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.
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?
Clue words in this question
Noticing these words before you look at the options changes how you read each choice.
Clue: "best"
Why it matters: Signals that multiple options may be partially correct. Choose the option that most directly solves the exact problem described, not the one that sounds most complete.
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
Schedule a virtual team-building activity and weekly informal coffee chats
Option A is correct because 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.
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.
✓
Schedule a virtual team-building activity and weekly informal coffee chats
Why this is correct
Informal interactions strengthen relationships and team spirit.
Clue confirmation
The clue word "best" in the question point toward this answer.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
✗
Increase the frequency of status meetings to ensure everyone is accountable
Why it's wrong here
More meetings may lead to burnout and do not address social connection.
✗
Assign a mentor to each remote team member
Why it's wrong here
Mentoring is helpful but does not replace team-wide bonding activities.
✗
Send a motivational email to the team every week
Why it's wrong here
Passive communication is less effective than active engagement.
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
The trap here is that candidates often confuse accountability mechanisms (like status meetings) with team cohesion, or they mistake individual support (mentoring) for team-level bonding, leading them to choose options that address symptoms (e.g., low productivity) rather than the underlying human factors of morale and collaboration.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
Team cohesion in remote settings is built through deliberate social capital investment, which includes both task-related and relationship-oriented interactions. Research in organizational psychology shows that informal 'water cooler' conversations and non-work-related bonding activities increase trust and collaboration by activating mirror neurons and oxytocin responses, which are diminished in asynchronous or purely task-focused communication. In practice, a project manager should use a mix of synchronous (e.g., virtual coffee chats) and asynchronous (e.g., shared interest channels) methods to maintain team cohesion, as remote work reduces spontaneous social cues that normally build rapport.
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: Schedule a virtual team-building activity and weekly informal coffee chats — Option A is correct because 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.
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.
Are there clue words in this question I should notice?
Yes — watch for: "best". Signals that multiple options may be partially correct. Choose the option that most directly solves the exact problem described, not the one that sounds most complete.
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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