PMP Practice Test 20 — 15 Questions

Question 1

During a sprint review, a key stakeholder expresses dissatisfaction with the product increment, stating that it does not meet their expectations. The team followed the acceptance criteria defined in the user stories. What should the project manager do NEXT?

Choose an answer to begin — your selection is scored in the full session.

Accepted Answer

Schedule a meeting with the stakeholder and product owner to clarify expectations and refine the backlog. The project manager must facilitate a meeting between the stakeholder and the product owner to clarify expectations and refine the backlog. This aligns with the agile principle of continuous stakeholder engagement and ensures that acceptance criteria are updated to reflect true needs, preventing future mismatches.

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Explain that the team delivered exactly what was agreed upon and the stakeholder should have raised concerns earlier

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Refer the stakeholder to the product owner to discuss changes for future sprints

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Ask the team to redo the work to meet the stakeholder's unspoken needs

Question 2

You are managing a software development project that uses an agile methodology. The team has been working on a critical feature for the past two weeks. During the daily standup, a developer mentions that they discovered a significant technical debt in the codebase that will require refactoring before the feature can be completed. The product owner is not present at the standup. The developer estimates that the refactoring will take an additional three days, which will delay the current sprint's delivery. The sprint ends in five days. The team is already at full capacity. As the project manager, what should you do first?

Accepted Answer

Escalate the issue to the product owner and discuss reprioritization of backlog items.. The product owner is the authority on prioritization and must be informed of the technical debt that impacts the sprint goal. The project manager should first escalate the issue to the product owner to discuss reprioritization of backlog items, ensuring alignment with business value and sprint commitments. This aligns with agile principles of transparency and stakeholder collaboration, especially when technical debt threatens delivery.

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Remove the refactoring from the sprint and add it to the backlog for future sprints.

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Instruct the team to work overtime to complete both the refactoring and the feature.

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Extend the sprint by three days to accommodate the refactoring.

Question 3

You are the project manager for a software development project using a hybrid approach. During the sprint review, the product owner is satisfied with the deliverables, but one key stakeholder requests a significant change that would add a new feature. The team has already started planning the next sprint. What should you do FIRST?

Accepted Answer

Submit a change request to the change control board for evaluation and approval.. In a hybrid project, changes are managed through a formal change control process. The stakeholder's request for a new feature is a significant change that must be evaluated for impact on scope, schedule, and budget before any action is taken. Submitting a change request to the change control board (CCB) ensures proper governance and prevents unauthorized scope creep, which is critical when the team has already begun planning the next sprint.

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Refuse the change because the scope was already agreed upon during sprint planning.

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Ask the team to include the new feature in the next sprint since it's a high priority for the stakeholder.

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Advise the stakeholder to wait until the project is complete and then submit an enhancement request.

Question 4

Midway through your project, a key vendor informs you that they cannot deliver a critical component on time, which will impact the critical path. The risk was identified in the risk register with a 'mitigate' response. What should you do FIRST?

Accepted Answer

Implement the contingency plan that was developed for this risk. Since the risk was already identified and a 'mitigate' response was planned, the correct first action is to implement the contingency plan that was developed for this risk. This aligns with the PMBOK Guide's risk response execution process, where pre-planned actions are taken immediately when the risk trigger occurs, without waiting for additional approvals or negotiations.

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Inform the sponsor of the delay and request additional budget

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Issue a change request to update the project schedule

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Meet with the vendor to negotiate an expedited delivery

Question 5

You are the project manager for a construction project. A risk event that was identified in the risk register has just occurred: a key supplier is unable to deliver critical materials on time. The risk response plan includes a contingency reserve. What should you do FIRST?

Accepted Answer

Implement the contingency plan as defined in the risk response strategy. The risk response plan already defined a contingency reserve for this specific risk event. When a known risk occurs, the first action is to execute the pre-planned response, not to re-assess or escalate. This aligns with the PMBOK Guide's guidance on implementing risk responses as soon as the risk trigger is confirmed.

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Immediately notify the project sponsor and ask for guidance

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Assess the impact of the delay on the project schedule and then decide

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Ask the supplier to find an alternative source at no extra cost

Question 6

In a hybrid project, the development team is self-organizing but a senior developer consistently misses sprint commitments. The product owner is frustrated. What should the project manager do first?

Accepted Answer

Have a private conversation with the developer to understand challenges and offer support. In a hybrid project with a self-organizing team, the project manager should first address performance issues through coaching and support rather than bypassing team autonomy. Option D is correct because a private conversation allows the PM to understand root causes (e.g., technical debt, unclear requirements, or personal blockers) and offer targeted help, preserving the team's self-management while resolving the sprint commitment gap.

Answer

Inform the product owner that the team self-manages and the issue will resolve itself

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Reassign the developer to less critical tasks

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Escalate the issue to the functional manager

Question 7

You are leading a global software development project with team members in three different time zones. Recently, two senior developers from different locations have been in conflict over the design approach for a critical component. The conflict has started to affect team morale and productivity. What should you do FIRST?

Accepted Answer

Schedule a meeting with both developers to discuss the issue and find a mutually agreeable solution.. As the project manager, your first responsibility is to address interpersonal conflicts directly and collaboratively. Scheduling a meeting with both developers to discuss the issue and find a mutually agreeable solution aligns with the PMI's emphasis on conflict resolution techniques like 'collaborating/problem-solving,' which seeks a win-win outcome. This approach preserves team morale and productivity by involving the stakeholders in the decision, rather than imposing a solution or avoiding the problem.

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Decide on the design approach yourself to end the conflict quickly.

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Escalate the issue to the sponsors and ask them to intervene.

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Reassign the developers to different tasks to avoid further conflict.

Question 8

You are leading a software development project using a hybrid approach. During a sprint review, two senior developers have a heated argument about the technical implementation of a feature. The disagreement is causing tension among the team. What should you do FIRST?

Accepted Answer

Meet with both developers separately and then together to find a solution. As the project manager, your first responsibility is to address the conflict directly using collaborative conflict resolution techniques. Meeting with each developer separately allows you to understand their technical perspectives without group pressure, and then bringing them together facilitates a solution that respects both viewpoints and maintains team cohesion. This approach aligns with the PMI People domain, emphasizing servant leadership and proactive conflict management.

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Escalate the conflict to the project sponsor

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Assign the feature to a different developer

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Ask the team members to resolve it on their own

Question 9

A project manager is leading a digital transformation initiative. Midway through the project, a new regulation is introduced that affects the product's compliance requirements. The project sponsor is concerned about potential scope creep and delays. What should the project manager do first?

Accepted Answer

Conduct an impact analysis of the regulation on the project. D is correct because the first step when a new regulation emerges is to analyze its impact on the project's scope, schedule, cost, and compliance. Without an impact analysis, the project manager cannot determine whether a change request, risk update, or escalation is appropriate. This aligns with the PMBOK Guide's 'Perform Integrated Change Control' process, which requires assessing the effects of any proposed change before taking further action.

Answer

Escalate the issue to the project sponsor for direction

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Update the risk register with the new regulation as a threat

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Submit a change request to modify the project scope

Question 10

Your project is halfway through execution, and the earned value analysis shows CPI = 0.85 and SPI = 0.90. You have used 60% of the budget. What is the most likely interpretation of these metrics?

Accepted Answer

The project is over budget and behind schedule. CPI = 0.85 (less than 1) indicates that for every dollar spent, only $0.85 of earned value has been received, meaning the project is over budget. SPI = 0.90 (less than 1) indicates that the project is progressing at 90% of the planned rate, meaning it is behind schedule.

Answer

The project is under budget and ahead of schedule

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The project is under budget but behind schedule

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The project is over budget but ahead of schedule

Question 11

During a hybrid project, the product owner frequently bypasses you and gives direct instructions to the development team. The team is confused about priorities, and scope creep is occurring. What should you do FIRST?

Accepted Answer

Speak privately with the product owner to explain the impact on the team and request that instructions go through you. The first step in resolving a conflict between the product owner and the development team is to have a private, respectful conversation with the product owner. This allows you to explain the negative impact of bypassing you—such as team confusion, priority misalignment, and scope creep—and request that all instructions be routed through you to maintain the agreed-upon workflow and protect the team's focus.

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Tell the team to ignore instructions from the product owner

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Escalate to the project sponsor for resolution

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Update the team charter to include a communication protocol

Question 12

A project manager is leading a distributed team with members in three different countries. The team has been struggling with miscommunication and missed deadlines. The project manager wants to improve team performance. Which TWO actions should the project manager take? (Choose two.)

Accepted Answer

Implement a daily stand-up meeting at a rotating time to accommodate all time zones. Option B is correct because a daily stand-up at a rotating time gives every distributed member a fair share of convenient meeting slots, which sustains regular synchronous communication and surfaces blockers early, directly addressing the miscommunication and missed deadlines. Option C is correct because a team charter explicitly documents communication channels, meeting times, and response-time expectations, establishing shared norms and accountability that reduce ambiguity across countries and time zones. Option A is not appropriate because lengthening sprints does not fix communication gaps and merely delays feedback. Option D is wrong because bypassing the project manager can fragment communication and remove coordination, worsening the problem. Option E is wrong because forcing identical working hours ignores time-zone realities and harms morale and productivity.

Answer

Increase sprint length to four weeks to give more time for tasks

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Allow team members to communicate directly with stakeholders without involving the project manager

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Require all team members to work the same hours regardless of time zone

Question 13

You are managing a project where a key executive stakeholder bypasses you and gives direct orders to the development team. The team is confused about priorities. What should you do first?

Accepted Answer

Schedule a meeting with the executive to discuss the impact of bypassing the PM and reinforce the communication plan. The first action should be to address the root cause of the confusion—the executive's bypassing behavior—by scheduling a private meeting to discuss its impact on project priorities and team morale, and to reinforce the established communication plan. This aligns with the PMP's focus on proactive stakeholder management and conflict resolution, ensuring the project manager maintains authority and clarity without escalating prematurely.

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Tell the team to follow the executive's orders to avoid conflict

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Report the executive's behavior to the project sponsor

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Update the communication plan to include the executive's approach

Question 14

A new team member has joined your project and seems reluctant to share ideas during meetings. You suspect they are experiencing cultural adjustment issues. Which TWO actions would best help integrate them into the team? (Choose TWO)

Accepted Answer

Encourage a safe environment where all ideas are welcomed without judgment. Option C is correct because creating a psychologically safe environment where ideas are welcomed without judgment directly addresses the root cause—cultural adjustment anxiety—by lowering the interpersonal risk that may be silencing the new team member. Option D is correct because pairing them with a senior mentor provides structured, low-pressure guidance and a trusted point of contact who can model team norms and gradually draw them into discussions. Options A and E are too confrontational or pressuring: directly interrogating why they are quiet can increase anxiety, and forcing a presentation before they feel ready may deepen their reluctance. Option B is also inappropriate because assigning a complex task as a test of ability adds stress rather than support and does not address the cultural adjustment issue.

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Ask them directly why they are not participating

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Assign them a complex task to prove their abilities

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Require them to present an idea in the next meeting

Question 15

During a project, the sponsor asks you to skip the testing phase to save time and meet the deadline. What should you do FIRST?

Accepted Answer

Explain the risks of skipping testing and propose alternatives such as reducing scope or extending the schedule.. As a project manager, your first responsibility is to protect the project's value and quality. Skipping testing introduces significant technical debt and risk of undetected defects, which can lead to costly rework or failure. By explaining the risks and proposing alternatives like scope reduction or schedule extension, you demonstrate proactive stakeholder management and adherence to the PMI Code of Ethics and Professional Conduct.

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Comply with the sponsor's request to meet the deadline.

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Ignore the request and continue as planned.

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Ask the quality assurance team to expedite testing.