PMP Process — Managing Technical Aspects Practice Question
You are the project manager for a software development project using a hybrid approach. During a sprint review, the product owner requests a significant change to a feature that has already been accepted in a previous sprint. The change would require rework and impact the critical path. What should you do FIRST?
⚠ Common exam trap
The PMBOK Guide emphasizes that changes to baselines must go through formal change control. The trap here is that any change impacting the critical path must first go through formal change control to protect the project's baselines.
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
✓
Submit a change request and evaluate the impact on the project constraints
In a hybrid project, changes to accepted deliverables must follow a formal change control process. Submitting a change request (Option B) ensures the impact on the critical path, schedule, and budget is evaluated before any rework begins, aligning with the PMBOK Guide's guidance on integrated change control.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
Add the change to the product backlog for a future sprint without formal approval
Why it's wrong here
Backlog placement bypasses the formal change control the hybrid approach requires for a critical-path impact; assessment and approval must precede scheduling. It tempts because agile teams routinely add items to backlogs, but that suits minor refinements, not significant rework requiring governance.
- ✓
Submit a change request and evaluate the impact on the project constraints
Why this is correct
The change affects an already-accepted deliverable and the critical path, so formal integrated change control is triggered. Raising a change request and evaluating impacts on project constraints precedes any rework, ensuring the baseline is protected and approval is documented.
- ✗
Instruct the team to implement the change immediately to maintain stakeholder satisfaction
Why it's wrong here
Immediate implementation skips impact analysis and change control, risking unauthorised scope and schedule changes on the critical path. It tempts because sprint reviews encourage responsiveness to stakeholders, yet the correct first step is evaluating the request through the integrated change control process before any work begins.
- ✗
Reject the change because the feature was already accepted
Why it's wrong here
Rejecting outright ignores the hybrid change control process: significant changes affecting the critical path require evaluation through integrated change control, not dismissal. It tempts as scope protection after acceptance, yet acceptance does not bar later change requests; the product owner can legitimately raise them for assessment.
Go deeper
Related to this question
Learn chapter
Executing Project Work and Managing Changes
Key term
Change Control Process
A formal, structured procedure used to manage any changes to a project's scope, schedule, budget, or requirements, ensuring every modification is reviewed, approved, tested, and documented before implementation.
Key term
Scrum Methodology
Scrum is a lightweight process framework that helps teams deliver complex projects in small, iterative chunks called sprints.
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Written by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
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