CAPM · Question #66
How can a project manager represent a contingency reserve in the schedule?
The correct answer is C. Additional duration estimates in response to identified risks that have been accepted. A schedule contingency reserve represents additional duration added to account for identified risks that have been accepted, distinguishing it from management reserve which covers unknown-unknown risks.
Question
Options
- AAdditional weeks of work to account for unknown-unknowns risks
- BTask duration estimates of the best case scenarios
- CAdditional duration estimates in response to identified risks that have been accepted
- DMilestones representing the completion of deliverables
How the community answered
(55 responses)- A2% (1)
- B5% (3)
- C91% (50)
- D2% (1)
Why each option
A schedule contingency reserve represents additional duration added to account for identified risks that have been accepted, distinguishing it from management reserve which covers unknown-unknown risks.
Additional time for unknown-unknown risks describes management reserve, not contingency reserve, which is specifically for identified (known-unknown) risks.
Best-case scenario duration estimates describe optimistic estimates used in three-point estimating techniques, not contingency reserves.
Contingency reserves in the schedule are specifically allocated buffer time for known-unknown risks - those that have been identified, analyzed, and accepted as a response strategy. The project manager adds these additional duration estimates to specific activities or phases where the accepted risks could cause delays. This is distinct from management reserve, which handles unforeseeable unknown-unknown risks.
Milestones represent completion points or deliverable handoffs in the schedule and are not a form of contingency reserve.
Concept tested: Schedule contingency reserve for identified risks
Source: https://www.pmi.org/pmbok-guide-standards/foundational/pmbok
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