heavy workload. Option D (overtime) would worsen morale by increasing the workload and stress.

Answer

Offer monetary bonuses for meeting deadlines

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Empower the team to self-organize and make decisions

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Ask the team to work overtime to reduce the backlog

Question 15

You are managing a project where a team member consistently misses deadlines. This has caused frustration among other team members and is affecting the project schedule. What should you do FIRST?

Accepted Answer

Speak with the team member privately to understand the root cause and offer support. The PM should first have a private conversation with the team member to understand the reasons behind the missed deadlines. This aligns with PMI's emphasis on addressing performance issues through communication and understanding before taking formal action.

Answer

Reassign the team member's tasks to other team members

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Remove the team member from the project and request a replacement

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Document the issue in the issue log and escalate to the functional manager