Project Management Flashcards

Horizontal Market Software is best described by which of the following?

Answer: Developed and used across many industries

Horizontal market software is designed to address common business needs that are applicable across a wide variety of industries, rather than being tailored for a specific niche. Examples include accounting software, CRM systems, or project management tools that can be used by businesses regardless of their particular sector. This broad applicability makes it valuable to many different types of organizations.

Small stand-alone applications that demonstrate what you've learnt are called spike solutions. If you need to test an approach to your production code, which of the following spike kinds will you use?

Answer: Design Spike

A design spike is a short, time-boxed investigation specifically aimed at exploring a technical approach or solution to a problem before committing to its full implementation. Its purpose is to reduce risk and uncertainty by testing assumptions, evaluating technologies, or understanding complex design challenges. This allows the team to make informed decisions about how to proceed with production code.

What is the best way to explain an Agile leader's key role?

Answer: Manage teams without managing their tasks

An Agile leader's primary role is to serve the team, fostering an environment where they can be self-organizing and effective. This involves removing impediments, coaching, and providing support, rather than dictating individual tasks or micro-managing their daily activities. By focusing on the team's overall well-being and capability, the leader empowers them to manage their own work and achieve goals.

What is the name of the XP technique in which two workers partner up, with one person coding and the other thinking as the Navigator?

Answer: Pair Programming

Pair programming is an Extreme Programming (XP) practice where two developers work together at one workstation. One person, the 'driver,' writes the code, while the other, the 'navigator,' continuously reviews the code, thinks about the overall design, and identifies potential issues. This collaborative approach enhances code quality, facilitates knowledge transfer, and reduces defects.

Elapsed Time is defined by which of the following?

Answer: Is the amount of time that passes on a clock or perhaps a calendar

Elapsed time refers to the actual duration that passes from the start to the end of an activity, as measured by a clock or calendar. Unlike ideal time, which excludes interruptions, elapsed time accounts for all real-world factors like breaks, meetings, and other non-work activities. It represents the total wall-clock time taken for a task or project to be completed.

What does 'Ha' stand for in Shu Ha Ri's Agile Team Stages?

Answer: Break the rule

Shu Ha Ri describes stages of learning and mastery, often applied to Agile teams. 'Shu' means to follow the rules, 'Ha' means to break the rules or adapt them, and 'Ri' means to transcend the rules and innovate. In the 'Ha' stage, the team has a solid understanding of the foundational principles and can begin to experiment, modify, and adapt practices to better suit their specific context.

ROTI is best described by which of the following?

Answer: Measure of effectiveness of the retrospective meeting

ROTI stands for 'Return on Time Invested' and is a quick feedback mechanism used to gauge the perceived value and effectiveness of a meeting, particularly retrospectives. Participants typically rate how worthwhile the meeting was, helping the team understand if their time was well spent and identify areas for improving future meeting structures and content. It directly measures the meeting's impact.

Which financial return metric is the most appropriate for comparing the values of two distinct cash flow streams?

Answer: Internal Rate of Return

The Internal Rate of Return (IRR) is a financial metric that calculates the discount rate at which the net present value (NPV) of all cash flows from a project equals zero. It provides a single percentage rate that can be used to compare the profitability of different investment opportunities, even those with distinct cash flow streams. A higher IRR generally indicates a more desirable project.

Which of the following indicates an estimate of the project's monetary benefits?

Answer: Return on investment (ROI)

Return on Investment (ROI) is a performance measure used to evaluate the efficiency or profitability of an investment. It directly quantifies the amount of financial return generated relative to the investment's cost. A positive and high ROI indicates that the project is expected to deliver significant monetary benefits, making it a key indicator for estimating financial gains.

One of your stakeholders need more information than the vision statement gives, but not as much as the release and iteration plans provide. With which of the following progress reports would you share this stakeholder's information?

Answer: Roadmap

A product roadmap provides a high-level visual summary of the product's vision, strategic direction, and planned evolution over time. It offers more detail than a simple vision statement by outlining key initiatives and features, but it avoids the granular detail found in release or iteration plans. This makes it ideal for stakeholders who need a strategic overview of upcoming goals without getting bogged down in specifics.

One of your stakeholders wants to see how the project is progressing but isn't interested in the details. Which of the following reports are you able to share with this individual?

Answer: Burn up chart

A burn-up chart visually tracks the total amount of work completed against the total scope of the project over time. It provides a clear, high-level overview of progress and any changes in the project's scope. This makes it an excellent tool for communicating overall project trajectory to stakeholders who want to see progress without delving into granular task details.

What are the three types of coaches?

Answer: Teaching, Coaching and Advising

In professional development and Agile contexts, coaching often encompasses a spectrum of approaches to support growth. 'Teaching' involves imparting specific knowledge or skills, 'Coaching' focuses on guiding individuals to discover their own solutions and improve performance, and 'Advising' offers expert recommendations or suggestions based on experience. These three roles represent different ways a coach can support an individual or team's development.

For value stream analysis, choose the right sequence.

Answer: Make a value stream map of the current process, noting steps, queues, delays, and data flows.

Value stream analysis begins by creating a 'current state' value stream map. This involves meticulously documenting all steps, handoffs, queues, delays, and information flows involved in delivering a product or service. The purpose is to visualize the entire process, identify waste, and understand where value is being added or lost, before attempting to optimize it.

Which of the following statements about the differences between burn up charts that also monitor overall scope and burn down charts is false?

Answer: Changes in the rate of effort are indicated by burn down charts, which show whether the changes are attributable to changes in progress rates or scope.

Burn-down charts primarily show the remaining work over time, indicating the rate of progress towards completion. While they reflect changes in the rate of effort, they do not inherently distinguish whether these changes are due to progress rate fluctuations or scope changes. Burn-up charts, by showing both completed work and total scope, are better at separating these two factors, as they have distinct lines for total scope and completed work.

The overall value of all features is 35, while feature X has a value of 12. What is the priority of this feature using relative weighting if the feature is anticipated to cost 56%?

Answer: 0.61

Relative weighting for priority is often calculated as Value / Cost. In this scenario, the value of Feature X is 12, and the overall value is 35. The anticipated cost is 56% (or 0.56). Therefore, the priority is calculated as (12 / 35) / 0.56. This calculation yields approximately 0.342857 / 0.56, which equals 0.6122, rounding to 0.61.

Which of the following statements regarding Retrospective is NOT correct?

Answer: It chooses who will work on the following project.

A retrospective meeting is a key Agile ceremony focused on continuous improvement within a team. Its purpose is to reflect on a past iteration or project, identify what went well, what could be improved, and how to implement those improvements in future work. It does not involve making decisions about team staffing or who will work on subsequent projects; that is typically a management or product owner responsibility.

The prioritized requirements list is created by DSDM using the MoSCoW approach. The 'M' in the MoSCoW method stands for:

Answer: Must Have

The MoSCoW method is a prioritization technique used in Agile, particularly DSDM (Dynamic Systems Development Method), to categorize requirements. The 'M' in MoSCoW stands for 'Must Have,' indicating requirements that are absolutely essential for the solution to be considered viable and delivered successfully. These are non-negotiable features.

During active listening, evaluate your progress in listening skills.

Answer: 1) Internal listening, 2) Focused listening, 3) Global listening

These three stages represent a progression in active listening skills. Internal listening is self-focused, where one is primarily thinking about their own thoughts and responses. Focused listening involves paying close attention to the speaker's words and immediate message. Global listening is the highest level, where one not only hears the words but also perceives non-verbal cues, emotions, and the broader context, understanding the speaker holistically.

Which of the following graphs depicts the total number of story points accomplished by each iteration's end?

Answer: Cumulative story point burndown chart

A cumulative story point burndown chart, often functioning similarly to a burn-up chart, tracks the total amount of work completed (e.g., in story points) over time. It shows a rising line as story points are 'burned down' or completed across iterations, thereby depicting the accumulated progress of the team. This chart provides a clear visual of the total accomplishment by the end of each iteration.

For a retrospective meeting, what style of seating arrangement is most effective?

Answer: Circle or semicircle of chairs

A circle or semicircle seating arrangement is most effective for retrospective meetings because it promotes open communication, equality, and active participation among all team members. This setup eliminates hierarchical barriers, allows everyone to see and hear each other clearly, and fosters a sense of shared responsibility and collaboration essential for honest reflection and problem-solving.