PMP · Question #983
Due to price inflation, an agile project manager has identified that the available project funding will not be enough to bring on an additional team member for the upcoming iterations as initially…
The correct answer is D. Request the current team to analyze the work planned for the additional resource. Given tight budget and deadlines, the project manager should first engage the experienced existing team to analyze the work planned for the missing resource. This leverages their expertise to assess the impact and find internal solutions before escalating or making external…
Question
Options
- AAsk the business stakeholders to reduce the number of features required for the product.
- BDelay the hiring of the additional resource until market conditions are favorable to work within
- CAsk the functional managers to source a less experienced and less expensive team member for
- DRequest the current team to analyze the work planned for the additional resource.
How the community answered
(21 responses)- A24% (5)
- B14% (3)
- C5% (1)
- D57% (12)
Why each option
Given tight budget and deadlines, the project manager should first engage the experienced existing team to analyze the work planned for the missing resource. This leverages their expertise to assess the impact and find internal solutions before escalating or making external adjustments.
Asking business stakeholders to reduce features is a viable option, but typically comes after the team has assessed the current capacity and impact of the resource constraint. It's often an escalation rather than a first internal step.
Delaying hiring doesn't solve the immediate problem of resource constraint for "upcoming iterations" and only postpones addressing the capacity gap.
Sourcing a less experienced or less expensive team member might introduce quality risks or require more mentoring, potentially impacting the experienced team's velocity and contradicting the initial plan for a capable resource.
In an agile environment, the existing cross-functional team is best positioned to understand the work, estimate its complexity, and identify potential ways to absorb or re-prioritize tasks without an additional member. By requesting the current team to analyze the work, the project manager leverages their expertise to collaboratively find solutions and adapt the plan, which aligns with agile principles of self-organizing teams and continuous planning.
Concept tested: Agile team self-organization and problem-solving
Source: https://www.scrum.org/resources/what-is-a-scrum-team
Topics
Community Discussion
4
Mateus R.Dec 29, 2025D is the answer here. Think of it like a farmer who can't afford to hire an extra hand for the harvest: before cutting crops from the field or waiting for better weather, he sits down with his seasoned crew to figure out how to rearrange the workload. In agile terms, you empower the existing cross-functional team to inspect the upcoming iteration backlog and self-organize around the work, which respects the tight budget and deadline without compromising quality.
Prof. SaraDec 13, 2025I first leaned toward A but tight deadlines mean D leverages the experienced team first.
Luis F.Dec 17, 2025Going with B here. The budget is fixed and deadlines are tight, so delaying the hire keeps the current experienced team focused on delivering without compromising scope or quality.
Prof. SaraDec 20, 2025D is correct because adding a junior developer is the classic resource-leveling move the exam wants when a project is behind schedule and has a fixed budget. B trips people up because it sounds pragmatic, but it ignores the schedule risk the stem is highlighting, and you cannot just assume the current team absorbs the gap without quality or scope taking a hit.