CMA Project Management & Collaboration 3 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: A project is experiencing scope creep that threatens the schedule. Which project management technique helps control this most effectively?
- Compressing the schedule by fast-tracking
- Implementing a formal change control process (Correct answer)
- Adding staff to absorb additional scope
- Reducing quality standards to meet the deadline
Correct answer: Implementing a formal change control process
A formal change control process ensures all scope additions are evaluated for cost and schedule impact before authorization, preventing uncontrolled growth.
Question 2: In an integrated project delivery (IPD) model, how are risks and rewards typically distributed among key parties?
- The owner assumes all financial risk
- Risk and reward are shared among owner, architect, and contractor through a multi-party agreement (Correct answer)
- The contractor bears all construction risk
- Each party retains risk only for their own scope
Correct answer: Risk and reward are shared among owner, architect, and contractor through a multi-party agreement
IPD's defining characteristic is a multi-party agreement that aligns financial incentives and shares risks across owner, designer, and builder to encourage collaboration.
Question 3: Which scheduling method is most useful for identifying which project activities directly affect the completion date?
- Gantt chart
- Critical Path Method (CPM) (Correct answer)
- Resource leveling
- Monte Carlo simulation
Correct answer: Critical Path Method (CPM)
CPM identifies the critical path — the sequence of activities with no float — whose delay directly impacts project completion.
Question 4: An architect is coordinating a BIM model with multiple consultants. What governance document should be established at project start to manage model contributions?
- Master specification
- BIM Execution Plan (BEP) (Correct answer)
- Project manual
- Drawing index
Correct answer: BIM Execution Plan (BEP)
A BIM Execution Plan defines model authorship, file formats, coordination procedures, and level of development requirements for all contributors.
Question 5: During construction administration, how should an architect handle a request for information (RFI) that reveals a design error?
- Deny the RFI to avoid liability
- Issue an architect's supplemental instruction (ASI) correcting the error at no change in contract sum if contractor is not at fault (Correct answer)
- Require the contractor to absorb the cost of the error
- Ignore the RFI and wait for the contractor to escalate
Correct answer: Issue an architect's supplemental instruction (ASI) correcting the error at no change in contract sum if contractor is not at fault
When an RFI reveals a design error, an ASI is the appropriate instrument to correct the design; cost implications depend on fault and contract terms.
Question 6: A master architect must manage a stakeholder group with conflicting interests on a community center project. Which strategy is most effective?
- Prioritize the loudest stakeholder group
- Conduct structured stakeholder engagement sessions to surface and resolve conflicts transparently (Correct answer)
- Make all decisions unilaterally to avoid conflict
- Exclude conflicting stakeholders from the process
Correct answer: Conduct structured stakeholder engagement sessions to surface and resolve conflicts transparently
Structured engagement sessions give all stakeholders a voice, build consensus, and produce more durable decisions than exclusion or unilateral choices.
Question 7: What is the primary purpose of a responsibility assignment matrix (RAM) in architectural project management?
- To track construction costs
- To clarify who is accountable, responsible, consulted, and informed for each task (Correct answer)
- To schedule design review meetings
- To document contractor submittals
Correct answer: To clarify who is accountable, responsible, consulted, and informed for each task
A RAM (often RACI format) maps team roles to project tasks, preventing gaps and overlaps in responsibility across a multidisciplinary team.
CMA Project Management & Collaboration 3
A project is experiencing scope creep that threatens the schedule.
Which project management technique helps control this most effectively?