PMP · Question #1411
During a team meeting the new agile project manager becomes aware that there are many complaints from the customer regarding project stability and other critical issues. A team member states that…
The correct answer is D. Hold a brainstorming session to identify the root cause of the complaints. When facing customer complaints about project stability despite team assurances, the new agile project manager should hold a brainstorming session to identify the root cause of these discrepancies.
Question
During a team meeting the new agile project manager becomes aware that there are many complaints from the customer regarding project stability and other critical issues. A team member states that the deliverables were developed by experienced employees who confirmed that the project was stable. How should the new project manager address these concerns?
Options
- AAllow the agile team to decide what they are able to deliver in each iteration
- BAsk the team for additional feedback and add tasks to the task board
- CDocument the customer's complaints and critical issues in the issue log
- DHold a brainstorming session to identify the root cause of the complaints
How the community answered
(47 responses)- A19% (9)
- B11% (5)
- C4% (2)
- D66% (31)
Why each option
When facing customer complaints about project stability despite team assurances, the new agile project manager should hold a brainstorming session to identify the root cause of these discrepancies.
While an agile team determines its iteration capacity, this choice does not address the existing customer complaints about stability and critical issues; it's a standard agile practice, not a solution for this specific problem.
Asking for additional feedback and adding tasks to the task board is a reactive approach that doesn't address the root cause of the complaints; it might just be treating symptoms without understanding the underlying issue.
Documenting complaints in the issue log is part of issue management, but it's a reactive action. The project manager needs to address the concerns, not just record them, especially when there's a contradiction between customer and team perspectives.
Customer complaints about stability directly contradict the team's assessment, indicating a potential disconnect or an unaddressed underlying problem. Holding a brainstorming session for root cause analysis is a crucial first step to understand why these complaints are arising and to formulate effective solutions, rather than just documenting or accepting the team's initial assertion.
Concept tested: Root cause analysis and problem-solving
Source: https://www.pmi.org/pmbok-guide-standards/foundational/agile-practice-guide
Topics
Community Discussion
7
Yusuf A.Jun 5, 2026D is the right call here. One of the senior PMs at my company told me that when you get customer complaints that contradict what the team is telling you, you have to dig into the root cause before doing anything else. Just logging the issues in C or adding tasks in B puts a band-aid on it without actually understanding why the customer sees instability. A brainstorming session gets everyone talking and uncovers whether it is a real technical problem or just a communication and expectations gap.
Bao N.Jun 8, 2026D is right but the stem usually says the team already investigated, so watch for that wording because it flips people to C on retake.
Olusegun A.Jun 11, 2026D is the right call here because the customer is reporting actual problems and the team is basically dismissing them based on their own confidence. In agile you still need to get to root cause when stakeholders raise critical issues, and a brainstorming session forces that conversation instead of letting the team keep telling themselves everything is fine. Option A sounds agile-friendly but it just kicks the can down the road without addressing why the customer is upset. Option C is too passive for a collaborative environment where you want the team owning the solution. One thing I always wonder about these scenarios though: at what point does persistent customer dissatisfaction despite
Ola B.Jun 29, 2026D is right but I almost went with C because logging complaints feels like the responsible first step. The key is the gap between the team saying everything is stable and the customer saying otherwise, you need to get everyone in a room and brainstorm the root cause before you start documenting anything.
Dervla O.May 25, 2026D is right. Complaints about stability from the customer demand root cause analysis, not task board updates.
Bao N.Jun 17, 2026D is correct here. The team is claiming everything is fine while the customer disagrees, so you need a brainstorming session to get at the actual root cause instead of just trusting one side.
Olusegun A.Jun 18, 2026D is right but call it what it is: you are running a root cause analysis, not a brainstorming session, and the real deliverable is getting both sides to agree on the problem statement before you waste time debating solutions.