4060 Exam 2

In reviewing the status of a project with top management, a team leader was told that there are only two programmers that can be used for the project. The project is classified as ________blank constrained.

Multiple Choice

• time

• quality

• cost

• performance

• resource

Why is it necessary to have a time-phased budget baseline?

Multiple Choice

• It allows proper resource allocation.

• It shows how much work was accomplished for the money spent.

• It reduces schedule slippage when scheduling multiproject resources.

• It is not necessary to have a time-phased budget baseline.

• It reduces fluctuations in cash flow during the project.

A test engineer is to conduct environmental testing but the chamber cannot hold all the equipment that needs to be tested. This is an example of a constraint that could impact the sequence and timing of activities in a project network. What type of constraint is it?

Multiple Choice

• Physical

• Technical

• Resource

• Scheduling

• Time

Resource leveling or smoothing can have all the following results on a project EXCEPT

Multiple Choice

• lower peak resource demand.

• reduced resource need over the life of the project.

• reduced fluctuations in resource demand.

• a longer project duration.

• a more sensitive network.

A project budget report is showing our project as spending $50,000 against a budgeted amount of $65,000. Which of the following is true?

Multiple Choice

• We are spending less than we should for the project.

• We are doing a good job managing the project.

• We should check to see if all the bills have been paid.

• We have more money to put into budget reserves.

• We can't be sure how the project is going.

Which of the following is NOT one of the more common problems associated with scheduling multi-project resources?

Multiple Choice

• Overall schedule slippage

• Inefficient resource utilization

• Decline in project quality

• Resource bottlenecks

• Delays in one project causing delays in other projects

These are all guidelines a project manager should consider when assigning project work EXCEPT

Multiple Choice

• select people with compatible work habits and personalities.

• always assign the best people to the most difficult tasks.

• when possible, team veterans up with new hires.

• select individuals with skillsets that complement each other.

• have people work together early so that they can become familiar with each other.

always assign the best people to the most difficult tasks.

When a company will reduce the number of projects they have to manage internally to only core projects and send noncritical projects to contractors and consulting firms this is called

Multiple Choice

• outsourcing.

• redistribution of projects.

• project allocation.

• task sharing.

• referring.

outsourcing

In a resource-constrained project, the first, or primary, priority in assigning resources is usually given to activities with the

Multiple Choice

• smallest duration.

• least slack.

• most slack.

• lowest identification number.

• highest cost.

least slack

In a resource-constrained project the second priority in assigning resources is usually given to activities with the

Multiple Choice

• smallest duration.

• least slack.

• most slack.

• lowest identification number.

• highest cost.

smallest duration

Project budgets are developed by time-phasing which of the following?

Multiple Choice

• Resource schedules

• Work packages

• The network diagram

• Critical activities

• None of these are time-phased to develop a project budget.

Work packages

When looking at the critical path for a delayed project and the project manager sees that adding resources will reduce or remove the delay, the project manager knows that the project is:

Multiple Choice

• Over Allocated.

• Time-Constrained.

• Institutionally Challenged.

• Ahead of schedule.

• Unstable.

Time-Constrained.

All resource leveling techniques involve

Multiple Choice

• delaying noncritical activities.

• delaying critical activities.

• using negative slack.

• delaying the project.

• adding resources.

delaying noncritical activities.

A special truck that is needed on the project has been assigned to another project. This is an example of what type of resource constraint?

Multiple Choice

• Working capital

• People

• Equipment

• Information

• Materials

Equipment

When leveling schedules to overcome resource constraints, ________blank is increased.

Multiple Choice

• impact of risks

• scheduling complexity

• cost

• amount of total slack

• amount of free slack

scheduling complexity

Based on the material in the chapter, which of the following is NOT an immediate question that a project manager still should address after staff and other resources have been assigned to the project?

Multiple Choice

• Will the assigned labor be adequate and available to deal with my project?

• Will outside contractors have to be used?

• Will scope have to be redefined/stabilized?

• Do unforeseen resource dependencies exist?

• How much flexibility do we have in using resources?

Will outside contractors have to be used?

Bjorn and Thor are plumbers who have been scheduled to work on the construction of a new school building. Just before the start of the project, Bjorn broke his arm and cannot work on the project. Now Thor has to handle his own activities as well as Bjorn’s. Level the project Gantt chart so that Thor is responsible for activities 3, 4, 6, and 7.

How will the project completion date be affected?

extended by 4 days

Which of the following is NOT a potential consequence of failing to identify limited resources before project implementation?

Multiple Choice

• Activity delays

• Project delays

• Difficulty in taking quick corrective action

• Increase costs

• Scope creep

Scope creep

If resources are not adequate to meet peak demands, the resulting reschedule is termed

Multiple Choice

• resource-constrained scheduling.

• time-constrained scheduling.

• mandatory leveling.

• project resource adjustment.

• allocation

resource-constrained scheduling.

When the work in an activity is interrupted to work on another activity and is then resumed at a later point in time, it is called ________blank.

Multiple Choice

• prioritizing

• preempting

• overriding

• splitting

• All of these alternatives are correct.

splitting

In scheduling resource-constrained projects, ________blank are typically used rather than optimum mathematical solutions.

Multiple Choice

• team leaders

• project managers

• program managers

• project leaders

• heuristics

• team leaders

heuristics

Which constraint category should be considered before all others?

Multiple Choice

• Logical and technical constraints

• Human resource constraints

• Material resource constraints

• Equipment resource constraints

• Time constraints

Logical and technical constraints

When developing project networks, which of the following is not a reason for delineating technical dependencies first before doing resource dependencies?

Multiple Choice

• The interrelationships and interactions among time and resource constraints are complex for even small project networks.

• Resource availability may not be known until the initial schedule is completed.

• Even if resources are known, one cannot assess the impact of limited resources until a resource-neutral schedule is created.

• An effort to examine the interactions between technical/logical constraints and resource limitations frequently uncovers surprising problems.

• All of these alternatives are reasons for delineating technical dependencies first before doing resource dependencies.

All of these alternatives are reasons for delineating technical dependencies first before doing resource dependencies.

Resource dependency takes priority over the technological dependency but does not violate ________blank dependencies.

Multiple Choice

• equipment

• time

• technical

• resource

• logical

technical

A project engineer has been scheduled to run the product system test at the same time as building a marketing prototype. This is an example of what type of resource constraint?

Multiple Choice

• Physical

• Technical

• People

• Equipment

• Time

People

When there are not enough people, money, and/or equipment available for a project it is known as being

Multiple Choice

• managerially resourceful.

• operationally successful.

• resource constrained.

• delayed without prejudice.

• project constrained.

resource constrained

Splitting an activity can result in all of the following EXCEPT

Multiple Choice

• higher resource utilization.

• reduced startup and shutdown costs.

• a resource being moved from one activity location to another.

• activity work being interrupted.

• a better project schedule.

reduced startup and shutdown costs.

A project cost baseline is also called ________blank.

Multiple Choice

• earned value (EV)

• actual cost (AC)

• planned value (PV)

• budget distribution

• budget allocation

planned value (PV)

In reality resource allocation generally occurs in a(n) ________blank environment where the demands of one project have to be reconciled with the needs of other projects.

Multiple Choice

• uncertain

• multiproject

• budget-constrained

• risky

• controlled

multiproject

Which one of the following would not typically be considered as a resource to a manufacturing company?

Multiple Choice

• materials.

• people.

• equipment.

• finished products.

• machinery.

finished products

While balancing assignments, a project manager must also balance:

Multiple Choice

• Overall project cost.

• Talent development.

• Earned value.

• Work package slack.

• Project cost.

Talent development

If resource demand varies widely over the life of the project, the project manager can try to use slack (delaying noncritical activities) to accommodate insufficient resources. This process is called ________blank.

Multiple Choice

• resource scheduling

• resource smoothing

• resource-constrained scheduling

• splitting

• resource accommodation

resource smoothing

What is true of risks associated with leveling resources?

• Flexibility is decreased.

• Risk of delay is increased.

• Slack is increased.

• Total slack is decreased but free slack is increased.

• The project may run out of time before it runs out of resources.

Flexibility is decreased, Risk of delay is increased

Consider a project with the accompanying Gantt chart. Stella is your only electrical engineer and she is responsible for activities 3 and 4, which overlap. Level the project so that Stella is only working a maximum of 8 hours each day. What would the new Gantt chart look like?

What would be the new project completion date?

extended by 2 days

Without a ________blank budget a good project schedule and cost control are impossible.

Multiple Choice

• time-phased

• project cost baseline

• definitive

• forecasted

• firm

time-phased

If it becomes necessary to delay one or several late starts to accommodate resource limitations, this is called: 

Multiple Choice

• Resource scheduling

• Resource smoothing

• Resource-constrained scheduling

• Splitting

• Resource accommodation

Resource-constrained scheduling

Most of the scheduling methods available today require the project manager to classify the project as either ________blank constrained or ________blank constrained.

Multiple Choice

• time, quality

• quality, resource

• cost, time

• quality, cost

• time, resource

time, resource

A project purchasing agent is trying to order the concrete needed to continue the project. However, the supplier will not be able to deliver it until next week. This is an example of what kind of resource constraint?

Multiple Choice

• Working capital

• People

• Equipment

• Information

• Materials

Materials

All of the following are benefits of scheduling resources before project implementation EXCEPT

Multiple Choice

• it allows time for considering reasonable options if resource constraints do exist.

• the project completion date can be established.

• work packages can be time-phased.

• it allows managers to share resources with other project managers if it is requested without negatively impacting their project.

• it ensures low network sensitivity.

it ensures low network sensitivity