PMP Practice Test 48 — 15 Questions

Question 1

You are the project manager for a software development project using Scrum. During the daily standup, two senior developers engage in a heated argument about the technical approach for a user story. The argument is consuming valuable time and escalating. What should you do FIRST?

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

Accepted Answer

Schedule a private meeting with both developers after the standup to facilitate a resolution. The project manager's role in a self-managing Scrum team is to facilitate conflict resolution without imposing decisions. By scheduling a private meeting after the standup, you allow the developers to resolve the technical disagreement collaboratively, preserving team autonomy and avoiding disruption to the daily Scrum's timebox. This approach aligns with the PMP's emphasis on servant leadership and conflict management techniques like 'collaborating' or 'problem-solving'.

Answer

Escalate the issue to the project sponsor for immediate intervention

Answer

Decide on the technical approach yourself to resolve the conflict quickly

Answer

Ignore the argument and move on to other team members' updates

Question 2

A project manager is leading a software development project. During a sprint review, the product owner rejects a feature because it does not meet the acceptance criteria. The development team claims they followed the design documents. What should the project manager do first?

Accepted Answer

Facilitate a meeting with the product owner and team to review the acceptance criteria.. The immediate priority is to clarify the acceptance criteria with both the product owner and the development team. The discrepancy between the design documents and the acceptance criteria indicates a potential misunderstanding or misalignment in requirements, which must be resolved collaboratively before any rework or escalation. Facilitating a meeting ensures that the team understands the exact criteria and can align their technical implementation accordingly, preventing further wasted effort.

Answer

Instruct the team to modify the feature to match the product owner's expectations.

Answer

Request that the team attend additional training on requirements analysis.

Answer

Escalate to the steering committee for a decision.

Question 3

A key vendor informs you that they cannot deliver a critical component on time due to a raw material shortage. This component is on the critical path. The risk was identified and documented in the risk register. What should you do FIRST?

Accepted Answer

Implement the contingency plan defined in the risk register. Since the risk was already identified and documented in the risk register, the project team should have prepared a contingency plan for this specific scenario. The PMBOK Guide states that when a risk occurs, the first action is to implement the pre-defined contingency plan to minimize impact. This is a proactive, planned response rather than a reactive scramble, and it aligns with the 'Plan Risk Responses' and 'Implement Risk Responses' processes.

Answer

Escalate the issue to the project sponsor

Answer

Contact the vendor to negotiate a new delivery date

Answer

Immediately look for an alternative vendor

Question 4

Your IT infrastructure project is running 15% over budget at the midpoint. After analyzing the variance, you find that the cost overrun is due to a one-time increase in licensing fees that will not recur. The project is on schedule. What is the BEST estimate for the Estimate at Completion (EAC)?

Accepted Answer

EAC = AC + (BAC - EV). The cost overrun is due to a one-time increase in licensing fees that will not recur, meaning the remaining work will be performed at the original budgeted rate. This scenario calls for the EAC formula that adds the actual costs incurred to the remaining budget (BAC - EV), which assumes future cost performance will match the planned rate. This is the 'atypical variance' formula, as the cause of the variance is not expected to continue.

Answer

EAC = BAC / CPI

Answer

EAC = AC + [(BAC - EV) / (CPI * SPI)]

Answer

EAC = AC + ETC

Question 5

You are the project manager for a software development project using Scrum. During the daily standup, two senior developers engage in a heated argument about the technical approach for a user story. The argument is consuming valuable time and escalating. What should you do FIRST?

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

Accepted Answer

Facilitate a retrospective to identify root causes and implement process improvements.. The first step when facing a drop in velocity due to technical debt and unclear requirements is to understand the root causes. Facilitating a retrospective allows the team to analyze the issues and collaboratively identify process improvements. Option A is incorrect: reducing sprint length may increase overhead but does not address underlying causes. Option B is incorrect: adding developers often disrupts team dynamics and does not solve technical debt. Option D is incorrect: stricter timeboxing for standups does not resolve unclear requirements or technical debt.

Answer

Reduce the sprint length to two weeks to increase focus.

Answer

Add more developers to the team to increase velocity.

Answer

Ask the scrum master to enforce stricter timeboxing for daily standups.

Question 6

Your project is in the execution phase and a key vendor has notified you that they will be unable to deliver a critical component on time due to a labor strike. Which TWO actions should the project manager take? (Choose two)

Accepted Answer

Implement the contingency plan that was documented in the risk register. Option B is correct because the risk register documents agreed risk responses, and a labor strike at a vendor is exactly the kind of identified risk whose contingency plan (e.g., alternate supplier, buffer stock, or schedule reserve) should be triggered during execution. Option E is correct because the project manager must promptly communicate the delay and its impact on scope, schedule, cost, and quality to the sponsor and key stakeholders, as stakeholder engagement and transparent reporting are essential in the executing phase. Option A is not appropriate because negotiating with a labor union is outside the project manager's authority and role. Option C is wrong because passively waiting allows the schedule and cost impact to worsen instead of executing a planned response. Option D is wrong because unilaterally demanding a no-cost alternative supplier is not a valid risk response and ignores contract terms, change control, and cost impact.

Answer

Travel to the vendor's site to negotiate directly with the labor union

Answer

Wait for the strike to end before taking any action

Answer

Ask the vendor to find an alternative supplier without additional cost

Question 7

A new project manager is assigned to a project where the team is geographically distributed across three time zones. Which communication method is most effective for ensuring alignment?

Accepted Answer

Hold a daily video call at a time that rotates across time zones.. Rotating the daily video call across time zones ensures that no single team is consistently disadvantaged by an inconvenient meeting time, promoting equitable participation and alignment. This synchronous communication method is most effective for real-time collaboration and immediate clarification, which is critical for a geographically distributed team to maintain shared understanding and project momentum.

Answer

Send a weekly status email to all team members.

Answer

Record video updates and share them asynchronously.

Answer

Use a group chat for all project communication.

Question 8

A key stakeholder insists on bypassing the change control process and demands that a minor scope change be implemented immediately to meet a regulatory deadline. What should the project manager do?

Accepted Answer

Explain the importance of the change control process and initiate a change request. The project manager must uphold the change control process to ensure all changes, even minor ones, are properly evaluated for impact on scope, schedule, cost, and quality. Bypassing the process could lead to undocumented changes that violate regulatory compliance or introduce risks. Initiating a change request allows the stakeholder's urgent need to be formally assessed and approved through the proper governance framework.

Answer

Implement the change and document it later

Answer

Refuse the request outright, stating that no changes are allowed

Answer

Comply with the stakeholder's request to maintain a good relationship

Question 9

During a project to implement a new CRM system, the sponsor asks you to skip the user acceptance testing (UAT) phase to meet the go-live date, stating that the system has been thoroughly tested by the IT team. What should you do FIRST?

Accepted Answer

Explain the risks of skipping UAT and propose a compressed UAT focusing on critical functions.. As the project manager, your first responsibility is to address the sponsor's request by communicating the technical risks of skipping UAT—such as undetected integration failures, data migration errors, or workflow logic defects that IT testing alone cannot uncover—and proposing a compressed UAT that still validates critical business processes. This aligns with the PMBOK Guide's emphasis on proactive risk management and stakeholder communication, ensuring the system meets user requirements before go-live.

Answer

Escalate the issue to the PMO for a decision.

Answer

Agree to skip UAT to meet the deadline and update the project schedule.

Answer

Proceed with the go-live and document the decision as a risk in the risk register.

Question 10

You are managing a hybrid project. During the last two sprints, velocity has dropped significantly. The team members complain about unclear priorities and frequent context switching. What should you do first?

Accepted Answer

Hold a retrospective with the team to identify root causes and improve processes. The first step in addressing a velocity drop caused by unclear priorities and context switching is to hold a retrospective. This aligns with the hybrid project management principle of continuous improvement and servant leadership, where the team collaboratively identifies root causes and adapts their processes. Reassigning the product owner or escalating prematurely bypasses the team's self-organization and fails to address the underlying issues.

Answer

Reassign the product owner and replace with a more decisive person

Answer

Escalate the velocity drop to the steering committee

Answer

Ask the team to work extra hours to catch up on the velocity

Question 11

A new team member joins your agile project. They have no experience with Scrum and seem overwhelmed. What should you do to onboard them effectively?

Accepted Answer

Assign them a mentor and provide training on agile principles. Onboarding a new team member with no Scrum experience requires a structured approach that combines mentorship with formal training on agile principles. This ensures they understand the Scrum framework, roles, events, and artifacts, which is critical for them to contribute effectively and reduce overwhelm. Simply pairing them for coding tasks (A) or leaving them to observe (D) neglects the foundational knowledge needed to participate in Scrum ceremonies and collaborate with the team.

Answer

Pair them with a senior developer only for coding tasks

Answer

Give them the project documentation and ask them to read it

Answer

Let them learn by observing the team for the first few sprints

Question 12

You are managing a project that is 15% over budget at the midpoint. The earned value (EV) is $100,000, actual cost (AC) is $115,000, and planned value (PV) is $110,000. What is the most likely reason for the cost variance?

Accepted Answer

Costs are higher than planned for the work performed. Cost Variance (CV) = EV − AC = $100,000 − $115,000 = −$15,000, a negative CV indicating the project is over budget. Since EV represents the budgeted value of work actually completed and AC is what was actually spent, a negative CV means the work performed cost more than planned — i.e., costs are higher than planned for the work completed.

Answer

The project is ahead of schedule

Answer

The project is under budget

Answer

The scope was increased without adjusting the budget

Question 13

A project manager is leading a hybrid project. An executive stakeholder bypasses the PM and gives direct orders to the development team. What should the PM do?

Accepted Answer

Have a private conversation with the executive to explain the impact of bypassing the PM and request they communicate through the proper channels. Have a private conversation with the executive to explain the impact of bypassing the PM and request they communicate through the proper channels. This is the best first step because it addresses the issue directly with the stakeholder, maintaining the project manager's authority while preserving the relationship. Option A (reporting to the sponsor) escalates without first attempting to resolve the issue, which can damage trust. Option B (updating the communications management plan) is a procedural fix that does not address the immediate behavior. Option D (telling the team to ignore the orders) undermines the executive's authority and may create conflict. Therefore, a private conversation is the most appropriate initial action.

Answer

Report the executive's behavior to the sponsor

Answer

Update the communications management plan to include reporting requirements

Answer

Tell the team to ignore the executive's orders

Question 14

In a Scrum project, the development team consistently fails to complete all committed stories in each sprint. The daily stand-up meetings are running long and often devolve into problem-solving sessions. As the Scrum Master, what should you do?

Accepted Answer

Coach the team to keep the stand-up focused and time-boxed, and facilitate separate sessions for detailed discussions. The Scrum Master's role is to enforce the time-boxed nature of the daily stand-up (15 minutes) and prevent it from becoming a problem-solving session, which violates the Scrum Guide. By coaching the team to keep the stand-up focused on the three key questions (what was done, what will be done, and impediments) and facilitating separate sessions for detailed discussions, the Scrum Master addresses the root cause of the long meetings and helps the team improve sprint commitment completion. This aligns with the 'Process — Managing Technical Aspects' domain, as it involves optimizing team workflow and meeting efficiency.

Answer

Add more stories to the sprint backlog to increase velocity

Answer

Cancel the daily stand-up and replace it with email updates

Answer

Allow the stand-up to run longer to ensure issues are resolved

Question 15

A project is in the planning phase. The team has identified 50 risks. The project manager wants to prioritize risks for further analysis. Which tool or technique is BEST suited for this?

Accepted Answer

Probability and impact matrix. The probability and impact matrix is the best tool for prioritizing risks because it combines the likelihood of each risk occurring with its potential impact on project objectives, allowing the project manager to rank risks by their overall severity. This prioritization is essential during the planning phase to focus further qualitative or quantitative analysis on the most critical risks.

Answer

Risk register

Answer

SWOT analysis

Answer

Decision tree analysis