PMP Process — Managing Technical Aspects Practice Question
During a project, two senior developers have a conflict regarding the technical approach. As project manager, which TWO actions should you take?
⚠ Common exam trap
The trap here is that candidates may incorrectly choose Option A (deciding yourself) or Option C (escalating to sponsor) because they confuse the project manager's authority with the need for technical expertise, or they assume that any conflict requires immediate escalation, rather than recognizing that collaborative resolution is the preferred approach for technical disagreements.
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
✓
Encourage both developers to collaborate and find a mutually acceptable solution
The project manager should facilitate collaboration between the two senior developers to resolve the technical conflict, which aligns with the PMP's emphasis on conflict resolution through collaboration and problem-solving. This approach leverages the team's expertise to find a mutually acceptable solution, which is more effective than imposing a decision or escalating prematurely. Documenting the conflict and resolution in the issue log (Option E) is also correct as it ensures transparency and provides a record for future reference, which is a key practice in project management.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
Decide on the technical approach yourself
Why it's wrong here
A Project Manager imposing a technical decision directly undermines team autonomy and the principle of self-organizing teams, which are central to modern project management. This approach fails to leverage the collective expertise of the senior developers, potentially leading to a suboptimal solution and disengagement, rather than fostering a collaborative problem-solving environment. The PM's role is to facilitate, not dictate, technical solutions.
- ✓
Encourage both developers to collaborate and find a mutually acceptable solution
Why this is correct
This approach exemplifies a facilitative leadership style, empowering the senior developers to leverage their expertise and find a consensus-based solution. By encouraging collaboration, the Project Manager respects team members' professional judgment and fosters a sense of ownership, which often leads to more robust and sustainable resolutions while strengthening team cohesion. This aligns with the "collaborating/problem-solving" conflict resolution technique.
- ✗
Escalate to the project sponsor for a decision
Why it's wrong here
Escalating a team-level conflict directly to the project sponsor prematurely is generally inappropriate and bypasses the Project Manager's responsibility to facilitate resolution within the team. Such an action indicates a failure to attempt resolution at the lowest possible level, burdens higher management unnecessarily, and can erode the team's confidence in their ability to self-organize and resolve internal issues. Escalation should be a last resort after all internal attempts have failed.
- ✗
Reassign one developer to another project to avoid further conflict
Why it's wrong here
Reassigning a team member to avoid conflict is an avoidance strategy that fails to address the underlying issue and can have detrimental effects on project continuity and team morale. This action does not resolve the root cause of the conflict, potentially creating new resource allocation problems and signaling to the team that difficult conversations are to be avoided rather than constructively managed. It is a temporary fix that does not foster a healthy, problem-solving culture.
- ✓
Document the conflict and resolution in the issue log
Why this is correct
Documenting conflicts and their resolutions in the issue log is a critical project management practice for several reasons. It ensures transparency, provides a historical record for future reference, and facilitates lessons learned analysis to prevent similar issues on subsequent projects or phases. This formal tracking allows the Project Manager to monitor the effectiveness of the resolution and contributes to organizational process assets.
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Key term
Training and Development
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Project Team Management is the process of leading, coordinating, and supporting a group of people to complete project tasks and achieve project objectives.
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