CAPM : Certified Associate in Project Management (PMI-100) : Part 10
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The component of the human resource management plan that includes ways in which team members can obtain certifications that support their ability to benefit the project is known as:
- recognition and rewards
- compliance
- staff acquisition
- training needs
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Stakeholders can be identified in later stages of the project because the Identify Stakeholders process should be:
- Continuous
- Discrete
- Regulated
- Arbitrary
Explanation:
Process: 13.1 Identify Stakeholders
Definition: The process of identifying the people, groups, or organizations that could impact or be impacted by a decision, activity, or outcome of the project; and analyzing and documenting relevant information regarding their interests, involvement, interdependencies, influence, and potential impact on project success.
Key Benefit: The key benefit of this process is that it allows the project manager to identify the appropriate focus for each stakeholder or group of stakeholders.Inputs
1. Project charter
2. Procurement documents
3. Enterprise environmental factors
4. Organizational process assets
Tools & Techniques
1. Stakeholder analysis
2. Expert judgment
3. Meetings
Outputs
1. Stakeholder register -
A graphic display of project team members and their reporting relationships is known as a:
- Resource calendar.
- Project organization chart.
- Resource breakdown structure (RBS).
- Responsibility assignment matrix (RAM).
Explanation:
Project organization charts. A project organization chart is a graphic display of project team members and their reporting relationships. It can be formal or informal, highly detailed or broadly framed, based on the needs of the project. For example, the project organization chart for a 3,000-person disaster response team will have greater detail than a project organization chart for an internal, twenty-person project. -
Which item is a cost of conformance?
- Training
- Liabilities
- Lost business
- Scrap
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Which key interpersonal skill of a project manager is defined as the strategy of sharing power and relying on interpersonal skills to convince others to cooperate toward common goals?
- Collaboration
- Negotiation
- Decision making
- Influencing
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Activity cost estimates and the project schedule are inputs to which Project Cost Management process?
- Estimate Costs
- Control Costs
- Plan Cost Management
- Determine Budget
Explanation:7.2.3.1 Activity Cost Estimates
Activity cost estimates are quantitative assessments of the probable costs required to complete project work. Cost estimates can be presented in summary form or in detail. Costs are estimated for all resources that are applied to the activity cost estimate. This includes, but is not limited to, direct labor, materials, equipment, services, facilities, information technology, and special categories such as cost of financing (including interest charges), an inflation allowance, exchange rates, or a cost contingency reserve. Indirect costs, if they are included in the project estimate, can be included at the activity level or at higher levels.Process: 7.3 Determine Budget
Definition: The process of aggregating the estimated costs of individual activities or work packages to establish an authorized cost baseline.
Key Benefit: The key benefit of this process is that it determines the cost baseline against which project performance can be monitored and controlled.Inputs
1. Cost management plan
2. Scope baseline
3. Activity cost estimates
4. Basis of estimates
5. Project schedule
6. Resource calendars
7. Risk register
8. Agreements
9. Organizational process assets
Tools & Techniques
1. Cost aggregation
2. Reserve analysis
3. Expert judgment
4. Historical relationships
5. Funding limit reconciliation
Outputs
1. Cost baseline
2. Project funding requirements
3. Project documents updates -
In project management, a temporary project can be:
- Completed without planning
- A routine business process
- Long in duration
- Ongoing to produce goods
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Which document in the project management plan can be updated in the Plan Procurement Management process?
- Budget estimates
- Risk matrix
- Requirements documentation
- Procurement documents
Explanation:Process: 12.1 Plan Procurement Management
Definition: The process of documenting project procurement decisions, specifying the approach, and identifying potential sellers.
Key Benefit: The key benefit of this process is that it determines whether to acquire outside support, and if so, what to acquire, how to acquire it, how much is needed, and when to acquire it.Inputs
1. Project management plan
2. Requirements documentation
3. Risk register
4. Activity resource requirements
5. Project schedule
6. Activity cost estimates
7. Stakeholder register
8. Enterprise environmental factors
9. Organizational process assets
Tools & Techniques
1. Make-or-buy analysis
2. Expert judgment
3. Market research
4. Meetings
Outputs
1. Procurement management plan
2. Procurement statement of work
3. Procurement documents
4. Source selection criteria
5. Make-or-buy decisions
6. Change requests
7. Project documents updates -
Which type of probability distribution is used to represent uncertain events such as the outcome of a test or a possible scenario in a decision tree?
- Uniform
- Continuous
- Discrete
- Linear
Explanation:Decision Tree Analysis. A diagramming and calculation technique for evaluating the implications of a chain of multiple options in the presence of uncertainty.
– Can only be used with discrete data.
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Which change request is an intentional activity that realigns the performance of the project work with the project management plan?
- Update
- Preventive action
- Defect repair
- Corrective action
Explanation:4.3.3.3 Change Requests
A change request is a formal proposal to modify any document, deliverable, or baseline. An approved change request will replace the associated document, deliverable, or baseline and may result in an update to other parts
of the project management plan. When issues are found while project work is being performed, change requests are submitted, which may modify project policies or procedures, project scope, project cost or budget, project schedule, or project quality. Other change requests cover the needed preventive or corrective actions to forestall negative impact later in the project. Requests for a change can be direct or indirect, externally or internally initiated, and can be optional or legally/contractually mandated, and may include:Corrective action—An intentional activity that realigns the performance of the project work with the project management plan;
– Preventive action—An intentional activity that ensures the future performance of the project work is aligned with the project management plan;
– Defect repair—An intentional activity to modify a nonconforming product or product component;
– Updates—Changes to formally controlled project documents, plans, etc., to reflect modified or additional ideas or content. -
Using parametric estimating, if an assigned resource is capable of producing 120 units per hour, how many hours are required to produce 12,000 units?
- 100
- 120
- 1,000
- 1,200
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Which stakeholder approves a project’s result?
- Customer
- Sponsor
- Seller
- Functional manager
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Which process involves determining, documenting, and managing stakeholders’ needs and requirements to meet project objectives?
- Collect Requirements
- Plan Scope Management
- Define Scope
- Define Activities
Explanation:
Process: 5.2 Collect Requirements
Definition: The process of determining, documenting, and managing stakeholder needs and requirements to meet project objectives.
Key Benefit: The key benefit of this process is that it provides the basis for defining and managing the project scope including product scope.
Inputs
1. Scope management plan
2. Requirements management plan
3. Stakeholder management plan
4. Project charter
5. Stakeholder register
Tools & Techniques
1. Interviews
2. Focus groups
3. Facilitated workshops
4. Group creativity techniques
5. Group decision-making techniques
6. Questionnaires and surveys
7. Observations
8. Prototypes
9. Benchmarking
10. Context diagrams
11. Document analysis
Outputs
1. Requirements documentation
2. Requirements traceability matrix -
Plan Communications Management develops an approach and plan for project communications based on stakeholders’ needs and requirements and:
- Available organizational assets
- Project staff assignments
- Interpersonal skills
- Enterprise environmental factors
Explanation:Process: 10.1 Plan Communications Management
Definition: The process of developing an appropriate approach and plan for project communications based on stakeholder’s information needs and requirements, and available organizational assets.
Key Benefit: The key benefit of this process is that it identifies and documents the approach to communicate most effectively and efficiently with stakeholders.Inputs
1. Project management plan
2. Stakeholder register
3. Enterprise environmental factors
4. Organizational process assets
Tools & Techniques
1. Communication requirements analysis
2. Communication technology
3. Communication models
4. Communication methods
5. Meetings
Outputs
1. Communications management plan
2. Project documents updates -
Perform Integrated Change Control is the process of:
- Reviewing, approving, and managing all change requests
- Facilitating change management, manuals, or automation tools
- Comparing actual results with planned results in order to expand or change a project
- Documenting changes according to the change control system by the change control board
Explanation:Process: 4.5 Perform Integrated Change Control
Perform Integrated Change Control is the process of reviewing all change requests; approving changes and managing changes to deliverables, organizational process assets, project documents, and the project management plan; and communicating their disposition. It reviews all requests for changes or modifications to project documents, deliverables, baselines, or the project management plan and approves or rejects the changes.
Key Benefit: The key benefit of this process is that it allows for documented changes within the project to be considered in an integrated fashion while reducing project risk, which often arises from changes made without consideration to the overall project objectives or plans.Inputs
1. Project management plan
2. Work performance reports
3. Change requests
4. Enterprise environmental factors
5. Organizational process assetsTools & Techniques
1. Expert judgment
2. Meetings
3. Change control toolsOutputs
1. Approved change requests
2. Change log
3. Project management plan updates
4. Project documents updates -
When painting a bedroom, preparing the walls can be done while the paint is being chosen. This is an example of a:
- lead
- lag
- mandatory dependency
- internal dependency
Explanation:
6.3.2.2 Dependency Determination
Dependencies may be characterized by the following attributes: mandatory or discretionary, internal or external, as described below. Dependency has four attributes, but two can be applicable at the same time in following ways: mandatory external dependencies, mandatory internal dependencies, discretionary external dependencies, or discretionary internal dependencies.
– Mandatory dependencies. Mandatory dependencies are those that are legally or contractually required or inherent in the nature of the work. Mandatory dependencies often involve physical limitations, such as on a construction project, where it is impossible to erect the superstructure until after the foundation has been built, or on an electronics project, where a prototype has to be built before it can be tested. Mandatory dependencies are also sometimes referred to as hard logic or hard dependencies. Technical dependencies may not be mandatory. The project team determines which dependencies are mandatory during the process of sequencing the activities. Mandatory dependencies should not be confused with assigning schedule constraints in the scheduling tool.
– Discretionary dependencies. Discretionary dependencies are sometimes referred to as preferred logic, preferential logic, or soft logic. Discretionary dependencies are established based on knowledge of best practices within a particular application area or some unusual aspect of the project where a specific sequence is desired, even though there may be other acceptable sequences. Discretionary dependencies should be fully documented since they can create arbitrary total float values and can limit later scheduling options. When fast tracking techniques are employed, these discretionary dependencies should be reviewed and considered for modifcation or removal. The project team determines which dependencies are discretionary during the process of sequencing the activities.
– External dependencies. External dependencies involve a relationship between project activities and non-project activities. These dependencies are usually outside the project team’s control. For example, the testing activity in a software project may be dependent on the delivery of hardware from an external source, or governmental environmental hearings may need to be held before site preparation can begin on a construction project. The project management team determines which dependencies are external during the process of sequencing the activities.
– Internal dependencies. Internal dependencies involve a precedence relationship between project activities and are generally inside the project team’s control. For example, if the team cannot test a machine until they assemble it, this is an internal mandatory dependency. The project management team determines which dependencies are internal during the process of sequencing the activities. -
Which action is included in the Control Costs process?
- Identify how the project costs will be planned, structured, and controlled
- Determine policies, objectives, and responsibilities to satisfy stakeholder needs
- Develop an approximation of the monetary resources needed to complete project activities
- Monitor cost performance to isolate and understand variances from the approved cost baseline
Explanation:7.3.3.1 Cost Baseline
The cost baseline is the approved version of the time-phased project budget, excluding any management reserves, which can only be changed through formal change control procedures and is used as a basis for comparison to actual results. It is developed as a summation of the approved budgets for the different schedule activities.Process: 7.4 Control Costs
Definition: The process of monitoring the status of the project to update the project costs and managing changes to the cost baseline.
Key Benefit: The key benefit of this process is that it determines the cost baseline against which project performance can be monitored and controlled.Inputs
1. Project management plan
2. Project funding requirements
3. Work performance data
4. Organizational process assetsTools & Techniques
1. Earned value management
2. Forecasting
3. To-complete performance index (TCPI)
4. Performance reviews
5. Project management software
6. Reserve analysis
Outputs
1. Work performance information
2. Cost forecasts
3. Change requests
4. Project management plan updates
5. Project documents updates
6. Organizational process assets updates -
What is the risk rating if the probability of occurrence is 0.30 and the impact if it does occur is moderate (0.20)?
- 0.03
- 0.06
- 0.10
- 0.50
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A complete set of concepts, terms, and activities that make up an area of specialization is known as:
- a Knowledge Area
- a Process Group
- program management
- portfolio management
Explanation:3.9 Role of the Knowledge Areas
The 47 project management processes identified in the PMBOK® Guide are further grouped into ten separate Knowledge Areas. A Knowledge Area represents a complete set of concepts, terms, and activities that make up a professional field, project management field, or area of specialization. These ten Knowledge Areas are used on most projects most of the time. Project teams should utilize these ten Knowledge Areas and other Knowledge Areas, as appropriate, for their specific project. The Knowledge Areas are: Project Integration Management, Project Scope Management, Project Time Management, Project Cost Management, Project Quality Management, Project Human Resource Management, Project Communications Management, Project Risk Management, Project Procurement Management and Project Stakeholder Management. Each Knowledge Area within the PMBOK® Guide is contained in a separate section. -
The risk response strategy in which the project team acts to reduce the probability of occurrence or impact of a risk is known as:
- exploit
- avoid
- mitigate
- share
Explanation:11.5.2.1 Strategies for Negative Risks or Threats
Three strategies, which typically deal with threats or risks that may have negative impacts on project objectives if they occur, are: avoid, transfer, and mitigate. The fourth strategy, accept, can be used for negative risks or threats as well as positive risks or opportunities. Each of these risk response strategies have varied and unique influence on the risk condition. These strategies should be chosen to match the risk’s probability and impact on the project’s overall objectives. Avoidance and mitigation strategies are usually good strategies for critical risks with high impact, while transference and acceptance are usually good strategies for threats that are less critical and with low overall impact. The four strategies for dealing with negative risks or threats are further described as follows:– Avoid. Risk avoidance is a risk response strategy whereby the project team acts to eliminate the threat or protect the project from its impact. It usually involves changing the project management plan to eliminate the threat entirely. The project manager may also isolate the project objectives from the risk’s impact or change the objective that is in jeopardy. Examples of this include extending the schedule, changing the strategy, or reducing scope. The most radical avoidance strategy is to shut down the project entirely. Some risks that arise early in the project can be avoided by clarifying requirements, obtaining information, improving communication, or acquiring expertise.
Transfer. Risk transference is a risk response strategy whereby the project team shifts the impact of a threat to a third party, together with ownership of the response. Transferring the risk simply gives another party responsibility for its management—it does not eliminate it. Transferring does not mean disowning the risk by transferring it to a later project or another person without his or her knowledge or agreement. Risk transference nearly always involves payment of a risk premium to the party taking on the risk. Transferring liability for risk is most effective in dealing with financial risk exposure. Transference tools can be quite diverse and include, but are not limited to, the use of insurance, performance bonds, warranties, guarantees, etc. Contracts or agreements may be used to transfer liability for specified risks to another party. For example, when a buyer has capabilities that the seller does not possess, it may be prudent to transfer some work and its concurrent risk contractually back to the buyer. In many cases, use of a cost-plus contract may transfer the cost risk to the buyer, while a fixed-price contract may transfer risk to the seller.
– Mitigate. Risk mitigation is a risk response strategy whereby the project team acts to reduce the probability of occurrence or impact of a risk. It implies a reduction in the probability and/or impact of an adverse risk to be within acceptable threshold limits. Taking early action to reduce the probability and/or impact of a risk occurring on the project is often more effective than trying to repair the damage after the risk has occurred. Adopting less complex processes, conducting more tests, or choosing a more stable supplier are examples of mitigation actions. Mitigation may require prototype development to reduce the risk of scaling up from a bench-scale model of a process or product. Where it is not possible to reduce probability, a mitigation response might address the risk impact by targeting linkages that determine the severity. For example, designing redundancy into a system may reduce the impact from a failure of the original component.
– Accept. Risk acceptance is a risk response strategy whereby the project team decides to acknowledge the risk and not take any action unless the risk occurs. This strategy is adopted where it is not possible or cost-effective to address a specific risk in any other way. This strategy indicates that the project team has decided not to change the project management plan to deal with a risk, or is unable to identify any other suitable response strategy. This strategy can be either passive or active. Passive acceptance requires no action except to document the strategy, leaving the project team to deal with the risks as they occur, and to periodically review the threat to ensure that it does not change significantly. The most common active acceptance strategy is to establish a contingency reserve, including amounts of time, money, or resources to handle the risks.