PMP Process — Managing Technical Aspects Practice Question
Your project is in the execution phase. An executive stakeholder has been directly assigning tasks to team members without going through you. Several team members are confused about priorities. What should you do FIRST?
⚠ Common exam trap
Many exam-takers choose to escalate immediately (Option C) or try to work around the stakeholder (Option B), failing to recognize that the PMBOK Guide emphasizes resolving issues through direct communication with the stakeholder first, as the project manager is responsible for managing stakeholder expectations and the communication plan.
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
✓
Speak with the stakeholder privately to explain the impact of bypassing the PM and reinforce the communication plan
The correct first step is to speak privately with the stakeholder to explain the impact of bypassing the project manager and reinforce the established communication plan. This aligns with the PMBOK Guide's principle of managing stakeholder engagement through direct, respectful communication to resolve issues at the lowest appropriate level before escalating. By addressing the root cause—the stakeholder's lack of awareness or disregard for the communication protocol—you can restore clarity on priorities without prematurely escalating or undermining the stakeholder's relationship.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
Update the stakeholder engagement plan to reduce the stakeholder's influence
Why it's wrong here
Editing the engagement plan to curb an executive's influence does not resolve the immediate priority confusion and exceeds the project manager's authority over a senior stakeholder. It tempts because the engagement plan does record stakeholder management approaches, but it is a planning artefact, not the first action for an active conflict.
- ✗
Ignore the issue and try to align the team's priorities yourself
Why it's wrong here
Ignoring the behaviour leaves the stakeholder assigning work unchecked, so the priority confusion persists and the project manager loses control of the schedule. It tempts because quietly realigning tasks avoids confrontation, but ignoring an active conflict violates the project manager's responsibility to address it directly and promptly.
- ✗
Inform the sponsor about the stakeholder's behavior
Why it's wrong here
Escalating to the sponsor before addressing the stakeholder directly skips the confrontation and relationship work the project manager owns, and the sponsor is not the first line for resolving resource-assignment conflicts. It tempts because escalation feels decisive, yet it is reserved for when direct engagement fails or authority is genuinely exceeded.
- ✓
Speak with the stakeholder privately to explain the impact of bypassing the PM and reinforce the communication plan
Why this is correct
Directly addressing the stakeholder preserves the relationship while surfacing the priority confusion their bypassing created. Reinforcing the communication plan restores the PM's coordination role, which is the PM's responsibility during execution before escalating or involving the sponsor.
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