PMP Practice Test 41 — 15 Questions

Question 1

Your project is using a predictive approach. A key vendor has informed you that they will be unable to deliver a critical component on time, which could delay the project by three weeks. You have identified this risk in the risk register. What should you do first?

Accepted Answer

Implement the risk response plan that was documented in the risk register. Option A is correct: Since the risk is in the register, a response plan exists. The PM should implement the planned response. Option B escalates prematurely, C updates without action, D ignores the issue.

Answer

Escalate the issue to the project sponsor immediately without taking any action

Answer

Update the risk register and continue monitoring, as the risk was expected

Answer

Ask the team to find a workaround without consulting the risk register

Question 2

You are managing a project that is using a hybrid approach. An executive stakeholder has requested a significant change to the project scope. The change has been approved by the change control board (CCB). Which THREE actions should you take next?

Accepted Answer

Communicate the approved change and its impact to all relevant stakeholders. Options B, C, and D are correct. B: Updating the project management plan reflects the approved change. C: Updating the baseline ensures future tracking against the new scope. D: Communicating to stakeholders keeps everyone informed. A is wrong because you should not implement until the plan is updated. E is wrong because the change has been approved, no need to reject.

Answer

Instruct the team to begin working on the change immediately to avoid delays

Answer

Reject the change if it will delay the project beyond the original deadline

Question 3

You are the project manager for a marketing campaign launch. The project has a tight deadline. During a status meeting, a team member announces that they have completed a task two days early. However, you notice that the quality of the deliverable is below the acceptance criteria. What should you do?

Accepted Answer

Reject the deliverable and ask the team member to rework it to meet the acceptance criteria. Option D is correct because the deliverable does not meet quality standards, and the PM should reject it and request rework. Option A is wrong because accepting substandard work sets a bad precedent. Option B is wrong because the PM should not accept defects. Option C is wrong because reducing quality standards without stakeholder approval violates the project scope.

Answer

Thank the team member for the early completion and move on to the next task

Answer

Lower the acceptance criteria to match the deliverable's quality to save time

Answer

Accept the deliverable since it was completed early and the team can improve it later

Question 4

You are the project manager for a complex IT infrastructure project. Two senior developers have a conflict regarding the technical approach to a critical component. The conflict is causing delays and affecting team morale. Both approaches are valid but have different resource and schedule implications. What should you do first?

Accepted Answer

Facilitate a meeting with both developers to evaluate each approach against project objectives.. As a PM, you should facilitate a collaborative discussion to resolve the conflict. The goal is to leverage the team's expertise to find the best solution. Avoiding personal confrontation and focusing on technical merits is key.

Answer

Ask the developers to document both approaches and then choose the one with lower cost.

Answer

Escalate the conflict to the project sponsor for resolution.

Answer

Make a decision yourself based on the project constraints to save time.

Question 5

You are the project manager for a marketing campaign. During the planning phase, you identify a risk that a key graphic designer may leave the company. You decide to cross-train another team member as a backup. This is an example of which risk response?

Accepted Answer

Mitigate. Cross-training reduces the impact of the risk by having a backup. This is a mitigation strategy because it reduces the probability or impact of the risk.

Answer

Transfer

Answer

Avoid

Answer

Accept

Question 6

Your project's cost performance index (CPI) is 0.8, and the schedule performance index (SPI) is 1.1. The project is in the execution phase. What is the most likely reason for these indices?

Accepted Answer

The project manager used crashing to meet a deadline, adding resources and increasing costs. Option C is correct because CPI < 1 indicates cost overrun, while SPI > 1 indicates ahead of schedule, often due to crashing (adding resources). Option A is wrong because scope reduction would likely improve CPI. Option B is wrong because fast tracking would affect schedule. Option D is wrong because rework would worsen both.

Answer

The team had to rework deliverables due to quality issues

Answer

The project is experiencing scope creep

Answer

The team is working more efficiently than planned

Question 7

In a hybrid project, the team is struggling with unclear requirements. The project manager wants to improve the situation. Which THREE actions should the project manager take?

Accepted Answer

Conduct a requirements workshop with key stakeholders to clarify and prioritize. Options A, C, and D are correct. Option A clarifies requirements. Option C uses agile refinement. Option D involves stakeholders. Option B is wrong because it adds process overhead. Option E is wrong because blaming the sponsor is counterproductive.

Answer

Request the project sponsor to assign a business analyst to the project

Answer

Create a detailed requirements document and require sign-off before any work begins

Question 8

You are managing a project that is currently in the execution phase. The project has a cost baseline of $500,000. At the end of month 3, the actual cost is $150,000 and the earned value is $120,000. The project manager calculates the cost variance (CV) and schedule variance (SV). What do the results indicate?

Accepted Answer

The project is over budget and behind schedule.. CV = EV - AC = $120,000 - $150,000 = -$30,000 (over budget). SV = EV - PV. PV is not given, but we can infer that if EV is $120,000 and the project is behind schedule, PV would be higher. But without PV, we cannot compute SV. However, the question expects to know that CV is negative (over budget). Option D is correct.

Answer

The project is over budget and ahead of schedule.

Answer

The project is under budget and ahead of schedule.

Answer

The project is under budget and behind schedule.

Question 9

During a daily standup, a team member mentions that a task is taking longer than expected and will likely miss the deadline. The task is on the critical path. What should the project manager do FIRST?

Accepted Answer

Discuss with the team member to understand the issue and explore options. The first step is to understand the situation by discussing with the team member. Then the PM can consider options like fast-tracking or crashing. Option B is proactive and follows PMI's communication approach.

Answer

Immediately escalate the issue to the sponsor

Answer

Assign additional team members to the task without further analysis

Answer

Reduce the quality of the task to save time

Question 10

You are managing a project where a risk identified in the risk register has occurred. The risk response plan calls for mitigation, but the mitigation action will delay the critical path by 2 weeks. The project has no schedule reserve. What should the project manager do FIRST?

Accepted Answer

Implement the risk response as planned and then submit a change request for the schedule delay. Option C is correct: the PM should implement the risk response as planned, then assess the impact and submit a change request for any schedule changes. Option A is wrong because the response should be implemented. Option B is wrong because escalation is not needed yet. Option D is wrong because schedule compression should be considered after the impact is known.

Answer

Avoid implementing the risk response to protect the schedule

Answer

Use schedule compression techniques to offset the delay before implementing the response

Answer

Escalate the issue to the project sponsor for a decision

Question 11

You are managing a hybrid project. The team has been using Scrum, but the customer requests fixed scope and price for the next phase. The project is currently on track. What is the best approach to handle this request?

Accepted Answer

Propose a hybrid approach with a fixed-price contract for the known scope and agile for potential changes. Option B is correct: A hybrid approach can accommodate fixed scope with time-boxed sprints and a fixed price based on the scope. Option A ignores the request, C abandons agile, D is not a standard approach.

Answer

Switch to a fully predictive approach for the next phase to ensure fixed scope and price

Answer

Refuse the request and continue with pure Scrum because the team is already on track

Answer

Negotiate a cost-plus contract to keep the agile approach

Question 12

You are a project manager overseeing a 12-month ERP implementation. During sprint 6 of 20, the product owner informs you that a key stakeholder wants to add a new reporting module that was not in the original scope. The team estimates this would add 3 weeks to the schedule. 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. Option C is correct because PMI requires all scope changes to go through the Integrated Change Control process. The PM must evaluate the impact and obtain approval before any work begins. Option A is wrong because implementing the change without approval bypasses change control. Option B is wrong because refusing outright without assessing impact is not the correct approach. Option D is wrong because telling the team to start work immediately violates the change control process.

Answer

Add the requirement to the product backlog and let the team address it in a future sprint without formal approval

Answer

Ask the team to begin work on the module immediately to accommodate the stakeholder

Answer

Inform the stakeholder that no changes can be made once the project has started

Question 13

You are managing a hybrid project where the team uses Scrum for development but follows a traditional approach for reporting. The project is behind schedule because the development team is spending too much time on documentation for status reports. The product owner is concerned about the lack of progress. What should you do?

Accepted Answer

Work with the stakeholders to simplify the reporting requirements and reduce the documentation burden on the development team. Option A is correct because simplifying reporting reduces administrative burden and allows the team to focus on development. Option B is wrong because more reporting would further distract the team. Option C is wrong because the issue is not about the team's efficiency but about process overhead. Option D is wrong because adding developers may not solve the problem of excessive documentation.

Answer

Require the team to attend additional status meetings to improve communication

Answer

Hold a team-building session to improve the team's efficiency

Answer

Add more developers to the team to share the workload

Question 14

During a project's execution phase, the sponsor asks you to skip the user acceptance testing (UAT) phase to expedite delivery, stating that the client is eager to use the system. What should you do?

Accepted Answer

Explain the risks of skipping UAT and recommend proceeding with the planned testing.. Skipping UAT poses significant quality and acceptance risks. The PM should communicate the risks to the sponsor and recommend following the quality plan. PMI emphasizes the importance of quality assurance and control processes.

Answer

Skip UAT but add a note in the lessons learned about the decision.

Answer

Compromise by reducing UAT to only critical test cases.

Answer

Agree to skip UAT to meet the sponsor's request and expedite delivery.

Question 15

Your agile project is experiencing a drop in velocity for the third consecutive sprint. The team reports that they are spending too much time in unplanned meetings and dealing with frequent requirement changes. Which TWO actions should you take to address this?

Accepted Answer

Implement a process to control scope changes during the sprint.. Limiting work-in-progress (WIP) can reduce context switching and improve focus. Implementing a change control process for scope changes during a sprint helps stabilize requirements. Both address root causes of velocity drop.

Answer

Encourage the team to work overtime to catch up.

Answer

Add more team members to increase capacity.

Answer

Increase the sprint duration to give the team more time.