Deck 2: The Manager, the Organization, and the Team

Question 1

It is common practice to select the project manager prior to the project being selected.

Answer 1

False

Question 2

A matrix organization is a combination of pure project organization and functional organization.

Answer 2

True

Question 3

The most effective program managers tell their project managers exactly what to do. The project manager should not allow functional managers to usurp his or her control of the project.

Answer 3

False

Question 4

The project manager is supposed to facilitate the work of the project team and must, therefore, stay aloof from the conflicts arising among project team members.

Question 5

It is critical to a project's success to have top management support.

Question 6

The functional manager has expertise in the function he or she manages, but the project manager rarely has expertise in many of the projects technical areas.

Question 7

An advantage of pure project organization is its great depth of technical knowledge.

Question 8

If the performance of all subsystems is optimized, it follows that the overall system is optimum.

Question 9

Functional project organizations have higher personnel costs than pure project organizations.

Question 10

Conflict occurs mainly at the beginning of the project.

Question 11

Cross divisional project communication is enhanced when a project is organized in a functional project organization.

Question 12

The individual with responsibility for performing a task is more likely to overestimate the time required to complete the task than his/her immediate supervisor.

Question 13

A pure project organization is usually too expensive for the management of small projects.

Question 14

The project manager must maintain a high level of flexibility in dealing with people.

Question 15

It is common to have more than one boss in a matrix organization.

Question 16

It is appropriate for the project manager to play an active role in communications between the client and the senior management of the organization conducting the project.

Question 17

When it comes to assigning individuals to work on projects, functional managers and project managers are often in conflict.

Question 18

Functionally organized projects are not seen as a high priority by functional managers.

Question 19

The project manager should take a careful, analytic approach to making decisions about projects.

Question 20

Project team members are often faced with conflicting orders in a matrix organization.

Question 21

Albert is managing a team that comprises individuals from various departments in his company. After facing some difficulties initially, the team members work toward resolving the issues and collectively establish certain rules to avoid any future conflict. In this scenario, Albert's team is in the _____ phase of team development.

A) storming
B) norming
C) performing
D) adjourning
E) forming

Question 22

Maria's team starts working on a new project. Halfway through the project, the client visits the team and requests some changes in the specifications of the project. This alters both the cost and the schedule of the project. The given scenario exemplifies the concept of _____.

A) storming
B) interface coordination
C) scope creep
D) integration management
E) administrative credibility

Question 23

Project "war rooms" discourage team cooperation, morale and communications.

Question 24

Sarah is handling a project team whose members are spread across different geographical regions. The members work independently, and this leads to several conflicts among them. In this scenario, Sarah's team is in the _____ phase of team development.

A) storming
B) norming
C) performing
D) adjourning
E) forming

Question 25

Since the PM has position power there is no need for them to have credibility

Question 26

Laura worked with a cross-functional team on a project. After the completion of the project, she held a meeting with the team members after which they returned to their respective departments. Which of the following phases of team development does this scenario exemplify?

A) Storming
B) Norming
C) Performing
D) Adjourning
E) Forming

Question 27

Intrateam conflicts are minimal in a matrix organization.

Question 28

Political savvy is not only an important characteristic of a project manager but is also important for project team members.

Question 29

Cibrastruct, a real estate developer, has undertaken a project to construct a mall. It hires a contractor to call in architects to draft plans, a procurement specialist to gather the best quality of raw materials, a lawyer to ensure the proper planning permits have been obtained, and labor union specialists to assemble a group of workers who will work on this long-term project. This is an example of _____.

A) systems engineering
B) functional project organization
C) scope creep
D) pure project organization
E) technical credibility

Question 30

Proteus, a hotel chain, has bought some new kitchen appliances that would enable its kitchen staff to work more effectively. The senior management of the hotel assigns the task of removal of old appliances and installation of new appliances to the respective manager of the food and beverage department in each of its hotels. The manager assembles a team from within the department to perform this task. This scenario exemplifies _____.

A) projectitis
B) functional project organization
C) scope creep
D) pure project organization
E) systems engineering

Question 31

Roger and his team have been designing a factory that will be modular in nature. They have been working on it for the past seven years, and now it is ending its developmental cycle. Roger has observed that his team is apprehensive. He has also received proposals for a follow-up project in the same area of interest with the same team. This is an example of _____.

A) projectitis
B) analytical approach
C) scope creep
D) systems approach
E) norming

Question 32

Morale of the project team is a key responsibility of the project manager.

Question 33

Project team conflict stifles team creativity.

Question 34

The job of managing work across multiple groups is called integration management.

Question 35

When making trade-offs on a project, the project manager needs to be aware that profit for the firm is always the most important of the project's goals.

Question 36

Matrix, pure project, and functional project organizations may exist in the same company.

Question 37

In order for a PM to be "believable" the PM must have technical and administrative credibility.

Question 38

Fiona and her team are working on a complex project. After multiple conflicts in the initial stages of the project, the team establishes a set of guidelines and is now working cohesively to accomplish the project goals. In the given scenario, Fiona's team is in the _____ phase of team development.

A) norming
B) forming
C) storming
D) adjourning
E) performing

Question 39

Martha has taken on an ambitious project that requires input from different departments within the organization she works for. She also needs contributions from external experts and contractors. She needs to bring the work of all these groups together in a harmonious whole for the project. In the given scenario, Martha needs to engage in _____.

A) systems engineering
B) integration management
C) scope creep
D) suboptimization
E) conscious capitalism

Question 40

Samuel is a project manager who is working on his first project. He assembles a multidisciplinary team and assigns roles and responsibilities to each team member. In this scenario, Samuel is in the _____ phase of team development.

A) storming
B) norming
C) performing
D) adjourning
E) forming

Question 41

Briefly describe the project manager's role as a firefighter. What sorts of obstacles do project managers have to overcome?

Question 42

The four essential skills of persuasion described Jay Conger (1998) include all of the following except:

A) Effective persuaders must be credible to those they are trying to persuade
B) They must find goals held in common with those being persuaded
C) Must give locker-room motivational speeches
D) They must connect with the emotions of those they are trying to persuade

Question 43

It is said that the distinction between the traditional manager-as-supervisor and the modern manager-as-facilitator is diminishing in recent years. Why?

Question 44

Why are negotiation skills an important criterion of a successful project manager?

Question 45

How are the PMBOK and PMI related?

Question 46

Explain the importance of credibility and why PM's need it.

Question 47

List the key characteristics of effective project team members.

Question 48

What is meant by the phrase "scope creep?"

Question 49

What is a "virtual project?"

Question 50

The _________________ approach centers on understanding the bits and pieces in a system.

A) facilitating
B) analytical
C) systems
D) sensitivity
E) matrix

Question 51

A matrix project that closely resembles the pure project is referred to as

A) a weak matrix
B) a strong matrix
C) a functional matrix
D) a balanced matrix
E) an unbalanced matrix

Question 52

Describe the difference between the analytic approach and the systems approach to solving problems in a project.

Question 53

What does "PMO" stand for? What is its purpose?

Question 54

Define "projectitis."

Question 55

The PM's job includes all of the following except?

A) Convener and chair of meetings
B) Facilitator
C) Communicator
D) Supervisor
E) Virtual project manager

Question 56

During project formation stage, the major sources of conflict are all of the following except:

A) Priorities
B) Procedures
C) Technical
D) Schedules

Question 57

Briefly list the primary advantages and disadvantages of a matrix project organization.

Question 58

Altering the specifications of an ongoing project is referred to as

A) suboptimization
B) scope creep
C) a virtual project
D) projectitis
E) PMI

Question 59

Briefly describe and contrast pure project organization, functional project organization, and the matrix project organization.

Question 60

Which of the following is not a characteristic of effective project team members?

A) They are technically competent.
B) They are politically sensitive.
C) They have a strong orientation to their discipline.
D) They have a strong goal orientation.
E) They have high self-esteem.