Product Management university of maryland Project management theory

1.During your interview process for the position of Project Manager you are asked to explain the relationship between cost, schedule, and performance. What is your answer to the interview panel? – (5 points)

2.For your final question the interviewer asks you to explain the definition of a project and how work on a project differs from ongoing operations. How would you answer the interviewer? (5 points)

3.You’re the project manager on a fixed price project. Is it feasible to use an agile approach in managing the team’s activities? Provide reasoning for your stance and discuss the potential advantages and disadvantages of doing so.(5 points)

4.As a newly hired program manager you have a meeting to meet all your project managers and learn about the current status of their projects. As your discussion continues with one of your PMs, you find out that one of the reasons their project is behind schedule is because the PM claims that the program has been forced to do a lot of work and reporting that isn’t necessary for this type of project. You ask your PM if they attempted to tailor the work and reporting requirements. Your PM simply asks you what tailoring is (5 points) and how it could have helped prevent this issue (5 points). What is your response?

5.You are in the planning phase of a new project and are starting to work with your team to create a Work Breakdown Structure (WBS). How would you explain to the team what a WBS is and why we have one on a project? (5 points) What issues might a project face if it did not have a WBS? (5 points)

6.You are a project manager leading a cross-functional project team in a weak matrix environment. None of your project team members report to you functionally and you do not have the ability to directly reward their performance. The project is difficult, involving tight date constraints and challenging quality standards. What type(s) of project management power will likely be the most effective in this circumstance? (5 points)

7.While explaining how matrix organizations support program/projects to your project manager, it becomes obvious they know nothing about different organization structures and who is responsible for various activities under each structure. How do you explain to your PM the types of organization structures and differences between the responsibilities of the project manager from that of the functional manager in the execution of a project in each organization type? (5 points) Explain the advantages and disadvantages of the different organizational types. (5 points)

8.Your fellow project manager tells you they are about to start a new project but are unsure about the phases. Explain to them the phases of the project management lifecycle (5 points) and the purpose of each phase (5 points).

9.What is the most interesting or helpful thing you have learned so far this semester and what upcoming topic is of most interest to you? (5 points)