Question 705 of 892

People — Leading Projects →mediumMultiple ChoiceObjective-mapped

PMP People — Leading Projects Practice Question

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.

An executive stakeholder has been directly assigning tasks to your agile team members without going through you or the product owner. Team members are confused about priorities and the sprint goal is at risk. What is the best first step?

Clue words in this question

Noticing these words before you look at the options changes how you read each choice.

Clue: "first"
Why it matters: Order matters here. You are being tested on which action comes before the others — not which action is generally useful.

A
Request a meeting with the executive to clarify roles and the importance of adhering to the prioritization process
Direct communication with the stakeholder resolves the issue at the source.
B
Tell the team members to ignore the stakeholder's requests
Why wrong: Ignoring an executive could create political issues. Instead, address the stakeholder directly.
C
Escalate to the project sponsor immediately
Why wrong: First, try to resolve the issue directly with the stakeholder before escalating.
D
Update the stakeholder management plan to classify the executive as 'keep satisfied'
Why wrong: While stakeholder classification is important, action is needed now, not just documentation.

Full breakdown with real-world context →

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

✓

Request a meeting with the executive to clarify roles and the importance of adhering to the prioritization process

Option A is correct because the first step in resolving a stakeholder bypassing the agile process is to directly address the root cause—misunderstanding of roles. Requesting a meeting with the executive allows you to clarify the prioritization process, reinforce the product owner's authority over the backlog, and protect the sprint goal without escalating prematurely. This aligns with the PMP's focus on stakeholder engagement and conflict resolution at the lowest appropriate level.

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.

✓
Request a meeting with the executive to clarify roles and the importance of adhering to the prioritization process
Why this is correct
Direct communication with the stakeholder resolves the issue at the source.
Clue confirmation
The clue word "first" in the question point toward this answer.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
✗
Tell the team members to ignore the stakeholder's requests
Why it's wrong here
Ignoring an executive could create political issues. Instead, address the stakeholder directly.
✗
Escalate to the project sponsor immediately
Why it's wrong here
First, try to resolve the issue directly with the stakeholder before escalating.
✗
Update the stakeholder management plan to classify the executive as 'keep satisfied'
Why it's wrong here
While stakeholder classification is important, action is needed now, not just documentation.

Common exam traps

Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword

The trap here is that candidates often choose to escalate immediately (Option C) or update a plan (Option D) instead of directly engaging the stakeholder, failing to recognize that the PMP emphasizes proactive communication and conflict resolution at the lowest level first.

Detailed technical explanation

How to think about this question

In agile frameworks, the product owner is the single point of authority for prioritizing the product backlog, and the scrum master (or project manager) facilitates the process. When an executive bypasses this structure, it violates the principle of 'one team, one backlog' and can lead to scope creep and reduced velocity. A real-world scenario might involve a VP of Sales directly assigning features to developers, which undermines the sprint commitment and requires a private, respectful conversation to realign expectations with the agile framework.

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 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.

Visual reference

What to study next

Got this wrong? Here's your next step.

Identify which exam domain this question belongs to, review the core concept, then practise similar questions from the same domain.

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FAQ

Questions learners often ask

What does this PMP question test?

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: Request a meeting with the executive to clarify roles and the importance of adhering to the prioritization process — Option A is correct because the first step in resolving a stakeholder bypassing the agile process is to directly address the root cause—misunderstanding of roles. Requesting a meeting with the executive allows you to clarify the prioritization process, reinforce the product owner's authority over the backlog, and protect the sprint goal without escalating prematurely. This aligns with the PMP's focus on stakeholder engagement and conflict resolution at the lowest appropriate level.

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.

Are there clue words in this question I should notice?

Yes — watch for: "first". Order matters here. You are being tested on which action comes before the others — not which action is generally useful.

What is the key concept behind this question?

Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.

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