PMP® PMBOK® Guide – Sixth Edition – Certification Additional Exam Questions

1. The stakeholder engagement assessment matrix is:

A. An output of Stakeholder Engagement, where stakeholders are identified as unaware,
resistant, neutral, supportive, or leading
B. An output of Plan Communications
C. Part of the stakeholder register
D. Part of Performance Reporting
A. It is part of Plan Stakeholder Engagement, tools and techniques. PMBOK® Guide - Sixth Edition, p. 521

2. Which relationship model is most commonly used in Precedence diagrams?

A. Start-to-start
B. Start-to-finish
C. Finish-to-start
D. Finish-to-finish
C. Finish-to-Start is the most commonly used relationship in precedence relationship diagrams.

3. AOA activity diagrams are only represented using _______ representation?

A. Start-to-start
B. Start-to-finish
C. Finish-to-start
D. Finish-to-finish
C. AOA activity diagrams are only represented using finish-to-start representation, meaning that each
activity is completed before the successor activity starts.

4. Which of the following is not true about the Wide Band Delphi technique?
A. Individuals participating must know each other for the Wide Band Delphi technique to
be successful.
B. Wide Band Delphi technique is used to obtain expert opinion on a subject.
C. In Wide Band Delphi technique, participants are generally anonymous.
D. Wide Band Delphi technique is particularly effective when the project team does not
have much familiarity with estimating a domain area.
A. Experts participating in the Delphi technique are anonymous to provide an objective basis for the
evaluating the estimates.

5. Who is typically responsible for approving project charter?

A. Project Sponsor
B. Senior Management
C. Project Manager
D. Project Stakeholders
A. The project sponsor is typically responsible for approving the charter.

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 6. You are the project manager for a mobile phone development project. You are using a new
antenna design. You have identified this as a risk as it might not work as specified. Halfway
through the project, the antenna of the phone has a defect that limits its reception. The team
quickly reviews the situation and determines that if the antenna is mounted in the plastic
housing of the phone, its reception will meet design specifications. This is an example of:
A. Risk mitigation
B. Transfer of risk
C. Work-around
D. Accepting the consequences passively.
C. This is an example of a risk that has become an issue. The team has quickly created an effective
“workaround,” which is the first response in managing an issue.

7. The conflict resolution technique that will yield the longest-lasting solution is:
A. Smoothing
B. Problem Solving
C. Compromising
D. Forcing
B. Problem-solving is the best solution for resolving conflicts and leads to long-lasting conflict resolution.

8. You are the Project Manager for a commercial real estate project in Japan. The area you are
building in is earthquake-prone. To take care of this, you buy insurance for earthquakes. This
is an example of:
A. Risk mitigation
B. Transfer of risk
C. Risk contingency planning
D. Risk sharing
B. Insurance is an example of transferring risk.

9. Which of these is correct with respect to a product developed or a service performed?

A. Bad quality is acceptable, but bad grade is not.
B. Bad grade is acceptable, but bad quality is not.
C. Neither bad grade nor quality is acceptable.
D. Grade and quality refer to the same thing.
B. Grade refers to category or rank given to entities that have the same functional use but different
technical characteristics. As an example, a basic $10K car belongs to a different grade when compared
to a $50K luxury car. They are both cars but have different technical characteristics that lead to
differences in grade.

10. Which of the following theories was suggested by Deming?

A. Apply continuous small improvements to reduce costs and ensure consistency
B. Marginal Analysis
C. Expectancy theory - people expect to be rewarded for their efforts
D. Plan-do-check-act to improve quality
D. The plan-do-check-act theory was proposed by Deming.

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 11. Which of the following is not a tool for the Control Quality process?
A. Inspection
B. Benchmarking
C. Cause and Effect Diagrams
D. Histogram
B. Benchmarking is not a tool for the Control Quality process.

12. You are the Project Manager for a large enterprise. You are reviewing the issue log and want
to determine which issues have the most significant impact on the project. Which tool should
you use?
A. Pareto diagram
B. Control chart
C. Trend analysis
D. Fishbone diagram
A. A Pareto chart is built on the 80:20 theory. 80% of the project impacts are caused by 20% of the
issues. You should focus on these issues initially.

13. When analyzing quality for a project, a Project Manager decides to use a specific tool. This
tool provides a creative way to look at the causes or potential causes of a problem. Which tool
is the Project Manager planning to use?
A. Pareto diagram
B. Control chart
C. Statistical sampling
D. Ishikawa diagram
D. Ishikawa or Fish bone diagram is the tool that the Project Manager is planning to use.

14. A Project Manager is following the network diagram. The network diagram is represented as
shown below. Which of the following represents the critical path?

Activity Duration in Days Dependent on

A 3 none
C 3 none

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 B 2 A
D 5 C
E 2 none
F 4 E
G 3 D,F
H 1 D,F
I 2 B,G
R 0 H,I
A. ABIR
B. CDHR
C. CDGIR
D. EFGIR
C. CDGIR represents the critical path. It is the longest path through the network with a duration of 13
days.

15. For the following sequence diagram, what is the float of activity B?

A. 2
B. 3
C. 5
D. 6
D. The path ABIR has a duration of seven. Hence, B can be delayed by six days before the next event can
begin.

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 16. For the following sequence diagram, what is the float of activity H?

A. 2
B. 3
C. 4
D. 6
C. The path CDHR has a duration of nine days. Hence, H can be delayed by four days before the next
event can begin.

17. According to Herzberg, which of these is not an example of hygiene factor?

A. job security
B. salary
C. safe working conditions
D. appreciation of work
D. Job security, salary, and clean and safe working conditions are examples of hygiene factor.
Appreciation at work is not a hygiene factor but is a motivating factor.

18. According to Maslow's hierarchy of needs, which is the lowest level that must be met before other
levels can be met?
A. Esteem
B. Physiological
C. Social
D. Safety
B. Physiological factors appear at the lowest level of Maslow's hierarchy pyramid.

19. Which of these is not a project benefits measurement selection method?

A. Integer Algorithm
B. Internal Rate of Return
C. Weighted Scoring model
D. Net Present Value
E. Integer algorithm is not a measure for selecting a project. Project success measures like Internal Rate
of Return, Weighted Scoring models, and Net Present Value are all part of the Project Benefits
Management plan. PMBOK® Guide - Sixth Edition p. 33

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20. Which of these is a not a constrained optimization project selection method?
A. Integer programming
B. Linear programming
C. Murder board
D. Dynamic programming
C. Constrained optimization project selection uses mathematical calculations to select a project.
Murder board is a process where a committee asks difficult and challenging questions from project
representatives as part of the project selection process.

21. Which of these is a process in the Scope Management knowledge area?

A. Identify Scope
B. Clarify Scope
C. Control Scope
D. Close Scope
C. Control Scope process is part of scope management knowledge area. PMBOK® Guide - Sixth Edition,
p. 129

22. You have recently been assigned as the Project Manager to an existing project. You are trying to
read the WBS to understand the scope of the project, and you are unable to understand some of the
WBS components. What should be your first step to understand this?
A. Refer to the WBS dictionary
B. Refer to the scope statement
C. Refer to the Project charter
D. Contact the previous Project Manager
A. Referencing the WBS dictionary is the best option. The WBS Dictionary identifies all the components
used in the WBS. PMBOK® Guide - Sixth Edition, p. 162

23. Who among the following is responsible for performing scope validation
A. Project Manager
B. Senior Management
C. The quality team
D. The customer
D. Scope Validation is the process of the customer accepting the project deliverables.

24. You are planning to use PERT technique to estimate your project. A task has a pessimistic estimate
of 24 days, most likely estimate of 15 days, and an optimistic estimate of 12 days. What is the mean?
A. 18 days
B. 25.5 days
C. 15 days
D. 16 days
D. The Mean for PERT is defined as (P+4M+O)/6 or 24+4(15)+12=16 days.

25. Which of these is a process in the Project Procurement Management knowledge area?
A. Select Sellers
B. Control Procurements

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 C. Control Contracts
D. Plan Purchases and Acquisitions
F. Control Procurements is a process in the Project Procurement Management Knowledge area.
PMBOK® Guide - Sixth Edition, p. 459

26. Which of these statements illustrates Oligopoly?

A. There is only one qualified seller in the market.
B. There are no sellers in the market, so you have to build the product in-house.
C. There are a few sellers, and the actions of one seller will have impact on other sellers’
prizes.
D. Your company prefers to contract with only one seller.
E. In an oligopoly, the action of one seller has an impact on other sellers as there are very few sellers.

27. You are using straight line depreciation to compute the value of your computer after three years.
If the current cost is $1000, what will be the value after three years, assuming that the computer's life
is five years?
A. $0
B. $400
C. $500
D. $600
B. Each year, $200 gets removed from the value of computer. After three years, the value becomes
$400.

28. Which of the following is not true about analogous estimating?

A. Estimate is based on past projects.
B. It is not very accurate.
C. It uses bottom-up approach.
D. It is a form of an expert judgment.
C. Analogous estimating is based on analogies from past projects or experts; it is not as accurate as a
bottom-up estimate but it is faster to estimate with this approach.

29. Which of these is an example of process in the closing process group?

A. Close Procurements
B. Scope Closure
C. Close Project or phase
D. Scope Validation
C. Close Project or Phase is the only closure process and is part of the Project Integration Management
knowledge area. Note: Close Procurements has been removed from the newest version of the PMBOK.
You can reference PMBOK® Guide - Sixth Edition, p. 121 for more information.

30. The authority to approve or deny change request lies with:

A. Project Manager
B. Customer
C. Project Sponsor

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 D. Change Control Board
F. The Change Control Board has the authority to approve or deny change requests.

31. You are the Project Manager of a project. You want to find the planned expenses for the coming
month. Which document do you need to refer to?
A. Cost Management Plan
B. Cost Baseline
C. Cost Control Plan
D. Cost Variance report
B. The Cost baseline includes the project budget for each month. PMBOK® Guide - Sixth Edition, p. 254.

32. Which of the following is not true about the WBS report?
A. WBS should focus on the activities that must be performed in the project and should not
focus on the deliverables.
B. The project team must be involved in developing the WBS.
C. As a rule of thumb, each activity of WBS should take less than 80 hours.
D. WBS is usually represented in a hierarchical fashion.
A. The WBS should focus on deliverables, not activities.

33. Which of the following processes produces the WBS as an output?

A. Plan Scope
B. Initiate Project
C. Define Activities
D. Create WBS
D. WBS is an output of the Create WBS. PMBOK® Guide - Sixth Edition, p. 156.

34. Which process identifies the project manager?

A. Develop Project Management Plan
B. Develop Project Charter
C. Define Scope
D. Select Project Process
B. The Project Manager is identified as part of the Develop Project Charter process.

35. You are the Project Manager assigned to build a vehicle. You identify a dependency that the
wheels must be designed and developed before the assembly of the vehicle can be performed. This is
an example of _______ dependency.
A. External
B. Discretionary
C. Soft Logic
D. Mandatory
D. A Mandatory dependency represents dependencies due to the nature of work.

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36. You are required to estimate the time to paint a large wall. You know it takes two hours to paint
one square foot of the wall. The wall has an area of 30 square feet. You estimate that it will take 60
hours to paint the wall. Which estimation model are you using?
A. Bottom-up
B. Parametric estimating
C. Analogous
D. Expert judgment
B. This is a form of Parametric estimating.

37. You are the project manager responsible for building a new website. The project is running late. To
bring the project on schedule, you decide to add additional resources to the critical path. This is an
example of:
A. Fast-tracking
B. Resource planning
C. Crashing
D. Schedule Management
C. Crashing involves adding extra resources to reduce the project duration. PMBOK® Guide - Sixth
Edition, p. 215

38. You are the project manager of a project. One of the risks that has been identified is attrition of
team members. Mid-way through the project, you notice that team morale and motivation are going
down. You think that this is a precursor to people leaving the organization. Low motivation is an
example of:
A. Workaround
B. Trigger
C. Risk monitoring
D. Risk planning
B. A risk trigger is an indication that the risk is about to occur or has occurred. PMBOK® Guide - Sixth
Edition, p. 417

39. You are working on a project to paint a house. You identify a dependency that the painting of the
ceiling can only begin two days after painting of the walls. This is an example of:
A. Lag
B. Lead
C. Slack
D. Float
A. This is an example of a lag. Lag is the amount of time after the completion of the predecessor activity,
when the successor activity can start.

40. What percentage of a Project Manager's time is spent on communicating?

A. 30
B. 50
C. 70
D. 90
D. According to the PMI, 90% of a Project Manager’s time is spent in communicating.

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41. You are the Project Manager for a project. The scope of the project has been completed. You
receive a request for a new module to be developed as part of the project. What should you do next?
A. You should approach the Project sponsor and ask her for a new module to be developed
as part of the project.
B. You should approach the Senior Management and ask them for a new module to be
developed as part of the project.
C. You should send the request to Change Control Board for approval.
D. As the project scope has been completed, you should inform the customer that this
change cannot be done as part of the project.
D. As the scope has been completed, the project is complete. Additional work should be done as part of
a new project.

42. Manage Quality process is part of _______ process group.

A. Planning
B. Execution
C. Control
D. Closure
B. Manage Quality is part of Execution process group. PMBOK® Guide - Sixth Edition, p. 288. Note: this
was previously described as Perform Quality Assurance in previous versions of the PMBOK® Guide.

43. You are managing a party for your company’s employees. There is a risk that the employees will
not come to the party. You decide to not take any action against this as the likelihood of this is low.
Which risk response strategy are you following?
A. Acceptance
B. Avoidance
C. Mitigation
D. Transference
A. This is an example of an “Acceptance” risk response strategy.

44. The process of Conduct Procurements is part of _______ process group.

A. Planning
B. Execution
C. Control
D. Closure
B. Conduct Procurements is part of execution process group. PMBOK® Guide - Sixth Edition, p. 482

45. You are the Project Manager of a project. There was a conflict between two key project members.
The three of you meet and decide to use compromise as the conflict resolution technique.
Compromise generally leads to a:
A. Win-Win situation
B. Win-Lose situation
C. Lose-Lose situation
D. None of these
C. According to PMI, Compromise is an example of a lose-lose situation. PMBOK® Guide - Sixth Edition,
p. 349

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46. The Procurement Statements of Work is an output of the _______ process.
A. Plan Procurements
B. Conduct Procurements
C. Control Procurements
D. Close Procurements
A. The Procurement Statements of Work is an output of the Plan Procurements process.

47. Which of these is a tool for Develop Project Charter process?

A. Project selection methods
B. Project management methodology
C. Expert Judgment
D. Earned Value Technique
C. Expert judgment is a tool for the Develop Project Charter process.

48. Which of the following best describes the purpose of a war room?
A. A war room is used for meetings between the Project Manager and the customer.
B. A war room is used for important meetings between the Project team and the senior
management.
C. A war room is used for collocation.
D. Whenever there is a resource conflict between different Project Managers, they meet in
a war room.
C. A war room is used for collocation to facilitate communication within the team.

49. You are working on a project to build a bridge. You have reached the planned halfway mark. The
total planned cost at this stage is five hundred dollars. The actual physical work that has been
completed at this stage is worth $400. You have already spent one thousand dollars on the project.
What is the Schedule Variance?
A. -100
B. 100
C. -600
D. 600
A. The Schedule Variance is -$100 as you have only completed $400 of the $500 planned value.

50. You are the Project Manager of a project that involves building a computer. Your team members
follow what you tell them because they respect your experience and they trust you to listen to their
inputs to make informed decisions. This is an example of _______ power.
A. Coercive
B. Referent
C. Formal
D. Reward
B. This is an example of referent power. Referent power refers to the ability of a leader to influence a
follower because of the follower's loyalty, respect, friendship, admiration, affection, or a desire to gain
approval.

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51. The cost baseline is usually represented using:
A. A Slanted line
B. An S-curve
C. A Z curve
D. A PQ curve
B. An S-curve is typically used to represent a cost baseline. The cost is low in the beginning and end and
high during the middle of the project.

52. You are in the process of Source Selection for a contract for your project. You are planning to use a
weighting process for source selection. There are four vendors being considered. There are two
deciding factors: price (weight 40) and quality (weight 60). The scores of the four vendors that your
team has interviewed are displayed in the table below. Which vendor among these four should be
chosen?
Vendor scores

Vendor 1 Vendor 2 Vendor 3 Vendor 4

Price 8 10 12 11
Quality 12 10 8 11
A. Vendor 1
B. Vendor 2
C. Vendor 3
D. Vendor 4
D. We need to compute the following for all the vendors: (0.4*Price + 0.6*Quality). The scores for
vendor 1, vendor 2, vendor 3, and vendor 4 are 10.4, 10, 9.6, and 11 respectively. Since vendor 4 has the
highest score, 4 should be selected.

53. Which of the following indicates that the project is doing well? Select the best option.
A. A negative Cost Variance
B. An SPI of less than one
C. A negative schedule variance
D. A CPI of greater than one.
D. A CPI greater than one indicates you are spending less money than planned to deliver the project.

54. You are performing Earned Value Reporting for your project. The project's CPI is 0.9, and the
budget at completion is $1,000. What is the estimated cost at completion?
A. $900
B. $1,100
C. $1,000
D. $1,010
B. Based on the information provided, the best formula to calculate the Estimate at Completion (EAC)
would be (BAC/CPI) or $1,000/.9 = $1,100

55. You are working on a project to build a bridge. You have reached the planned halfway mark. The
total planned cost at this stage is five hundred dollars. The actual physical work that has been

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completed at this stage is worth $400. You have already spent one thousand dollars on the project.
What is the CPI?
A. 0.8
B. 1.2
C. 0.5
D. 0.4
D. CPI = EV/AC. EV=400, AC = 1000, PV=500. Therefore, CPI = $400/$1,000 or .4

56. John needs to visit many countries as part of his job. He has learned that he needs to avoid being
ethnocentric. What does ethnocentrism mean?
A. Not being friendly to strangers
B. Not being able to adjust to the food of a new place
C. Belief that one’s culture is superior to that of others
D. Initial shock of arriving in a new country
C. Ethnocentrism refers to a belief that one’s culture is superior to other cultures.

57. You are planning to use a screening system to select a vendor to supply food for your company.
Which of these is a good example of a screening system?
A. You interview all the vendors and decide based upon the interviews.
B. You negotiate with all the vendors and select the one that provides the best price.
C. You only consider those vendors who have had revenue of ten million dollars in the last
financial year.
D. You select the vendor who responds first to your advertisement.
C. A Screening system is a predefined criterion that is used to short-list vendors for source selection.

58. Which of the following is NOT an input to the Conduct Procurements process?
A. Source selection criteria
B. Seller proposals
C. Organizational process assets
D. WBS
D. WBS is not an input to the Conduct Procurements process. PMBOK® Guide - Sixth Edition, p.
482

59. You are using control charts to control quality. Which of these situations indicates that the process
is out of control and an assignable cause needs to be determined? Assume that the control limits have
been set to three sigma.
A. One of the points is more than the mean + (3*sigma).
B. Two points together are more than mean +(2*sigma), but less than mean + (3*sigma).
C. Seven points together are on one side of the mean.
D. Two points are outside the Upper Control Limit.
C. Seven data points on one side of the mean is a statistical anomaly and shows that the process is out
of control.

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60. You are the Project Manager at a car manufacturing company. As part of Quality Control, you
decide to check only 5% of the cars generated for an environmental check. Which technique are you
using?
A. Pareto Diagram
B. Control Charts
C. Statistical Sampling
D. Sample Selection
C. Statistical Sampling is the standard technique that is used to test only a small sample of products
instead of all the products manufactured.

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