PMP Practice Test 42 — 15 Questions

Question 1

Your project is halfway through its schedule, and you are performing a variance analysis. You find that the cost performance index (CPI) is 0.85 and the schedule performance index (SPI) is 1.1. What is the MOST likely cause of this situation?

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

Accepted Answer

The team is working overtime to meet deadlines, resulting in higher labor costs. A CPI of 0.85 indicates that for every dollar spent, only $0.85 of earned value is being delivered, meaning the project is over budget. An SPI of 1.1 indicates the project is ahead of schedule (10% more work completed than planned). The most likely cause is that the team is working overtime to achieve the schedule gains, which increases labor costs (e.g., overtime pay rates) without a proportional increase in output, driving the cost overrun.

Answer

Scope has been reduced without corresponding cost reduction

Answer

There is a calculation error in the earned value data

Answer

The project is under budget and ahead of schedule

Question 2

Match each project management artifact to its typical content.

Accepted Answer

Project Charter: Authorizes the project and assigns the project manager.. The project charter authorizes the project, while the WBS decomposes work. The risk register lists risks, and the change log records changes. Common confusions involve swapping definitions between these artifacts.

Answer

Risk Register: Authorizes the project and assigns the project manager.

Answer

Change Log: Hierarchical decomposition of work packages.

Question 3

Your project team includes members from diverse cultural backgrounds. During a meeting, you notice that some team members are uncomfortable with the direct communication style of others. How should you address this?

Accepted Answer

Facilitate a team discussion to develop a team charter that includes communication norms and cultural respect. It aligns with the PMP's focus on proactive leadership and team development. By facilitating a team discussion to create a team charter with agreed-upon communication norms and cultural respect, you empower the team to collaboratively solve the issue, fostering a respectful and inclusive environment. This approach directly addresses the root cause—differing communication styles—and builds a sustainable framework for future interactions, which is a core responsibility of a project manager in the 'Manage Team' process.

Answer

Ignore the issue as it will likely resolve on its own

Answer

Provide cultural sensitivity training to the entire team

Answer

Tell the direct communicators to soften their tone

Question 4

A project is 60% complete. The earned value (EV) is $120,000, the planned value (PV) is $150,000, and the actual cost (AC) is $130,000. What is the cost performance index (CPI) and what does it indicate?

Accepted Answer

CPI = 0.92; the project is over budget. The Cost Performance Index (CPI) is calculated as EV/AC = $120,000 / $130,000 = 0.92. A CPI less than 1.0 indicates that the project is over budget, meaning for every dollar spent, only $0.92 of value is earned. Option D correctly identifies both the CPI value and the over-budget status.

Answer

CPI = 0.80; the project is under budget

Answer

CPI = 1.08; the project is under budget

Answer

CPI = 0.92; the project is behind schedule

Question 5

A project manager is closing a project and compiling lessons learned. The project delivered its objectives but exceeded the budget by 10%. What should the PM include in the lessons learned?

Accepted Answer

Both the successes and the budget overrun with root causes and recommendations for improvement. Lessons learned must capture both positive and negative outcomes to provide a balanced view for future projects. Including the budget overrun with root causes and recommendations enables continuous improvement, which is a core principle of project management. The PMBOK Guide emphasizes that lessons learned should document what went well and what did not, along with actionable insights.

Answer

Recommendations on how to penalize the team for the budget overrun

Answer

Only the successful aspects to maintain a positive tone

Answer

The budget overrun and reasons, but not the successes as they are not lessons

Question 6

In a Scrum project, the team's velocity has been declining over the last three sprints. The project manager (also the Scrum Master) notices that team morale seems low. What should the project manager do FIRST?

Accepted Answer

Facilitate a retrospective to identify the root causes of the decline. Facilitate a retrospective to identify the root causes of the decline. As the Scrum Master, the project manager should use the retrospective to allow the team to openly discuss issues affecting velocity and morale. This aligns with the Agile principle of continuous improvement and self-organization. Option A is wrong because replacing team members should be a last resort and does not address the underlying issues. Option C is wrong because adding more tasks would likely worsen morale and further reduce velocity. Option D is wrong because monitoring by a senior developer undermines the team's self-organization and autonomy.

Answer

Replace the underperforming team members

Answer

Add more tasks to the backlog to increase the team's focus

Answer

Assign a senior developer to monitor the team's work

Question 7

An executive stakeholder bypasses the project manager and directly assigns tasks to a team member, causing confusion about priorities. The team member is unsure which tasks to work on. What should the project manager do FIRST?

Accepted Answer

Clarify priorities with the team member and schedule a private meeting with the executive to discuss the communication protocol. The project manager must first clarify priorities with the team member to resolve immediate confusion, then address the root cause by meeting privately with the executive to reinforce the communication protocol. This aligns with PMI's emphasis on proactive stakeholder management and conflict resolution without public escalation.

Answer

Ignore the situation to avoid conflict with the executive

Answer

File a formal complaint with the HR department

Answer

Politely remind the executive during a meeting that all task assignments must go through the PM

Question 8

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. PMI requires all scope changes to go through the Integrated Change Control process. The PM must evaluate the impact on scope, schedule, and cost 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 C is wrong because adding the requirement to the backlog without formal approval does not follow the proper change control process.

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

Answer

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

Question 9

As an agile project manager, you want to empower the development team to self-organize. Which TWO practices would BEST support self-organization?

Accepted Answer

Protect the team from external interruptions and scope changes during the sprint. Options B and C are correct. Protecting the team from external interruptions and scope changes during the sprint (B) allows the team to maintain focus on their committed work, preserving their autonomy and enabling self-organization. Allowing the team to estimate their own work and plan the sprint backlog (C) empowers the team to take ownership of their commitments and encourages collective decision-making, which is fundamental to self-organization. Option A (assigning tasks based on expertise) undermines self-organization by imposing external control and reducing team ownership. Option D (monitoring hours) is micromanagement that hinders self-organization. Option E (defining technical solution in detail) restricts the team's creativity and ownership over the technical approach.

Answer

Assign specific tasks to team members based on their expertise

Answer

Monitor each team member's hours to ensure productivity

Answer

Define the technical solution in detail for the team to implement

Question 10

You are managing a project to upgrade a company's network infrastructure. The project is on schedule, but you discover that the network cables purchased do not meet the required specifications. The procurement team bought a cheaper alternative without your knowledge. What should you do FIRST?

Accepted Answer

Document the non-conformance and assess the impact on quality and project objectives. The first action should be to document the non-conformance and assess the impact on quality and project objectives (Option B). This allows the project manager to determine the severity and decide on corrective actions. Option A is wrong because escalating to the legal department should come after assessing the impact and determining that it is a contractual breach, not the first step. Option C is wrong because continuing to use non-conforming materials without assessment may compromise quality and project objectives. Option D is wrong because ignoring the issue is not a valid management action.

Answer

Report the procurement team to the legal department for breach of contract

Answer

Continue using the cables if they are cheaper and seem to work in tests

Answer

Ignore the issue since the project is on schedule and the cables are already purchased

Question 11

In a large-scale digital transformation project, the executive sponsor has been bypassing you and giving direct instructions to the development team. The team is confused about priorities and feels caught between the sponsor's requests and the project plan. What should the project manager do FIRST?

Accepted Answer

Schedule a private meeting with the sponsor to discuss the issue and agree on a proper communication channel. The first step in resolving a conflict with a powerful stakeholder like an executive sponsor is to address the issue privately and collaboratively. By scheduling a private meeting, the project manager can discuss the impact of the bypassing behavior, clarify the confusion it causes, and agree on a proper communication channel that respects both the sponsor's authority and the project's governance. This aligns with PMI's principle of engaging stakeholders proactively and using conflict resolution techniques like 'confronting' or 'collaborating' to find a mutually acceptable solution.

Answer

Update the stakeholder engagement plan to include a communication protocol and ask the sponsor to review it

Answer

Send an email to the sponsor and the team clarifying that all instructions must go through you

Answer

Advise the team to ignore the sponsor's instructions and follow the project plan

Question 12

During a daily standup, a developer mentions she is blocked by a dependency from another team. The issue was not previously identified. As the project manager, what is the BEST action?

Accepted Answer

Add the blocker to the issue log and work with the other team to resolve it.. The correct action is to document the blocker in the issue log and collaborate with the other team to resolve it. This ensures the issue is tracked and addressed appropriately. Option A is wrong because reassigning work does not resolve the dependency; Option B delays resolution without proper documentation; Option C bypasses the project manager's role in facilitating cross-team coordination.

Answer

Remove the dependency by reassigning the work to a different developer.

Answer

Ask the developer to find a workaround and report back tomorrow.

Answer

Tell the developer to escalate the issue to the other team's manager directly.

Question 13

During a sprint review, the product owner rejects a user story because it does not meet the acceptance criteria. The developer who worked on it becomes defensive and argues that the implementation is technically superior to what was requested. What should the project manager do?

Accepted Answer

Support the product owner's decision and remind the developer to adhere to the agreed acceptance criteria in the future. The product owner is the ultimate authority on acceptance criteria. The developer's role is to deliver what was agreed upon, not to add unrequested features (gold-plating). Option B incorrectly escalates a project-level decision unnecessarily. Option C undermines the product owner's authority by letting the team override their decision. Option D is wrong because it still includes the unrequested technical implementation, which deviates from the acceptance criteria.

Answer

Escalate to the project sponsor to resolve the disagreement between the developer and the product owner

Answer

Allow the developer to present the technical benefits and let the team vote on whether to keep the implementation

Answer

Suggest that the team rework the story to match the acceptance criteria while still incorporating the superior implementation

Question 14

Your project is 40% complete, and the earned value analysis shows CPI = 0.85 and SPI = 0.90. The project sponsor is concerned about the cost overrun. The original budget at completion (BAC) is $1,000,000. What is the Estimate at Completion (EAC) using the typical cost performance index (CPI) assumption?

Accepted Answer

$1,176,471. The typical CPI assumption means the cost performance to date will continue for the remainder of the project. The formula is EAC = BAC / CPI = $1,000,000 / 0.85 = $1,176,470.59, which rounds to $1,176,471. This assumes the same efficiency (CPI) for the remaining work, reflecting the current cost overrun trend.

Answer

$850,000

Answer

$1,000,000

Answer

$1,111,111

Question 15

During project execution, a key vendor notifies you that they cannot deliver a critical component on time due to a raw material shortage. This component is on the critical path. The vendor suggests using a substitute material that is not yet approved by your quality team. What should the project manager do FIRST?

Accepted Answer

Implement the risk response defined in the risk register. The risk (vendor delay) was previously identified and documented in the risk register, along with a planned response. The project manager should first implement that planned response rather than taking other actions. Option B is incorrect because accepting the delay without trying the planned response is premature and may not be the best course of action. Option C is incorrect because escalation is not necessary if a pre-planned risk response exists. Option D is incorrect because immediately terminating the contract is an extreme reaction that ignores the agreed-upon risk response.

Answer

Accept the delay and update the project schedule

Answer

Escalate to the project sponsor and request additional time

Answer

Immediately terminate the vendor contract and find a new supplier