This PMP practice question tests your understanding of people — leading projects. Read the scenario carefully and evaluate each option against the stated constraints before committing to an answer. After answering, compare your reasoning against the explanation and wrong-answer breakdown below. Once you have made your selection, read the full explanation to reinforce the concept and understand why each distractor is designed to mislead on exam day.
A project is running 15% over budget at the midpoint. The sponsor is concerned and asks the PM to reduce costs by cutting team training and team-building activities. What should the PM do?
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
Explain the importance of these activities and propose other cost-saving measures
Option C is correct because the PM should protect the project's long-term success by explaining the critical role of team training and team-building in maintaining performance and morale, especially when the project is under budget pressure. Cutting these activities can lead to decreased productivity, higher turnover, and ultimately greater cost overruns. The PM should propose alternative cost-saving measures that do not compromise the team's capability or the project's quality.
Key principle: Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
✗
Agree to cut training and team-building to meet the sponsor's request
Why it's wrong here
Cutting these activities may harm long-term team performance and morale.
✗
Reduce the project scope to cut costs
Why it's wrong here
Scope changes require formal change control; this may not be the best first step.
✓
Explain the importance of these activities and propose other cost-saving measures
Why this is correct
The PM should advocate for the team and find alternative savings that don't negatively impact performance.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
✗
Escalate to the PMO for a decision
Why it's wrong here
The PM should first analyze and propose alternatives before escalating.
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
The trap here is that candidates may assume the sponsor's request must be followed without question, but the PM must balance stakeholder demands with the project's long-term health and use their expertise to propose better alternatives.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
In project management, team training and team-building are investments in the project's 'human capital' that directly affect the team's learning curve, collaboration efficiency, and motivation. The PMBOK Guide emphasizes that the Develop Team process includes training to enhance competencies and team-building to improve interpersonal relationships, both of which reduce rework and increase productivity. A real-world scenario: a software development project that cut training to save costs saw a 30% increase in bug rates and a 20% drop in velocity, ultimately costing more than the training would have.
KKey Concepts to Remember
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
Find the constraint that changes the correct option.
Eliminate answers that are true in general but not in this case.
TExam Day Tips
→Watch for words such as best, first, most likely and least administrative effort.
→Review why wrong options are wrong, not only why the correct option is correct.
Key takeaway
Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option.
Real-world example
How this comes up in practice
A small business has 20 workstations on the 192.168.1.0/24 network and one public IP from its ISP. The router uses PAT (NAT overload) so all 20 devices share one public address using different source ports. NAT questions test whether you understand the four address terms and which direction each translation applies.
Related glossary terms
Concepts from this question explained
These glossary pages explain the core terms tested in this PMP question in full detail.
People — Leading Projects — This question tests People — Leading Projects — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: Explain the importance of these activities and propose other cost-saving measures — Option C is correct because the PM should protect the project's long-term success by explaining the critical role of team training and team-building in maintaining performance and morale, especially when the project is under budget pressure. Cutting these activities can lead to decreased productivity, higher turnover, and ultimately greater cost overruns. The PM should propose alternative cost-saving measures that do not compromise the team's capability or the project's quality.
What should I do if I get this PMP question wrong?
Identify which exam domain this question belongs to, review the core concept, then practise similar questions from the same domain.
What is the key concept behind this question?
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
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Question Discussion
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