PMI PMI Certifications PMI-SP Questions & Answers

• Question 171:

  You are working with your project team to control the project schedule. You will need five inputs to this process throughout your project. Which one of the following is an output of the project schedule control, and NOT an input?

  A. Work performance information

  B. Project schedule

  C. Project management plan

  D. Work performance measurements

  Correct Answer: D

  Work performance measurements are created from the work performance information. WPMs are an output of Control schedule, Control cost, and Control scope processes, which are monitoring and controlling processes. WPMs consist of planned versus actual performance indicators with respect to scope, schedule, and cost. They are documented and communicated to the stakeholders and are used to make project activity metrics, such as the following: Planned vs. Actual Technical performance and Scope performance Planned vs. Actual Schedule performance Planned vs. Actual Cost performance Answer option A is incorrect. Work performance information is an input to the control schedule process and includes information on project progress and activity start and finish information. Answer option C is incorrect. The project management plan is an input to the control schedule process. Answer option B is incorrect. The project schedule is an input to the control schedule process.

• Question 172:

  You are the project manager of the GHY Project. This project is scheduled to last for one year and has a BAC of $4,500,000. You are currently 45 percent complete with this project, though you are supposed to be at your second milestone, which accounts for half of the project completion. There have been some errors in the project, which has caused you to spend $2,073,654. Based on the budget at completion, what is this project's to-complete performance index?

  A. -$108,120

  B. 0.98

  C. $2,500.000

  D. 1.02

  Correct Answer: D

  The to-complete performance index shows the likelihood of reaching the project objectives based on the current performance. The formula is (BAC-EV)/(BAC-AC) for a result of 1.02. The higher the value over 1 the less likely the project is to reach its objectives based on the current performance.To- complete Performance Index (TCPI) is the measured projection of the anticipated performance required to achieve either the BAC or the EA

  C. TCPI indicates the future required cost efficiency needed to achieve a target EAC (Estimate At Complete).Once approved, the EAC supersedes the BAC as the cost performance goal. Any significant difference between TCPI and the CPI needed to meet the EAC should be accounted for by management in their forecast of the final cost. The formula for TCPI is as follows: TCPI = {(BAC-EV)/(BAC-AC)} Answer option B is incorrect. This is the cost performance index for this project. Answer option A is incorrect. This is the expected variance at completion. Answer option C is incorrect. This is not a valid answer for this question.

• Question 173:

  You are the project manager of the OOI Project and you're forty percent complete with this project. The project has a BAC of $2,345,650 and you have spent $950,000 to date. Based on your aggressive scheduling you should be at the 45 percent milestone today, but due to some early delays you're running late. What is the planned value of your project?

  A. $950,000

  B. $2,375,000

  C. $1,055,543

  D. $938,260

  Correct Answer: C

  The planned value is forty-five percent of the project's BAC, or $1,055,543. Planned value (PV) is the authorized budget assigned to the schedule work to be accomplished for a schedule activity or work breakdown structure component. It

  serves as a baseline against which actual performance is measured. The theory of planned value is of vital importance to the project management team and it is important to keep careful track of this. The term planned value can also be in

  some situations referred to by the project management team and the project management team leader as the budgeted cost of work scheduled (BCWS).

  Answer option D is incorrect. $938,260 is the project's earned value. Answer option A is incorrect. $950,000 is the project's actual costs. Answer option B is incorrect. $2,375,000 is the project's estimate at completion.

• Question 174:

  You are the project manager of the NDF project. You need to determine how often a complete project report can be made, including forecasted project completion information for your project. How often should the report be created?

  A. Weekly

  B. One per status milestone reached

  C. Regularly or on an exception basis

  D. Exception-by-exception basis

  Correct Answer: C

  Performance reports should be created regularly or on an exception basis. A performance report tracks the performance of the program/project team members. A template can be created that tracks performance, such as work results,

  schedule, costs, and other factors. The performance report must include both the positive and negative performance for the staff. Answer option A is incorrect. Weekly may be appropriate for many projects, but it does not include the

  opportunity to create a report by exception. Answer option D is incorrect. Regular reporting is also needed or at least, an option for the project manager.

  Answer option B is incorrect. This is not a valid answer as milestones will vary per project and does not offer an opportunity for exceptions reporting.

• Question 175:

  You are the project manager for your organization. You and the project team are developing the project schedule for your current project. This project management process will create four outputs. Which of the following is an output of the Develop Schedule process?

  A. Work performance information

  B. Schedule baseline

  C. Resource calendars

  D. Activity duration estimates

  Correct Answer: B

  The schedule baseline is the only output of the develop schedule process among these answers. The three other outputs of the Develop Schedule Process are: project schedule, schedule data, and project document updates.

  Answer option D is incorrect. Activity duration estimates are an output of the Estimate Activity Duration process.

  Answer option A is incorrect. Work performance information is an input of the Control Schedule process. Answer option C is incorrect. Resource calendars are an input to the Develop Schedule process.

• Question 176:

  Nancy is the project manager of a project with 78 stakeholders. This is a high-profile project and she needs to express to her project team and to the management the importance of communication in this project. She would like to show the number of stakeholder communication channels in the project. Based on this information how many communication channels exist within this project?

  A. 78

  B. 156

  C. 3,003

  D. 6,084

  Correct Answer: C

  Communication channels are paths of communication with stakeholders in a project. The number of communication channels shows the complexity of a project's communication and can be derived through the formula shown below: Total Number of Communication Channels = n (n-1)/2 where, n is the number of stakeholders. Hence, a project having five stakeholders will have ten communication channels. Putting the number of stakeholders in the formula we can get the required communication channel for the project. It is (78 x 77)/2 for 3,003 communication channels. Answer options A, B, and D are incorrect. These numbers do not reflect the accurate number of communication channels in the project.

• Question 177:

  In the project time management knowledge area, there are six processes. According to the PMBOK, which project time knowledge area will have the majority of the effort?

  A. Estimate activity resources

  B. Define activities

  C. Control schedule

  D. Develop schedule

  Correct Answer: C

  Of all six processes, the control schedule process will take the majority of the time in the project time management knowledge area. Control schedule process is a method of monitoring the status of the project to update project progress and

  deal with the changes to the schedule baseline. It is concerned with:

  Determining the current status of the project Influencing the factors that create schedule changes Determining that the project schedule has changed Managing the actual changes as they occur Control schedule is a component of the

  Perform Integration Change Control process. Answer options B, A, and D are incorrect. These processes will not take the longest to complete.

• Question 178:

  You are the project manager for your organization. Management has offered you a bonus if you can complete the project work two months earlier than what your schedule predicts. You can use a schedule compression technique, but management does not want to increase costs in the project. What approach would you recommend to condense the project duration?

  A. Fast tracking

  B. Crashing

  C. Effort-driven activity analysis

  D. Rewards and recognition for the project team

  Correct Answer: A

  Of all the choices, only fast tracking is an option that would not increase project costs. Fast tracking allows phases of the project to overlap, but it does increase project risks. Fast tracking is a technique for compressing project schedule. In fast tracking, phases are overlapped that would normally be done in sequence. It is shortening the project schedule without reducing the project scope. Answer option B is incorrect. Crashing adds labor to the project and increases project costs. Answer option C is incorrect. Effort-driven activity analysis examines activities whose duration may be reduced by adding labor. This approach, however, increases project costs, as it is a form of project crashing. Answer option D is incorrect. Rewards and recognitions are good incentives for the project team, but simply offering the reward does not decrease the duration of the project.

• Question 179:

  You are the project manager of the GHQ Project. You have to prioritize activities for the effective management of project. For this, you have created a network diagram to schedule a set of project activities as shown in the figure:

  

  Based on this figure, what is the critical path of this project?

  A. ABEHJ

  B. ACFIJ

  C. ADGJ

  D. ACFGJ

  Correct Answer: D

  The activity nodes of path ACFGJ equals 26 days and is the longest path to completion - it is the critical path. ACFGJ= A(4)+C(8)+F(4)+G(6)+J(4)=26 What is a critical path? A critical path is the sequence of project activities, which add up to the longest overall duration. This determines the shortest time possible to complete the project. Any delay of an activity on the critical path directly impacts the planned project completion date (i.e. there is no float on the critical path). A project can have several, parallel, near critical paths. An additional parallel path through the network with the total durations shorter than the critical path is called a sub-critical or noncritical path. These results allow managers to prioritize activities for the effective management of project completion, and to shorten the planned critical path of a project by pruning critical path activities, by "fast tracking" (i.e., performing more activities in parallel), and/or by "crashing the critical path" (i.e., shortening the durations of critical path activities by adding resources). Answer option A is incorrect. ABEHJ takes only 22 days to complete; it is not the critical path. ABEHJ=A(4)+B(5)+E(2)+H(7)+J(4)=22 Answer option C is incorrect. ADGJ takes only 15 days to complete; it is not the critical path. ADGJ=A(4)+D(1)+G(6)+J(4)=15 Answer option B is incorrect. ACFIJ takes only 23 days to complete; it is not the critical path. ACFIJ=A(4)+C(8)+F(4)+I(3)+J(4)=23

• Question 180:

  You are the project manager for your organization. You are working with your project team to define the project network diagram. Several of the activities in the project schedule appear to have external constraints. Who among the following determines which dependencies are external to the project?

  A. Project team

  B. Project sponsor

  C. Project manager

  D. Project management team

  Correct Answer: D

  The project management team defines which activities are external to the project. An external dependency is any nonproject activity that is external to the project but has a direct impact on the project activities. An external dependency may be

  an inspector or any agency that may have to give prior approval before the project can move forward. These dependencies are external to the organization and are determined by the project management team to find which dependencies are

  external all through the process of sequencing the activities. Answer option C is incorrect. The project manager may be part of the project management team, but this is not the best choice.

  Answer option A is incorrect. The project team does not define this relationship. Answer option B is incorrect. The project sponsor would not define the external dependencies.