CPP Team Leadership & Stakeholder Communication 2 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: A project manager notices that two senior team members consistently disagree in meetings, slowing decision-making. What is the BEST first step?
- Escalate the conflict to the project sponsor immediately
- Meet with each member privately to understand their perspectives (Correct answer)
- Remove one of the members from the project
- Ignore the conflict and let the team self-resolve
Correct answer: Meet with each member privately to understand their perspectives
Meeting privately first allows the project manager to understand root causes before choosing a resolution strategy.
Question 2: Which communication model distinguishes between the intended message and the message actually received by the audience?
- Laissez-faire model
- Encode-Transmit-Decode model (Correct answer)
- Waterfall communication model
- RACI communication model
Correct answer: Encode-Transmit-Decode model
The Encode-Transmit-Decode model highlights that noise and interpretation can distort the sender's intended message.
Question 3: A stakeholder requests weekly status reports but the project manager already sends biweekly reports to all stakeholders. What should the project manager do?
- Ignore the request as it duplicates existing reports
- Update the communications management plan to accommodate the stakeholder's need (Correct answer)
- Ask the PMO to handle all stakeholder communications
- Send the same biweekly report relabeled as weekly
Correct answer: Update the communications management plan to accommodate the stakeholder's need
The communications management plan should be updated to reflect agreed-upon communication needs for each stakeholder.
Question 4: When using a responsibility assignment matrix (RAM), what does an 'A' (Accountable) designation mean?
- The person performs the work
- The person is the single owner who answers for the outcome (Correct answer)
- The person must be kept informed of progress
- The person provides expert input when needed
Correct answer: The person is the single owner who answers for the outcome
Accountable means there is one person who is ultimately answerable for correct and thorough completion of the deliverable.
Question 5: A project team member from a high-context culture tends to communicate indirectly. A team member from a low-context culture is frustrated by the ambiguity. How should the project manager address this?
- Require all team members to adopt a single communication style
- Facilitate cross-cultural awareness sessions and set clear communication norms (Correct answer)
- Assign the two members to separate work packages
- Document the issue in the risk register and take no action
Correct answer: Facilitate cross-cultural awareness sessions and set clear communication norms
Cross-cultural awareness and agreed communication norms help bridge high-context and low-context style differences.
Question 6: During project execution, a key stakeholder repeatedly misses scheduled status meetings. What is the MOST appropriate response?
- Remove the stakeholder from the distribution list
- Investigate the reason for absences and adapt the engagement approach (Correct answer)
- Continue sending meeting invites and mark them as non-responsive
- Escalate directly to the board of directors
Correct answer: Investigate the reason for absences and adapt the engagement approach
Understanding why a stakeholder disengages helps the project manager tailor the approach to re-establish effective engagement.
Question 7: Which leadership style is MOST effective when team members are highly skilled but lack motivation?
- Directing (telling)
- Coaching
- Supporting (participating) (Correct answer)
- Delegating
Correct answer: Supporting (participating)
Supporting style works best when competence is high but confidence or motivation is low, focusing on relationship and encouragement.
CPP Team Leadership & Stakeholder Communication 2
A project manager notices that two senior team members consistently disagree in meetings, slowing decision-making.
What is the BEST first step?