PMP Practice Questions

Question 1

Which THREE factors are most critical when selecting a conflict resolution technique for a project team? (Choose three.)

Accepted Answer

The personalities and relationship of the conflicting parties.. The personalities and relationship of the conflicting parties directly influence which conflict resolution technique (e.g., collaborating, compromising, avoiding) will be effective. A technique that works for a collaborative team may fail with highly competitive individuals, so understanding interpersonal dynamics is critical for selecting an approach that de-escalates rather than intensifies the conflict.

Answer

The cost of implementing the resolution technique.

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The organizational hierarchy and reporting structure.

Question 2

You are the project manager for a software development project using a hybrid approach. Two senior developers have a disagreement about the technical approach for a critical feature. The conflict is causing delays and affecting team morale. What should you do first?

Accepted Answer

Meet with both developers individually to understand their perspectives, then facilitate a joint discussion. As a project manager using a hybrid approach, your first responsibility is to address the conflict through collaborative conflict resolution. Meeting individually with each developer to understand their perspectives, then facilitating a joint discussion, aligns with the PMI People domain's emphasis on emotional intelligence and servant leadership. This approach preserves team morale, leverages the expertise of both senior developers, and allows the team to reach a consensus on the technical approach, which is critical for a hybrid project where both agile and plan-driven elements require team buy-in.

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Decide on the technical approach yourself and assign tasks accordingly

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Escalate the issue to the project sponsor for a decision

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Replace both developers with a single developer who agrees with the original plan

Question 3

During a daily standup, a developer mentions she is blocked because two senior engineers are in a heated argument about the technical approach for a critical feature. The disagreement has been ongoing for two days and is affecting the team's velocity. As the Scrum Master, what should you do?

Accepted Answer

Facilitate a meeting between the two engineers to help them reach a consensus, and involve other team members if needed. The Scrum Master serves the team by removing impediments and fostering collaboration, not by making technical decisions or escalating. Facilitating a meeting between the two engineers to reach consensus directly addresses the conflict, encourages self-organization, and leverages the team's collective knowledge. Involving other team members if needed aligns with the Scrum value of openness and can bring additional perspectives to resolve the deadlock. This approach unblocks the developer while respecting the team's ownership of technical decisions.

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Decide on the technical approach yourself and assign tasks accordingly to unblock the team

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Advise the developer to wait until the disagreement is resolved before proceeding

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Escalate the issue to the project sponsor to resolve the technical disagreement

Question 4

You are managing a construction project using a traditional approach. The sponsor asks you to skip the quality inspection phase to save two weeks and meet an aggressive deadline. What should you do FIRST?

Accepted Answer

Explain the risks of skipping quality inspections and discuss alternatives to meet the deadline. As a project manager, your first responsibility is to address the sponsor's request professionally by communicating the risks of skipping quality inspections—such as potential rework, safety failures, and cost overruns—and then collaboratively exploring alternatives (e.g., parallel testing, reduced sampling) to meet the deadline without compromising quality. This aligns with the PMP's emphasis on stakeholder engagement and proactive risk management, not blind compliance or refusal.

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Agree to skip the inspections to satisfy the sponsor's request

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Refuse outright because quality cannot be compromised

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Proceed with inspections but report that they were completed

Question 5

A project manager is forming a new project team. The team includes members from diverse cultural backgrounds and different functional areas. Which team development model should the project manager use to guide the team through forming, storming, norming, performing, and adjourning?

Accepted Answer

Tuckman's stages of group development. Tuckman's stages of group development (forming, storming, norming, performing, adjourning) is the correct model because it directly maps to the sequence described in the question. This model is specifically designed to guide project managers through the predictable phases a team goes through when forming, especially when members come from diverse cultural backgrounds and functional areas.

Answer

McClelland's theory of needs

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Maslow's hierarchy of needs

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Herzberg's two-factor theory

Question 6

A stakeholder bypasses you and gives direct instructions to a team member to add a new report. The team member has already started working on it. What should the project manager do first?

Accepted Answer

Meet with the stakeholder to reinforce the change control process and request that all changes go through you. The correct first step is to meet with the stakeholder to reinforce the change control process and request that all changes go through you. This directly addresses the bypass while maintaining professional communication, and it aligns with the PMI's emphasis on managing stakeholder expectations and following the integrated change control process. The project manager must protect the team from unauthorized work and ensure any change is formally evaluated for impact on scope, schedule, and budget.

Answer

Ignore it to avoid conflict, but document the incident

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Escalate to the sponsor that the stakeholder is interfering

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Ask the team member to ignore the stakeholder's request and stop working

Question 7

You are managing a large project with multiple stakeholders. One executive stakeholder has been bypassing you and giving direct instructions to the team, causing confusion. What should you do FIRST?

Accepted Answer

Meet with the stakeholder privately to clarify the communication plan and request they go through you. The PM must first address the stakeholder directly to reinforce the established communication plan and authority structure. Bypassing the PM violates the project's governance and can lead to scope creep, conflicting priorities, and team confusion. A private meeting allows the PM to professionally assert their role as the single point of contact for the team, as defined in the communications management plan.

Answer

Tell the team to follow the stakeholder's instructions

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Update the communication plan to include the stakeholder's direct involvement

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Report the stakeholder to the project sponsor

Question 8

An executive stakeholder has been directly contacting your team members and assigning them work that is not in the sprint backlog. The team is feeling pressured and confused about priorities. What should the project manager do?

Accepted Answer

Speak privately with the executive to explain the impact on the project and ask them to route requests through the proper channels.. The project manager must address scope creep and priority conflicts directly with the stakeholder who is causing the disruption. By speaking privately with the executive, the PM can explain how unauthorized work impacts the sprint goal, team velocity, and project deliverables, and request that all work be routed through the proper change control or product owner process. This aligns with the PM's responsibility to manage stakeholder expectations and protect the team from conflicting priorities.

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Inform the project sponsor about the executive's behavior and ask them to intervene.

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Tell the team to prioritize the executive's requests to maintain a good relationship.

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Update the risk register to document this as a future risk.

Question 9

You are the project manager for a team that recently transitioned to remote work. You notice that team morale is declining and collaboration has decreased. What is the BEST action to improve team cohesion?

Accepted Answer

Schedule a virtual team-building activity and weekly informal coffee chats. It directly addresses the root causes of declining morale and reduced collaboration in a remote team by creating structured opportunities for social interaction and informal bonding. Virtual team-building activities and weekly coffee chats foster psychological safety and interpersonal connections, which are critical for team cohesion in a distributed environment. This aligns with the PMI talent triangle's emphasis on leadership and emotional intelligence, as it proactively builds trust and engagement rather than relying on formal oversight or one-way communication.

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Increase the frequency of status meetings to ensure everyone is accountable

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Assign a mentor to each remote team member

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Send a motivational email to the team every week

Question 10

You are managing a project in a virtual environment. A team member from a different time zone misses an important deadline because he was not aware of the priority due to a language barrier. What should you do first?

Accepted Answer

Have a one-on-one video call with the team member to discuss the communication breakdown and offer language support tools. The first step in addressing a missed deadline caused by a language barrier in a virtual environment is to have a one-on-one video call with the team member. This allows you to understand the specific communication breakdown, clarify the priority, and offer language support tools (e.g., translation software or written summaries) to prevent recurrence. The PMBOK Guide emphasizes that the project manager should first use interpersonal skills to resolve issues and support the team, not escalate or penalize immediately.

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Update the team charter to include clearer communication protocols for virtual teams

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Reassign the task to another team member who can complete it on time

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Issue a formal warning to the team member about the missed deadline

Question 11

A project manager is developing a business case for a new project. Which TWO elements are essential for a strong business case?

Accepted Answer

Alignment with organizational strategy. Alignment with organizational strategy (A) is essential because a business case must demonstrate how the proposed project supports the organization's strategic goals and objectives. Without this alignment, the project risks being unfunded or deprioritized, as it fails to justify its contribution to the broader business mission.

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Identified risks and mitigation strategies

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Resource allocation plan

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Detailed project schedule

Question 12

You are managing a project where a team member consistently misses deadlines, affecting the team's velocity. You have had informal conversations with the team member, but the behavior continues. What is the BEST next step?

Accepted Answer

Schedule a private meeting to discuss the challenges and offer support to help improve performance.. As a project manager, your first formal step should be to understand the root cause of the performance issue through a private, supportive conversation. This aligns with the PMP's focus on servant leadership and addressing people problems with empathy before escalating to punitive measures. The goal is to identify obstacles (e.g., skill gaps, resource constraints, personal challenges) and collaboratively develop a plan to improve velocity, which is more effective than immediate reprimand or task reassignment.

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Formally reprimand the team member and put them on a performance improvement plan.

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Inform the team that delays are unacceptable and expect improvement.

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Reassign the team member to less critical tasks to minimize impact.

Question 13

You are leading a virtual team across three time zones. During a video conference, you notice that one team member from a remote location has not spoken for the entire meeting. In previous meetings, this team member has also been quiet. What should you do to ensure effective collaboration?

Accepted Answer

Schedule a one-on-one conversation to understand any barriers and encourage participation. It aligns with the PMP principle of servant leadership and proactive stakeholder engagement. By scheduling a one-on-one conversation, you create a safe environment to identify potential barriers (e.g., time zone fatigue, cultural differences, or technical issues with the virtual platform) that may be inhibiting participation. This approach fosters trust and encourages collaboration without putting the team member on the spot in a group setting.

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Ask the team member directly during the meeting why they are not contributing

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Assign the team member as the note-taker to ensure they are engaged

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Assume the team member has nothing to contribute and focus on others

Question 14

You are managing a project that is running 15% over budget at the midpoint. The variance is due to higher-than-expected material costs. The sponsor is concerned about cost overruns. What should you do FIRST?

Accepted Answer

Analyze the cost variance to determine the root cause and update the EAC. The PM should first analyze the root cause of the cost variance and determine if the trend is likely to continue. Based on this analysis, the PM can develop a revised estimate at completion (EAC) and communicate it to the sponsor. Simply asking for more budget or reducing scope without analysis is premature.

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Ask the team to find cheaper alternatives for materials immediately

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Reduce the project scope to bring costs back in line with the budget

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Request additional budget from the sponsor to cover the overrun

Question 15

A key vendor notifies you that they cannot deliver a critical component on time due to raw material shortages. This component is on the critical path and has no float. The vendor suggests using a substitute material that meets specifications but costs 20% more. What should the project manager do FIRST?

Accepted Answer

Submit a change request to evaluate the substitute material, including cost and schedule impacts. Any change to the procurement approach (substitute material) requires a change request to assess cost and schedule impacts before approval.

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Invoke the penalty clause in the vendor contract for late delivery

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Accept the vendor's suggestion to use the substitute material to avoid delay

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Look for alternative vendors who can deliver the original component on time

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