PMP People — Leading Projects Practice Test 20 — 15 Questions

Question 1

During a project status meeting, an executive stakeholder bypasses you and directly instructs a team member to add a new feature to the current sprint. The team member looks confused. What should you do FIRST?

Accepted Answer

After the meeting, privately remind the executive about the change control process and offer to submit a change request. Option B is correct: PMI recommends addressing such issues privately to maintain respect. The PM should clarify the change control process with the executive. Option A is confrontational and could damage relationships. Option C allows scope creep without governance. Option D undermines the team's trust.

Answer

Ignore the situation and continue the meeting

Answer

Tell the team member to add the feature as requested to satisfy the stakeholder

Answer

Immediately interrupt the executive and explain that all changes must go through you

Question 2

Your agile team has recently formed and is struggling to agree on work methods and communication norms. Several team members are frustrated with the lack of consistency. What should you do as the project manager?

Accepted Answer

Facilitate a workshop to develop a team charter that defines working agreements and communication norms. Option C is correct: PMI recommends creating a team charter early to establish norms and expectations. Option A is passive. Option B punishes the team without solving the root cause. Option D is unnecessary; the team can self-organize with a charter.

Answer

Let the team work out the issues on their own since they are self-organizing

Answer

Assign a team lead to make decisions on work methods

Answer

Replace the frustrated team members with more collaborative ones

Question 3

Your project is halfway through its timeline and is running 15% over budget due to unexpected vendor price increases. The sponsor is concerned and asks you to cut costs by reducing the number of quality tests. What should you do?

Accepted Answer

Conduct an impact analysis and submit a change request to the change control board. Option D is correct because as a project manager, you must follow the formal change control process when a sponsor requests a change that impacts the project baseline. Reducing quality tests is a change that could affect scope, schedule, and risk; therefore, you should analyze the impact on quality, cost, and schedule, then submit a change request to the change control board (CCB) for approval. This aligns with the PMBOK Guide's guidance on managing changes through the integrated change control process, ensuring decisions are made with full awareness of trade-offs.

Answer

Increase testing in other areas to compensate for reduced quality risk

Answer

Inform the sponsor that quality cannot be compromised and continue as planned

Answer

Agree with the sponsor and reduce the number of tests to stay within budget

Question 4

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 5

Your project team includes members from diverse cultural backgrounds. You notice that some team members are not contributing ideas during brainstorming sessions, while others dominate the conversation. What should you do to promote inclusion?

Accepted Answer

Implement a round-robin technique to give each team member an opportunity to speak. Option B is correct because the round-robin technique is a structured facilitation method that ensures every team member has an equal opportunity to speak, directly addressing the cultural and behavioral imbalance in brainstorming. This approach aligns with the PMP's emphasis on inclusive leadership and active listening, as it systematically prevents domination and encourages contributions from quieter members without imposing artificial quotas.

Answer

Assign speaking quotas to ensure equal participation

Answer

Allow the dominant members to lead since they are more engaged

Answer

Send a memo reminding the team to be respectful during meetings

Question 6

During a sprint planning meeting, the product owner proposes a user story that the team believes is too vague and lacks clear acceptance criteria. The product owner insists it must be included in the sprint to meet a stakeholder deadline. What should the scrum master do?

Accepted Answer

Facilitate a discussion to refine the story with the product owner and team, and suggest splitting it. Option C is correct because the Scrum Master's primary responsibility is to facilitate collaboration and ensure the team works with clear, actionable items. By facilitating a discussion to refine the story and suggesting splitting it, the Scrum Master helps the team achieve a shared understanding and create acceptance criteria, while still addressing the stakeholder deadline. This approach aligns with the Agile principle of delivering value incrementally and avoids committing to vague work that could lead to rework or failure.

Answer

Accept the story as is to meet the deadline

Answer

Escalate to the project sponsor

Answer

Remove the product owner from the meeting

Question 7

Your project is in the execution phase, and a new regulatory requirement has been discovered that will affect the project scope. The change is mandatory and must be implemented within two weeks. What should you do FIRST?

Accepted Answer

Submit a change request for the new requirement and assess its impact. When a mandatory regulatory requirement is discovered during execution, the first step is to submit a change request and assess its impact. This aligns with the PMBOK Guide's integrated change control process, which requires that all changes—even mandatory ones—be formally documented and evaluated for their effect on scope, schedule, cost, and quality before any action is taken. Directly updating the plan or stopping work bypasses this critical governance step.

Answer

Directly update the project management plan to reflect the new requirement

Answer

Stop all project work until the change is resolved

Answer

Inform the sponsor and ask for immediate approval

Question 8

You are managing a distributed team with members in different time zones. A team member complains that they feel isolated and uninformed about project decisions. What should you do FIRST to address this?

Accepted Answer

Implement daily stand-up meetings and use a collaboration platform to share updates. Option A is correct: Improving communication and collaboration tools addresses the root cause. Option B shifts responsibility. Option C is a temporary fix. Option D is passive.

Answer

Send weekly email summaries of decisions

Answer

Advise the team member to be more proactive in seeking information

Answer

Assign the team member to a local mentor

Question 9

During a retrospective, the team identifies that the root cause of low morale is the project manager's micromanagement style. The team wants more autonomy. What should the PM do?

Accepted Answer

Acknowledge the feedback and agree to transition to a more empowering leadership style. Option C is correct: Servant leadership involves empowering the team and adapting one's style. Option A is dismissive. Option B contradicts the team's feedback. Option D escalates unnecessarily.

Answer

Increase oversight to ensure the team stays on track

Answer

Explain that micromanagement is necessary to ensure quality

Answer

Escalate the issue to the project sponsor for guidance

Question 10

Your agile team has been experiencing conflict between two developers over coding standards. The conflict is affecting team morale and productivity. Which TWO actions should you take to resolve the conflict? (Choose TWO)

Accepted Answer

Collaborate with the team to create or update coding standards. Option A is correct because collaborating with the team to create or update coding standards directly addresses the root cause of the conflict—ambiguity or disagreement over the standards themselves. By involving the entire team, you foster ownership, alignment, and a shared understanding, which reduces future friction. This approach aligns with the agile principle of self-organizing teams and the PMI People domain focus on collaborative conflict resolution.

Answer

Ignore the conflict and hope it resolves on its own

Answer

Reassign the developers to different teams

Answer

Escalate the conflict to the project sponsor

Question 11

Your project is in the planning phase, and you are building a virtual team across five countries. Which THREE factors are most important to address to ensure high team performance? (Choose THREE)

Accepted Answer

Conducting virtual team-building activities to foster trust. Option A is correct because virtual team-building activities are essential for fostering trust and social cohesion among geographically dispersed team members. Without face-to-face interaction, trust must be intentionally built through structured activities that encourage open communication and relationship development, which directly impacts collaboration and performance.

Answer

Ensuring all team members have the same technical certifications

Answer

Creating a shared project calendar

Question 12

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 encourages open communication and reduces the fear of judgment, which is critical for team members experiencing cultural adjustment. This aligns with the PMI Talent Triangle's 'People' domain, emphasizing emotional intelligence and team building.

Answer

Ask them directly why they are not participating

Answer

Assign them a complex task to prove their abilities

Answer

Require them to present an idea in the next meeting

Question 13

You are the project manager for a software development project using a hybrid approach. Two senior developers have a heated disagreement about the best technical solution for a critical feature. The disagreement is causing delays and affecting team morale. What should you do first?

Accepted Answer

Schedule a meeting with both developers to listen to their perspectives and facilitate a resolution. Option D is correct because, as a project manager using a hybrid approach, your first responsibility is to facilitate conflict resolution among team members. By scheduling a meeting to listen to both developers' perspectives, you demonstrate servant leadership, encourage collaborative problem-solving, and leverage their technical expertise to reach a consensus, which aligns with the PMI Talent Triangle's leadership and team management skills.

Answer

Escalate the issue to the project sponsor for a final decision

Answer

Ignore the conflict and hope it resolves on its own

Answer

Make a decision yourself and tell the developers to implement that solution

Question 14

During the execution phase of a construction project, you notice that a junior team member is consistently missing deadlines and producing work of lower quality. Other team members have expressed frustration. What is the best approach to address this?

Accepted Answer

Schedule a private meeting to discuss performance concerns and offer coaching or additional training. The PM should first discuss the issue privately with the team member to understand the root cause and offer support, such as training or resources. This aligns with servant leadership.

Answer

Issue a formal warning in writing to document underperformance

Answer

Immediately reassign the junior member to administrative tasks

Answer

Ask other team members to cover the missing deadlines

Question 15

You are managing a distributed team across three time zones. A team member from the Asia office reports that they feel excluded from decision-making because key meetings are held during their late evening hours. What should you do first?

Accepted Answer

Rotate meeting times so that no single region is always disadvantaged. Option A is correct because it directly addresses the root cause of exclusion by implementing a fair rotation of meeting times, ensuring no single time zone is consistently disadvantaged. This aligns with the PMP's emphasis on stakeholder engagement and team cohesion, particularly for distributed teams where time zone equity is critical to maintaining inclusion and collaboration.

Answer

Tell the team member that they can catch up by reading meeting minutes

Answer

Schedule all meetings at the same time regardless of time zones

Answer

Record meetings and require the team member to watch them