Project Management Knowledge Assessment - 2

1. David, the project manager, is collaborating with the testing team, and they have identified that for a specific function, the requirement is to measure whether it shows a value of 'yes' or 'no.' The testing team has confirmed that no additional measures are needed, as all other test cases are already covered.

What best denotes this form of measuring the results?

A) Statistical Sampling
B) Variable Sampling
C) Attribute Sampling
D) Prune The Product Tree

2. David, the project manager, is initiating a new project. In a team discussion, they express their preference for writing tests before coding the software.

What is this practice called?

A) Change Management Process
B) Rolling Wave Planning
C) Test-driven Development
D) Low-code Programming

3. The Scrum team has decided to take one item from the product backlog after a discussion with the product owner. They are thinking that this item alone will take 8 weeks of effort to complete.

As a Scrum Master, what should be your advice to the team?

A) Ask the team members to start the work and complete it.
B) Align with the product owner that the sprint will last 8 weeks to complete the work.
C) Advise the team that a single work item of 8 weeks is not advisable and suggest slicing it into smaller tasks to fit into their sprint.
D) Ask the team to estimate again, as their estimation may be incorrect.

4. David, the project manager, is encountering difficulties during the requirements gathering phase of a project. Numerous stakeholders have conflicting requirements, making it challenging to create a cohesive requirements document.

Which option would be most effective for fostering collaboration and achieving a common understanding among stakeholders?

A) Expert Judgement
B) Questionnaires
C) Focus Group
D) Facilitated Workshops

5. Developed by Lean manufacturing experts at Toyota, TIMWOOD is an acronym representing the 7 wastes found in manufacturing.

What do the letters 'T' and 'D' stand for?

A) Transportation, Defects
B) Turnaround time, Defects
C) Transportation, Deliverables
D) Tactics, Delete

6. During a meeting, the team is actively seeking to identify the root cause of a recently encountered problem.

Among the following options, which technique should the team employ for this purpose?

A) Prune the Product Tree
B) Kano Analysis
C) Surveys
D) Five Whys

7. David, the project manager, perceives a lack of visibility into the team's work. To address this, he suggests implementing a tool that can represent the flow of work and help limit work in progress.

What tool is he referring to?

A) Burn down Chart
B) Change Request
C) Gantt Chart
D) Kanban Board

8. The team is currently engaged in strategic decision-making for the project, and various opinions are being expressed. In an effort to reach a final conclusion, David, the project manager, has decided to gather all the opinions and discuss them with a panel of experts in this area.

What technique is he attempting to use?

A) Questionnaires
B) Fish bone Analysis
C) Wideband Delphi
D) Brainstorming

9. The team has initiated a new project and has started working on the first set of requirements. During a meeting, the customer realizes that one of the requirements was misunderstood, and the implementation is incorrect. The work has not been completed yet.

What should the project manager do?

A) Conduct a sudden meeting with the team to fix the issue.
B) Arrange a meeting with the customer and the team to align on how to address the issues.
C) Wait for more issues to be identified as the team has just started the project.
D) Continue working on the topic and fix it later when issues are addressed.

10. David, the pre-assigned project manager for a large IT project, is in the process of forming his team. He has chosen to exclusively work with male team members and plans to discuss this decision with the recruitment team. Additionally, he intends to collaborate virtually with employees if he is unable to hire male individuals in the same location.

What aspects of David's approach might be problematic or raise concerns?

A) Project manager should not have a say in the selection of the team.
B) By hiring men only, he is demonstrating gender bias and is against the principles of equal opportunity and diversity in the workplace.
C) Hiring virtually is not an option for a good team.
D) He is correct in all ways, let him proceed.

Answers

1. The correct answer is C. Attribute Sampling is a statistical method used to measure the quality of a product or service by determining the proportion of items in a sample that conform to a specified set of requirements or attributes. In this case, the attribute being measured is whether the function is showing a value of 'yes' or 'no.'

Statistical Sampling: This method involves selecting a random sample from a population and using statistical analysis to draw conclusions about the entire population.
Variable Sampling: This method involves measuring a continuous variable, such as weight or length, and using statistical analysis to determine if the results are within an acceptable range.
Prune The Product Tree: This is not a sampling method, but rather a technique used in project management to identify and eliminate unnecessary work.

2. The correct answer is C. The practice of writing tests before coding the software is called Test-driven Development (TDD). This practice involves writing automated unit tests before writing the code they are intended to test. The purpose of this practice is to ensure that the code meets the functional requirements and to catch any defects early in the development process.

Some key features of Test-driven Development include:

a) Writing automated unit tests before writing the code they are intended to test
b) Ensuring that all public methods or functions have a functional specification captured in the form of an automated test suite
c) Running the entire suite of all unit tests dozens of times per hour
d) Enhancing the team's ability to shift resources from one part of the application to another and perform collective code ownership

3. Correct answer is C. As a Scrum Master, your advice to the team should be to advise them that a single work item of 8 weeks is not advisable and suggest slicing it into smaller tasks to fit into their sprint. This approach aligns with the Agile principle of breaking down work into smaller, manageable pieces. By doing so, the team can better estimate the effort required for each task and adjust their plan accordingly. Additionally, it allows for more frequent feedback and progress tracking, which can help the team stay on track and make adjustments as needed.

It's important to note that estimation is not an exact science, and it's common for estimates to be off. However, it's important to use the best information available and adjust as needed. In this case, breaking down the work into smaller tasks can help the team get a better understanding of the effort required and adjust their plan accordingly.

4. Correct answer is D. Based on the given scenario, the most effective option for fostering collaboration and achieving a common understanding among stakeholders would be Facilitated Workshops. Facilitated workshops provide a structured environment for stakeholders to come together and discuss their requirements, concerns, and ideas. This option allows for open communication and collaboration among stakeholders, which can help to identify and resolve conflicts and ensure that everyone has a common understanding of the project requirements.

Expert judgement, questionnaires, and focus groups can also be useful tools in requirements gathering, but they may not be as effective in fostering collaboration and achieving a common understanding among stakeholders as facilitated workshops.

5. Correct answer is A. The letters 'T' and 'D' in the TIMWOOD acronym stand for Transportation and Defects, respectively.

Here are the seven wastes represented by the TIMWOOD acronym:

- Transportation
- Inventory
- Motion
- Waiting
- Over Production
- Over Processing
- Defects

TIMWOOD is an acronym representing the seven wastes found in manufacturing.

6. The correct answer is D. The technique that the team should employ to identify the root cause of a recently encountered problem is the Five Whys technique. This technique involves asking "why" multiple times to determine the underlying reason or condition that causes the occurrence of an undesired activity or state. It helps the team understand how different causes may interrelate and is useful for getting to the root cause.

Other techniques that can be used for problem analysis during planning activities include the Cause and Effect Diagram and the A3 Problem Solving process.

7. The correct answer is D. David, the project manager is referring to a Kanban Board. A Kanban Board is a visual tool that represents the flow of work and helps limit work in progress. It is used to manage and optimize the flow of work, improve efficiency, and increase productivity.

Some key features of a Kanban Board include:
1) Visual representation of work items
2) Columns representing different stages of the workflow
3) Work items moving from one column to another as they progress through the workflow
4) Limits on the number of work items allowed in each column to limit work in progress

8. The correct answer is C. David, the project manager, is attempting to use the Wideband Delphi technique to gather all the opinions and discuss them with a panel of experts in this area. The Wideband Delphi technique is a structured communication technique used to elicit and aggregate expert judgments on a particular topic. It involves a series of rounds of questionnaires and feedback, with the goal of reaching a consensus among the experts.

9. The correct answer is B. The project manager should arrange a meeting with the customer and the team to come to an alignment on how to fix the issue. It is important to address the misunderstanding as soon as possible to avoid further issues and delays in the project. Waiting for more issues to identify or continuing to work on the topic without addressing the misunderstanding can lead to more problems and ultimately impact the project's success. By arranging a meeting with the customer and the team, the project manager can clarify the requirements and come up with a plan to fix the issue.

10. The correct answer is B. David's decision to exclusively work with male team members demonstrates gender bias, which goes against the principles of equal opportunity and diversity in the workplace. Making decisions based on gender rather than qualifications, skills, and experience can lead to an environment that lacks inclusivity and may potentially result in legal and ethical issues. It's crucial to promote a workplace culture that values diversity and provides equal opportunities for all individuals, regardless of their gender or other characteristics.