PMI PMP Resource Planning and Optimization Practice Test

 

Topic 13 covers resource planning and optimization for the PMI Project Management Professional (PMP) certification. These original scenarios apply the July 2026 exam objectives across predictive, agile and hybrid projects. Use the stated constraints to select one answer unless the question specifies otherwise. For broader preparation, visit the PMP Exam Dumps page. Each option has an explanation of its role in the decision.

Question 1

Six team members plan a ten-working-day iteration, with eight paid hours per person per day. Two members will each be absent for two days. The team’s planning rule allocates 75% of the remaining hours to delivery and 25% to recurring support and ceremonies. What delivery capacity should the team use?

1. 328 hours.
2. 348 hours.
3. 448 hours.
4. 360 hours.
5. 336 hours.

Correct Answer: E

 

Correct Answer

Answer E is correct because the gross capacity is 6 x 10 x 8 = 480 hours. Absences remove 2 x 2 x 8 = 32 hours, leaving 448; applying 75% gives 336 delivery hours.

Incorrect Answers

Answer A is incorrect because subtracting all 32 absence hours after applying the focus factor deducts some unavailable delivery time twice. The factor explicitly applies to the hours remaining after absence.

Answer B is incorrect because this result deducts only two person-days before applying 75%: (480 – 16) x 0.75 = 348. Two members each miss two days, so the team loses four person-days, not two.

Answer C is incorrect because this correctly removes absence but leaves support and ceremonies inside the delivery forecast. The stated planning rule makes only three quarters of those hours available for delivery.

Answer D is incorrect because applying 75% to all 480 hours includes hours when two members are absent. The focus allowance addresses support and ceremonies, so it does not replace the separate absence deduction.

 

Question 2

Next week’s work requires 180 development hours and 90 specialist test hours. Four developers each have 50 available hours; two testers each have 35. Cross-training cannot produce qualified testers before the deadline. Which resource conclusion is supported?

1. Testing is short by 20 hours despite spare development capacity.
2. The team has exactly enough capacity because total supply equals demand.
3. Each discipline is short by 10 hours and should split the overtime equally.
4. Reassign one developer and retain the existing delivery forecast.
5. Development needs an additional 20 hours while testing is fully covered.

Correct Answer: A

 

Correct Answer

Answer A is correct because developers supply 200 hours against 180 required, while testers supply 70 against 90. The 20 spare development hours cannot satisfy work requiring the unavailable qualification.

Incorrect Answers

Answer B is incorrect because both totals are 270 hours, but that aggregation hides the skill constraint. A feasible assignment must meet demand in each noninterchangeable resource category.

Answer C is incorrect because an equal division ignores the actual assignments and qualification requirements. Only the testing discipline has a shortage under the stated availability.

Answer D is incorrect because a reassignment changes the nominal roster but does not create qualified test capacity this week. The forecast needs a feasible testing solution or an explicit scope or date adjustment.

Answer E is incorrect because development supply exceeds its demand by 20 hours. Reversing that comparison directs capacity toward the discipline that already has enough.

 

Question 3

One engineer is assigned full time to both tasks A and B on Monday and Tuesday. Task A must finish Tuesday. Task B needs two days, may finish as late as Friday without affecting successors, and the engineer is free Wednesday and Thursday. The project finish must remain unchanged. The planner should use existing capacity if it can satisfy both deadlines. What should the planner do?

1. Add a second engineer for the original dates.
2. Move task B to Wednesday and Thursday.
3. Move both tasks one week and reset the completion forecast.
4. Split each day equally between the two tasks.
5. Move task A to Wednesday and Thursday.

Correct Answer: B

 

Correct Answer

Answer B is correct because this removes the simultaneous demand using B’s available float and confirmed availability. A keeps its required finish, and B still completes before its latest allowable finish.

Incorrect Answers

Answer A is incorrect because extra staffing could resolve the conflict but introduces an unnecessary resource change. The existing engineer can meet both constraints by moving only the flexible work.

Answer C is incorrect because a feasible arrangement exists within the current week. Delaying both tasks discards the available float and violates the requirement to preserve project completion.

Answer D is incorrect because each task requires two full days of effort. Splitting Monday and Tuesday would leave A incomplete at its fixed Tuesday deadline.

Answer E is incorrect because task A has an explicit Tuesday finish requirement. Its dates cannot absorb the conflict merely because B also appears on the resource histogram.

 

Question 4

Two independent qualification tests were scheduled in parallel, each requiring exclusive use of a chamber for four full working days. Both can start Monday. Only one chamber is available, tests cannot be interrupted, and no rental or overtime is possible. What is the earliest completion relative to the original four-day forecast?

1. Six working days after the common start, two days later than planned.
2. Four working days after the common start, with no forecast change.
3. Eight working days after the common start, four days later than planned.
4. Five working days after the common start, using available float.
5. Twelve working days after the common start, eight days later than planned.

Correct Answer: C

 

Correct Answer

Answer C is correct because exclusive chamber use forces the two four-day tests into sequence. Their independence removes a technical predecessor constraint but does not remove the physical resource constraint.

Incorrect Answers

Answer A is incorrect because this assumes some overlap or partial acceleration. Neither is allowed because each test occupies the chamber continuously for four full working days.

Answer B is incorrect because this assumes both tests can occupy the chamber at once. The original parallel logic is infeasible under exclusive use of a single chamber.

Answer D is incorrect because no spare chamber capacity or float that changes the required processing time is given. Eight exclusive chamber-days still have to be performed.

Answer E is incorrect because resource sequencing requires two four-day blocks, not three. Adding another four days introduces a delay that is unsupported by the scenario.

 

Question 5

A hybrid rollout has funding for a specialist, and the project manager has entered the specialist’s name against a design review next month. The functional manager has not agreed to the allocation and already supports another release. What is the most useful next planning action?

1. Treat the funded position as committed capacity and baseline the review.
2. Add a contingency allowance equal to the specialist’s monthly salary.
3. Ask the specialist to fit the review around the other release informally.
4. Reserve the specialist full time for the whole quarter.
5. Confirm the allocation and dates with the functional manager.

Correct Answer: E

 

Correct Answer

Answer E is correct because funding establishes affordability, while the resource owner controls the person’s actual availability. A confirmed allocation makes the review forecast credible or exposes a gap early enough to plan an alternative.

Incorrect Answers

Answer A is incorrect because a budget line does not resolve simultaneous assignments. The resource plan would retain an unverified assumption at a milestone dependent on that expertise.

Answer B is incorrect because additional money may help fund a substitute later, but it does not establish who can perform this review on the required dates.

Answer C is incorrect because an informal promise can conceal competing commitments. The allocation needs agreement with the owner who can authorize the time and reconcile the competing work.

Answer D is incorrect because the requirement concerns a specific review. Requesting an unexplained full-quarter allocation can worsen the conflict without clarifying the actual amount and timing of required effort.

 

Question 6

An iteration has 400 usable team hours after leave and ceremonies have already been deducted. Historical incident demand supports reserving 60 of these hours for operational support. Proposed delivery work is estimated at 330 hours. Which statement is correct under this plan?

1. The delivery plan exceeds capacity by 50 hours.
2. Reserve 60 hours in addition to the 330-hour delivery forecast and report 60 hours of remaining flexibility.
3. The delivery plan fits with 10 hours remaining.
4. The team can add 70 more hours of delivery work.
5. The team must also deduct a standard 20% ceremony allowance.

Correct Answer: C

 

Correct Answer

Answer C is correct because delivery capacity is 400 – 60 = 340 hours. The proposed 330 hours fits, leaving 10 hours beyond the separately protected support allowance.

Incorrect Answers

Answer A is incorrect because this subtracts the 60-hour support allowance twice, once in capacity and again in the work comparison. The 400-hour figure has not yet deducted support.

Answer B is incorrect because the support reservation leaves 340 delivery hours, so the 330-hour forecast leaves only ten unallocated hours. The protected sixty hours cannot also be reported as spare capacity.

Answer D is incorrect because the difference between 400 and 330 includes 60 hours reserved for incidents. Spending it on delivery would remove the protection assumed by the plan.

Answer E is incorrect because the stem says ceremonies are already deducted and supplies no additional standard deduction. Applying one again understates available capacity.

 

Question 7

A migration team considers adding two analysts for the final week. Each would complete ten hours of useful migration work but require fifteen hours of coaching from an expert doing interchangeable migration work. Ignore all other effects. What is the net effect on that week’s available migration effort?

1. No change because coaching remains inside the project.
2. A loss of 10 productive hours.
3. A loss of 30 productive hours.
4. A gain of 50 productive hours.
5. A gain of 20 productive hours.

Correct Answer: B

 

Correct Answer

Answer B is correct because the analysts add 2 x 10 = 20 useful hours while consuming 2 x 15 = 30 expert hours. The net change is 20 – 30 = -10 for this week, regardless of later benefits.

Incorrect Answers

Answer A is incorrect because where the coaching occurs does not remove its effect on the final-week deliverable. Those expert hours would otherwise produce migration work.

Answer C is incorrect because this counts the full coaching cost but omits the 20 hours the newcomers actually contribute. The net estimate must include both sides of the tradeoff.

Answer D is incorrect because coaching is time consumed from existing capacity, not an additional deliverable. Adding all hours mistakes activity for net productive capacity.

Answer E is incorrect because this counts the newcomers’ output but excludes the coaching opportunity cost. The stem explicitly makes the expert’s displaced work comparable to their contribution.

 

Question 8

Developers and testers are available for an integration iteration, but its only production-like environment is reserved by another team during the planned test window. Which TWO actions directly establish a feasible resource plan? Choose TWO.

1. Baseline the original dates because the environment is owned by the organization.
2. Replace integration evidence with unit-test results for the milestone.
3. Confirm that the team has the required environment licenses and retain its original booking assumption.
4. Evaluate a qualified alternative environment with its setup lead time.
5. Double the number of testers assigned to the original window.
6. Reconcile the environment booking with the other team’s required dates.

Correct Answers: D, F

 

Correct Answers

Answer D is correct because an alternative is useful only if it supports the required tests and can be ready in time. Including preparation effort prevents an apparent substitute from becoming another hidden dependency.

Answer F is correct because the missing capacity belongs to a shared physical resource. Comparing actual windows can reveal a usable sequence without assuming that available people make the testing plan executable.

Incorrect Answers

Answer A is incorrect because organizational ownership does not mean simultaneous access. The existing reservation is a concrete availability constraint that the baseline must reflect.

Answer B is incorrect because unit tests do not establish the integrated behavior required in the stated environment. Changing the evidence standard would conceal the constraint rather than resolve it.

Answer C is incorrect because licenses establish permission to use the environment, not access during an already reserved window. The conflicting reservation still needs a feasible allocation or alternative.

Answer E is incorrect because additional people cannot use an environment that remains unavailable. This increases labor demand without addressing the resource constraining the test.

 

Question 9

A hybrid project needs a test rig for an activity starting in six weeks. Delivery takes four weeks after ordering, and setup takes one further week. The plan contains only the activity’s labor assignments. What should be added first?

1. A one-week setup task beginning after the six-week milestone.
2. Assign the testing crew to rig preparation during the first week of the six-week activity.
3. A resource calendar beginning on the scheduled test date.
4. An order and readiness sequence tied to the test activity.
5. A purchase cost allowance with no delivery dates.

Correct Answer: D

 

Correct Answer

Answer D is correct because the rig becomes usable only after delivery and setup. Connecting those five weeks of work to the activity makes the required order timing and limited margin visible.

Incorrect Answers

Answer A is incorrect because setup must finish before testing can start. Placing it after the milestone creates a predictable delay instead of a feasible readiness plan.

Answer B is incorrect because the activity depends on a usable rig at its planned start. Moving prerequisite setup into that activity consumes time intended for testing and does not establish timely delivery of the equipment.

Answer C is incorrect because this records desired availability without modeling how it is achieved. Delivery and setup still need scheduled ownership and dependencies.

Answer E is incorrect because affordability is only one dimension of readiness. A cost entry cannot demonstrate that the rig will be configured when the team needs it.

 

Question 10

A Scrum Team delivered about 40 points in each of its last three Sprints. Two Developers will be absent for most of the next Sprint. At Sprint Planning, a sponsor requests the usual 40 points. What should happen?

1. The Product Owner assigns enough additional points to preserve the historical average.
2. The Developers forecast work using the changed capacity and Sprint Goal.
3. Retain the forty-point target and let the Developers carry unfinished items into the next Sprint.
4. Rescale estimates so that a smaller selection still totals forty points.
5. The Scrum Master converts the absent Developers’ points into overtime for the others.

Correct Answer: B

 

Correct Answer

Answer B is correct because the historical result came from different availability. The Developers use current capacity and their understanding of the work to make a realistic selection supporting the goal; past points are evidence, not a quota.

Incorrect Answers

Answer A is incorrect because ordering value is a Product Owner accountability, but increasing assigned points does not restore Developer availability or determine a feasible Sprint forecast.

Answer C is incorrect because planned carryover does not restore this Sprint’s capacity or make its selection credible. The Developers should forecast feasible work under current availability rather than preserve a historical quota.

Answer D is incorrect because changing the scale to preserve a numerical target distorts comparison with prior results. Estimates describe the work; current availability informs how much of that work the Developers select.

Answer E is incorrect because points do not represent transferable personal output, and automatic overtime ignores the team’s actual planning. The Scrum Master does not impose that allocation.

 

Question 11

A monthly resource report shows 75% engineering utilization. The detailed plan requires twelve engineers in week two, when only eight are available. Work cannot be moved into later weeks without delaying a fixed inspection. What should the project manager conclude?

1. The shortage is twelve engineers because all week-two demand is at risk.
2. The 25% monthly spare capacity guarantees the inspection can be met.
3. Use the average to set a uniform six-engineer weekly assignment.
4. The histogram can be flattened by distributing all demand evenly across four weeks.
5. The monthly average hides a four-engineer shortage in week two.

Correct Answer: E

 

Correct Answer

Answer E is correct because utilization aggregated across the month does not prove feasibility in each period. The fixed inspection prevents later spare capacity from compensating for the week-two deficit.

Incorrect Answers

Answer A is incorrect because eight engineers are confirmed available. The shortage is the difference between twelve required and eight available, not the total demand.

Answer B is incorrect because unused capacity at another time is not automatically transferable. The explicit timing constraint requires enough engineers during week two itself.

Answer C is incorrect because seventy-five percent of eight gives six engineers, but the week-two requirement is twelve. A monthly average does not establish an executable weekly assignment when the inspection fixes the demand timing.

Answer D is incorrect because a visually smooth chart would violate the required work timing. Resource changes must preserve dependencies and the fixed inspection requirement.

 

Question 12

A resource coordinator proposes replacing an unavailable platform specialist with an experienced generalist. The activity requires a specific certification and privileged access that takes five days to provision. Which TWO checks are necessary before accepting the replacement schedule? Choose TWO.

1. Credit a full specialist workload from the person’s first assigned day.
2. Preserve the prior duration as evidence that the replacement is suitable.
3. Confirm only that the generalist’s hourly rate is lower.
4. Verify that the generalist holds the required certification.
5. Include access provisioning and any needed familiarization in the dates.
6. Count the substitute as qualified after the departing specialist reviews the person’s general experience.

Correct Answers: D, E

 

Correct Answers

Answer D is correct because general experience does not establish eligibility for this activity. The specific qualification must be confirmed before counting the person as interchangeable specialist capacity.

Answer E is correct because availability on the roster is earlier than readiness to perform privileged work. These lead times can determine whether the proposed replacement actually protects the activity.

Incorrect Answers

Answer A is incorrect because that assumes immediate readiness despite an explicit five-day access process. It would overstate capacity during the transition.

Answer B is incorrect because the duration was based on different resource assumptions. Reusing it cannot validate the competence and readiness of the proposed replacement.

Answer C is incorrect because lower cost can influence a choice among feasible substitutes, but it does not establish qualification or timely access for this one.

Answer F is incorrect because a peer assessment may identify relevant experience, but it does not establish the required certification. The resource cannot be treated as fully interchangeable until the explicit qualification is confirmed.

 

Question 13

An adaptive team completes ten changes weekly, but a specialist can review only six. Changes cannot be released without review, and the queue is growing. Developers can prepare evidence packages that reduce specialist review time. Which action best increases usable throughput without adding staff?

1. Measure productivity only by changes entering review.
2. Release the oldest changes before review and review them afterward.
3. Give the specialist a larger backlog of detailed coding tasks.
4. Shift some developer capacity to preparing review evidence.
5. Increase coding starts to keep every developer fully utilized.

Correct Answer: D

 

Correct Answer

Answer D is correct because reducing work at the constrained review stage can increase completed releases. Adding more unreviewed changes would enlarge the queue while leaving the six-change bottleneck in place.

Incorrect Answers

Answer A is incorrect because an intake measure hides the growing queue and does not create usable output. The decision concerns releases that have completed the required review.

Answer B is incorrect because the release condition explicitly requires review first. Reordering that control would change the acceptance boundary rather than improve capacity within it.

Answer C is incorrect because the specialist is the scarce review resource. Assigning unrelated work consumes the capacity needed to clear the release queue.

Answer E is incorrect because coding is already faster than review. More starts optimize local utilization while increasing unfinished inventory and waiting time at the constrained stage.

 

Question 14

Eight technicians have finished installation. Acceptance testing next week requires two named technicians, while the other six have no remaining assignments or standby requirement. Another project needs them. What is the appropriate resource update?

1. Ask all eight to split their time equally between the two projects.
2. Release all eight because installation is complete.
3. Release six technicians and retain the two through acceptance.
4. Move the acceptance date to match the other project’s staffing plan.
5. Retain all eight until the entire project formally closes.

Correct Answer: C

 

Correct Answer

Answer C is correct because the release follows the remaining work and named support need. It avoids paying for unnecessary idle capacity while preserving the people required to complete the project activity.

Incorrect Answers

Answer A is incorrect because an equal split ignores the actual remaining demand. The six can leave fully, while the two need availability for the specified acceptance work.

Answer B is incorrect because installation completion does not remove the separate acceptance support requirement. Losing the two named technicians would create a predictable resource gap.

Answer D is incorrect because there is a feasible release arrangement without changing acceptance. Altering the milestone is unnecessary when the required two technicians can be retained.

Answer E is incorrect because formal closure is not the only valid release point. Six technicians have no remaining assignment or standby obligation under the stated plan.

 

Question 15

A functional manager has approved reducing an architect’s project allocation from 40 to 20 hours per week. The project schedule still assumes 40, and dependent teams are planning from its dates. Which TWO updates directly restore planning consistency? Choose TWO.

1. Retain the original dates and add a general staffing risk note.
2. Change the architect’s resource calendar to the confirmed allocation.
3. Increase every dependent activity’s duration by exactly 100%.
4. Recalculate affected activities and communicate the revised dependency dates.
5. Keep the forty-hour resource calendar and record twenty hours of competing work as a separate risk allowance.
6. Halve all remaining project costs without reviewing work requirements.

Correct Answers: B, D

 

Correct Answers

Answer B is correct because the schedule needs the actual capacity constraint rather than the superseded assumption. This creates a sound input for recalculating remaining work.

Answer D is correct because halving available time may change durations or sequencing. Dependent teams need the consequences of the new allocation, not merely a staffing notice.

Incorrect Answers

Answer A is incorrect because a known allocation change is no longer just an uncertain risk. The forecast must reflect its actual effect on the work.

Answer C is incorrect because only work constrained by the architect needs that analysis, and even there parallelism or fixed duration may alter the result. A blanket multiplier replaces modeling with an assumption.

Answer E is incorrect because a confirmed allocation of twenty hours is a current planning constraint. Leaving forty hours available to scheduling can overallocate the architect even if a separate allowance describes the conflict.

Answer F is incorrect because fewer hours per week does not necessarily mean fewer total hours. Work may take longer and incur additional duration-related costs.

 

Question 16

A specialist must perform 48 hours of analysis. The specialist is assigned four hours per working day, with no productivity loss, no additional staff, and no nonlabor waiting time. How many working days should the activity take?

1. 24 working days.
2. 48 working days.
3. 12 working days.
4. 8 working days.
5. 6 working days.

Correct Answer: C

 

Correct Answer

Answer C is correct because dividing 48 effort hours by four available hours per day gives twelve working days. The calculation uses the actual allocation rather than the person’s nominal eight-hour workday.

Incorrect Answers

Answer A is incorrect because this result halves the four-hour allocation again. No additional utilization factor or competing assignment is given beyond the stated availability.

Answer B is incorrect because effort hours and working days are different units. Each day supplies four hours, so treating every hour as a day substantially overstates duration.

Answer D is incorrect because this implies six project hours daily, which the scenario does not provide. The confirmed four-hour assignment is the controlling resource calendar.

Answer E is incorrect because this divides by eight hours per day and assumes full-time project availability. Only four of those hours are allocated to this analysis.

 

Question 17

A team has finished setting up an automation tool. In each future iteration it should remove 30 hours of manual work but add 12 hours of mandatory review. All hours use the same constrained team capacity. How much additional delivery capacity should the planner provisionally recognize per iteration?

1. 30 hours, because the removed work is fully automated.
2. 42 hours, because both automation and review improve output.
3. 18 hours, subject to confirming the observed saving.
4. 12 hours, because only review time can be measured.
5. Zero hours until the project’s final retrospective.

Correct Answer: C

 

Correct Answer

Answer C is correct because the net recurring effect is 30 – 12 = 18 hours. Because these are expected values, the team should validate actual effort before treating the increase as a dependable commitment.

Incorrect Answers

Answer A is incorrect because automation eliminates the manual task but creates required human review. Omitting that review overstates the amount of team capacity released.

Answer B is incorrect because review may improve quality, but it consumes twelve human hours. Adding that cost to the saving reverses its effect on available capacity.

Answer D is incorrect because both recurring quantities are supplied as estimates. The decision requires their net effect, followed by validation, rather than ignoring the larger saving.

Answer E is incorrect because provisional planning can use explicit estimates and update them with evidence. Waiting until project completion prevents useful adjustment during delivery.

 

Question 18

A sole data specialist leaves in six weeks. A backup needs two weeks of paired work and a practical assessment before working independently. The roadmap assumes the specialist’s full output until departure. Which THREE changes make the resource transition credible? Choose THREE.

1. Reforecast deliverables affected by the temporary reduction in specialist output.
2. Count the backup at full independent capacity once classroom instruction is complete.
3. Schedule the assessment after departure and count the backup at full independent capacity from the day the specialist leaves.
4. Make independent assignment conditional on the practical assessment.
5. Reserve paired-work time for both people before departure.
6. Count both people at full independent productivity during pairing.

Correct Answers: A, D, E

 

Correct Answers

Answer A is correct because paired work displaces some planned solo output. Showing that effect lets the project choose a feasible sequence while building the replacement capacity it needs.

Answer D is correct because the stated competence check determines when backup capacity becomes usable. Attendance at training alone does not establish readiness to replace the specialist.

Answer E is correct because the training requires real capacity from the current specialist and the backup. Scheduling it explicitly prevents the same hours from being promised simultaneously to independent delivery.

Incorrect Answers

Answer B is incorrect because the stated readiness conditions include paired work and a practical assessment. Classroom attendance alone does not demonstrate that the backup can supply independent specialist capacity.

Answer C is incorrect because the practical assessment is a stated prerequisite to independent work. Scheduling it after departure while assuming immediate replacement capacity leaves the transition dependent on a readiness condition that has not been met.

Answer F is incorrect because this double counts the mentor’s time and assumes competence before the assessment. The training phase cannot be modeled as two fully interchangeable specialists.

 

Question 19

A scheduling tool pushes project completion back three weeks after leveling an aggregate pool called engineers. Some tasks need specialists, and the pool ignores their individual calendars. What should the planner do before recommending the new finish date?

1. Add a three-week schedule buffer and retain the generic resource pool for future updates.
2. Replace each specialist with any engineer who shows spare time.
3. Accept the date because automated leveling accounts for all constraints.
4. Restore the old date and disable all resource constraints.
5. Correct the skill assignments and calendars, then rerun the analysis.

Correct Answer: E

 

Correct Answer

Answer E is correct because leveling can only be as credible as its resource inputs. The aggregated pool conceals both noninterchangeable skills and actual availability, so the proposed delay is not yet a reliable forecast.

Incorrect Answers

Answer A is incorrect because a buffer based on an unreliable leveling result does not repair the missing skills and calendars. Future forecasts would continue to assume interchangeability that the project does not actually have.

Answer B is incorrect because apparent spare hours do not establish the required skill. Treating the pool as fully interchangeable repeats the same error that made the leveling result questionable.

Answer C is incorrect because the tool cannot account for specialist qualifications and calendars that were never entered. Automation does not validate missing or inaccurate input assumptions.

Answer D is incorrect because the old dates may also be infeasible. Removing constraints hides the problem instead of establishing a workable resource model.

 

Question 20

A supplier’s lead engineer will be absent next week. Its contract provides a qualified backup, but project-system access requires ten working days and the backup has not started onboarding. Which TWO planning responses address the actual delivery risk? Choose TWO.

1. Enter the backup as fully available on the first day of absence.
2. Remove the activity from the resource plan because the supplier owns it.
3. Replan affected work using confirmed capacity and agreed supplier options.
4. Use the supplier’s confirmed replacement name as evidence of availability and leave access preparation outside the forecast.
5. Assume the staffing clause automatically extends the milestone by ten days.
6. Verify the backup’s readiness date including required access.

Correct Answers: C, F

 

Correct Answers

Answer C is correct because once readiness is known, the team can resequence work or negotiate a feasible alternative. This connects supplier staffing to actual delivery dependencies.

Answer F is correct because a contractual promise of a qualified person does not guarantee usable project capacity next week. The onboarding lead time needs to appear in the availability forecast.

Incorrect Answers

Answer A is incorrect because the known ten-day access process contradicts immediate availability. That entry would make the schedule optimistic without changing the underlying constraint.

Answer B is incorrect because supplier accountability does not eliminate its dependency on project delivery. The receiving project still needs an accurate readiness and completion forecast.

Answer D is incorrect because naming a qualified replacement addresses staffing but not the ten-day readiness dependency. Without access preparation in the forecast, the schedule still counts capacity that cannot yet perform the work.

Answer E is incorrect because the clause supplies a backup obligation, not an automatic date extension. Any milestone effect must follow the actual plan and applicable agreement.

 

Question 21

For three iterations, a team has used about 35 hours of support capacity while its plan reserves only 15. Scope and time-recording rules have remained stable. What should the next capacity plan do?

1. Spread the twenty-hour support excess across future delivery estimates while retaining the fifteen-hour support allowance.
2. Keep 15 hours because it is the approved historical estimate.
3. Use the original fifteen-hour allowance in the next plan and track the twenty-hour difference only in retrospective notes.
4. Reassess the support allowance using the observed demand.
5. Treat all support effort as a one-time exception until project closure.

Correct Answer: D

 

Correct Answer

Answer D is correct because repeated comparable actuals show that the fifteen-hour assumption understates current support needs. Updating the allowance prevents delivery work from repeatedly depending on capacity that support consumes.

Incorrect Answers

Answer A is incorrect because inflating delivery estimates obscures which work consumes capacity and can distort throughput comparisons. The recurring support demand should be represented explicitly so that delivery capacity remains interpretable.

Answer B is incorrect because an estimate is a planning input that should respond to evidence. Preserving a disproven assumption perpetuates the same resource shortfall.

Answer C is incorrect because retrospective evidence should inform the upcoming resource forecast when comparable demand has recurred. Recording the difference without changing the allowance leaves delivery commitments exposed to the same shortfall.

Answer E is incorrect because three comparable iterations indicate recurring demand. There is no evidence of a unique event that would justify excluding the trend from planning.

 

Question 22

An independent set of documentation tasks requires 240 hours within five working days. Each qualified writer can provide six useful hours daily, and work can be divided without coordination loss. What is the minimum number of writers needed?

1. Eight writers.
2. Six writers.
3. Seven writers.
4. Nine writers.
5. Ten writers.

Correct Answer: A

 

Correct Answer

Answer A is correct because each writer supplies 5 x 6 = 30 hours during the window. Dividing 240 by 30 gives eight, which exactly meets the effort requirement under the stated divisibility assumption.

Incorrect Answers

Answer B is incorrect because this assumes eight useful hours per person daily. With the specified six hours, six writers supply only 180 hours and leave sixty unfinished.

Answer C is incorrect because seven writers supply 210 hours, thirty below demand. A near fit cannot meet the fixed five-day completion window.

Answer D is incorrect because nine would provide enough capacity but is not the minimum. Eight already supply the required 240 hours with no coordination penalty in this scenario.

Answer E is incorrect because dividing by an unsupported four-day window produces this result. All five working days are available, so ten overstates the minimum staffing requirement.

 

Question 23

Installation requires 120 identical brackets. Stores reports 105 on hand, but ten have been rejected and cannot be used. No further losses are expected, and a replenishment can arrive before installation. How many brackets must the resource plan procure?

1. 25 brackets.
2. 35 brackets.
3. 15 brackets.
4. 120 brackets.
5. 10 brackets.

Correct Answer: A

 

Correct Answer

Answer A is correct because usable inventory is 105 – 10 = 95. The requirement of 120 therefore leaves a net shortage of 25, which the feasible replenishment must cover.

Incorrect Answers

Answer B is incorrect because this deducts the rejected ten twice. The correct usable stock is ninety-five, not eighty-five, because the ten are already included in the reported 105.

Answer C is incorrect because subtracting all 105 recorded units from demand incorrectly includes the ten rejected units as usable installation resources.

Answer D is incorrect because purchasing the entire requirement ignores ninety-five usable units already available. The scenario gives no reason to replace or exclude that inventory.

Answer E is incorrect because this replaces the rejected units but ignores the fifteen-unit shortage that existed even before their rejection. Both effects must be included.

 

Question 24

A service team receives variable urgent work each week. It currently fills every available hour with planned changes, then abandons partially completed changes when urgent work arrives. Which TWO resource practices would make its plan more credible? Choose TWO.

1. Review the allowance when actual demand or service commitments change.
2. Reserve capacity based on the observed range of urgent demand.
3. Assume overtime will equal every future urgent-work spike.
4. Allocate all spare time to new starts before checking current work in progress.
5. Carry every unfinished change into the next week before reserving support capacity.
6. Estimate all urgent work at zero because it cannot be named in advance.

Correct Answers: A, B

 

Correct Answers

Answer A is correct because a buffer based on history can become stale. Comparing usage and required response levels keeps the allocation connected to current conditions.

Answer B is correct because an explicit allowance acknowledges work that repeatedly competes for the same people. The amount should follow evidence and the team’s service commitments rather than an arbitrary universal percentage.

Incorrect Answers

Answer C is incorrect because no overtime capacity has been agreed, and variable spikes may exceed what is feasible. The forecast should rely on available resources and explicit assumptions.

Answer D is incorrect because more starts can add unfinished work when interruptions occur. It does not protect capacity for the demand that repeatedly displaces planned changes.

Answer E is incorrect because automatic carryover fills the next period with work before its recurring urgent demand is considered. The team would repeat the same overcommitment rather than decide a feasible delivery allowance.

Answer F is incorrect because uncertain item identity does not imply zero aggregate demand. The team’s repeated interruptions provide evidence for a capacity allowance.

 

Question 25

Next week’s integration work needs 32 machine-hours, which can be split across identical qualified machines. The internal machine has 20 available hours. A rental can be ready Tuesday and provide 16 hours before Friday’s deadline. Overtime is unavailable. What is the best resource recommendation if meeting Friday is the priority?

1. Use only the internal machine and preserve the Friday forecast.
2. Delay all work until the rental arrives and leave the internal machine idle.
3. Use only the rental because it is newly qualified.
4. Schedule 20 internal hours and eight rental hours.
5. Use the internal machine plus at least 12 rental hours.

Correct Answer: E

 

Correct Answer

Answer E is correct because the internal resource leaves 32 – 20 = 12 hours uncovered. The rental is ready in time and offers sixteen, so the combined capacity can meet the deadline with four hours of margin.

Incorrect Answers

Answer A is incorrect because twenty available hours cannot cover thirty-two required hours. Keeping the date would require an unstated productivity increase or reduction in work.

Answer B is incorrect because the work is divisible and the internal machine is qualified. Ignoring its capacity sacrifices a feasible route to Friday without any stated benefit.

Answer C is incorrect because qualification establishes suitability but the rental supplies only sixteen hours before the deadline. It cannot cover the entire requirement alone.

Answer D is incorrect because this provides twenty-eight hours and leaves four hours unfinished. The shortfall must be calculated from total required capacity, not the rental’s spare margin.