PMP Question #452: Real Exam Question with Answer & Explanation

Question

A project manager has two projects that are being executed at the same time. The duration of the critical project must be reduced, but the project manager does not have enough resources to achieve this goal. In addition, the schedule does not have activities that can be overlapped. What should the project manager do?

Options

• AAnalyze both projects to determine the most effective use of common resources
• BUse resource optimization to justify requesting more resources for the critical project
• CProvide schedule optimization training to the project teams to improve their skills
• DApply fast-tracking techniques to compress the schedule of the critical project

Explanation

The project manager needs to reduce the critical project's duration but lacks resources and cannot fast-track. The best course of action is to re-evaluate resource allocation across both active projects to find efficiencies.

Common mistakes.

• B. Requesting more resources is not the first step when resources are already constrained across two simultaneous projects; the priority should be optimizing existing ones.
• C. Training improves skills but does not immediately address the current resource shortage or the inability to compress the schedule by overlapping activities.
• D. The question explicitly states that the schedule does not have activities that can be overlapped, making fast-tracking an unsuitable technique in this scenario.

Concept tested. Resource optimization and allocation

Reference. https://www.pmi.org/pmbok-guide-standards/foundational/pmbok/resource-management

No community discussion yet for this question.