PMP Practice Questions

You are managing a pharmaceutical research project following a stage-gate process. Your project has just completed the Phase 2 clinical trials deliverable. According to the project management plan, a phase gate review is scheduled before proceeding to Phase 3 trials, which will require significant investment. During your preparation for the gate review, you discover that while the trials met their primary endpoint, two secondary endpoints showed concerning trends. The data is not conclusive but suggests potential issues. The project is currently on schedule and under budget. What should you do?

October 7, 2026

Your project team has completed the project scope statement and is now developing the work breakdown structure (WBS). One of your team members suggests creating work packages at different levels of decomposition across the WBS—some at a very detailed level that can be completed in days, and others at a higher level representing several weeks of work. The team member argues this will save time in the planning process. What is the best approach?

October 7, 2026

You are managing a software development project using a waterfall methodology. During the design phase, your technical lead identifies that implementing a requested feature will require a third-party library that introduces significant security vulnerabilities. The feature was explicitly defined in the approved scope baseline and is important to the customer. After analysis, your team proposes an alternative technical approach that provides similar functionality without the security risk but will add $15,000 to the project cost. What should you do?

October 7, 2026

Your construction project is 60% complete when you conduct an earned value analysis. The results show: PV = $500,000, EV = $450,000, AC = $480,000. The project sponsor asks you to provide a forecast of the final project cost. Based on current performance trends, you believe the cost variance is atypical and future work will be performed at the planned rate. What estimate at completion (EAC) should you report?

October 7, 2026

You are managing a large infrastructure project using a predictive approach. During the execution phase, a key vendor informs you that a critical component will be delayed by three weeks due to manufacturing issues. This delay will impact the critical path and potentially the project's contractual completion date. The project sponsor is highly concerned about meeting the deadline. What should you do first?

October 7, 2026

You are managing a pharmaceutical research project following a stage-gate predictive methodology. Your project has just completed the design phase, and you are preparing for the gate review before entering the development phase. During preparation, you discover that one of the key assumptions documented in the project charter—that a specific research facility would be available—is no longer valid due to facility renovations. The next available equivalent facility is in a different location and would increase project costs by 8%. What should you do BEFORE the gate review?

September 29, 2026

You are managing a large infrastructure project with multiple subcontractors. One of your key vendors has completed their deliverable, and you are conducting procurement closure activities. While reviewing the final deliverable, you notice it meets all technical specifications in the contract, but the vendor failed to submit three required progress reports during execution as stipulated in the contract terms. The vendor is requesting final payment and contract closure. What is the MOST appropriate action?

September 29, 2026

You are managing a software implementation project for a financial institution using a waterfall approach. During quality testing, the QA team discovers that 12% of test cases are failing, primarily related to security authentication features. The quality management plan specified that no more than 5% of test cases should fail at this stage. The development team believes they can fix the issues within one week, but this will delay the scheduled user acceptance testing. What should you do?

September 29, 2026

Your manufacturing project is in the planning phase, and you are developing the cost baseline. You have completed bottom-up estimating for all work packages and have aggregated these costs. The finance department requires a 10% management reserve for organizational risks, and historical data shows similar projects typically experience 15% cost variance. Your project sponsor asks what the final project budget should include. What is the MOST appropriate approach?

September 29, 2026

You are managing a construction project using a predictive approach. During the execution phase, a key supplier informs you that critical materials will be delayed by three weeks due to manufacturing issues. The delay will impact the critical path and push the project completion date beyond the contractually agreed deadline. Several team members suggest crashing the schedule by adding overtime resources, while the sponsor wants to explore fast-tracking options. What should you do FIRST?

September 29, 2026

You are managing a 14-month product development project currently in month 8. The project has a documented communications management plan that specifies monthly status reports to stakeholders. A key stakeholder who rarely attended review meetings or responded to status reports suddenly expresses strong dissatisfaction with the project direction during a chance meeting with your sponsor. The sponsor is now questioning your stakeholder management approach. Upon investigation, you discover this stakeholder's engagement level has dropped from 'supportive' to 'resistant' without your awareness. What should you have done differently?

September 18, 2026

You are managing a software development project using a predictive approach. During a quality audit, the quality assurance team identifies that 15% of the deliverables from the development phase contain defects that meet the defined acceptance criteria but fall short of industry best practices for security standards. The project quality management plan specifies conformance to acceptance criteria as the measure of quality. Fixing these issues would require additional time and budget not currently allocated. What should you do?

September 18, 2026

Your manufacturing project is in the execution phase. A critical supplier informs you that a key component will be delayed by three weeks due to material shortages. This component is on the critical path and was scheduled to be delivered in two weeks. You review your risk register and find that supplier delays were identified as a risk, with a mitigation strategy to identify alternate suppliers. However, no alternate suppliers were pre-qualified. What should you do first?

September 18, 2026

You are managing a construction project with a 12-month timeline and a fixed budget of $2.5 million. During the fourth month, you conduct an earned value analysis and find that the Cost Performance Index (CPI) is 0.85 and the Schedule Performance Index (SPI) is 0.92. The sponsor asks you to forecast the final project cost assuming current performance continues. What is the most appropriate estimate to provide?

September 18, 2026

Your project team has completed the work breakdown structure (WBS) for a complex infrastructure project. During the activity definition process, a senior team member suggests that some work packages are still too large and should be decomposed further into smaller activities. Another team member argues that further decomposition is unnecessary and will create excessive administrative overhead. The work packages in question represent approximately 120 hours of work each. How should you proceed?

September 18, 2026

You are managing a construction project with a 24-month timeline and a fixed budget of $8 million. During month 6, you calculate that the Earned Value (EV) is $2.1 million, the Planned Value (PV) is $2.4 million, and the Actual Cost (AC) is $2.3 million. The project sponsor asks you to forecast the final project cost based on current performance trends. What should you report as the Estimate at Completion (EAC) assuming current cost performance continues?

September 18, 2026

You are leading a software development project using a waterfall approach. The design phase has been completed and approved by stakeholders. As the development phase begins, a key stakeholder requests a significant change to the user interface that would require redesigning several approved components. The change would add value but was not included in the original scope. The stakeholder insists this is just a clarification of the original requirements. What is your BEST course of action?

September 18, 2026

You are managing a bridge construction project with a 36-month duration and multiple work packages. The project is in month 12, and you are conducting a quality audit. You discover that concrete testing procedures documented in the quality management plan have not been consistently followed by the construction subcontractor for the past two months. The subcontractor claims the alternative testing methods they used are equivalent and meet industry standards. No structural failures have occurred. What should you do?

September 18, 2026

During the execution phase of a pharmaceutical manufacturing project, you discover that a critical piece of equipment specified in the project scope has been discontinued by the manufacturer. Three alternative equipment options are available, each with different costs, lead times, and technical specifications. One option closely matches the original specifications but costs 30% more and has a 3-month longer lead time. Another option costs the same but has reduced capacity. A third option is cheaper and faster but requires modifications to the facility design. What should you do FIRST?

September 18, 2026

You are managing a manufacturing project to deliver 500 custom components over 10 months. After 4 months, you have delivered 180 components. The project budget is $500,000, and you have spent $195,000 so far. According to the baseline schedule, you should have delivered 200 components by now. Senior management wants to know if the project will meet its deadline. What is the Schedule Performance Index (SPI) and what does it indicate about schedule performance?

September 18, 2026

You are managing a pharmaceutical product development project following a predictive lifecycle with strict regulatory requirements. During the testing phase, a critical test reveals unexpected results that require investigation before proceeding. This was not anticipated in the risk register. The project schedule has no float, and any delay will impact the launch date that has been publicly announced to investors. The quality manager insists on a thorough investigation that will take three weeks, while the sponsor pressures you to proceed with limited investigation to maintain the schedule. What should you do?

September 9, 2026

You are managing a manufacturing project using a predictive approach. During a quality inspection, you discover that 15% of the completed components do not meet the quality specifications defined in the quality management plan. The components are already installed, and removing them would require significant rework, causing a two-week delay and 20% cost increase. The defects are minor and do not affect functionality, but they do not meet documented specifications. Your team suggests accepting the components as-is. What should you do?

September 9, 2026

Your software development project is following a predictive lifecycle with detailed upfront planning. You are currently in the execution phase, and the project is on schedule and within budget. A key stakeholder who was minimally involved during planning now requests a significant feature addition that would provide substantial business value but was not included in the original scope. The stakeholder insists this feature is critical and should be added immediately without formal approval processes. What is the most appropriate action?

September 9, 2026

You are managing a construction project using a predictive approach. During the execution phase, a major supplier informs you that a critical material will be delayed by three weeks due to manufacturing issues. The project schedule shows this material is on the critical path, and the delay will impact the project completion date. You review the risk register and find this supplier delay was identified as a potential risk with a mitigation strategy documented. What should you do first?

September 9, 2026

You are managing a telecommunications infrastructure project using a predictive methodology. The project is 60% complete when you conduct an earned value analysis. The results show: PV = $800,000, EV = $720,000, AC = $780,000, BAC = $1,200,000. Based on these metrics, the project team is concerned about performance. The sponsor asks you to forecast the total cost at completion and explain the project's current performance status. What is the most accurate assessment?

September 9, 2026