PMI-SP PMI Scheduling Professional Free Practice Exam Questions (2025 Updated)

The various group creativity techniques are as follows: Brainstorming: It is a technique used to generate and collect multiple ideas related to the project and product requirements. Nominal group technique: It is a technique used to enhance brainstorming with a voting process used to rank the most useful ideas for further brainstorming or prioritization. Delphi technique: It is a techniques used to identify potential risk. In this technique, the responses are gathered via a questionnaire from different experts and their inputs are organized according to their contents. Idea/mind mapping: It is a technique used to map the ideas generated by brainstorming to reflect the commonality and differences in understanding and generating new ideas. Affinity diagram: It is a technique used to allow a large number of ideas to be sorted into groups for review and analysis.

What-if scenario analysis explains the analysis of the question "What if the situation represented by scenario 'X' happens?". This What-If Scenario Analysis shortly named as WIS

A. A schedule network analysis is performed using the schedule to compute the different scenarios, such as extending specific engineering durations, or delaying a major component delivery. Businesses use what-if scenarios to determine the effect different costs or investments have on profit and other financial indicators.

Answer option A is incorrect. The schedule analysis is the review of the schedule, but does not examine other possibilities for completing the project work.

Answer option D is incorrect. The root cause analysis helps to determine the reasons why the project is running late.

Answer option B is incorrect. The resource leveling causes the project's duration to increase. It is a technique that resolves resource conflicts by delaying tasks within their slack allowances. The resource leveling is the process in which project teams come across problems when developing their project schedules.

The only statement that is true is that the critical path shows the project's earliest date for completion. 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 non-critical 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 C is incorrect. There can be more than one critical path, as two paths in the project network diagram can both take the same amount of time and be longer than any other paths in the project.

Answer option A is incorrect. The critical path can be, and often is, crashed with extra resources in an attempt to recover the project schedule.

Answer option B is incorrect. The critical path is the longest path to project completion.

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.

Answer option B is incorrect. Required dependency is not a valid term to describe a dependency.

Answer option A is incorrect. Mandatory dependencies describe the required order in which the project work must take place - such as foundation before framing, or the operating system installed before the application may be installed.

Answer option C is incorrect. Discretionary dependencies describe the optional order of the project work, such as painting the walls before installing the carpet.

Fast tracking allows phases of the project to overlap and increases risk for the project. When new risks are introduced into the project they should be recorded in the risk register. Risk register is a document that contains the results of the qualitative risk analysis, quantitative risk analysis, and risk response planning. Description, category, cause, probability of occurring, impact on objectives, proposed responses, owner, and the current status of all identified risks are put in the risk register.

Answer option B is incorrect. The costs do not change because of the new fast tracking requirement.

Answer option C is incorrect. Resource calendars show the availability of project resources.

Answer option A is incorrect. Organizational process assets are updated as a result of updating the risk register when you consider that the risk register will become part of the organizational process assets. However, this is not the best answer for this question.

The phone lines are the medium between the sender/encoder and the decoder/receiver. The communication model shows the traversal of information between two hosts, known as the sender and the receiver. The key components of the model are as follows: Encode: It is used to crypt or code the message into a language that is understood by others. Decode: It is used to decrypt the message back into the meaningful codes. Message and feedback message: It is the output of encoding. Noise: It is referred to anything, which interferes with the transmission and understanding of the message. Medium: It is the method used to convey the message. In the communication process, it is the duty of the sender to send clear and complete information to the receiver so that it is properly received by the receiver, and for confirming that it is properly understood. The duty of the receiver is to make sure that the information received is understood and acknowledged properly. A failure in communication can negatively impact the project.

Answer option A is incorrect. The sender is the person sending the message.

Answer option C is incorrect. The encoder is the outgoing fax machine.

Answer option D is incorrect. The transporter is not part of the communication model.

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.

Templates are used to identify the typical schedule milestones in the Define Activity process. The tools and techniques used in defining the activity process are as follows: Decomposition: It is used to further divide the project work package into a more smaller and convenient form called activities. Rolling Wave Planning: It is a form of progressive elaboration planning where the work to be accomplished in the near term is planned in detail and future work is planned at a higher level of WBS. Templates: It is an activity list or a part of the activity list taken from the previous project and used in a new project. Expert Judgement: The skilled members in a project team or other experts who develop project scope statements can help provide knowledge in defining activities.

The define activities process is the process that may begin once the project's WBS has been completed and approved. It is possible, in some projects, to complete the WBS and the activity list at the same time.

Answer option D is incorrect. Sequencing the activities cannot happen until the activity list has been created.

Answer option A is incorrect. Estimating activity resources is dependent on the activity list, so this choice is not valid.

Answer option C is incorrect. Estimate activity durations are dependent on the activity list, so this choice is not valid.

According to the PMBOK, Gina will not need the WBS directly, but will rely on the scope baseline. A Work Breakdown Structure (WBS) in project management is a tool that defines a project and groups the project's discrete work elements in a way that helps organize and define the total work scope of the project. A WBS element may be a product, data, a service, or any combination. WBS also provides the necessary framework for detailed cost estimating and control along with providing guidance for schedule development and control.

Answer option A is incorrect. The scope baseline is an input to define the project activities.

Answer option D is incorrect. Enterprise environmental factors are an input to define the project activities.

Answer option B is incorrect. Organizational process assets are an input to define the project activities.

Cost performance index (CPI) is used to calculate performance efficiencies. It is used in trend analysis to predict future performance. CPI is the ratio of earned value to actual cost. The CPI is calculated based on the following formula: CPI = Earned Value (EV) / Actual Cost (AC) If the CPI value is greater than 1, it indicates better than expected performance, whereas if the value is less than 1, it shows poor performance. The CPI value of 1 indicates that the project is right on target. In this instances it is $270,000 divided by $335,000 for a CPI of .81.

Answer option B is incorrect. .67 is actually the schedule performance index.

Answer option D is incorrect. -$65,000 is the cost variance for the project.

Answer option A is incorrect. -$135,000 is the schedule variance of the project.

This is an example of three-point estimate. A three-point estimate records the optimistic, most likely, and the pessimistic duration and then records an average for the predicted duration Three-point estimate is a way to enhance the accuracy of activity duration estimates. This concept is originated with the Program Evaluation and Review Technique (PERT). PERT charts the following three estimates: Most likely (TM): The duration of activity based on realistic factors such as resources assigned, interruptions, etc. Optimistic (TO): The activity duration based on the best-case scenario Pessimistic (TP): The activity duration based on the worst-case scenario The expected (TE) activity duration is a weighted average of these three estimates: TE = (TO + 4TM + TP) / 6 Duration estimates based on the above equations (sometimes simple average of the three estimates is also used) provide more accuracy. Here, it is, TE = ( 35 + 50*4 + 95) / 6 = 330/6 = 55

Tom is working with the project communication management process, as it is required to ensure the timely disposition of project information. Project Communications Management is one of the nine Knowledge Areas. It employs the processes required to ensure timely and appropriate generation, collection, distribution, storage, retrieval, and ultimate disposition of project information. The following processes are part of Project Communications Management:

Identify Stakeholders

Plan Communications

Distribute information

Manage Stakeholder Expectations

Report Performance

The Project Communications Management processes provide the critical links among people and information that are necessary for successful communications. These processes interact with each other and with the processes in the other Knowledge Areas as well.

Answer option B is incorrect. Managing stakeholder expectation is the process of working and communicating with the stakeholders to meet their requirements.

Answer option A is incorrect. Work performance measurement uses the information to create project activity metrics to evaluate actual progress compared to planned progress.

Answer option D is incorrect. Stakeholder analysis is the process of gathering and analyzing quantitative and qualitative information to determine the interest of the stakeholders. You are the project manager for your organization. Management has asked you to document the holidays, weekends, and other corporate working hours, which will supersede the project timings for your schedule. Which calendar will communicate to the project stakeholders, when the project work will take place within the organization?

Conformance to schedule is a required adherence for the project's schedule. In this instance, the project manager must not allow the schedule to slip more than five percent.

Answer option B is incorrect. This is the description of the schedule performance index.

Answer option D is incorrect. This is the description of the cost performance index.

Answer option C is incorrect. This is not a valid statement about the project performance.

Soft logic can be completed in any order without affecting the outcome of the deliverables. Soft logic is also known as preferential logic, preferred logic, and discretionary dependency. It is defined on the basis of knowledge of best practices and standard procedures for the particular application area. Soft logic is defined by the project management team based on well- known practices in a specific desired sequence.

Answer options A, D, and C are incorrect. These are not valid definitions of soft logic.

The best answer is simply an exception report. An exception report refers and documents the major mistakes, mishaps, and goofs. In other words, it itemizes the important and critically significant piece of documentation that is vital to the proper and effective functioning of a project. It does not document what has gone right, but rather documents what has gone wrong.

Answer option C is incorrect. A performance management report is not a valid project management report.

Answer option A is incorrect. The question is asked about cost and schedule so this answer would not be appropriate for both the cost and the schedule.

Answer option D is incorrect. The question is asked about cost and schedule so this answer would not be appropriate for both the cost and the schedule.

When the project manager relies on consultants or the project team (or both), it is an example of expert judgment. Expert judgment is a technique based on a set of criteria that has been acquired in a specific knowledge area or product area. It is obtained when the project manager or project team requires specialized knowledge that they do not possess. Expert judgment involves people most familiar with the work of creating estimates. Preferably, the project team member who will be doing the task should complete the estimates. Expert judgment is applied when performing administrative closure activities, and experts should ensure the project or phase closure is performed to the appropriate standards.

Answer option C is incorrect. This is not an example of decomposition.

Answer option B is incorrect. This is not an example of rolling wave planning.

Answer option A is incorrect. This is not an example of using a project template.

The Precedence Diagramming Method uses both predecessors and successors as nodes in the project network diagram. The PDM approach is the most common network diagram approach used.

Answer option C is incorrect. Dependency determination identifies the order of the project work.

Answer option B is incorrect. The schedule network template is a tool that uses a previous project network diagram as a base for the current project network diagram.

Answer option D is incorrect. Activity on the node places activities on circles within a network diagram. It is an example of the precedence diagramming method.

This is an example of a preventive action as you're working with the team before they install the doors to train them on the installation. The checklist is a quality control tool but the question was asking for a project execution activity. Preventive and corrective actions are part of project execution.

Answer option D is incorrect. Quality control is a controlling and monitoring process, not an executing process.

Answer option B is incorrect. The defect repair validation comes after the project team has corrected an error - something that has not occurred in this instance.

Answer option C is incorrect. Corrective action is a response to something that needs to be corrected in the project.