PMP People — Leading Projects Practice Question
You are managing a hybrid project using Scrum for development and a predictive approach for regulatory deliverables. During the daily standup, two senior developers disagree strongly on the technical approach to implement a user story. The disagreement is causing tension and slowing progress. As the project manager, what should you do FIRST?
⚠ Common exam trap
Many exam-takers choose Option C (making the decision yourself) due to a command-and-control mindset, but the PMP exam emphasizes servant leadership and empowering the team to resolve their own 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
✓
Facilitate a discussion between the two developers to understand both perspectives and reach a consensus
In a hybrid project, the project manager must first facilitate conflict resolution among team members to maintain team cohesion and ensure progress. Option B aligns with the PMI's emphasis on servant leadership and collaborative problem-solving, as it addresses the root cause of the disagreement without bypassing the team's autonomy or escalating prematurely.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
Assign the story to another developer who can work without conflict
Why it's wrong here
This approach merely defers conflict resolution and fails to leverage the self-organizing principles central to Scrum. It avoids addressing the root cause of the technical disagreement, which could resurface on future tasks or with other team members, hindering long-term team cohesion and knowledge sharing. A Project Manager, acting as a Scrum Master, should focus on removing impediments and fostering collaboration, not reassigning work to sidestep issues.
- ✓
Facilitate a discussion between the two developers to understand both perspectives and reach a consensus
Why this is correct
In a Scrum environment, the Project Manager, acting as a servant leader, should facilitate direct communication to empower the development team to resolve technical disagreements autonomously. This approach fosters collaborative problem-solving, leverages the collective expertise of the team, and builds consensus, which leads to stronger team ownership and more sustainable solutions. It directly supports the Scrum values of respect and commitment by valuing diverse perspectives.
- ✗
Make the technical decision yourself based on your experience
Why it's wrong here
As a Project Manager in a hybrid or Scrum project, making unilateral technical decisions disempowers the self-organizing development team and undermines their autonomy. This approach bypasses the collective intelligence and accountability of the team, potentially leading to resentment and reduced commitment to the solution. The PM's role is to enable the team, not to dictate technical implementation, especially when the team possesses the necessary expertise.
- ✗
Escalate the issue to the project sponsor for a decision
Why it's wrong here
Escalating to the sponsor bypasses the self-organising principle of the Scrum team, which is expected to resolve technical disagreements collaboratively during the standup or in a follow-up discussion. This option is tempting because a sponsor can enforce a binding decision when the conflict involves regulatory compliance or budget authority, but here the dispute is purely technical and within the team’s domain.
Go deeper
Related to this question
Learn chapter
Introduction to the PMP Exam and Project Management Basics
Key term
Project Management Plan
A formal, approved document that defines how a project is executed, monitored, controlled, and closed, serving as the single source of truth for the project team.
Key term
Project Team Management
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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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.