PCC Team Building & Development 3 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: A project controls team operating across three time zones struggles with schedule integration. Which team building approach BEST sustains cohesion in a virtual environment?
- Annual team retreats only
- Overlapping core hours with regular video check-ins (Correct answer)
- Rotating project manager role monthly
- Assigning all scheduling to one time zone
Correct answer: Overlapping core hours with regular video check-ins
Establishing overlapping core hours and consistent video check-ins builds trust and maintains alignment in geographically dispersed teams.
Question 2: When a project controls team consistently meets earned value thresholds, what recognition approach is MOST effective for sustaining performance?
- Providing only monetary bonuses
- Offering timely, specific praise tied to measurable results (Correct answer)
- Waiting for the annual review cycle
- Issuing formal written warnings for future deviations
Correct answer: Offering timely, specific praise tied to measurable results
Timely and specific recognition reinforces the exact behaviors that drove success, making it more motivating than delayed or generic rewards.
Question 3: Which conflict source is MOST common in project controls teams working under a matrix organizational structure?
- Unclear project objectives
- Competition for shared functional resources (Correct answer)
- Lack of technical expertise
- Inadequate risk registers
Correct answer: Competition for shared functional resources
Matrix structures create resource conflicts because functional managers and project managers both compete for the same personnel and equipment.
Question 4: A new project controls director inherits a team with undefined processes and low trust. According to Lencioni's Five Dysfunctions, which dysfunction must be resolved FIRST?
- Avoidance of accountability
- Inattention to results
- Fear of conflict
- Absence of trust (Correct answer)
Correct answer: Absence of trust
Lencioni's model is hierarchical; absence of trust is the foundational dysfunction that must be resolved before the others can be addressed.
Question 5: Which technique involves bringing the entire project controls team together to clarify roles, set expectations, and align on processes at the start of a project?
- Kickoff meeting
- Team charter workshop (Correct answer)
- Sprint retrospective
- Gate review
Correct answer: Team charter workshop
A team charter workshop collaboratively defines norms, roles, communication protocols, and decision-making processes at project initiation.
Question 6: A cost engineer feels bypassed when schedule changes are made without consultation. This situation BEST illustrates which team dynamic issue?
- Scope creep
- Role ambiguity and siloed decision-making (Correct answer)
- Schedule compression
- Resource leveling conflict
Correct answer: Role ambiguity and siloed decision-making
When team members are excluded from decisions affecting their domain, it signals unclear roles and poor cross-functional communication.
Question 7: According to McClelland's Acquired Needs Theory, a project controls professional who seeks influence over the team and project outcomes is PRIMARILY driven by:
- Need for achievement
- Need for affiliation
- Need for power (Correct answer)
- Need for security
Correct answer: Need for power
McClelland's need for power drives individuals to seek control, influence, and authority over people and decisions.
PCC Team Building & Development 3
A project controls team operating across three time zones struggles with schedule integration.
Which team building approach BEST sustains cohesion in a virtual environment?