Achieve Success in the PMI PMI-SP Exam: A Detailed PMI Scheduling Professional Guide

The consultant is an example of expert judgment, as he is helping you and the project team to create the project elements. Expert judgment is a technique based on a set of criteria that has been acquired in a specific knowledge area or product area. It is obtained when the project manager or project team requires specialized knowledge that they do not possess. Expert judgment involves people most familiar with the work of creating estimates. Preferably, the project team member who will be doing the task should complete the estimates. Expert judgment is applied when performing administrative closure activities, and experts should ensure the project or phase closure is performed to the appropriate standards.

Answer option A is incorrect. The consultant may be considered a direct expense because the fees can only be assigned to your project work, but this is not the best choice for the question.

Answer option B is incorrect. An external requirement is not a valid choice for this question.

Answer option C is incorrect. A temporary resource is not a valid project management term.

Apportioned effort is effort applied that you cannot subdivide into work packages, but it is related to, usually in a supportive role, to the completion of the project work packages. The project management overhead, such managing the project work, is an example of apportioned effort. Apportioned effort (AE) is the effort that is applied to the project-related work that cannot be easily and readily divided into discrete efforts for those tasks, but which is associated in a direct proportion to the discrete work efforts that are capable of being measured. The presence of apportioned effort relies particularly on the performance of further efforts.

Answer option C is incorrect. This is an example of discrete effort.

Answer option A is incorrect. This is an example of a scope change that has not been approved.

Answer option D is incorrect. This is an example of a scheduling technique.

The various group creativity techniques are as follows: Brainstorming: It is a technique used to generate and collect multiple ideas related to the project and product requirements. Nominal group technique: It is a technique used to enhance brainstorming with a voting process used to rank the most useful ideas for further brainstorming or prioritization. Delphi technique: It is a techniques used to identify potential risk. In this technique, the responses are gathered via a questionnaire from different experts and their inputs are organized according to their contents. Idea/mind mapping: It is a technique used to map the ideas generated by brainstorming to reflect the commonality and differences in understanding and generating new ideas. Affinity diagram: It is a technique used to allow a large number of ideas to be sorted into groups for review and analysis.

According to the question, you are required to calculate the cost performance index (CPI) of the project. Cost performance index (CPI) is used to calculate performance efficiencies. It is used in trend analysis to predict future performance. CPI is the ratio of earned value to actual cost. The CPI is calculated based on the following formula: CPI = Earned Value (EV) / Actual Cost (AC) If the CPI value is greater than 1, it indicates better than expected performance, whereas if the value is less than 1, it shows poor performance. The CPI value of 1 indicates that the project is right on target. Here, CPI is as follows: CPI = EV / AV = 425/510 = 0.833 As the CPI (0.833) is less than 1, it shows that the schedule performance is below expectation. What is BCWP (or EV)? Budgeted cost of work performed (BCWP) or Earned Value (EV) is the value of completed work. It is the budgeted amount for the work actually completed on the schedule activity during a given time period. What is BCWS (or PV)? Budgeted Cost of Work Scheduled (BCWS) or Planned Value (PV) is the authorized budget assigned to the scheduled work to be accomplished for a schedule activity or Work Breakdown Structure (WBS) component. What is ACWP (or AC)? Actual cost of work performed (ACWP) or Actual Cost (AC) is the total costs actually incurred and recorded in accomplishing work performed during a given time period for a schedule activity. It is the cost of the work to date, including direct and indirect costs. AC is money that has actually been expended to date.

Resource leveling is a rule of limiting the total number of hours a project team may work during a given time period in the project. If management restricts the project work to 45 per week, as in this example, Holly's schedule will likely increase because the project team can't complete as much work in one given time period. While this may be seen as a constraint, because it limits Holly's options, it's technically called a resource leveling heuristic.

Answer option B is incorrect. It is an assumption that's believed to be true, but it hasn't been proven to be true.

Answer option C is incorrect. Execution variance analysis describes the difference between what was planned and what was executed. A better term for this experience would simply be a scope variance, scope change, or defect.

There is no float available for Activity G because it is on the critical path. Float or total float (TF) is the total amount of time that a schedule activity may be delayed from its early start date without delaying the project finish date, or violating a schedule constraint. It is calculated by using the critical path method technique and determining the difference between the early finish dates and late finish dates.

Answer options B, A, and C are incorrect. There is no float available for Activity G because it is on the critical path.

Conformance to schedule is a required adherence for the project's schedule. In this instance, the project manager must not allow the schedule to slip more than five percent.

Answer option B is incorrect. This is the description of the schedule performance index.

Answer option D is incorrect. This is the description of the cost performance index.

Answer option C is incorrect. This is not a valid statement about the project performance.

The project will need $1,087,497.74 more to complete. This formula, the estimate to complete, is estimate at completion minus the actual costs. Here,

CPI = EV/AC

= (0.40*2,208,456)/725,000

= 1.21846, and

ETC = EAC - AC

= (BAC/CPI) - AC

= (2,208,456/1.21846) - 725,000

= 1,812,497.74 - 725,000

= 1,087,497.74

The estimate to complete (ETC) is the expected cost needed to complete all the remaining work for a scheduled activity, a group of activities, or the project. ETC helps project managers predict what the final cost of the project will be upon completion. The formula for the ETC is EAC- A

C. The EAC is BAC/CPI.

The consultant is an example of expert judgment, as he is helping you and the project team to create the project elements. Expert judgment is a technique based on a set of criteria that has been acquired in a specific knowledge area or product area. It is obtained when the project manager or project team requires specialized knowledge that they do not possess. Expert judgment involves people most familiar with the work of creating estimates. Preferably, the project team member who will be doing the task should complete the estimates. Expert judgment is applied when performing administrative closure activities, and experts should ensure the project or phase closure is performed to the appropriate standards.

Answer option A is incorrect. The consultant may be considered a direct expense because the fees can only be assigned to your project work, but this is not the best choice for the question.

Answer option B is incorrect. An external requirement is not a valid choice for this question.

Answer option C is incorrect. A temporary resource is not a valid project management term.

The Project Staffing Management Plan will define how resources are brought onto the project team, how they are managed while on the project team, and how they may be released from the project team. The staffing management plan is part of human resources plan. It is a subsidiary plan of the overall project management plan and defines when project team members will be brought onto and released from the project. It describes when and how human resource requirements will be met. Depending upon the needs of the project, it can be formal or informal, highly detailed or broadly framed. The staffing management plan may include the following items: Staff acquisition, resource calendars, staff release plan, training needs, recognition and rewards, compliance, and safety.

Answer option C is incorrect. The communications management plan defines project communication requirements and expectations.

Answer option A is incorrect. This is not a valid project management plan.

Answer option D is incorrect. The project schedule management will define when resources are needed and scheduled, but not how resources are allowed to be released from the project.