PMP · Question #660
A stakeholder informs the project manager about a few compliance-related gaps and issues. The stakeholder then presents several suggestions to the project manager to address the issues. What should…
The correct answer is A. Discuss the suggestions with the staff responsible for the compliance issues. The project manager should discuss compliance suggestions with the responsible team members to effectively address the identified issues.
Question
Options
- ADiscuss the suggestions with the staff responsible for the compliance issues.
- BReview this with the project sponsor to avoid compliance gaps and issues.
- CLog the feedback from the compliance gaps in the lessons learned register.
- DUse the compliance issues to identify coaching and mentoring opportunities.
How the community answered
(42 responses)- A71% (30)
- B2% (1)
- C10% (4)
- D17% (7)
Why each option
The project manager should discuss compliance suggestions with the responsible team members to effectively address the identified issues.
When a stakeholder provides specific suggestions to address compliance gaps, the project manager should engage the staff directly responsible for those areas to evaluate the suggestions, understand the implications, and plan appropriate actions. This ensures a direct and informed response to the compliance issues.
While the project sponsor needs to be aware of significant compliance issues, the first step is to analyze and address the specifics with the operational team, rather than immediately escalating the suggestions to the sponsor.
Logging feedback in the lessons learned register is typically done after an issue has been addressed or a project phase completed, not as the initial action for an active compliance gap that requires immediate attention.
While compliance issues might highlight areas for coaching, the immediate priority is to resolve the compliance gaps themselves, not to primarily use them as a coaching opportunity.
Concept tested: Stakeholder engagement and issue resolution
Source: https://www.pmi.org/pmbok-guide-standards/foundational/pmbok
Topics
Community Discussion
8
Ingrid P.Jun 13, 2026A is correct. The PMBOK is clear that compliance gaps need to go straight to the people who own that work, not up the chain or into a lessons learned register for later. B is a trap because escalating to the sponsor is only for issues you cannot resolve yourself. C is premature since lessons learned get captured at closure, not when someone hands you active problems. D sounds nice but coaching is a side effect, not the primary response to a compliance issue. Make a card on this one. The trigger is stakeholder reports a compliance gap plus suggestions. The action is discuss with responsible staff
Bao N.Jun 14, 2026Agree on A, and the other tell is that the stakeholder is offering suggestions, which means they want engagement right now, not a thank-you and a parking lot.
Anjali D.Jun 24, 2026A is right but D tempts people. Compliance gaps go to the staff first.
Bao N.Jun 24, 2026Agreed on A, but I would add that D also trips people up because it sounds like a privacy regulation term, which makes it feel like the right place for a compliance gap.
Bao N.Jul 3, 2026I first leaned toward D because coaching and mentoring sounds like a nice proactive move, but the real trigger here is that the stakeholder handed you specific suggestions, so you need to get those in front of the people who actually own the compliance work. A is the only option that closes the loop on that.
Ingrid P.Jul 5, 2026A is correct, and worth a flashcard with the trigger phrase stakeholder suggestions on the front and route to compliance team on the back, but the deeper pattern to capture is that PMP frames forwarding specific actionable input to the responsible party as higher priority than general capability-building activities like coaching.
Prof. SaraMay 31, 2026Picked B. Compliance gaps are a sponsor-level risk escalation, not a team chat.
Ingrid P.Jun 1, 2026A is correct here. Compliance gaps map to the analyze step in the DMAIC control loop, which is a process-level activity, not a sponsor escalation. B is the trap because compliance language sounds like it should go up the chain, but the question is asking about the control phase workflow, not risk reporting.