CED Project Planning & Execution 3

Question 1

A project kickoff meeting is most valuable for:

Accepted Answer

Aligning all stakeholders on objectives, roles, and ground rules

Answer

The kickoff meeting establishes shared understanding of project purpose, roles, and expectations — creating the social contract that guides team behavior throughout.

Question 2

Which document formally authorizes a project and grants the executive director authority to apply organizational resources to project activities?

Accepted Answer

Project charter

Answer

The project charter officially authorizes the project, names the project manager/executive director, and grants them authority to commit resources.

Question 3

A nonprofit launches a program expansion with a fixed grant deadline. The project manager compresses the schedule by adding resources to critical-path tasks. This technique is called:

Accepted Answer

Crashing

Answer

Crashing adds resources (people, equipment, overtime) to critical-path activities to shorten duration, typically increasing cost.

Question 4

When creating a Work Breakdown Structure (WBS), the 100% rule requires that:

Accepted Answer

The WBS captures 100% of the project scope with no gaps or overlaps

Answer

The 100% rule ensures the WBS includes all work — and only the work — needed to complete the project, preventing both scope gaps and double-counting.

Question 5

An executive director notices team members are duplicating efforts on a multi-department initiative. The root cause is most likely a lack of:

Accepted Answer

A responsibility assignment matrix (RACI)

Answer

A RACI matrix (Responsible, Accountable, Consulted, Informed) clarifies who does what for each task, eliminating ambiguity that leads to duplication.

(CED) Certified Executive Director Practice Test

(CED) Certified Executive Director Practice Test

CED Project Planning & Execution 3