MIS573-Chapter5

Question 1

A unit of work should appear at only one place in the WBS.

Answer 1

True (A basic principle of creating a good WBS and its WBS dictionary is that a unit of work should appear at only one place in the WBS.)

Question 2

A work package must always represent less than 80 hours of work.

Answer 2

False (A work package represents the level of work that the project manager monitors and controls. If a project has a relatively short time frame and requires weekly progress reports, a work package might represent work completed in one week or less. If a project has a very long time frame and requires quarterly progress reports, a work package might represent work completed in one month or more.)

Question 3

A work package represents one component of the product that the project aims to deliver.

Answer 3

False (A work package is a task at the lowest level of the WBS. It represents the level of work that the project manager monitors and controls.)

Question 4

Creating the WBS is a subprocess associated with which process in project scope management?

Answer 4

planning (Creating the WBS is a subprocess associated with the planning process of the project scope management.)

Question 5

Deliverables are only product-related, such as a piece of hardware or software.

Answer 5

False (Deliverables can be product-related, such as a piece of hardware or software, or process-related, such as a planning document or meeting minutes.)

Question 6

During which approach do team members first identify as many specific tasks related to the project as possible and then aggregate the specific tasks and organize them into summary activities, or higher levels in the WBS?

Answer 6

bottom-up (In the bottom-up approach, team members first identify as many specific tasks related to the project as possible. They then aggregate the specific tasks and organize them into summary activities, or higher levels in the WBS. Project managers often use the bottom-up approach for projects that represent entirely new systems or approaches to doing a job, or to help create buy-in and synergy with a project team.)

Question 7

Given the project management software that is available, it is relatively easy to create a good WBS.

Answer 7

False (It is very difficult to create a good WBS. In order to do so, you must understand the project and its scope and incorporate the needs and knowledge of the stakeholders.)

Question 8

Information from the project charter provides a basis for further defining the project scope.

Answer 8

True (The charter describes the high-level scope, time, and cost goals for the project objectives and success criteria, a general approach to accomplishing the project’s goals, and the main roles and responsibilities of important project stakeholders.)

Question 9

Many organizations provide different guidelines and templates for developing WBSs.

Answer 9

True (Many organizations provide guidelines and templates for developing WBSs, as well as examples of WBSs from past projects. Microsoft Project 2016 comes with several templates, and more are available on Microsoft’s Web site and other sites.)

Question 10

Mind mapping allows people to write and even draw pictures of ideas in a nonlinear format.

Answer 10

True (Instead of writing down tasks in a list or immediately trying to create a structure for tasks, mind mapping allows people to write and even draw pictures of ideas in a nonlinear format. This more visual, less structured approach to defining and then grouping tasks can unlock creativity among individuals and increase participation and morale among teams.)

Question 11

Mind mapping can be used for developing WBSs using which approach?

Answer 11

top-down or bottom-up approach (You could conduct mind mapping for an entire project by listing the project in the center of a diagram and adding branches or develop a mind-mapping diagram for each deliverable and merge them to create one large diagram for the entire project.)

Question 12

Project scope management includes the processes involved in defining and controlling what is or is not included in a project.

Answer 12

True (Project scope management includes the processes involved in defining and controlling what work is or is not included in a project. It ensures that the project team and stakeholders have the same understanding of what products the project will produce and what processes the project team will use to produce them.)

Question 13

Project scope statements must include the project boundaries, constraints, and assumptions.

Answer 13

False (Project scope statements should include at least a product scope description, product user acceptance criteria, and detailed information on all project deliverables. It is also helpful to document other scope-related information, such as the project boundaries, constraints, and assumptions.)

Question 14

Scope creep if not managed well can lead to the failure of information technology projects.

Answer 14

True (Even when the project scope is fairly well defined, many IT projects suffer from scope creep—the tendency for project scope to keep getting bigger and bigger. Many IT projects fail due to scope creep.)

Question 15

Scope refers to all the work involved in creating the products of the project and the processes used to create them.

Answer 15

True (One of the most important and most difficult aspects of project management is defining the scope of a project. Scope refers to all the work involved in creating the products of the project and the processes used to create them.)

Question 16

The executing tasks of the WBS remain constant from project to project.

Answer 16

False (The executing tasks vary the most from project to project, but many of the tasks under the other project management process groups would be similar for all projects.)

Question 17

The format of the WBS dictionary is essentially the same for all projects.

Answer 17

False (WBS dictionary is a document that provides detailed information about each WBS item. The format of the WBS dictionary can vary based on project needs.)

Question 18

The main purpose of the WBS is to define all of the work required to complete a project.

Answer 18

True (The main purpose of the WBS is to define all of the work required to complete a project.)

Question 19

The project scope statement should reference supporting documents, such as product specifications that will affect what products are produced or purchased, or corporate policies, which might affect how products or services are produced.

Answer 19

True (The project scope statement should reference supporting documents, such as product specifications that will affect what products are created or purchased, or corporate policies, which might affect how products or services are produced.)

Question 20

The project’s size, complexity, importance, and other factors do not affect how much effort is spent on collecting requirements for scope planning.

Answer 20

False (The project’s size, complexity, importance, and other factors affect how much effort is spent on collecting requirements.)

Question 21

The scope baseline in a WBS consists of the requirements documentation and enterprise environmental factors.

Answer 21

False (The scope baseline includes the approved project scope statement and its associated WBS and WBS dictionary.)

Question 22

The scope management plan can be informal and broad or formal and detailed, based on the needs of the project.

Answer 22

True (The scope management plan is a subsidiary part of the project management plan. It can be informal and broad or formal and detailed, based on the needs of the project.)

Question 23

The scope of a project is clear and specific from the start.

Answer 23

False (As time progresses, the scope of a project should become more clear and specific.)

Question 24

The tasks in a WBS must be developed as a sequential list of steps.

Answer 24

False (A concern when creating a WBS is how to organize it to provide the basis for the project schedule. You should focus on what work needs to be done and how it will be done, not when it will be done. In other words, the tasks do not have to be developed as a sequential list of steps.)

Question 25

What is a table that lists requirements, their various attributes, and the status of the requirements to ensure that all are addressed referred to as?

Answer 25

requirements traceability matrix (A requirements traceability matrix (RTM) is a table that lists requirements, their various attributes, and the status of the requirements to ensure that all are addressed.)

Question 26

What is scope creep?

Answer 26

the tendency for project scope to keep getting bigger and bigger (Scope creep refers to the tendency for project scope to keep getting bigger and bigger.)

Question 27

What is the main technique used in creating a WBS, which involves subdividing project deliverables into smaller pieces?

Answer 27

decomposition (The main tool or technique involved in creating a WBS is decomposition—that is, subdividing project deliverables into smaller pieces.)

Question 28

What process involves formal acceptance of the completed project scope by the stakeholders?

Answer 28

Scope validation (Scope validation involves formal acceptance of the completed project deliverables. This acceptance is often achieved by a customer inspection and then sign-off on key deliverables.)

Question 29

Which action involves defining and documenting the features and functions of the products produced during the project as well as the processes used for creating them?

Answer 29

Collecting requirements (Collecting requirements involves defining and documenting the features and functions of the products for the project as well as the processes used for creating them. The project team creates requirements documentation and a requirements traceability matrix as outputs of the requirements collection process.)

Question 30

Which action involves normalizing acceptance of the project deliverables and during this phase the key project stakeholders, such as the customer and sponsor for the project, inspect and then formally accept the deliverables?

Answer 30

Validating scope (Validating scope involves formalizing acceptance of the project deliverables. Key project stakeholders, such as the customer and sponsor for the project, inspect and then formally accept the deliverables during this process.)

Question 31

Which action involves reviewing the project charter, requirements documents, and organizational process assets to create a scope statement, adding more information as requirements are developed and change requests are approved?

Answer 31

Defining scope (Defining scope involves reviewing the scope management plan, project charter, requirements documents, and organizational process assets to create a scope statement, adding more information as requirements are developed and change requests are approved.)

Question 32

Which approach for constructing a WBS involves refining the work into greater and greater levels of detail?

Answer 32

top-down (To use the top-down approach, start with the largest items of the project and break them into subordinate items. This process involves refining the work into greater and greater levels of detail.)

Question 33

Which approach for constructing a WBS starts with the largest items of the project and breaks them into subordinate items?

Answer 33

top-down (To use the top-down approach, start with the largest items of the project and break them into subordinate items. The top-down approach is best suited to project managers who have vast technical insight and a big-picture perspective.)

Question 34

Which approach for constructing a WBS uses a similar project’s WBS as a starting point?

Answer 34

analogy (A method for constructing a WBS is the analogy approach. In the analogy approach, you use a similar project’s WBS as a starting point.)

Question 35

Which document contains a deliverable-oriented grouping of the work involved in a project that defines the total scope of the project?

Answer 35

work breakdown structure

Question 36

Which document should list and describe all of the deliverables required for the project?

Answer 36

scope statement (The scope statement should list and describe all of the deliverables required for the project. It is very important to ensure consistency between the project charter, scope statement, WBS, and Gantt chart to define the scope of the project accurately.)

Question 37

Which is recommended for the creation of a good WBS?

Answer 37

A unit of work should appear at only one place in the WBS. (Some basic principles apply to creating any good WBS and its WBS dictionary. Firstly, a unit of work should appear at only one place in the WBS. The work content of a WBS item is the sum of the WBS items below it.)

Question 38

Which output documents how project needs will be analyzed, documented, and managed?

Answer 38

requirements management plan (The requirements management plan documents how project requirements will be analyzed, documented, and managed.)

Question 39

Which process involves developing a working replica of the system or some aspect of the system?

Answer 39

Prototyping (Prototyping involves developing a working replica of the system or some aspect of the system.)

Question 40

Which process involves generating ideas by comparing specific project practices or product characteristics to those of other projects or products inside or outside the performing organization?

Answer 40

benchmarking (Benchmarking, or generating ideas by comparing specific project practices or product characteristics to those of other projects or products inside or outside the performing organization, can be used to collect requirements.)

Question 41

Which process uses highly organized and intensive workshops to bring together project stakeholders—the sponsor, users, business analysts, programmers, and so on—to jointly define and design information systems?

Answer 41

JAD (Joint Application Design (JAD) uses highly organized and intensive workshops to bring together project stakeholders — the sponsor, users, business analysts, programmers, and so on —to jointly define and design information systems.)

Question 42

Which statement best describes scope?

Answer 42

work involved in creating the products and the processes used to create them (Scope refers to all the work involved in creating the products of the project and the processes used to create them.)

Question 43

Which task is at the lowest level of the WBS?

Answer 43

work package (A work package is a task at the lowest level of the WBS.)

Question 44

Which technique is used for creating a WBS uses branches radiating from a core idea to structure thoughts and ideas instead of writing down tasks in a list or immediately trying to create a structure for tasks?

Answer 44

mind mapping (Mind mapping is a technique that uses branches radiating from a core idea to structure thoughts and ideas. Instead of writing down tasks in a list or immediately trying to create a structure for tasks, mind mapping allows people to write and even draw pictures of ideas in a nonlinear format.)

Question 45

Which term describes a product produced as part of a project?

Answer 45

deliverable (The term deliverable describes a product created as part of a project. Deliverables can be product related, such as a piece of hardware or software, or process-related, such as a planning document or meeting minutes.)

Question 46

Which term refers to the difference between planned and actual performance?

Answer 46

Variance (Variance is the difference between planned and actual performance.)

Question 47

Many information technology projects also require detailed functional and design specifications for developing software, which also should be referenced in the detailed scope statement.

Answer 47

True (Many IT projects require detailed functional and design specifications for developing software, which also should be referenced in the detailed scope statement.)