PMP · Question #995
A customer asks the project manager to complete a project 10 days earlier than planned due to marketing constraints. After discussing this request with the project team, the project manager concludes
The correct answer is A. Fast-track the activities based on limitations and dependencies.. A customer requests a 10-day earlier project completion, and the team identifies activity overlapping as a viable solution.
Question
A customer asks the project manager to complete a project 10 days earlier than planned due to marketing constraints. After discussing this request with the project team, the project manager concludes that this can be achieved if a few activities can be overlapped. Which approach should the project manager take?
Options
- AFast-track the activities based on limitations and dependencies.
- BRelease the minimum viable product (MVP) earlier and enhance it in the next iteration.
- CReview the schedule and perform resource leveling.
- DAdd subject matter experts (SMEs) to perform the project activities in parallel.
How the community answered
(26 responses)- A85% (22)
- B4% (1)
- C4% (1)
- D8% (2)
Why each option
A customer requests a 10-day earlier project completion, and the team identifies activity overlapping as a viable solution.
Fast-tracking is a schedule compression technique that involves performing activities in parallel or overlapping them, which aligns directly with the team's identified solution. This method shortens the project duration by adjusting the sequence of tasks while carefully managing dependencies and limitations.
Releasing an MVP earlier is a product delivery strategy, not a direct technique for compressing the entire project schedule to meet a fixed earlier deadline for the current scope.
Resource leveling typically adjusts the schedule to optimize resource utilization, often delaying activities, which would extend the project duration, not shorten it.
Adding SMEs to perform activities in parallel is a form of crashing, which is an option for schedule compression, but the question specifically notes the team identified *overlapping activities*, making fast-tracking the more direct and cost-effective approach mentioned.
Concept tested: Schedule compression techniques (Fast-tracking)
Source: https://www.pmi.org/pmbok-guide-standards/foundational/pmbok
Topics
Community Discussion
6
Anjali D.Jul 5, 2026A is correct. Overlapping activities that were originally sequential is the textbook definition of fast-tracking, which is exactly what the team proposed to compress the schedule by 10 days. Most of us in the study group agreed, though a few people leaned toward C because resource leveling sounds proactive, but that technique balances workloads rather than shortening timelines.
Yusuf A.Jul 5, 2026A is correct here. One of the senior PMs at my company always says overlapping activities that were originally sequential is the textbook definition of fast-tracking, which usually increases risk but costs nothing extra.
Yuki V.Jul 5, 2026Saw this on my exam last month, overlapping activities is fast-tracking, picked A.
Luis F.Jul 4, 2026Going with B here, overlapping activities sounds like fast tracking but the MVP angle fits better when a customer wants something sooner. You deliver the core value early for marketing, then enhance in the next iteration so nobody is forced into risky schedule compression.
Yusuf A.Jul 6, 2026Actually A is the answer here. One of the senior PMs at my shop showed me this exact distinction: the question specifically calls out overlapping activities that were originally planned sequentially, and that is the textbook definition of fast tracking, not MVP delivery.
Lena V.Jul 5, 2026A is correct. Overlapping activities that were originally sequential is the textbook definition of fast-tracking, though the "limitations and dependencies" phrasing is awkward. D is the trap since adding SMEs describes crashing, not overlapping, and the question never mentions budget flexibility.