PK0-005 Practice Test 44 — 15 Questions

Question 1

An IT project manager is overseeing the migration of legacy systems to a new cloud platform. The project has a fixed budget and a strict deadline of six months. After three months, the project is on schedule but has already spent 70% of the budget due to higher-than-expected cloud service costs. The project manager must bring the project back within budget without affecting the deadline. Which of the following is the BEST course of action?

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

Accepted Answer

Optimize the cloud resource usage and eliminate waste.. Optimizing cloud resource usage and eliminating waste directly addresses the root cause of the budget overrun—higher-than-expected cloud service costs—without requiring additional funds, scope reduction, or deadline extension. By right-sizing instances, leveraging reserved instances, or terminating idle resources, the project manager can reduce ongoing costs while maintaining the migration schedule. This aligns with cloud cost management best practices and keeps the project within the fixed budget.

Answer

Request additional budget from the sponsor.

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Negotiate with the cloud provider for a discount on future services.

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Reduce the scope of the migration to lower costs.

Question 2

During the execution phase, a project manager discovers that the development team has been using an unauthorized software library to accelerate work. The library has a license that could create legal risks for the company. What is the best course of action?

Accepted Answer

Immediately stop using the library, assess the impact on the schedule, and develop a plan to replace it.. Using an unauthorized software library with a license that creates legal risks must be stopped immediately to protect the company from potential litigation. The project manager must then assess the schedule impact and develop a replacement plan, as continuing use without addressing the legal risk violates compliance and project governance standards.

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Document the issue in the lessons learned and continue with the library to avoid delay.

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Continue using the library but add a note in the risk register about potential licensing issues.

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Escalate the issue to the project sponsor and request a decision on whether to continue using the library.

Question 3

Which of the following is NOT a typical constraint in the triple constraint of project management?

Accepted Answer

Quality. The triple constraint (also known as the project management triangle) traditionally consists of three interdependent factors: cost, schedule, and scope. Quality is not one of the three; it is often considered a fourth dimension or a result of balancing the triple constraint. In the classic model, any change to one of the three constraints affects the others, and quality is managed as a separate performance dimension. Therefore, quality is NOT a typical constraint in the triple constraint.

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Cost

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Schedule

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Scope

Question 4

A project sponsor proposes increasing the project budget to add a new feature requested by a key stakeholder. What should the project manager do first?

Accepted Answer

Submit a change request to the change control board.. The project manager must first submit a formal change request to the change control board (CCB) because adding a new feature after the budget has been approved constitutes a change to the project scope, schedule, and cost. This follows the formal change control process defined in the project management plan, ensuring that all changes are evaluated for impact, approved, and documented before implementation. Without CCB approval, updating the plan or proceeding with the feature would violate the project’s baseline and governance procedures.

Answer

Update the project plan to include the new feature.

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Inform the stakeholder that the feature cannot be added.

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Ask the sponsor to fund the feature separately.

Question 5

A project manager creates a visual representation that shows the 20% of causes contributing to 80% of the problems in a project. Which tool is being used?

Accepted Answer

Pareto chart. The Pareto chart is a specific type of bar chart that orders categories by frequency or impact, visually highlighting the 80/20 principle—the idea that roughly 80% of problems stem from 20% of causes. By arranging bars in descending order and often including a cumulative percentage line, it directs attention to the vital few issues that yield the greatest improvement. This matches the project manager's goal of identifying the 20% of causes responsible for 80% of problems.

Answer

Control chart

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Scatter diagram

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Histogram

Question 6

During project execution, the project manager notices that the development team has been adding extra features that were not requested by the customer. Which of the following describes this behavior?

Accepted Answer

Gold plating. Gold plating is when the team adds extra features beyond requirements without approval. Scope creep is uncontrolled changes to scope; change control is the process to manage changes; value engineering improves value without extra cost.

Answer

Value engineering

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Scope creep

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Change control

Question 7

Which of the following best describes a project?

Accepted Answer

A temporary endeavor with a defined scope, schedule, cost, and quality objectives. A project is a temporary endeavor with a defined beginning and end, undertaken to create a unique product, service, or result.

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A repetitive operational process

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A collection of related projects managed together

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A strategic grouping of projects and programs

Question 8

A project manager is preparing for the formal acceptance of project deliverables. The customer has been involved throughout the project and has approved interim deliverables. In which phase does formal acceptance typically occur?

Accepted Answer

Closing. Formal acceptance of deliverables is a key activity in the Closing phase, where the customer or sponsor formally accepts the final deliverables.

Answer

Executing

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Monitoring and Controlling

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Initiating

Question 9

What is the primary difference between a risk and an issue in project management?

Accepted Answer

A risk is an uncertain future event; an issue is a current problem. A risk is an uncertain event that may occur in the future and could affect the project positively or negatively, while an issue is a problem that has already occurred and is currently impacting the project. This distinction is fundamental in project management: risks are managed proactively, issues reactively.

Answer

Risks are documented in the issue log; issues are documented in the risk register

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Risks are always negative; issues can be positive or negative

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There is no difference; the terms are interchangeable

Question 10

A project has a budget at completion (BAC) of $200,000. The earned value (EV) is $120,000, and the actual cost (AC) is $150,000. What is the estimate to complete (ETC) assuming the project will continue to perform at the same cost efficiency?

Accepted Answer

$100,000. ETC = (BAC − EV) / CPI. Here CPI = EV/AC = 120,000/150,000 = 0.8. Remaining work = BAC − EV = 200,000 − 120,000 = 80,000. ETC = 80,000 / 0.8 = $100,000. This assumes the project continues at the same cost efficiency (CPI remains 0.8).

Answer

$80,000

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$150,000

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$120,000

Question 11

In a network diagram, if Activity B cannot start until Activity A is complete, what type of dependency is this?

Accepted Answer

Finish-to-Start (FS). A Finish-to-Start (FS) dependency means the successor activity cannot begin until the predecessor activity has finished. The scenario — Activity B cannot start until Activity A is complete — is the definition of FS, which is also the most common dependency type in project schedules.

Answer

Finish-to-Finish (FF)

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Start-to-Start (SS)

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Start-to-Finish (SF)

Question 12

A project manager works in an organization where team members report to both a functional manager and a project manager. The project manager has moderate authority and shares resource control with the functional manager. Which type of organizational structure does this describe?

Accepted Answer

Balanced Matrix. A balanced matrix structure is defined by a project manager who shares authority and resource control roughly equally with functional managers. Team members report to both, and the PM has moderate — not low or high — authority. This matches the scenario exactly, distinguishing it from weak matrix (PM has limited authority) and strong matrix (PM has high authority).

Answer

Functional

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Projectized

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Weak Matrix

Question 13

A project manager wants to measure the percentage of work completed compared to the planned schedule. Which metric should be used?

Accepted Answer

Schedule Performance Index (SPI). The Schedule Performance Index (SPI) is the correct metric because it directly compares the Earned Value (EV) to the Planned Value (PV), providing a ratio that indicates whether the project is ahead of, on, or behind schedule. An SPI greater than 1.0 means the project is ahead of schedule, while less than 1.0 indicates it is behind. This aligns with the project manager's goal of measuring work completion against the planned schedule.

Answer

Cost Performance Index (CPI)

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Earned Value (EV)

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Planned Value (PV)

Question 14

A project sponsor is reviewing a project that has a Net Present Value (NPV) of -$15,000. What should the sponsor recommend?

Accepted Answer

Reject the project because NPV is negative. Net Present Value measures the difference between the present value of cash inflows and outflows; a negative NPV means the project is expected to destroy value at the required discount rate. The sponsor should therefore reject the project, since accepting a negative-NPV project would reduce shareholder value. NPV is the primary capital-budgeting criterion, so a negative result is a clear reject signal.

Answer

Proceed with the project because NPV is negative

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Proceed if the IRR is positive

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Reject only if the payback period is too long

Question 15

Which TWO documents are typically created during the planning process group?

Accepted Answer

Work breakdown structure. The Work Breakdown Structure (WBS) is a key planning document that decomposes the project scope into manageable work packages. It is created during the planning process group to define and organize the total work required, serving as a foundation for cost estimation, scheduling, and resource allocation.

Answer

Change request

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Issue log

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Project charter