The correct actions are to facilitate a meeting between the two developers to discuss differences and find common ground, and to collaborate with the team to create or update coding standards. These choices are correct because they address the root cause of the conflict—ambiguity over the standards—while leveraging agile principles of self-organization and collaborative problem-solving. Facilitating a direct discussion allows the developers to voice concerns and reach mutual understanding, while involving the whole team in updating the standards fosters shared ownership and prevents future friction. On the PMP exam, this scenario tests your grasp of the People domain, specifically conflict resolution techniques within an agile framework. A common trap is choosing to impose a solution or escalate to management, which undermines team autonomy. Instead, remember the memory tip: “Discuss first, standardize together”—direct dialogue resolves the immediate tension, and team-wide collaboration prevents recurrence.
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.
Your agile team has been experiencing conflict between two developers over coding standards. The conflict is affecting team morale and productivity. Which TWO actions should you take to resolve the conflict? (Choose TWO)
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
Collaborate with the team to create or update coding standards
Option A is correct because collaborating with the team to create or update coding standards directly addresses the root cause of the conflict—ambiguity or disagreement over the standards themselves. By involving the entire team, you foster ownership, alignment, and a shared understanding, which reduces future friction. This approach aligns with the agile principle of self-organizing teams and the PMI People domain focus on collaborative conflict resolution.
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.
✓
Collaborate with the team to create or update coding standards
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
✗
Ignore the conflict and hope it resolves on its own
Why it's wrong here
Ignoring conflict usually worsens it.
✗
Reassign the developers to different teams
Why it's wrong here
This avoids the root cause and may not be feasible.
✓
Facilitate a meeting between the two developers to discuss differences and find common ground
Why this is correct
Direct, facilitated communication is key to resolving interpersonal conflict.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
✗
Escalate the conflict to the project sponsor
Why it's wrong here
Escalation is not the first step; the PM should handle team conflicts.
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
The trap here is that candidates may choose Option E (escalation) thinking it follows the 'escalate if unresolved' rule, but the PMP exam expects you to first attempt resolution at the lowest appropriate level (the team) before escalating to management or the sponsor.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
In agile frameworks like Scrum, the team is collectively responsible for defining and adhering to their Definition of Done and coding standards. A facilitated meeting (Option D) uses techniques such as active listening and interest-based negotiation to uncover each developer's underlying concerns—e.g., readability vs. performance—leading to a compromise or integration. This mirrors the Thomas-Kilmann conflict model's collaborating mode, which is most effective for complex technical disagreements.
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.
Related glossary terms
Concepts from this question explained
These glossary pages explain the core terms tested in this PMP question in full detail.
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: Collaborate with the team to create or update coding standards — Option A is correct because collaborating with the team to create or update coding standards directly addresses the root cause of the conflict—ambiguity or disagreement over the standards themselves. By involving the entire team, you foster ownership, alignment, and a shared understanding, which reduces future friction. This approach aligns with the agile principle of self-organizing teams and the PMI People domain focus on collaborative conflict resolution.
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.
What is the key concept behind this question?
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
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Question Discussion
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