Online PMP Questions Video

According to the PMBOK Guide, one of the interpersonal skills that a project manager should have is conflict management. Conflict management involves resolving, eliminating, or reducing the impact of conflicts that may arise among stakeholders during the project life cycle. Conflicting stakeholder requirements are a common source of conflict on projects, and the project manager should use appropriate techniques to balance and resolve them. Some of these techniques are: identifying the root cause of the conflict, understanding the stakeholders’ perspectives and interests, finding areas of agreement and common ground, facilitating constructive communication and dialogue, and negotiating a mutually acceptable solution. The project manager should not ignore, avoid, or postpone dealing with the conflicting requirements, as this may lead to more problems and dissatisfaction later. The project manager should also not escalate the issue to the PMO or let the project team decide, as this may undermine the project manager’s authority and responsibility. The project manager should take the lead in resolving the conflict and ensuring that the stakeholder requirements are aligned with the project objectives and scope. References: PMBOK Guide, 6th edition, pages 56-57, 513-514.

According to the PMBOK Guide, a project manager should manage the transition of the project deliverables to the operations team and ensure that they have the necessary skills andknowledge to support the new system. A project using a hybrid approach to migrate from a current system to a new and enhanced system in stages should include knowledge transfer sessions between the project and operations team at every stage. This can help the operations team to understand the features, functions, and benefits of the new system, as well as the potential issues, risks, and changes that may arise during the migration. This can also help the project team to obtain feedback, validation, and acceptance from the operations team. Including knowledge transfer sessions is the best option, as it can improve the readiness, confidence, and satisfaction of the operations team. Creating a lessons learned register, changing the project management plan, or preparing detailed documentation are not the best options, as they do not address the immediate concern of the operations team and may not provide enough information or interaction to ensure a smooth transition. References: PMBOK Guide, 7th edition, page 214-215, 218-219.

The project manager should identify the root cause of communication issues because this is the first step to address the problem and improve the project team effectiveness. Communication is a vital aspect of project management, especially for global virtual teams, who face various challenges such as time zones, languages, cultures, and technologies. The project manager should analyze the communication needs, preferences, and barriers of the team members and stakeholders, and determine the root cause of the communication issues that are affecting the project performance and quality. The root cause may be related to the communication methods, channels, frequency, content, feedback, or expectations. By identifying the root cause, the project manager can then implement appropriate solutions, such as enhancing the communication plan, using effective tools and techniques, providing training and coaching, establishing trust and rapport, and monitoring and controlling the communication process. References:

• A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK® Guide) – Seventh Edition, Chapter 3.2.2, page 51
• Agile Practice Guide, Chapter 2.1.2, page 15
• PMP Exam Content Outline, Domain II: Planning, Task 3

According to the PMBOK® Guide, scope changes are inevitable in most projects, and they can have positive or negative effects on the project objectives. Scope changes can be initiated by various sources, such as stakeholders, customers, sponsors, team members, or external factors. Scope changes should be managed through a formal change control process, which involves identifying, analyzing, approving, and implementing the changes. The change control process should be aligned with the project management plan, which defines how changes will be monitored and controlled throughout the project life cycle. The project management plan also includes the scope management plan and the scope baseline, which describe how the project scope will be defined, validated, and controlled.

In this question, the project manager is facing a situation where one of the customer’s stakeholders keeps requesting changes to the scope every week during the execution phase of the project. This can create challenges for the project manager and the project team, such as increased costs, delays, rework, scope creep, quality issues, or stakeholder dissatisfaction. To resolve this issue, the project manager should take the following three actions:

• Highlight the impacts of the changes during the next project meeting. The project manager should communicate with the customer and the project team about the scope changes and their implications for the project. The project manager should explain how the changes will affect the project scope, schedule, cost, quality, resources, risks, and benefits. The project manager should also present the alternatives and trade-offs for each change, and seek feedback and input from the stakeholders. This will help to create a shared understanding of the situation, and to facilitate the decision-making process.
• Schedule a meeting with the customer to align the approach. The project manager should meet with the customer and the stakeholder who is requesting the changes, and discuss the reasons and expectations behind the changes. The project manager should also review the project scope statement, the scope baseline, and the change control process with the customer, and clarify the roles and responsibilities of each party. The project manager should also negotiate with the customer and the stakeholder to prioritize the changes, and to agree on the criteria and process for approving and implementing them. This will help to establish a common vision and a collaborative relationship with the customer, and to manage their expectations and satisfaction.
• Update the relevant project documents with this obstacle. The project manager should document the scope changes and their impacts, and update the relevant project documents accordingly. The project manager should also record the issue of frequent scope changes, and the actions taken to resolve it, in the issue log. The project manager should also update the risk register, the stakeholder register, the lessons learned register, and any other project documents that may be affected by the scope changes. This will help to maintain the accuracy and consistency of the project information, and to support the project monitoring and controlling activities.

The other options are not correct because they do not provide a valid way to resolve the issue of frequent scope changes. Option A is wrong because it suggests that the project manager should adjust the project management plan to include the changes in scope, without following the change control process or assessing the impacts of the changes. This would violate the project management plan and the scope baseline, and could lead to scope creep, cost overruns, schedule delays, or quality problems. Option B is wrong because it implies that the project manager should continue the execution as planned and defer the changes to a future phase, without communicating with the customer orthe stakeholder who is requesting the changes. This would ignore the customer’s needs and expectations, and could result in dissatisfaction, conflict, or rejection of the project deliverables. References:

• PMBOK® Guide, 6th edition, pages 134-135, 154-155, 161-162
• How to Manage Scope Changes on a Project
• Scope Change Management - Project Management Knowledge
• Scope Change Control - Project Management Institute