C.

Plan to conduct informal sessions with the stakeholders.

Explanation

The project manager should plan to conduct informal sessions with the stakeholders to educate them about the project objectives, scope, and technology, and to address their concerns and queries. This will help to improve the stakeholders’ awareness, engagement, and buy-in, and to reduce the objections and queries that are wasting time in the meetings. This is part of the Manage Stakeholder Engagement process, which involves communicating and working with stakeholders to meet their needs and expectations, address issues, and foster appropriate stakeholder involvement1. Requesting stakeholders who understand the technology, recommending a change in technology, or including the issue in the issue log and escalating it are not the best options, as they may alienate the existing stakeholders, compromise the project vision, or escalate a problem that can be resolved at a lower level. 

D.

Promote collaboration to help remove the obstacles for the team

The project manager should promote collaboration to help remove the obstacles for the team. This is because collaboration is one of the core values of agile, and it involves working together with the team, the agile coach, the stakeholders, and the organization to find solutions to the problems that hinder the project progress and quality. By promoting collaboration, the project manager can foster a culture of trust, openness, feedback, and learning, which can help the team overcome the obstacles and improve their performance. The project manager can also use various agile techniques, such as retrospectives, backlog refinement, and sprint planning, to facilitate collaboration and identify, prioritize, and resolve the impediments. The project manager can also escalate the issues that are beyond the team’s control to the appropriate authority, such as the sponsor or the senior management, and seek their support and guidance.

The other options are not correct because they do not address the issue of collaboration, which is essential for agile projects. Including impediment resolutions during daily standup meetings might be helpful, but it is not enough to solve the obstacles that require more discussion and analysis. Performing a root cause analysis during the standup meetings is not appropriate, as the standup meetings are meant to be brief and focused on the current work and the next steps. Creating a dedicated sprint to solve the obstacles with the team might be a possible option, but it is not the best one, as it might delay the delivery of the project value and increase the project cost and risk. References: PMBOK Guide, 6th edition, section 4.1.2.2, page 77, Agile Practice Guide, section 3.2.2, page 28, PMP Exam Prep, 10th edition, page 100

B.

Identify virtual communication methods and arrange for regular team meetings accordingly.

Explanation

The question is about a project team that is distributed across two countries with a significant time difference. The project manager needs to improve the interactions and collaboration between the team members in both locations. The best option for the project manager to do this is:

Identify virtual communication methods and arrange for regular team meetings accordingly: This option is effective and feasible in managing a geographically dispersed team. The project manager should identify the appropriate communication methods and tools, such as email, phone, video conferencing, instant messaging, etc., that suit the needs and preferences of the team members. The project manager should also arrange for regular team meetings, such as daily stand-ups, weekly status updates, monthly reviews, etc., that accommodate the time zones and schedules of the team members. The project manager should ensure that the team meetings are well-planned, structured, and facilitated, and that they foster trust, feedback, and engagement among the team members12.

The other options are not as effective or feasible as the first option. They are:

Ensure full participation of both the product owner and business SMEs in scope planning sessions: This option is relevant and desirable, but it is not sufficient to improve the interactions between the team members in both countries. The scope planning sessions are only one aspect of the project communication, and they might not occur frequently or regularly. The project manager should also consider other communication methods and events that involve the entire team and address their needs and expectations3.

Explore the opportunity to have both teams colocated: This option is ideal but unrealistic. Colocation is the physical proximity of the team members in the same location, which can enhance communication, collaboration, and performance. However, colocation is not always possible or practical, especially for teams that are distributed across different countries. The project manager should consider the costs, benefits, and feasibility of colocation, and weigh them against the alternatives1.

Plan for frequent face-to-face meetings: This option is beneficial but costly. Face-to-face meetings are the most effective form of communication, as they allow for direct interaction, non-verbal cues, and rapport building. However, face-to-face meetings are also the most expensive and time-consuming, especially for teams that are located in different countries. The project manager should balance the frequency and duration of face-to-face meetings with the budget and schedule constraints, and complement them with other communication methods and tools1.

A.

Share this opportunity with another project

This answer is based on the PMBOK® Guide, which is one of the reference materials for the PMP exam. According to the guide, an opportunity is a positive risk or uncertain event or condition that, if it occurs, has a positive effect on one or more project objectives. Opportunities can be identified and managed throughout the project life cycle, using various tools and techniques, such as risk identification, risk analysis, risk response planning, and risk monitoring and control. When an opportunity is outside of the project scope, the project manager should update the risk register to document the opportunity and its potential impact, and escalate the opportunity to a higher level, such as the project sponsor, the portfolio manager, or the organization’s management. The higher level can then decide whether to pursue the opportunity or not, and allocate the necessary resources and authority to do so. The project manager should share the opportunity with another project that may benefit from it, or suggest a new project to exploit the opportunity. The other options are not correct because they do not follow the best practices of opportunity management. Establishing a contingency reserve is a risk response strategy for negative risks, not positive ones. Further monitoring the opportunity is not sufficient to realize its benefits, and may result in missing the opportunity or losing it to competitors. No more action is required is not a proactive or responsible approach to managing opportunities, and may imply a lack of interest or commitment to the project objectives.

References:
PMBOK® Guide

C.

Continue multiple rounds of planning poker and arrive at the size of the story

Explanation

According to the PMBOK Guide, planning poker is a technique used to estimate the size of user stories in agile projects. It involves each team member privately selecting a card with a number that represents the relative size or complexity of a user story, and then revealing their choices simultaneously. The team then discusses the reasons for the differences and repeats the process until they reach a consensus or an acceptable range. This technique helps the team to avoid anchoring, groupthink, and estimation bias, and to consider different perspectives and assumptions. By continuing multiple rounds of planning poker, the team can improve the accuracy and reliability of their estimates and plan their iterations more effectively. 

C.

Support the team to find and execute the minimum viable product (MVP)

Explanation

A minimum viable product (MVP) is the most basic version of a new product with enough functionality and features to appeal to early adopters and validate the concept early in the product development cycle. The concept of an MVP comes from the Lean Startup methodology, which encourages learning and building with scalability in mind. According to its author, Eric Ries, an MVP is the version of a new product that allows a team to collect the maximum amount of validated learning about customers with the least amount of effort. Building an MVP plays a central role in agile product development. It aligns with agile principles of releasing updates consistently, learning along the way, and prioritizing features based on user feedback. The benefits of focusing on an MVP and scaling it up may vary, but ultimately the purpose is to provide a low-risk testing ground before you invest thousands (or millions!) of dollars into a product before it’s ready to sell. MVP testing can provide cost savings, insights into user-centered design, fast business launches, and even getting early investor buy-in. The insights and investment you’ll reap early on will help you build the dream product you and your customers have been looking for. Therefore, the project manager should support the team to find and execute the MVP, as this will help them deliver value to the customers, test their assumptions, and make iterative improvements based on feedback. This will also reduce the risk of wasting time and resources on features that are not needed or desired by the customers. The other options are not as effective as the MVP approach. Encouraging and motivating the team with project incentives may boost their morale, but it does not address the root cause of the problem, which is the scope and complexity of the project. Subdividing the team to handle different aspects of the project may improve the division of labor, but it does not ensure that the team is working on the right features or that they are aligned with the customer needs. Organizing project execution to satisfy the project sponsor’s request may seem like a good way to meet the expectations of the stakeholder, but it may also lead to over-engineering the product and delivering a solution that is not validated by the market.

B.

Meet with the project team to analyze the actual cost to determine deviations

Explanation:
The project manager should do first to manage the budget is to meet with the project team to analyze the actual cost to determine deviations. This is the first step in the control cost process, which involves monitoring the status of the project to update the project costs and manage changes to the cost baseline2. By analyzing the actual cost, the project manager can identify the causes and sources of the cost variance, and evaluate the impact and implications on the project performance and objectives. The project manager can also use various tools and techniques, such as earned value analysis, forecasting, and variance analysis, to measure and report the cost performance and status2. Based on the analysis, the project manager can then decide on the appropriate actions and responses to bring the project back on track, such as requesting additional funds, reducing scope, adjusting resources, or implementing corrective or preventive actions2.

Option A is not a good choice, because it is premature and passive. The project manager should not ask the project sponsor for assistance in getting the budget back on track before analyzing the actual cost and determining the deviations. The project manager should first understand the nature and extent of the cost variance, and then present the facts and data to the project sponsor, along with possible solutions and recommendations. The project manager should also demonstrate their own initiative and responsibility in managing the budget, rather than relying on the project sponsor to solve the problem.

Option C is not a good choice, because it is pessimistic and irresponsible. The project manager should not inform the stakeholders that the project will be finished over budget before analyzing the actual cost and determining the deviations. The project manager should first assess the situation and explore the options to improve the cost performance and meet the budget expectations. The project manager should also communicate the cost status and issues to the stakeholders in a timely and transparent manner, and seek their feedback and support, rather than delivering bad news without any justification or action plan.

Option D is not a good choice, because it is hasty and presumptuous. The project manager should not issue a change request including the analysis to increase the budget before analyzing the actual cost and determining the deviations. The project manager should first verify the accuracy and validity of the cost data, and evaluate the feasibility and necessity of increasing the budget. The project manager should also consider the impact of the change request on the project scope, schedule, quality, and stakeholder satisfaction, and obtain the approval of the change control board before implementing the change2.

References:
1: Project Management Professional (PMP)® Certification
2: A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK® Guide) – Seventh Edition

B.

Facilitate sprint planning sessions with a focus on defining the minimum viable product (MVP)

Explanation

According to the PMBOK Guide, agile project management is an iterative and incremental approach that delivers value to stakeholders frequently and continuously throughout the project. The product owner is responsible for defining and prioritizing the product backlog, which is a list of features and requirements that deliver value to the customer. The project manager should facilitate sprint planning sessions with the product owner and the development team to select the most valuable and feasible items from the product backlog and define the minimum viable product (MVP), which is the smallest version of the product that can be released to validate the customer needs and assumptions. This way, the project manager can align the project activities with the product owner’s interest in having features released during product development over having the product completed in one year. Designing metrics, promoting a productive environment, and creating a reward system are also important aspects of agile project management, but they are not directly related to the product owner’s interest in this question.