PMP People — Leading Projects Practice Question
A project manager is leading a team that includes members from different departments. One team member frequently misses team meetings and fails to update task status. What should the project manager do?
⚠ Common exam trap
A common mix-up: candidates choose Option A (public accountability) thinking it promotes transparency, but PMP emphasizes private, respectful confrontation to avoid damaging team cohesion and trust.
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
✓
Schedule a one-on-one meeting to discuss the issue and understand any challenges
The PM should first address performance issues privately to understand root causes, such as personal challenges or workload conflicts, before taking any formal action. This aligns with the PMP's emphasis on servant leadership and proactive conflict resolution, ensuring the team member feels supported and can improve without public embarrassment.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
Bring up the issue in the next team meeting to encourage accountability
Why it's wrong here
Bringing up a performance issue in a public team meeting is generally counterproductive and can severely damage team morale and trust. This approach often leads to defensiveness and resentment from the team member, rather than fostering genuine accountability or a willingness to improve. Effective project managers prioritize private, direct communication for sensitive topics to maintain psychological safety and encourage open dialogue, which is essential for collaborative problem-solving.
- ✓
Schedule a one-on-one meeting to discuss the issue and understand any challenges
Why this is correct
Scheduling a one-on-one meeting is the most appropriate and effective first step for a project manager addressing a team member's performance issue. This private setting demonstrates empathy and respect, creating a safe space for the team member to openly discuss any underlying challenges, misunderstandings, or external factors impacting their work. It allows the project manager to collaboratively identify the root cause of the issue and work towards a constructive solution, aligning with PMP principles of direct communication and conflict resolution.
- ✗
Remove the team member from the project
Why it's wrong here
Removing a team member from the project without first attempting to understand and address the performance issue is an extreme and premature action. Such a drastic measure can significantly disrupt project progress, necessitate costly re-staffing, and negatively impact the morale of the remaining team members who might perceive it as unfair or arbitrary. Project managers are expected to exhaust all reasonable attempts at coaching, support, and conflict resolution before considering such severe consequences.
- ✗
Report the issue to the team member's functional manager
Why it's wrong here
Reporting the issue directly to the team member's functional manager without first engaging in a direct discussion with the team member themselves is an inappropriate escalation. The project manager holds primary responsibility for managing the performance and conduct of their project team members and should always attempt to resolve issues directly at the lowest possible level. Bypassing this crucial step can undermine the project manager's authority, damage the PM-team member relationship, and may be seen as a failure of leadership in conflict resolution.
Go deeper
Related to this question
Learn chapter
Introduction to the PMP Exam and Project Management Basics
Key term
Training and Development
Training and Development is the process of enhancing team members' skills, knowledge, and competencies to improve project performance and achieve career growth.
Key term
Conflict Resolution
Conflict resolution is the process of addressing and resolving disagreements between team members or stakeholders to maintain a productive and collaborative project environment.
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