PMP Practice Questions #43
Alex, a project manager, is leading a recently empowered software development team working with an adaptive approach. While the team enjoys their newfound autonomy, confusion has arisen regarding individual roles and responsibilities. This has led to duplication of efforts, missed tasks, and the team losing focus from critical deliverables. What should Alex do FIRST to ensure clarity and maintain focus on the project’s deliverables?
A) Organize team-building exercises to improve communication among team members.
B) Implement a role-based task assignment system that clearly defines responsibilities and deliverables for each member.
C) Lead the Sprint Planning meeting to ensure work is well understood and assigned for the sprint.
D) Educate the team on work assignments and visualizing the accountability using Kanban board
Analysis
This question addresses a scenario where Alex, a project manager, faces challenges with a newly empowered software development team using an adaptive approach. The team enjoys autonomy but struggles with role clarity, leading to duplication of efforts and loss of focus on critical deliverables. The question seeks the best first action for Alex to ensure clarity and maintain focus on project deliverables.
Analysis of Options:
Option A: Organize team-building exercises to improve communication among team members. This option focuses on enhancing communication and trust, which is beneficial for team dynamics. However, it indirectly addresses the issue of role clarity and responsibility. While it aids in fostering a better team environment, it does not provide a direct solution to the primary problem of role confusion and task overlap.
Option B: Implement a role-based task assignment system that clearly defines responsibilities and deliverables for each member. This option contradicts the adaptive approach of the project. It suggests a rigid role-based system, which might reduce flexibility and collaboration, essential in adaptive environments. It also overlooks the dynamic nature of tasks in such settings.
Option C: Lead the Sprint Planning meeting to ensure work is well understood and assigned for the sprint. While this option shows initiative, it implies a directive approach from the project manager for each sprint. It’s better than option B but still indicates a continuous reliance on the project manager, which might not encourage team autonomy in the long term.
Option D: Educate the team on work assignments and visualizing the accountability using Kanban board. On reevaluation, this option stands out for promoting self-organization and clarity through education and visual tools. Using a Kanban board for task visualization aligns with the adaptive approach and enhances transparency and accountability in task management, directly addressing the core issue of role confusion and focus on deliverables.
Conclusion: Self-organizing in the adaptive team as mentioned in option D is the most suitable in this scenario. This method directly addresses the challenges of role clarity and task management in a manner consistent with the adaptive and autonomous nature of the team. It promotes a clear understanding of responsibilities while preserving the flexibility and dynamic collaboration essential in an agile environment. The implementation of a kanban board as an information radiator not only improves transparency but also encourages team members to take accountability for their tasks, effectively aligning with the goals of empowering the team and maintaining focus on critical project deliverables.
PMP Exam Content Outline Mapping
| Domain | Task |
|---|---|
| People | Task 4 Empower team members and stakeholders |
| Process | Task 2 Manage communications |
Topics Covered
- Use of Information Radiators in Agile Teams
- Implementing Kanban Board for Task Management & Self-Organization
- Balancing Empowerment with Clear Accountability
- Developing and Applying an Effective Team Charter
