PK0-005 Practice Question: Basics of IT Infrastructure and IT Project Management
A project manager is overseeing the replacement of aging physical servers with a hyperconverged infrastructure (HCI) solution. During the planning phase, the project manager must identify a risk that could affect the project's ability to meet its schedule. Which action best demonstrates proactive risk management?
⚠ Common exam trap
The trap here is equating any risk-related action, such as adding contingency funds, with proactive risk management, when true proactivity requires identification, ownership, and planned responses.
Answer choices
Why each option matters
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
Documenting the risk in a risk register and assigning an owner.
Proactive risk management involves identifying risks early, documenting them in a risk register, assigning owners, and planning responses. For the HCI replacement, this allows the team to monitor triggers and act before schedule impacts occur. Waiting for risks to happen, relying only on contingency budget, or promising to handle issues later are reactive approaches that do not prevent or minimize schedule disruption.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
Adding a contingency reserve to the project budget only.
Why it's wrong here
Adding contingency reserve addresses cost impact but does not fully manage schedule risk. For an HCI project, a schedule delay may require re-sequencing tasks, adding resources, or adjusting dependencies. Contingency alone does not assign ownership, define triggers, or specify response actions. While useful, it is only one part of a proactive risk management approach and does not by itself demonstrate comprehensive risk handling.
- ✗
Waiting until the risk occurs and then creating a change request.
Why it's wrong here
Waiting for the risk to occur is reactive, not proactive. In an HCI replacement, a delay in hardware delivery or integration issues could push the schedule if not addressed early. Creating a change request after the fact may recover scope or schedule, but it does not prevent or mitigate the impact. Proactive risk management requires anticipating and planning responses before issues materialize.
- ✗
Informing the sponsor that all risks will be handled if they occur.
Why it's wrong here
Informing the sponsor that risks will be handled if they occur is a reactive stance and does not demonstrate proactive management. The project manager should identify, analyze, and plan responses for HCI-related risks such as vendor delays or compatibility issues. Simply promising to handle issues later leaves the project exposed and fails to use risk management processes to protect the schedule.
- ✓
Documenting the risk in a risk register and assigning an owner.
Why this is correct
Documenting the risk in a risk register and assigning an owner is a core proactive risk management step. It ensures the risk is tracked, analyzed, and monitored throughout the HCI project. The owner is responsible for implementing response plans and reporting status. This action transforms an identified risk into a managed item, enabling the project manager to reduce the likelihood or impact before it affects the schedule.
Go deeper
Related to this question
About these practice questions
Courseiva writes every PK0-005 question from scratch — 954 in total, each with an explanation and a wrong-answer breakdown. None are copied from real exams or dumps. Learn why practice questions differ from exam dumps →
JA
Written and reviewed by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
Last reviewed September 2026 · checked against the official CompTIA exam blueprint
This PK0-005 practice question is part of Courseiva's free CompTIA certification practice question bank. Courseiva provides original exam-style practice questions with explanations, topic-based practice, mock exams, readiness tracking, and study analytics to help learners prepare for the PK0-005 exam.