PMI-SP Monitoring, Controlling & Reporting Schedules 3 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: A project manager is preparing a schedule status report for senior stakeholders. Which reporting format BEST conveys milestone achievement at a glance?
- Detailed Gantt chart with all 500 activities
- Milestone chart showing planned vs. actual milestone dates (Correct answer)
- Full network diagram with float values
- Resource histogram for each team member
Correct answer: Milestone chart showing planned vs. actual milestone dates
Milestone charts provide a concise, high-level view of key schedule points, ideal for executive stakeholder reporting.
Question 2: During schedule review, the project team identifies that a non-critical activity's total float has dropped from 10 days to 2 days. What is the MOST immediate concern?
- The activity's resource usage has increased
- The activity is approaching the critical path and becoming a schedule risk (Correct answer)
- The project budget needs revision
- The baseline must be re-approved immediately
Correct answer: The activity is approaching the critical path and becoming a schedule risk
Rapidly shrinking float indicates an activity is becoming near-critical and could soon drive the project end date if delays occur.
Question 3: What is the primary purpose of a schedule variance threshold in a schedule management plan?
- To set the maximum allowable budget overrun
- To define when variances are significant enough to require formal corrective action (Correct answer)
- To automatically update the schedule baseline
- To determine which activities require crashing
Correct answer: To define when variances are significant enough to require formal corrective action
Variance thresholds establish trigger points (e.g., SPI < 0.9) that mandate escalation or corrective action per governance rules.
Question 4: A PMI-SP is reviewing an S-curve report. The actual work curve is consistently below the planned value curve. What does this pattern suggest?
- The project is consistently ahead of schedule
- The project is consistently behind schedule (Correct answer)
- Resources are being used more efficiently than planned
- The project scope has been reduced
Correct answer: The project is consistently behind schedule
When the actual S-curve tracks below the planned S-curve, cumulative work completed is less than planned at each time period.
Question 5: Which type of schedule report provides the MOST comprehensive view by combining scope, schedule, and cost performance in one dashboard?
- Gantt chart report
- Earned Value Management dashboard (Correct answer)
- Resource utilization report
- Critical path report
Correct answer: Earned Value Management dashboard
An EVM dashboard integrates PV, EV, AC, SPI, CPI, and variance data to give a holistic project performance view.
Question 6: When a corrective action is implemented to recover a schedule delay, what should a scheduler do FIRST?
- Update the schedule baseline immediately
- Re-run the schedule to assess the impact of the corrective action (Correct answer)
- Close the risk register entry for the delay
- Notify all stakeholders of the change
Correct answer: Re-run the schedule to assess the impact of the corrective action
After implementing a corrective action, the scheduler must recalculate the schedule to confirm the action achieves the desired recovery.
Question 7: A project's TCPI (To-Complete Performance Index) for schedule is calculated as 1.25. What does this mean?
- The team has already achieved 125% of planned work
- The team must work 25% more efficiently than originally planned to meet the target (Correct answer)
- The project is 25% ahead of schedule
- The remaining work requires 25% fewer resources
Correct answer: The team must work 25% more efficiently than originally planned to meet the target
A TCPI > 1.0 means the remaining work must be completed at a higher performance rate than originally planned to hit the target.
PMI-SP Monitoring, Controlling & Reporting Schedules 3
A project manager is preparing a schedule status report for senior stakeholders.
Which reporting format BEST conveys milestone achievement at a glance?