1. | What document integrates the information from all of the planning processes into one cohesive road map for managing the project?
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2. | Which of the following best describes the iterative nature of the development of the project plan?
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3. | Which of the following is the best method to organize of the project plan?
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4. | Which of the following best reflects the purpose of a formal review of the comprehensive project plan?
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5. | Not all project plans will contain the same components. Which of the following components would you expect to see in all plans?
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6. | What is the best way to handle a potential change to the project plan?
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7. | You are being pressured to get your team started on project execution, but you have not completed the comprehensive project plan. In the interest of time, you decide not to include any stakeholders in this process. Which of the following is a likely result of your decision?
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8. | A project plan often includes a baseline for the project scope, schedule, and budget. What is the importance of these documents?
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9. | Which of the following is the best example of a project performance indicator?
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10. | You need an assessment of the ongoing viability of the project business case, the completeness of planning documents, and the resolution of all planning issues. What is the best method to accomplish this?
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11. | Of the following elements, which one is not a requirement for the project plan?
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12. | Whose responsibility is it to prepare the project plan?
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13. | Which is true for a comprehensive project plan? (Select all that apply.)
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14. | In order to make sure that changes are adequately tracked, what sort of process must be in place for comprehensive electronic project plans?
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15. | Ongoing comprehensive plan reviews with the sponsor and stakeholders should be held:
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16. | What is the reason for using a project performance indicator?
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17. | From the list below, select some examples of things you might consider including in the appendix section of your comprehensive project plan. (Select all that apply.)
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18. | Which is true for the Executive Summary? (Select all that apply.)
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19. | What is the purpose of the comprehensive project plan? (Select all that apply.)
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20. | Name the three plans that you would include in your comprehensive project plan document.
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Answers
1. | C. The comprehensive project plan is the document that pulls together all of the output from the previous planning processes. A typical project plan contains elements from the project charter, the scope management plan, and the schedule baseline. |
2. | A. The project plan is a living document. Multiple iterations of a project plan are a reflection of new information regarding project stakeholders or a major approved change to the scope, schedule, or budget. |
3. | D. A good project plan is instrumental in the smooth execution of the project work. Putting thought into the plan, taking time to review the plan with your sponsor and other stakeholders, and obtaining formal approval will increase commitment to the project and reduce later misunderstandings that could impact the outcome of the project. |
4. | A. A formal review of the project plan is your last opportunity prior to project execution to obtain feedback or input on the project work. It can be used as a checkpoint to make sure all of the stakeholders are on the same page. |
5. | B. All plans should contain an overview or executive summary that contains a brief description of the project and how the project links to the organizational strategy. Executives do not have the time to read through the entire comprehensive project plan for each project in their organization; they need a clear, concise summary that provides them the basic information in nontechnical terms. Training plans and procurement plans do not pertain to all projects. |
6. | A. There should be documented change control procedures for handling any change to the project plan. These should be closely linked to procedures for changing the scope, budget, or schedule. Updates should only be made as required by this process. |
7. | C. It is always tempting to take shortcuts in the planning process, but doing so usually just creates bigger issues. Involving the stakeholders in the development of the project plan will help focus everyone on the project goals, clarify any misunderstandings, and solidify support for the project. |
8. | B. A baseline represents some of the key outputs of the planning process. A schedule baseline, as an example, depicts what tasks should be completed at a given point in time. By comparing actual results to the baseline document, a project manager can assess the progress being made. |
9. | D. A comparison of actual spending against the baseline budget is a good indicator of project performance. The number of scope change requests and the length of a project status meeting do not by themselves provide a measurable indication of how the project is going. There is not enough information on Jane's task to determine whether this delay could have an overall impact on the status of the project schedule. |
10. | C. The transition from the planning phase to the execution phase is an important step that needs to be officially acknowledged with a meeting to ensure all stakeholders' expectations for the planning process have been met and that there are no outstanding issues as project execution begins. |
11. | A. A detailed WBS isn't required for the project plan. The high-level summary tasks associated with the WBS should be included, however. |
12. | B. The project manager will be responsible for preparing the project plan, but it should be noted that he or she does not work in a vacuum . Up to now, input from the project team and the stakeholders has been required to assimilate all of the correct information about the project and when writing the project plan; you may need to consult them again and they will provide updates to the plan as you move forward. |
13. | C, E. The comprehensive project plan is a formal project document that signals the end of the planning process (and the beginning of executing and controlling). Further, it is an approved document, meaning that it is signed by at least the sponsor. You should consider having all stakeholders review it prior to sending it up for approval by the sponsor. |
14. | B. To make sure that changes and updates to the comprehensive project plan are accounted for, you should consider a document management process in which the documents live under some sort of version control methodology. In other words, when someone 'checks out' a document for review and updating, the document version number is updated if updates are indeed made. Good workflow software such as Microsoft SharePoint Portal Server or others easily handles this requirement. |
15. | C. If changes are made that affect the comprehensive project plan, you must meet to review the prospective changes and gain buy in and acceptance. If there's nothing new in the project plan, then you're wasting everyone's time by having a meeting to review an unchanged document. |
16. | B. Performance indicators are a method you can use (talked about more in Chapters 8 and 9) for monitoring that you've not gone off budget or over the allotted time. |
17. | A, B, E, F, G. Not all of these elements are required, but they may be things you'd consider for your project plan. For instance, if your development team uses the so-called agile form of software development, you might include a section in the appendix that talks about what agile software development is and how it differs from ordinary application work. |
18. | B, D. The Executive Summary is a high-level overview of the project, its deliverables, and other nontechnical elements that you think a busy executive would be interested in relative to your project. You should take as much space as required to accurately and adequately summarize your project, but it needs to be a brief summary-something that can be reviewed by executives in a couple-minute read. |
19. | A, B, D. The comprehensive project plan is a document that describes all of the key elements of your project to those with an interest in it and who are authorized to view it. As such, it can act as a clarification reference for people who have questions about the direction the project is going in. While a large IT project might certainly wind up on a corporate strategic plan, it's doubtful that the full project plan would be included. Additionally, while the project plan contains high-level budget information, it is not a resource for the finance office. Your full project budget would be useful for that. |
20. | A, C, E. In your comprehensive project plan, you'll include that plans you have made for how you're going to deploy the system, how you'll support it once it's deployed, and how you'll train people to use it. The budget and performance review plans don't need to be a part of the project plan, although you'll include high-level budget information in your plan. |