PRINCE2F Practice Question: Overview of PRINCE2 and the project environment
A project manager is preparing to deliver a new payroll system. Senior management has not appointed anyone to the Project Board and has told the project manager to 'just get on with it and report to me if anything goes wrong'. Which PRINCE2 principle is being compromised by this instruction?
⚠ Common exam trap
The trap here is assuming that because someone receives reports, roles are defined, when defined roles and responsibilities requires named, accountable roles such as a Project Board.
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
✓
Defined roles and responsibilities
The principle of defined roles and responsibilities demands an explicit organisational structure, typically a Project Board with business, user and supplier representation plus defined project management roles. Telling the project manager to report to a single senior manager and proceed without a board strips out that accountability structure, so this is the principle being compromised.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
Continued business justification
Why it's wrong here
Continued business justification requires a valid Business Case that is reviewed throughout the project. The scenario does not indicate that justification is missing or unexamined; the problem is the absence of defined, accountable roles and a Project Board, so this principle is not the one being compromised.
- ✓
Defined roles and responsibilities
Why this is correct
This principle requires that the project has a defined organisational structure with accountable roles, including a Project Board representing business, user and supplier interests. Reporting only to one senior manager and having no appointed Project Board removes the defined accountability structure, so the principle is compromised even though someone is nominally receiving reports.
- ✗
Focus on products
Why it's wrong here
Focus on products means defining and agreeing what the project must deliver, using product descriptions and acceptance criteria. The scenario concerns who is accountable and how the project is governed, not whether outputs are clearly specified, so this principle is not the one being undermined by the instruction.
- ✗
Manage by stages
Why it's wrong here
Manage by stages divides the project into management stages with decision points and end-of-stage reviews. Nothing in the scenario suggests stages are absent or that stage boundaries are being ignored; the deficiency is the lack of an appointed Project Board, so manage by stages is not the principle at stake.
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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 PeopleCert exam blueprint
This PRINCE2F practice question is part of Courseiva's free PeopleCert 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 PRINCE2F exam.