A project manager has decided to outsource portions of a project and will conduct a separate procurement. In which of the following phases does this task occur?
A. Planning
B. Initiating
C. Controlling
D. Executing
Show Answer
Correct Answer: A
Explanation: Deciding to outsource work and planning a separate procurement are procurement planning activities. These occur in the Planning phase, where make-or-buy decisions, procurement strategies, and solicitation documents are developed before execution.
Question 133
A project manager buys an extended warranty for a set of servers. Which of the following risk management strategies is the manager using?
A. Transfer
B. Avoid
C. Accept
D. Mitigate
Show Answer
Correct Answer: A
Explanation: Buying an extended warranty shifts the financial impact of server failures or repairs to a third party (the warranty provider). This is a classic risk transfer strategy, commonly implemented through insurance or warranties.
Question 134
A new junior PM who has ownership of a project does not understand how to manage conflicts involving multiple personalities. Which of the following is the BEST order of the stages the PM should follow to nurture the team to high performance?
A. Forming, storming, performing, norming, adjourning
B. Forming, performing, storming, norming, adjourning
C. Forming, norming, storming, performing, adjourning
D. Forming, storming, norming, performing, adjourning
Show Answer
Correct Answer: D
Explanation: The correct sequence is Tuckman’s stages of team development: Forming (orientation), Storming (conflict and power struggles), Norming (establishing norms and cohesion), Performing (high performance), and Adjourning (project closure). This order best addresses managing conflicts and nurturing the team to high performance.
Question 135
A project manager, who finished a project some time ago, keeps receiving questions from another project manager who is currently leading a similar project. Which of the following is the MOST likely cause of this situation?
A. The retrospective session feedback was not communicated properly.
B. The project resources were released ahead of time.
C. The documentation was not archived as per the PMO standards.
D. The validation of deliverables is running behind schedule.
Show Answer
Correct Answer: C
Explanation: Ongoing questions after project completion most commonly indicate that key project artifacts—such as lessons learned, decisions, and reference documentation—were not properly archived or made accessible per PMO standards. As a result, other project managers must seek information directly from the former project manager.
Question 136
A project team is developing an application that will allocate a building's parking spaces. The building owner does not agree with using corporate colors in the application and has blocked the release of the beta version for testing. Which of the following BEST describes what the project manager should have done in the initiation phase to prevent this issue?
A. Review of existing artifacts
B. Development of an issue log
C. Identification and assessment of stakeholders
D. Establishment of accepted communication channels
Show Answer
Correct Answer: C
Explanation: The issue arose because the building owner’s expectations and preferences (such as not using corporate colors) were not identified or addressed early. In the initiation phase, the project manager should identify and assess stakeholders to understand their influence, requirements, and expectations. Doing so would have revealed the owner’s concerns upfront and prevented the beta release from being blocked later.
Question 137
During the testing phase of a project, an executive raises a concern about a missing requirement in the product. Which of the following is the NEXT step the project manager should take?
A. Communicate the change status.
B. Ask for a change request submission.
C. Escalate to the change control board.
D. Reject the change to prevent scope creep.
Show Answer
Correct Answer: B
Explanation: During testing, a newly identified missing requirement represents a potential change to the approved scope. The correct next step is to follow formal change control by requesting a change request submission so the impact can be analyzed and reviewed before any decision or escalation. Other actions (communicating status, escalating to the CCB, or rejecting) occur only after a change request exists.
Question 138
A project manager will conduct a release on the third Friday of the month. The project manager has notified users that the application will be unavailable for eight hours. Hence, users need to save any information in advance. Which of the following is the project manager most likely conducting?
A. Application deployment
B. Rollback plans
C. Validation checks
D. Maintenance window schedules
Show Answer
Correct Answer: D
Explanation: The scenario describes a planned, scheduled period of downtime (third Friday of the month, eight hours) during which users are notified in advance to save their work. This aligns with a maintenance window schedule, which is specifically used for releases, updates, or system changes that require temporary unavailability.
Question 139
During a kickoff call, a project was rejected by the legal department due to the risk of violating new legislation. Which of the following was applied?
A. Awareness of the local environment
B. Awareness of the brand value
C. Awareness of the resource constraints
D. Awareness of the company's mission
Show Answer
Correct Answer: A
Explanation: The project was rejected because it could violate new legislation, which is part of the external legal and regulatory context. Evaluating and responding to such laws reflects awareness of the local environment rather than brand value, resources, or company mission.
Question 140
A project manager is overseeing the implementation of a major upgrade to a critical ERP system. The project sponsor is requiring that the upgrade should not exceed more than three hours of downtime for the implementation and validation in production. During cutover, the team runs into a validation issue after 2.5 hours, and the process is only 70% through the validation steps. Which of the following actions should the project manager take?
A. Notify customers the downtime will take longer than expected.
B. Add new team members to help speed up validation.
C. Begin executing the rollback plan.
D. Record the issue and proceed with the implementation.
Show Answer
Correct Answer: C
Explanation: The sponsor has imposed a hard constraint of no more than three hours of downtime. At 2.5 hours, validation is incomplete (only 70%) and an issue has been identified, creating a high risk of exceeding the approved downtime window. Best practice during cutover is to adhere to predefined go/no-go criteria; when those criteria cannot be met within the allowed window, the correct action is to execute the rollback plan to restore the system to a stable state. This aligns with change management and risk management principles.
Question 141
Which of the following statements BEST describes zero-based budgeting?
A. Start with the budget from the last project and add any new expenses.
B. Start with allocating expenses based on the importance of the project.
C. Start the project with a fixed amount decided by the management team.
D. Start with no financial plan and justify each new expense.
Show Answer
Correct Answer: D
Explanation: Zero-based budgeting begins from a base of zero, meaning no prior budget is assumed. Every expense must be individually justified based on current needs, rather than carrying forward or adjusting previous budgets.
$19
Get all 377 questions with detailed answers and explanations
Instant download HTML + PDF delivered the moment payment clears.
Secure Stripe checkout we never see or store your card details.
7-day refund if files are defective see our refund policy.