PMP People — Leading Projects Practice Question
You are managing a project with a cross-functional team. Two senior engineers, each with strong technical expertise, have developed a personal conflict over the best approach to a critical design decision. The conflict is now affecting team morale and delaying progress. As the project manager, what is the most appropriate first step to address this situation?
⚠ Common exam trap
The trap here is assuming that escalating to functional managers or imposing a decision is the quickest way to resolve conflict, when in fact the project manager should first attempt to resolve it collaboratively.
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
✓
Meet with each engineer separately to understand their perspectives, then facilitate a joint discussion to find a mutually agreeable solution.
The correct approach is to first understand each engineer's perspective separately, then facilitate a joint discussion to find a mutually agreeable solution. This collaborative conflict resolution technique addresses the root cause, preserves working relationships, and leverages the team's expertise. It aligns with PMP principles of servant leadership and emotional intelligence, focusing on team development and conflict 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.
- ✗
Reassign one engineer to a different project to eliminate the source of conflict and allow the team to move forward.
Why it's wrong here
Reassigning a team member is a drastic step that avoids addressing the conflict and can be perceived as punitive. It also loses valuable expertise from the project. The project manager should first attempt to resolve the conflict through direct intervention, such as mediation or facilitated discussion, before considering reassignment.
- ✗
Escalate the conflict to the functional managers of the two engineers and ask them to resolve it.
Why it's wrong here
Escalating immediately to functional managers is not the first step; it may undermine your authority and the team's ability to resolve issues. The project manager should first attempt to resolve the conflict directly using conflict resolution techniques. Escalation is appropriate only if the conflict cannot be resolved or violates organizational policies.
- ✓
Meet with each engineer separately to understand their perspectives, then facilitate a joint discussion to find a mutually agreeable solution.
Why this is correct
This approach follows the conflict resolution process: first understand each party's viewpoint through separate meetings, then bring them together to collaborate on a solution. It addresses the root cause while preserving relationships and team morale. The project manager acts as a facilitator, not a judge, and encourages the team to resolve the issue constructively.
- ✗
Impose a decision by selecting the design approach that aligns with the project schedule and instruct both engineers to comply.
Why it's wrong here
Imposing a decision may resolve the immediate issue but does not address the underlying conflict and can damage team morale. It is a forcing technique that should be used sparingly, such as in emergencies. Here, a collaborative approach is more appropriate to maintain long-term team effectiveness and engagement.
Go deeper
Related to this question
Learn chapter
Managing Conflicts and Communication
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.
Key term
Emotional Intelligence
Emotional Intelligence is the ability to recognize, understand, and manage your own emotions and the emotions of others to communicate and lead effectively.
About these practice questions
This PMP question is part of Courseiva's 820-question bank — original exam-style content with full explanations and wrong-answer analysis, never real exam questions or exam dumps. Learn why practice questions differ from exam dumps →
JA
Written and reviewed by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
Last reviewed September 2026 · checked against the official PMI exam blueprint
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.