A project team has completed the risk response plan for a newly identified major project risk. Some team members argue the plan does not totally eliminate the risk, considering the effort required to implement it, and feel the planned response should be thrown out altogether.
What should the risk manager do in this situation?
Answer : C
In risk management, it is common that not all risks can be completely eliminated. Residual risk is the remaining risk after all possible mitigation efforts have been applied. If the residual risk is within the organization's risk appetite---meaning the organization is willing to accept this level of risk---it is appropriate to proceed with the plan. The PMI framework supports this approach, as risk management is about balancing effort and benefit, ensuring that mitigation efforts are commensurate with the risk involved.
An agriculture government agency faces different challenges with farmers and landlords In implementing its ambitious growth strategy. The agency decided to establish an enterprise risk management unit to identify risks, analyze risks, and provide a handbook showing how to handle the surrounding uncertainty.
What should the risk management expert recommend the agency do first to identify risks and develop the handbook?
Answer : D
According to the PMBOK Guide1, risk identification is the process of determining which risks may affect the project and documenting their characteristics. It involves the use of various techniques to gather information from different sources and perspectives, such as stakeholders, experts, historical data, assumptions, and environmental factors. Some of the common techniques for risk identification are meetings, facilitated workshops, interviews, brainstorming, checklists, questionnaires, SWOT analysis, and root cause analysis. These techniques help to elicit the knowledge and opinions of the participants, and to generate a comprehensive list of potential risks that can be further analyzed and prioritized. In this case, the risk management expert should recommend the agency to conduct meetings, facilitated workshops, and interviews with stakeholders to identify potential risks and develop the handbook. This will help to understand the context and objectives of the agency, the expectations and concerns of the farmers and landlords, the challenges and opportunities in the agriculture sector, and the possible sources and impacts of uncertainty. The risk management expert can then use the information gathered from these techniques to create a risk register and a risk management plan, which can form the basis of the handbook.This is part of the Identify Risks process in the PMBOK Guide1.Reference:1: A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK Guide) -- Sixth Edition
Engaging stakeholders through meetings, workshops, and interviews is crucial for risk identification, as it allows the agency to gather diverse perspectives and insights on potential risks. This approach is more effective than relying solely on standard tools or hiring an expert.
Some project risks are applicable for the project's lifecycle while others risks are only applicable to specific project activities. When should project risks be closed?
Answer : B
Project risks should be closed when the stakeholders agree a risk is no longer applicable. This ensures that risks are actively managed and only relevant risks are considered throughout the project lifecycle.
According to the PMI Risk Management Professional (PMI-RMP) Reference Materials, project risks are uncertain events or conditions that may have a positive or negative effect on one or more project objectives1. Project risks can be closed when they are no longer applicable to the project or its activities.The process of closing project risks involves verifying that the risk responses have been completed, documenting the outcomes, and evaluating the effectiveness of the risk management process2. The decision to close a project risk should be made by the stakeholders who are responsible for or affected by the risk, as they are the ones who can determine whether the risk is still relevant or not. Therefore, the correct answer is B. When the stakeholders agree a risk is no longer applicable.
A risk manager for a large project has completed documenting the risk management plan. The project is moving from planning to execution.
Which three actions should the risk manager take to ensure the risk management plan remains effective during the project timeframe? (Choose 3)
Answer : B, C, D
According to the PMI-RMP Exam Content Outline1, one of the domains of the PMI-RMP certification is risk monitoring and reporting. This domain includes tasks such as ''monitor and report on risk metrics and trends'', ''monitor the status of risk response activities and update risk register and risk report accordingly'', and ''monitor and control project contingency and management reserves''. These tasks imply that the risk manager should regularly check and report on the status of risks identified according to their prioritization (B), monitor the status and oversee execution of the risk response plan for each identified risk , and ensure management reserves are sufficient to cover the mitigation plans for all identified risks (D). These actions will help the risk manager to ensure the risk management plan remains effective during the project timeframe. Therefore, the best answers are B, C, and D.
rences:1: PMI-RMP Exam Content Outline, pages 9-10.
During a project's planning phase, the project team identifies a potential supplier delay and marks it as a significant risk. A risk manager is tasked with effectively monitoring this risk.
What should the risk manager document as the risk trigger?
Answer : C
A risk trigger is a specific event or condition that signals that a risk is about to occur or has occurred. PMBOK Guide clarifies:
'Risk triggers (sometimes called warning signs) are indicators or symptoms that a risk event is about to occur. The risk register should include identified triggers for each risk.'
--- PMBOK Guide, 6th Edition, Section 11.2.3.1
Thus, documenting the specific event or condition (such as the supplier missing a delivery deadline) is the correct approach.
PMBOK Guide, 6th Edition, Section 11.2.3.1
Practice Standard for Project Risk Management, PMI, Section 5.3
In a large enablement project with strict time lines, risks need to be closely monitored. The risk manager publishes reports comparing planned enablement sessions with actual enablement sessions, which help identify potential risks to be addressed.
Which technique is the risk manager using?
Answer : A
Variance analysis is a technique used to compare actual project performance against planned performance. In this scenario, the risk manager is comparing planned enablement sessions with actual sessions to identify discrepancies that could indicate potential risks. This approach allows the project team to monitor performance closely and take corrective actions as needed to keep the project on track, which is crucial for projects with strict timelines.
A core project team is working on unrelated tasks in advance to reduce the risk of delay due to an external team not completing its tasks on time. The core project team has completed all possible unrelated tasks but cannot move forward, because the external team's tasks have yet to be completed.
What should the risk manager do next?
Answer : D
According to the PMBOK Guide, the risk response plan is the set of actions that the project team will take to address the identified risks. The risk response plan should be reviewed and updated periodically throughout the project lifecycle, as new risks may emerge or existing risks may change. The risk owners are the persons assigned the responsibility of monitoring the risks and implementing the risk response actions. The risk owners should work with the risk manager and other stakeholders to evaluate the effectiveness of the risk response plan and make any necessary adjustments. In this case, the risk manager should ask the risk owners to review the risk response plan and see if there are any alternative or additional actions that can be taken to deal with the delay caused by the external team. Starting a quantitative analysis, crashing the schedule, or transferring the risk are not appropriate actions for this situation, as they are either too late, too costly, or too risky.Reference: = PMBOK Guide, 6th edition, pages 452-453; The Standard for Risk Management in Portfolios, Programs, and Projects, page 79.