Deck 10: The Project Manager

Question 1

The project manager must be careful to create situations that cause individuals to become discouraged.

Answer 1

False

Question 2

To control the project, the project manager must track actual progress and compare it with planned progress.

Answer 2

True

Question 3

The project manager maintains authority and assigns responsibility to specific individuals or subcontractors for the various tasks.

Answer 3

False

Question 4

The effective manager does not tell people how to do their jobs.

Question 5

The project manager must foster motivation through criticism of the project team as a whole and of individual members.Criticism should be carried out as soon as possible after the action that is being criticized.

Question 6

The project manager involves the project team in the functions of planning, organizing, and controlling the project to gain their commitment to successful completion of the project.

Question 7

The project manager establishes the parameters and guidelines for what needs to be done, and then tells the project team members how to get it done.

Question 8

Project leadership involves criticizing the people assigned to the project to work as a team.

Question 9

The project manager is a key ingredient in the success of a project.

Question 10

Effective project managers have strong leadership ability, ability to develop people, excellent communication skills, good interpersonal skills, ability to handle stress, problem-solving skills, negotiating skills, and time management skills.

Question 11

The project manager must create for the team a vision of the result and benefits of the project.

Question 12

The capable project manager understands what motivates team members and creates a competitive environment in which individuals compete as part of a high-performing team and are required to excel.

Question 13

The project manager plays the leadership role in planning, organizing, and controlling the project, and tries to do it alone.

Question 14

Capable project managers have high expectations of themselves and of each person on the project team.They believe that people tend to live up to what is expected of them.

Question 15

The project manager sets the tone for the project team by establishing an environment of trust, high expectations, and enjoyment.

Question 16

Effective project management requires a participative and consultative leadership style, in which the project manager provides guidance and coaching to the project team.

Question 17

Finally, and most important, the task of organizing involves creating an environment in which the individuals may be motivated to work together as a project team.

Question 18

Leadership is getting things done through others; the project manager achieves results by not trusting the project team.

Question 19

Project leadership requires involvement and empowerment of the project team.

Question 20

The project manager should involve individuals in decisions affecting them and should empower them to make decisions within their assigned areas of responsibility.

Question 21

Another way of encouraging project team development is to meet with project team members individually at the start of their project assignments and encourage them to take advantage of their assignments to expand their knowledge and skills.

Question 22

Leadership requires that the project manager be highly motivated and set a positive example for the project team.

Question 23

During individual meetings with the project team members, assess opportunities for growth by having the members identify what they learned by working on the project.

Question 24

A good project manager believes that all individuals are valuable to the organization and that they can make greater contributions through continuous learning.

Question 25

The project manager has self-confidence and exhibits distrust in the project team members.

Question 26

The project manager should never provide coaching.

Question 27

The project manager can try to provide "stretch" assignments that require individual team members to extend their
knowledge and accomplish more than they may think they can.

Question 28

Project managers must be good communicators.

Question 29

A good project manager stresses the value of self-indulgence by encouraging individuals to take the initiative.

Question 30

A final way in which the project manager can develop people is by having them attend formal training sessions.

Question 31

The project manager leads by making things happen.

Question 32

Project managers tend to be pessimistic and negative.

Question 33

The effective project manager has a commitment to limiting the training and development of people working on the project.

Question 34

The project manager uses the project as an opportunity to add value to each person's experience base so that all members of the project team are more knowledgeable and competent at the end of the project than when they started it.

Question 35

One way of encouraging project team development is to talk about the importance of self-development at project team meetings.

Question 36

A capable project manager provides opportunities for learning and development by encouraging individuals to assume the initiative, take risks, and make decisions.

Question 37

Project managers should encourage a negative attitude on the part of the project team members and manipulate the team building process.

Question 38

Project managers need to communicate regularly with the project team, as well as with any subcontractors, the
customer, and their own company's upper management.

Question 39

Another thing the project manager can do is identify situations in which less experienced people can learn from more experienced people.

Question 40

Rather than create a fear of failure, the manager acknowledges that mistakes are part of the learning and growth experience.

Question 41

Project managers must be able to handle the stress that can arise from work situations.

Question 42

Effective and frequent communication is crucial for keeping the project moving, identifying potential problems, soliciting suggestions to improve project performance, keeping abreast of customer satisfaction, and avoiding surprises.

Question 43

Communications require that the project manager have good verbal and written communication skills.

Question 44

A high level of communication is especially important early in the project to build a competitive working relationship with the project team and to establish low expectations with the customer.

Question 45

Good interpersonal skills are essential for a project manager.

Question 46

Effective communication establishes credibility and builds trust.

Question 47

In informal conversations, the project manager should use open-ended questions and do a lot of listening.

Question 48

It's important that the project manager develop a relationship with each person on the project team.It requires making the time to have an informal conversation with each person on the project team and with each key individual in the customer's organization.

Question 49

An effective project manager develops and maintains the interpersonal relationships throughout the duration of the project.

Question 50

The project manager should try to learn about the personal interests of each individual by being intrusive.

Question 51

The project manager must create an atmosphere that fosters timely and open communication with a fear of reprisal.

Question 52

A project manager needs good interpersonal skills to try to influence the thinking and actions of others.

Question 53

Good interpersonal skills enable a project manager to empathize with individuals when special circumstances arise.

Question 54

The project manager establishes ongoing communication with the customer to keep the customer at a distance and to determine whether there are any changes in expectations.

Question 55

Good project managers spend more time talking than listening.

Question 56

A project manager also needs good interpersonal skills to deal with disagreement or divisiveness among team
members.Such situations can require delicate handling on the project manager's part.

Question 57

Only the good news should be shared promptly.The bad news should be kept secret by the project manager.

Question 58

It's important for the project manager to provide timely feedback to the team and customer.

Question 59

Communication by project managers needs to be timely, honest, and ambiguous.

Question 60

Effective project managers communicate and share information in one way.

Question 61

Effective negotiations strengthen relationships, not erode them.

Question 62

During the project life cycle, project managers encounter many occasions to employ their negotiating skills in interactions with the sponsor or customer, the project organization's management, subcontractors, vendors, and end users of the project's end product.The subject of negotiations can be contract terms and conditions, obtaining specific resources to staff the project, subcontractor prices, vendor delivery schedules, payment for damages, the cost or schedule impact of changes, customer approval of designs, the need for rework if quality standards were not met, the best approach to resolve a technical performance issue, interpretation of acceptance criteria or test results, approaches to get the project back on track if it is behind schedule and/or over budget, and so forth.

Question 63

The project manager must ignore cultural differences into consideration when negotiating.

Question 64

The project manager can improve her or his ability to handle stress by keeping physically fit through regular exercise and good nutrition.

Question 65

During the project life cycle, project managers encounter many occasions to employ their negotiating skills in interactions with the sponsor or customer, the project organization's management, subcontractors, vendors, and end users of the project's end product.

Question 66

The project manager needs to use effective listening and to be able to make a persuasive case and clearly articulate her position on issues.

Question 67

Good problem solving starts with the late identification of a problem or potential problem.

Question 68

It is helpful if the project manager has developed a mistrusting relationship with the other person because this can provide a strong foundation for positive and robust negotiations.

Question 69

Negotiating with customers or subcontractors involved in global projects can be particularly challenging.

Question 70

The project manager needs to have a good sense of humor.

Question 71

Stress is likely to be high when a project is in jeopardy of not meeting its objective.

Question 72

The project manager should encourage project team members to identify problems early and solve them on their own or seek help if they need to.

Question 73

The effective project manager is able to cope with constantly changing conditions.

Question 74

A project manager needs to be a good problem solver.

Question 75

Used appropriately, humor can help a project manager handle the stress and break the tension.

Question 76

In certain situations, the project manager needs to act as a buffer between the project team and either the customer or upper management.

Question 77

Good negotiating skills are essential for project managers.

Question 78

Project managers must have self-discipline, be able to prioritize, and show a willingness to delegate.

Question 79

Good project managers manage their time well.

Question 80

The project manager should panic; she or he has to look ruffled.