Deck 2: Project Selection and Management

Question 1

Which would generally NOT be taken into consideration for project portfolio management in an organization?

A)The number of large projects
B)The number of tactical projects
C)The number of high risk projects
D)The number of strategic projects
E)The number of financially feasible projects

Answer 1

E

Question 2

Which of the following methodologies might be most appropriate if you have a system project with: clear requirements;very familiar technologies;not all that complex;reasonably reliable;a very long time schedule and the schedule visibility is not important?

A)Waterfall
B)Parallel
C)Iterative
D)System prototyping
E)Throwaway prototyping

Answer 2

A

Question 3

System prototyping is BEST characterized as:

A)A 'Quick and Dirty' system
B)A series of versions
C)A method for exploring design alternatives
D)A method for stressing customer satisfaction
E)More explicit testing

Answer 3

A

Question 4

Parallel methodology is BEST characterized as:

A)A 'Quick and Dirty' system
B)A series of versions
C)A method for exploring design alternatives
D)A method for stressing customer satisfaction
E)More explicit testing

Question 5

Which of the following is NOT a Rapid Application Development methodology?

A)Extreme Programming (XP)
B)Parallel Development
C)Throwaway Prototyping
D)Iterative development
E)System Prototyping

Question 6

A critical success factor in project management is to:

A)Say "no" to all requests as they add to 'scope creep'
B)Use throwaway prototyping
C)Use a CASE tool to delineate requirements from work tasks
D)Start with a realistic assessment of the work that needs to be done
E)Hire an outside project management consulting group

Question 7

Which of the following is probably NOT a method to classify projects?

A)Open source
B)Size
C)Risk
D)Scope
E)Economic value

Question 8

Which of the following methodologies might be most appropriate if you have a system project with: clear requirements;very familiar technologies;not all that complex;reasonably reliable;a short time schedule and the schedule visibility is not important?

A)Waterfall
B)Parallel
C)Iterative
D)System prototyping
E)Throwaway prototyping

Question 9

When comparing the Waterfall methodology to the parallel methodology:

A)The waterfall methodology will generally result in faster implementation
B)The parallel methodology will generally involve more agile development
C)The parallel methodology will generally break the project into subprojects
D)The waterfall methodology can only work with clear requirements
E)The waterfall methodology will never require requirements gathering

Question 10

Which of the following methodologies might be most appropriate if you have a system project with: unclear user requirements;unfamiliar technologies;somewhat complex;needs to be reliable;time is not an issue and the schedule visibility is somewhat important?

A)Waterfall
B)Parallel
C)Iterative
D)System prototyping
E)Throwaway prototyping

Question 11

Which of the following might result in version 1;version 2 (etc.)of a system?

A)System Prototyping
B)Waterfall Development
C)Iterative Development
D)System Prototyping
E)Parallel Development

Question 12

Throwaway prototyping is BEST characterized as:

A)A 'Quick and Dirty' system
B)A series of versions
C)A method for exploring design alternatives
D)A method for stressing customer satisfaction
E)More explicit testing

Question 13

The V-model pays more explicit attention to ___________:

A)Iteration
B)Return on investment (ROI)
C)Business Value (the "V")
D)Testing
E)Prototyping

Question 14

RAD is an acronym for:

A)Real Application Development
B)Rapid Application Design
C)Rapid Authentic Development
D)Real Autonomous Development
E)Rapid Application Development

Question 15

Which is a true statement about IT projects?

A)Most IS departments face a demand for IT projects that far exceed the ability to do them.
B)Project Managers must be certified as PMP (Project Management Professionals)
C)Project estimates tend to have a built-in buffer of time
D)Project teams of 12 to 15 are generally considered optimum
E)The majority of projects taken on by IT departments are not strategic to the business

Question 16

What the MAIN difference between systems prototyping and throwaway prototyping?

A)Systems prototyping involves users while throwaway prototyping does not
B)Throwaway prototyping involves users while systems prototyping does not
C)Systems prototyping is a rapid application development methodology; while throwaway prototyping is not
D)Systems prototyping works with users to quickly develop a simplified working version of the proposed system; while throwaway prototyping focuses more on exploring design alternatives
E)Throwaway prototyping develops systems that will be use as 'stop-gap' systems - and generally for less than six months; while systems prototyping results in systems that will be used extensively for several years.

Question 17

The "V-model" of the waterfall method is BEST characterized as:

A)A 'Quick and Dirty' system
B)A series of versions
C)A method for exploring design alternatives
D)A method for stressing customer satisfaction
E)More explicit testing

Question 18

Which of the following methodologies might be most appropriate if you have a system project with: clear requirements;very familiar technologies;not all that complex;must be reliable;a somewhat longer schedule and the schedule visibility is not important?

A)Waterfall
B)Parallel
C)Iterative
D)System prototyping
E)V-model

Question 19

Which is NOT suggested for IT development projects?

A)Projects need to be prioritized
B)Projects need to be carefully selected
C)Projects need to be carefully managed
D)Projects need to give a positive return on investment within four years
E)Projects need to give value to the business

Question 20

Extreme Programming (XP)is BEST characterized as:

A)A 'Quick and Dirty' system
B)A series of versions
C)A method for exploring design alternatives
D)A method for stressing customer satisfaction
E)More explicit testing

Question 21

The main difference between the Parallel Development Methodology and the Iterative Development Methodology is that:

A)The Parallel Development Methodology will have various releases (like version 1.0; 2.0, etc.)and the Iterative will not
B)The Iterative Methodology will break the system project into sub-projects for analysis, design and implementation and then merge them into a final system and the Parallel will not
C)The Parallel Methodology will have sub-projects and the Iterative Methodology will have various releases
D)The Parallel Methodology will create various models or prototypes with user involvement before setting on design concepts and the Iterative will not
E)The Iterative Methodology will create various models or prototypes with user involvement before setting on design concepts and the Parallel Methodology will not

Question 22

In a "typical" business application development using the SDLC,you would probably spend ____ in the analysis phase.

A)10%
B)15%
C)20%
D)25%
E)30%

Question 23

Tatiana is developing a staffing plan for a project.Which of the following would she NOT consider in developing such a staffing plan?

A)Matching people's skills with the needs of the project
B)Determining the number of people that might be needed
C)Creating a team with balanced diversity
D)Determining the technical skills needed on the project
E)Selecting people with good interpersonal skills to help with political considerations

Question 24

Bob is selecting a systems analysis and design methodology.What might be the first step?

A)Selecting the shortest methodology
B)Researching the organizations standards and policies for 'approved' methodologies
C)Interviewing senior management as to their suggestions on methodologies
D)Do a quick 'cost/benefit' analysis on which methodology will provide the most benefits at the lowest cost
E)Do an analysis on which methodology might lessen or eliminate scope creep

Question 25

In a "typical" business application development using the SDLC,you would probably spend ____ in the design phase.

A)20%
B)25%
C)30%
D)35%
E)40%

Question 26

Which of the following would BEST describe "system reliability"?

A)The aspect of using technologies that analysts and developers are familiar with
B)The aspect of what the business side really wants the system to do
C)The aspect of how quickly the system can be developed and implemented
D)The aspect of how complex the system must be
E)The aspect of how accurate the system must be (such as medical equipment or for games)

Question 27

Suggestions for motivation might include all of these EXCEPT:

A)Setting realistic deadlines
B)Giving all team members the same bonus on a project
C)Recognize and reward good efforts
D)Reward those with outstanding quality and effort
E)Having a good working environment

Question 28

Amie and Rani are analysts;Stephen,David and Chang are users.They are approaching a new system project and trying to streamline the SDLC by using a lot of face-to-face communication,with eliminating modeling and documentation overhead.They are probably doing:

A)Parallel development methodology
B)Waterfall methodology
C)Agile methodology
D)Iterative methodology
E)Full Procedure Methodology (FPM)

Question 29

Kumar is the project manager for a revised TTP system.Which of the following most likely would NOT be considered in developing a work plan?

A)Identifying tasks that need to be completed
B)Estimating the time that will be needed on tasks
C)Creating a dependency chart
D)The organizational readiness for the project
E)Key milestones that need to be met

Question 30

In a "typical" business application development using the SDLC,you would probably spend ____ in the implementation phase.

A)20%
B)25%
C)30%
D)35%
E)40%

Question 31

A team of developers and customers are in close communication,with frequent communications,simplicity,feedback and courage.This would best describe:

A)The parallel development methodology
B)The waterfall development methodology
C)The iterative development methodology
D)The Extreme Programming methodology
E)The throwaway prototyping methodology

Question 32

Which of the following methodologies might be most appropriate if you have a system project with: somewhat unclear requirements;somewhat unfamiliar technologies;that is complex;reasonably reliable;a short time schedule and high schedule visibility?

A)Waterfall
B)Parallel
C)Iterative
D)System prototyping
E)Throwaway prototyping

Question 33

In a "typical" business application development using the SDLC,you would probably spend ____ in the planning phase.

A)10%
B)15%
C)20%
D)25%
E)30%

Question 34

Which of the following would BEST describe "short time schedules"?

A)The aspect of using technologies that analysts and developers are familiar with
B)The aspect of what the business side really wants the system to do
C)The aspect of how quickly the system can be developed and implemented
D)The aspect of how complex the system must be
E)The aspect of how accurate the system must be (such as medical equipment or for games)

Question 35

Which of the following methodologies might be most appropriate if you have a system project with: unclear requirements;very familiar technologies;not all that complex;reasonably reliable;a short time schedule and the schedule visibility is somewhat important?

A)Waterfall
B)Parallel
C)Iterative
D)System prototyping
E)Extreme Programming

Question 36

Which of the following would BEST describe "familiarity with technology"?

A)The aspect of using technologies that analysts and developers are familiar with
B)The aspect of what the business side really wants the system to do
C)The aspect of how quickly the system can be developed and implemented
D)The aspect of how complex the system must be
E)The aspect of how accurate the system must be (such as medical equipment or for games)

Question 37

Which of the following would BEST describe "clarity of user requirements"?

A)The aspect of using technologies that analysts and developers are familiar with
B)The aspect of what the business side really wants the system to do
C)The aspect of how quickly the system can be developed and implemented
D)The aspect of how complex the system must be
E)The aspect of how accurate the system must be (such as medical equipment or for games)

Question 38

Which of the following methodologies is the historic standard,but is used less today because it takes the longest to complete all the SDLC steps?

A)Waterfall
B)Parallel
C)Iterative
D)System prototyping
E)Throwaway prototyping

Question 39

Which of the following methodologies might be most appropriate if you have a system project with: unclear user requirements;unfamiliar technologies;very complex;must be reliable;a short to medium time schedule and the schedule visibility is somewhat important?

A)Waterfall
B)Parallel
C)Iterative
D)System prototyping
E)Throwaway prototyping

Question 40

Which of the following would BEST describe "system complexity"?

A)The aspect of using technologies that analysts and developers are familiar with
B)The aspect of what the business side really wants the system to do
C)The aspect of how quickly the system can be developed and implemented
D)The aspect of how intricate and difficult the system must be
E)The aspect of how accurate the system must be (such as medical equipment or for games)

Question 41

TJ is coordinating a project.Which would he probably NOT use to avoid conflicts?

A)Encourage a competitive edge between team members
B)Clearly defining plans for the project
C)Develop a project charter
D)Look at other projects and priorities and see how that might impact the project
E)Communicate the business value to the team

Question 42

Garrett has been told by management that his project MUST be completed on time.His best estimates are more than two weeks after the absolute deadline.Which technique could he use to get a functional system on time?

A)Risk management
B)System prototyping
C)Benchmarking
D)Timeboxing
E)Activity elimination

Question 43

Estimating can be tough.In terms of costs when doing the analysis phase,the typical margin of error for well-done estimates could be as much as _______ % off.

A)10%
B)25%
C)35%
D)50%
E)60%

Question 44

A two-person team has single line of communication;a three-person team will have three lines of communication;a four-person team will have six lines of communication.A team with n members will have:

A)n! (n factorial)lines of communication
B)n2 (n squared)lines of communication
C)((n * (n-1))/ n)lines of communication
D)((n * (n-1))/ 2)lines of communication
E)(n2 / n!)(n squared divided by n factorial)lines of communication

Question 45

Which of the following probably is NOT a timeboxing step?

A)Set the date for system delivery
B)Prioritize the functionality that needs to be included in the system
C)Build the core of the systems (with the basic functions included)
D)Add sufficient staff to reach basic functionality
E)Postpone functionality that cannot be provided with in the time frame

Question 46

CASE stands for:

A)Computer analysis and software engineering
B)Computer-aided software engineering
C)Computer Arbitrated System Engineering
D)Control and System Environment
E)Control and System Engineering

Question 47

The most common reason for schedule and cost overruns is ___________

A)Team conflict
B)Lack of communication from project manager to project team
C)Lack of support by sponsor and champion
D)Scope creep
E)Adding people to a late project

Question 48

Which of the following is NOT a classic planning mistake?

A)Overly optimistic schedule
B)Failing to monitor the schedule
C)Failing to update the schedule
D)Adding people to a late project
E)Omitting key requirements

Question 49

If the skills required by a project cannot be met by the available project team,which would probably NOT be a reasonable solution?

A)Use a consultant
B)Use a contract employee
C)Modify the project to use skills inherent on the project team
D)Train the project team (or some of the team)on the skills needed
E)Mentor a team member (like sending a person to work on a similar project to acquire the necessary skills)

Question 50

The science (or art)of project management is in making ___________ of size,time and cost.

A)Benchmark comparisons
B)Analytical and educated estimates
C)Trade-offs
D)Maximum calculations
E)Minimum calculations

Question 51

This factor is the number one influence on people's performance:

A)Motivation
B)Financial reward
C)Group-think
D)Scope creep
E)New technology

Question 52

Interpersonal skills for a project manager might be important when:

A)Making assignments for a project
B)Creating a cost/benefit spreadsheet
C)Creating the system proposal
D)Working with a highly controversial project that may have political implications
E)Using the V-model variation of the Waterfall Methodology.

Question 53

Micah is a fairly new project manager.He estimated for a project plan (on the planning phase)that the project would cost $50,000 and take 20 weeks.According to the margin of error guidelines for well-done estimates,that could range from:

A)$0 and $100,000 - and between 15 and 25 weeks
B)$10,000 and $60,000 - and between 12 and 28 weeks
C)$0 and $100,000 - and between 0 and 40 weeks
D)$5,000 and $100,000 - and between 10 and 30 weeks
E)$25,000 and $75,000 - and between 10 and 30 weeks

Question 54

__________ are created to ensure that team members are performing tasks in the same way and following the same procedures.

A)Project charters
B)Standards
C)CASE tools
D)Waterfall methodologies
E)Agile technologies

Question 55

PMP is Project Management Professional.

Question 56

PMP is People - Management - Project - the three components of successful project management.

Question 57

CIO is an acronym for "computing information organization".

Question 58

Mya is managing a project.Unfortunately,the entire project team lost four days due to a hurricane in the area and a couple of the project team lost even more time when dealing with insurance claims and rebuilding.At the six-week mark of a nine-week project,she figures the team is one week behind.What might be the BEST solution?

A)Add several people to the project to get it back to schedule
B)Do not change the schedule, but expect the project and development teams to work longer days and every-other weekend.
C)Since the project is about 16% behind, increase the project to about 10-and-one-half weeks
D)Since the project is about 20% behind, increase the project to about 12 week.
E)Add three people to the project - AND - increase the overall project by one week (to a total of ten weeks)

Question 59

Which is probably NOT a standard that Babu would use on a project?

A)User interface design standards
B)Procedural standards
C)Coding standards
D)Specification requirement standards
E)Reimbursement standards

Question 60

Rich is a manager in the accounting department.After the system proposal is approved,he realizes that he did not mention that they want the new system to run on laptops,mobile PDA's and other mobile devices with a secure login and all data should be encrypted to meet the latest security guidelines.He wants to make sure this is included in the project.This probably is:

A)Scope creep
B)Technical feasibility
C)Infrastructure requirement
D)Already included in the system proposal
E)Unrelated to the project

Question 61

The Throwaway Prototyping methodology is especially good for exploring design alternatives.

Question 62

The V-model is a variation of the Waterfall Methodology that stresses testing.

Question 63

Investments in information systems projects today are evaluated in the context of an entire portfolio of projects.

Question 64

The corporate IT department carefully needs to prioritize,select and manage a portfolio of projects.

Question 65

The V-model is a rapid application development (RAD)methodology that stresses user involvement and organizational adoption.

Question 66

A critical success factor for project management is to have a positive return on investment within six years.

Question 67

The project methodology that takes the longest to complete is the Waterfall Development Methodology.

Question 68

The project methodology that takes the longest to complete is Throwaway Prototyping Methodology.

Question 69

The project methodology that takes the longest to complete is Extreme Programming Methodology.

Question 70

The Waterfall Methodology generally follows the SDLC from phase to phase.

Question 71

The Throwaway Prototyping methodology is good at creating release version 1.0 for users;and then the methodology shifts to system prototyping to finish the system.

Question 72

The Waterfall Methodology breaks the overall project into a series of release versions.

Question 73

A critical success factor for project management is to start with a realistic assessment of the work that needs to be accomplished.

Question 74

In today's organizations,an approval committee must review and monitor project progress to ensure project continuance.

Question 75

The Iterative approach of the RAD methodology breaks the overall project into a series of release versions.

Question 76

Throwaway Prototyping balances the benefits of well-thought-out analysis and design phases with the advantages of using prototypes to refine key issues before a system is built.

Question 77

Projects can be classified by: size,cost,purpose,length,programming language and hardware platform.

Question 78

The Parallel Methodology breaks the overall project into a series of release versions.

Question 79

CIO is an acronym for "Chief Information Officer".

Question 80

In most IT departments,the demand for IT projects is generally about the same as the department's ability to supply them.