PMP People — Leading Projects Practice Test 9 — 15 Questions

Question 1

You are managing a construction project using a predictive approach. A key vendor informs you that they will not be able to deliver a critical component for another two weeks, which will delay the project. What should you do FIRST?

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

Accepted Answer

Evaluate the impact on the project schedule and identify possible mitigation strategies. The first step in managing a schedule delay is to analyze the impact on the project schedule and identify potential mitigation strategies. According to the PMBOK Guide's 'Manage Communications' and 'Control Schedule' processes, you must assess the situation before escalating or taking corrective action. This aligns with the principle of 'analyze before act' in predictive project management.

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Ask the team to work overtime to make up for the delay

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Initiate a change request to extend the project schedule

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Immediately notify the sponsor about the delay without further analysis

Question 2

In a hybrid project, the product owner wants to add a high-priority feature to the current sprint, but the team has already committed to the sprint backlog. The product owner insists it is critical for the upcoming release. What should the project manager do?

Accepted Answer

Explain to the product owner that the current sprint is committed and the feature can be added to the product backlog for the next sprint. In a hybrid project, the sprint backlog is a commitment made by the team for the current iteration. The project manager should protect the team from scope changes mid-sprint to maintain velocity and predictability. Option D is correct because it respects the sprint commitment and follows the agile principle of not changing the sprint backlog once it is set; the new feature is deferred to the product backlog for prioritization in the next sprint.

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Escalate the request to the steering committee to force the change

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Allow the team to swap the new feature for an equivalent amount of existing work

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Ask the team to add the feature to the current sprint and work overtime

Question 3

Your project is in the execution phase when a new government regulation is announced that could affect your project's compliance requirements. The regulation is not yet in effect but will be before project completion. What should you do FIRST?

Accepted Answer

Analyze the regulation's impact on the project and initiate a change request if needed. The PMBOK Guide requires that when a new regulation is announced, the project manager must first analyze its impact on the project's compliance requirements. Since the regulation will be in effect before project completion, proactive assessment is needed to determine if a change request is necessary to align the project with future legal obligations. This follows the 'plan-do-check-act' cycle and ensures the project remains compliant without unnecessary disruption.

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Inform the team to assume compliance and adjust their work accordingly

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Stop all project work until the regulation is clarified

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Continue the project as planned since the regulation is not yet in effect

Question 4

During a sprint review, stakeholders express disappointment with the product increment, stating it does not meet their expectations. The team believed they were on track based on the user stories. What should the project manager do to prevent this in the future?

Accepted Answer

Ensure stakeholders are involved in the sprint review and provide feedback early and often. The root cause of the disconnect is a lack of early and continuous stakeholder involvement. By engaging stakeholders in the sprint review and soliciting feedback frequently, the project manager ensures that expectations are validated against the increment throughout the development cycle, not just at the end. This aligns with the Agile principle of customer collaboration over contract negotiation and prevents the team from building features based on assumptions.

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Document the feedback and adjust the next sprint accordingly

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Ask the product owner to write more detailed user stories

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Have the team present their work to stakeholders more frequently

Question 5

You are managing a virtual team where several members have expressed feeling isolated and disconnected from the project goals. Which TWO actions would BEST improve team cohesion and alignment?

Accepted Answer

Schedule regular virtual team-building activities. Regular virtual team-building activities directly address feelings of isolation by fostering interpersonal connections and trust among remote team members. Option D is correct because creating a shared project vision and team charter aligns the team around common goals, expectations, and values, which counteracts disconnection from project objectives. Together, these actions improve both social cohesion and goal alignment, which are critical for virtual team success.

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Increase the frequency of status meetings

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Establish a rotating meeting facilitator role

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Implement a formal performance review system

Question 6

Your project team is experiencing conflict due to different working styles: some members prefer detailed plans, while others prefer flexibility. The conflict is affecting morale and productivity. Which THREE actions should you take to resolve the situation?

Accepted Answer

Develop a team charter that includes agreed-upon norms for planning and flexibility. Developing a team charter that includes agreed-upon norms for planning and flexibility is correct because it formalizes a shared understanding of how the team will operate, directly addressing the root cause of the conflict—differing working styles. This aligns with the PMBOK Guide's emphasis on establishing team ground rules early to prevent and resolve interpersonal conflicts, thereby improving morale and productivity.

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Ignore the conflict and focus on delivering the project on time

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Decide on a single working style and enforce it across the team

Question 7

As a project manager, you want to motivate your team to achieve high performance. Which TWO techniques are most aligned with PMI's recommended practices for motivating team members?

Accepted Answer

Provide opportunities for professional development and learning. Option A is correct because PMI's recommended practices for motivating team members emphasize providing opportunities for professional development and learning, which addresses intrinsic motivation and growth needs. Option E is correct because public recognition of individual and team achievements is a core PMI-recommended motivational technique that reinforces desired behaviors and boosts morale. Option B is not marked correct because while stretch assignments can develop people, PMI frames motivation primarily around recognition, growth opportunities, and a supportive environment rather than simply increasing task difficulty. Option C is not marked correct because penalty systems are punitive and contradict PMI's emphasis on positive, trust-based motivation. Option D is not marked correct because monetary bonuses tied to early milestone completion are a transactional incentive, not the primary PMI-recommended motivational practice.

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Assign more challenging tasks to stretch their capabilities

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Implement a penalty system for missed deadlines

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Offer monetary bonuses for early completion of milestones

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. The addition of a new reporting module represents a change to the approved scope baseline. According to the PMBOK Guide, any change to scope must go through the Integrated Change Control (ICC) process, which includes submitting a formal change request, assessing impacts on scope, schedule, cost, and quality, and obtaining approval before implementation. This ensures that all changes are evaluated and controlled, preventing scope creep and maintaining project alignment with business objectives.

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

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

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

Question 9

A project manager is leading a globally distributed team with members in four time zones. During a virtual sprint retrospective, two senior developers accuse each other of not completing tasks on time, causing delays. Emotions are high, and the rest of the team is watching. What should the project manager do FIRST?

Accepted Answer

Schedule a private video call with both developers to listen to their perspectives and mediate a solution. The immediate priority for a project manager is to de-escalate the conflict privately and understand each developer's perspective before making any decisions. This aligns with the PMI People domain principle of servant leadership and conflict resolution, where the first step is to listen and mediate in a safe, private environment to preserve team trust and psychological safety.

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Reprimand both developers publicly during the retrospective for unprofessional behavior

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Escalate the issue to the functional managers of both developers

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Ask the team to ignore the conflict and focus on the upcoming sprint goals

Question 10

In an agile software project, the sprint velocity has dropped from 30 story points to 18 over the last two sprints. The team members report that they are spending too much time on unplanned technical debt. The product owner is pushing for more features. What should the project manager do FIRST?

Accepted Answer

Facilitate a discussion between the team and product owner to prioritize technical debt alongside new features. The project manager's first responsibility is to facilitate a collaborative discussion between the team and the product owner to address the root cause—unplanned technical debt—while balancing the need for new features. This aligns with the agile principle of transparency and stakeholder collaboration, ensuring that technical debt is explicitly prioritized in the backlog alongside feature work. Removing or ignoring the debt would only compound the velocity drop and degrade product quality.

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Reassign two team members to a separate 'debt reduction' team to isolate the issue

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Remove testing from the definition of done to increase velocity

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Increase the sprint workload to motivate the team to deliver more features

Question 11

A project team member from a different culture consistently remains silent during daily stand-ups and rarely contributes ideas. Other team members are frustrated because they feel the person is not engaged. What should the project manager do FIRST?

Accepted Answer

Schedule a one-on-one meeting with the team member to understand their communication style and any barriers. The project manager should first seek to understand the team member's perspective and any cultural or personal barriers before taking action. Directly addressing the behavior in a one-on-one setting aligns with the PMP's emphasis on servant leadership and emotional intelligence, ensuring the root cause is identified rather than assuming disengagement.

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During the next stand-up, directly ask the team member to share their progress and ideas

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Reassign the team member to a solo task where they can work independently

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Inform the team that the member is disengaged and they should not rely on them

Question 12

During a large infrastructure project, the sponsor requests that the project manager skip the final round of user acceptance testing (UAT) to meet the regulatory deadline, stating that the system has passed all previous tests. What should the project manager do?

Accepted Answer

Explain the risks of skipping UAT and propose a formal change request to the schedule or scope. The project manager must protect the project from risks that could compromise quality or regulatory compliance. Skipping UAT, even after successful earlier tests, could miss critical integration or user-specific defects that only emerge in a production-like environment. The correct action is to explain these risks to the sponsor and initiate a formal change request to adjust the schedule or scope, ensuring any decision is documented and approved through the change control process.

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Delay the deadline by two weeks to conduct UAT as planned

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Conduct a shorter UAT with only critical test cases to save time

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Agree to skip UAT to meet the deadline as the sponsor has authority

Question 13

A project manager is leading a hybrid project where the team uses Scrum for development but has a fixed end date for regulatory compliance. Halfway through, a key vendor informs you that they will be unable to deliver a critical component on time. What should the project manager do FIRST?

Accepted Answer

Analyze the schedule to determine the impact on the critical path and identify possible mitigation options. In a hybrid project with a fixed regulatory deadline, the first step when a vendor fails to deliver a critical component is to analyze the schedule impact on the critical path and identify mitigation options. This aligns with the PMI approach of assessing the situation before escalating or making changes, ensuring the project manager maintains control and explores all feasible alternatives to meet the compliance date.

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Adjust the sprint backlog to deprioritize features dependent on the component

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Escalate the issue immediately to the project sponsor and request additional budget

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Initiate legal proceedings against the vendor for breach of contract

Question 14

A project manager notices that one team member has been consistently missing deadlines, and their work quality is declining. The team member is otherwise talented and has been with the company for years. What should the project manager do FIRST?

Accepted Answer

Schedule a private meeting with the team member to discuss the performance and offer support. The correct first step is to have a private, supportive conversation to understand the root cause of the performance decline. This aligns with the PMP's 'People' domain, emphasizing servant leadership and addressing performance issues confidentially before escalating. It respects the team member's history and allows for collaborative problem-solving.

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Reassign the work to another team member immediately

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Ignore the issue, assuming it will resolve itself

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Provide negative feedback during the next team meeting as a warning

Question 15

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.

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Ignore the situation to avoid conflict with the executive

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File a formal complaint with the HR department

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