The answer is to regularly acknowledge and celebrate team achievements, as this directly aligns with the servant leadership principle of empowering the team and fostering a supportive environment. Servant leadership prioritizes removing impediments and building trust, so actions that recognize contributions and create psychological safety directly address the root causes of low morale and motivation by making team members feel valued and heard. On the PMP exam, this question tests your understanding of the Agile Practice Guide’s emphasis on servant leadership as a core project manager role, often appearing in situational questions where you must distinguish between supportive actions and transactional fixes like external rewards or pressure. A common trap is choosing options that focus on monetary incentives or top-down directives, which fail to address underlying disengagement. Remember the memory tip: “Celebrate, don’t dictate” — servant leaders lift the team up, not push them forward.
PMP People — Leading Projects Practice Question
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.
Your agile team has been struggling with low morale and lack of motivation. As a project manager using servant leadership, which THREE actions would be most effective in improving the situation?
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
Identify and remove obstacles that are hindering the team's progress
Servant leadership focuses on removing impediments, empowering the team, and creating a supportive environment. Options A, C, and D align with this approach. Option B is not supportive. Option E focuses on rewards, which may not address root causes.
Key principle: ACLs process entries top to bottom and stop at the first match. Entry order and interface direction matter as much as the permit or deny statement.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
✓
Identify and remove obstacles that are hindering the team's progress
Why this is correct
Removing impediments is a key servant leadership behavior.
Related concept
Standard ACLs match source addresses.
✗
Offer monetary incentives for meeting sprint goals
Why it's wrong here
Monetary incentives can be demotivating if not aligned with intrinsic motivation.
✗
Set stricter performance metrics to push the team to improve
Why it's wrong here
This may decrease morale further and is not servant leadership.
✓
Empower the team to make decisions about their own work processes
Why this is correct
Empowerment increases ownership and motivation.
Related concept
Standard ACLs match source addresses.
✓
Regularly acknowledge and celebrate team achievements
Why this is correct
Recognition boosts morale and reinforces positive behavior.
Related concept
Standard ACLs match source addresses.
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: ACLs stop at the first match
ACLs are processed top to bottom. The first matching entry wins, and an implicit deny usually exists at the end.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
ACL questions test precision: source, destination, protocol, port and direction. A generally correct ACL can still fail if it is applied on the wrong interface or in the wrong direction.
KKey Concepts to Remember
Standard ACLs match source addresses.
Extended ACLs can match source, destination, protocol and ports.
The first matching ACL entry is used.
There is usually an implicit deny at the end.
TExam Day Tips
→Check inbound versus outbound direction.
→Read the ACL from top to bottom.
→Look for a broader permit or deny above the intended line.
Key takeaway
ACLs process entries top to bottom and stop at the first match. Entry order and interface direction matter as much as the permit or deny statement.
Real-world example
How this comes up in practice
A security administrator must allow nursing staff to reach a patient records server while blocking access from the guest Wi-Fi VLAN. After applying an extended ACL, traffic is still blocked from nursing workstations. The ACL was applied outbound instead of inbound on the wrong interface. Questions like this test ACL direction and placement rules.
Related glossary terms
Concepts from this question explained
These glossary pages explain the core terms tested in this PMP question in full detail.
Review ACL processing order, placement rules (standard near destination, extended near source), and inbound vs outbound direction. Study wildcard masks and implicit deny. Then practise related PMP ACL questions on filtering logic and placement.
People — Leading Projects — This question tests People — Leading Projects — Standard ACLs match source addresses..
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: Identify and remove obstacles that are hindering the team's progress — Servant leadership focuses on removing impediments, empowering the team, and creating a supportive environment. Options A, C, and D align with this approach. Option B is not supportive. Option E focuses on rewards, which may not address root causes.
What should I do if I get this PMP question wrong?
Review ACL processing order, placement rules (standard near destination, extended near source), and inbound vs outbound direction. Study wildcard masks and implicit deny. Then practise related PMP ACL questions on filtering logic and placement.
What is the key concept behind this question?
Standard ACLs match source addresses.
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Question Discussion
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