The correct actions are facilitating a retrospective, removing impediments, and encouraging a sustainable pace without overtime. These three interventions directly address the root causes of low velocity and demotivation by shifting the team’s focus from output pressure to process improvement and well-being. A retrospective creates a safe space for the team to identify blockers and workflow issues, while actively removing those impediments demonstrates tangible support from the project manager. Ensuring a sustainable pace prevents burnout, which is a common hidden driver of both low velocity and demoralization. On the PMP exam, this scenario tests your understanding of agile servant leadership versus traditional command-and-control responses—a frequent trap is choosing to “increase pressure” or “add more resources” instead of fostering team health. Remember the mnemonic “R.I.S.E.”: Retrospective, Impediments removed, Sustainable pace, Empowerment.
PMP Process — Managing Technical Aspects Practice Question
This PMP practice question tests your understanding of process — managing technical aspects. 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.
Your agile team is struggling with consistently low velocity. The team is demotivated. Which THREE actions should the project manager take to address this?
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
Facilitate a retrospective to identify root causes of low velocity
Options B, C, and D are correct: facilitating a retrospective, removing impediments, and ensuring sustainable pace are key agile practices to improve team performance.
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.
✗
Replace underperforming team members with new resources
Why it's wrong here
Replacing team members is disruptive and may not address root causes.
✓
Facilitate a retrospective to identify root causes of low velocity
Why this is correct
A retrospective allows the team to inspect and adapt.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
✓
Work with the team to remove impediments that are slowing them down
Why this is correct
Removing impediments is a primary responsibility of the Scrum Master/project manager.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
✗
Reduce the sprint backlog to match current velocity without analysis
Why it's wrong here
Reducing backlog without understanding the cause is a band-aid solution.
✓
Encourage the team to maintain a sustainable pace and avoid overtime
Why this is correct
Sustainable pace prevents burnout and supports consistent velocity.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
Many certification questions include familiar terms but test a specific constraint. Read the exact wording before choosing an answer that is generally true but wrong for this case.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
This question should be treated as a scenario, not a definition check. Identify the problem, the constraint and the best action. Then compare each option against those facts.
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.
Use explanations to understand the rule behind the answer.
TExam Day Tips
→Underline the problem statement mentally.
→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 practitioner preparing for the PMP exam encounters this exact type of scenario on the job. The correct answer here is not the most general option — it is the best answer for the specific constraint described. Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option. Real exam questions reward reading the full scenario before eliminating options, because the constraint defines which answer fits.
Related glossary terms
Concepts from this question explained
These glossary pages explain the core terms tested in this PMP question in full detail.
Identify which PMP exam domain this question belongs to, then review the specific concept being tested. Practise related questions in that domain and focus on understanding why each wrong answer is tempting — not just why the correct answer is right.
Process — Managing Technical Aspects — This question tests Process — Managing Technical Aspects — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: Facilitate a retrospective to identify root causes of low velocity — Options B, C, and D are correct: facilitating a retrospective, removing impediments, and ensuring sustainable pace are key agile practices to improve team performance.
What should I do if I get this PMP question wrong?
Identify which PMP exam domain this question belongs to, then review the specific concept being tested. Practise related questions in that domain and focus on understanding why each wrong answer is tempting — not just why the correct answer is right.
What is the key concept behind this question?
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
About these practice questions
Courseiva creates original exam-style practice questions with explanations and wrong-answer analysis. It does not publish real exam questions, exam dumps, or protected exam content. Learn why practice questions differ from exam dumps →
These questions test the same concept from different angles. Work through them to make sure you can recognise it however the exam phrases it.
Variation 1. Your agile project is experiencing declining velocity, and the team is frustrated with frequent interruptions from stakeholders requesting ad-hoc features. Which TWO actions should you take to address this situation?
hard
✓ A.Add all ad-hoc requests to the product backlog for prioritization
B.Allow the team to accept some ad-hoc requests to keep stakeholders happy
C.Increase the sprint length to accommodate more work
D.Reduce the team size to minimize communication overhead
✓ E.Ask the product owner to enforce a strict 'no changes during sprint' policy
Why A: Protecting the team from interruptions and ensuring proper backlog prioritization are key agile practices.
Last reviewed: Jun 21, 2026
Question Discussion
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This PMP practice question is part of Courseiva's free PMI 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 PMP exam.
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