Conflict Resolution: Team Charter and Facilitation
You are managing a hybrid project with a co-located core team and remote subject matter experts. Two senior developers argue daily about the technical approach for a critical module. The conflict is delaying sprint planning and affecting team morale. Which TWO actions should you take first?
Quick Answer
The answer is to review and reinforce the team charter with the team, emphasizing agreed-upon behavioral norms, and to address the conflict directly with the involved parties. This is correct because the team charter is a foundational governance document that establishes ground rules for communication, decision-making, and conflict resolution, making it the first tool to reference when behavioral norms are violated. On the PMP exam, this scenario tests your understanding of the "Manage Team" process and the proactive use of team charters to prevent and resolve interpersonal conflicts, a common trap being the temptation to escalate or reassign before exhausting internal remedies. Remember, the charter is your first line of defense—think of it as the team’s constitution, not a decoration. Memory tip: "Charter first, escalate last."
⚠ Common exam trap
Many candidates choose Option A (reassignment) as a quick fix, but the PMP exam emphasizes addressing conflict through direct communication and team agreements first, not avoidance or unilateral changes.
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
✓
Facilitate a private meeting between the two developers to understand their perspectives and guide them toward a resolution
Option B is correct because a private facilitated meeting is the standard first step in conflict management: it lets the two senior developers air their perspectives in a safe setting and lets the project manager guide them toward a collaborative resolution, which directly addresses the sprint-planning delay and morale problem. Option E is correct because reviewing and reinforcing the team charter re-anchors the team on agreed behavioral norms and ground rules, which is a preventive, team-level action appropriate when recurring interpersonal friction threatens team cohesion. Option A is not appropriate as a first action because reassigning a developer merely avoids the conflict, removes a key contributor from a critical module, and does not resolve the underlying technical disagreement. Option C is wrong because ignoring conflict lets it escalate and further damage morale and schedule. Option D is premature: escalating to the sponsor for a decision bypasses the project manager's responsibility to facilitate resolution and undermines team ownership.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
Reassign one developer to a different module to reduce interaction
Why it's wrong here
Reassigning a developer suppresses the symptom while leaving the technical disagreement unresolved, and it removes a senior contributor from a critical module. Reassignment suits persistent personality clashes where separation is feasible; here both developers hold needed expertise for the same module.
- ✓
Facilitate a private meeting between the two developers to understand their perspectives and guide them toward a resolution
Why this is correct
Private facilitation lets each developer state their technical reasoning without an audience, exposing the actual disagreement rather than its public symptoms. Guiding them toward resolution restores sprint planning and morale, and is the least invasive first step before escalation or formal conflict procedures.
- ✗
Ignore the conflict and hope it resolves on its own
Why it's wrong here
Ignoring the conflict allows the daily arguments to continue disrupting sprint planning and eroding morale, so the delay compounds. Avoidance suits trivial disagreements that genuinely do not affect delivery; this conflict blocks planning and therefore demands active intervention.
- ✗
Escalate the issue to the project sponsor for a decision
Why it's wrong here
Escalating a technical disagreement between two developers to the sponsor removes the decision from those with the expertise and delays resolution further. Escalation suits issues exceeding the project manager's authority or budget; here the conflict is interpersonal and resolvable through facilitated discussion.
- ✓
Review and reinforce the team charter with the team, emphasizing agreed-upon behavioral norms
Why this is correct
Reinforcing the team charter directly addresses the behavioural norms the developers are breaching, satisfying the stem's constraint of daily interpersonal conflict disrupting sprint planning. A charter codifies agreed ground rules for engagement, giving the project manager a neutral, pre-agreed reference to redirect the argument without adjudicating technical merit.
Visual reference
Go deeper
Related to this question
Learn chapter
Managing Team Conflict and Performance
Key term
Sprint Planning
Sprint Planning is a time-boxed meeting at the start of a Scrum sprint where the team decides what work they can deliver and how they will do it.
Key term
Scrum Methodology
Scrum is a lightweight process framework that helps teams deliver complex projects in small, iterative chunks called sprints.
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Same concept, more angles
2 more ways this is tested on PMP
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. You are managing a hybrid project with a critical deliverable due in two weeks. Two senior developers on your team have a strong disagreement over the technical approach. They have stopped speaking to each other, and the team's progress has stalled. What should you do FIRST?
medium- A.Enforce a team policy that all technical decisions must be approved by you
- B.Escalate the issue to the project sponsor for resolution
- C.Reassign the work to other team members to avoid further conflict
- ✓ D.Meet with each developer separately to understand their perspectives and facilitate a joint discussion
Why D: As a project manager, your first responsibility in a conflict is to understand each party's perspective individually and then facilitate a collaborative resolution. This approach aligns with the PMP's 'Manage Conflict' process, which emphasizes direct, respectful communication before escalating or imposing solutions. By meeting separately and then jointly, you address the root cause—the technical disagreement—while preserving team cohesion and ownership of the solution.
Variation 2. A project manager is leading a cross-functional team where two key members have conflicting priorities. One member insists on following a strict process, while the other wants to expedite delivery. The project manager needs to resolve the conflict to keep the project on track. Which approach is most effective?
medium- A.Enforce the strict process to ensure quality.
- B.Suggest a compromise where both give up some requirements.
- ✓ C.Facilitate a meeting to discuss both perspectives and find a solution that meets core needs.
- D.Ignore the conflict and hope it resolves itself.
Why C: Facilitating a meeting to discuss both perspectives aligns with the PMP's 'Manage Conflict' process under the 'People' domain. This collaborative approach, known as 'collaborating' or 'problem-solving,' seeks a win-win solution that addresses the core needs of both team members—ensuring quality while meeting delivery timelines—without forcing a compromise that dilutes value or ignoring the issue.
JA
Written by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
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.