TOPIC: Few questions I need help with!!!

HI Experts,

Need help with below questions where I get confused.

1. If a change doesn't affect performance baseline, does it need to be submitted to CCB?
2. Is it correct to say that validate product is by customer and verification is by team? Also, does both happens in M&C process?
3. Close procurement in M&C process and final acceptance by customer in closing?
4. Do we do shareholder survey on feedback first or release resources in closing? What's the final step in closing?
5. What's the best way to communicate with geographical distributed team which cany be colocated?
6. Contract terminated in mid of project. Do we handover the unfinished product to customer or just close the project? Or what's the best thing to do?

Thanks for your responses.

Geeta

Question #1: If a change doesn't affect performance baseline, does it need to be submitted to CCB?

PMBOK, pg. 115. "As a general rule, each project’s configuration management plan should define which project artifacts need to be placed under configuration control. Any change in a configuration element should be formally controlled and will require a change request."

The answer is if the change is not going to affect a project artifact that has been formally approved and is under configuration control, then you wouldn't need a change request. So, for your question, if the change is ONLY related to scope, schedule, cost and they are not affected, then you wouldn't need a change request. However, if I over-think your question, a change request may still be required OUTSIDE the fact that the PMB didn't change, but other project artifacts did change.

Interesting note here, there was a PMP exam question that went on to elaborate which project documents were under configuration and which were not. The scope WAS NOT under configuration control and only required functional manager approval. Remember, every project is different and that is why we have the configuration management plan, to figure out what we want to version control. If you go into the exam with hard and fast rules, you may pick a wrong answer.

Hi-Can anyone please help me with my queries? Thank you!

I would encourage a deeper reading into the PMBOK guide for the sections cited. Please double-check my answers.

#2: Verified deliverables are an output of the control quality process and are done by the project team. "The verified deliverables obtained from the Control Quality process are reviewed with the customer or sponsor to ensure they are completed satisfactorily and have received formal acceptance of the deliverables by the customer or sponsor." (PMBOK, 164). How do we accomplish this? Through an inspection or walkthrough with the customer. The deliverables, once approved, go from verified to accepted. This is done in Validate Scope.

#3: Yes, one output of the Close Procurement Process are closed procurements. "Confirming the delivery and formal acceptance of deliverables by the customer" (PMBOK, 123) is done in closing.

#4: The PMBOK guide is not a checklist, but rather presents standards and foundations for project management. Thus, the PMBOK guide does not specify what would be the final step as each project is different. PMBOK, 125 "Meetings are used to confirm that the deliverables have been accepted, to validate that the exit criteria have been met, to formalize the completion of the contracts, to evaluate the satisfaction of the stakeholders, to gather lessons learned, to transfer knowledge and information from the project, and to celebrate success. Attendees may include project team members and other stakeholders involved in or affected by the project. Meetings may be face-to-face, virtual, formal, or informal. Types of meetings include but are not limited to close-out reporting meetings, customer wrap-up meetings, lessons learned meetings, and celebration meetings."

If you were to ask me, the final thing to be done on a project, after everything is said and done, is updating the lessons learned registry and archiving all project documents. Concerning your specific question, if these were the only two question on an exam question, I would probably pick "measure stakeholder satisfaction" over "Reassigning personnel" just because the team should probably have already been released at this point or once the transition is complete, they are no longer needed, but again this is a tailoring question.

#5: This is why a project manager would carry out the Plan Communications Management process. There is no "best" way.

#6: It depends upon the contract and what type of termination it is? Is it for cause, convenience, or force majeure? Regardless, you would follow the termination clause in the contract. If it's force majeure (act of God), you may have completed a full order of 1000 flower pots for a customer and your plant burned down. You are now out of business. What could you handover to the customer? Nothing. Again, the PMBOK is not a checklist, but rather a standardized way to approach PM. You'll need to review the contract with the customer and NEGOTIATE first, then do some sort of ADR if a resolution cannot be achieved. One interesting note about early project termination is that a project manager does not have the authority to close a project. Rather, the PM should REQUEST project closure through the project sponsor.

Hi Geeta.
1. If a change doesn't affect performance baseline, does it need to be submitted to CCB?
# All change in a project should follow the change management process as outlined in the change management plan. A good change management plan will explicitly state which changes need to go through the CCB and the ones that can be handled by the PM. (PMBOK 6th Edition, Pgs. 88, 114 & 117)
2. Is it correct to say that validate product is by customer and verification is by team? Also, does both happens in M&C process?
# Validate Scope is the process of formalizing acceptance of the completed project deliverables. The verified deliverables obtained from the Control Quality process are an input to the Validate scope. Therefore Validate Scope is customer/client-focused. You are therefore correct. (PMBOK 6th Edition, Pg. 131)
# Validate Scope is a process within the M&C group. Verification is the evaluation of whether or not a product, service, or result complies with a regulation, requirement, specification, or imposed condition. Verification happens in the control quality process and produces an output known as Verified Deliverables. Verified Deliverables are actual project products or services that have been checked internally for the correctness and become an input to the Validate Scope process for formalized acceptance by the client. This also happens in the M&C process group. You are therefore correct. (PMBOK 6th Edition, Pgs. 25, 725, 305)
3. Close procurement in M&C process and final acceptance by customer in closing?
# I don’t understand this part of your question. Please check if it has been answered in either my prior or subsequent explanations. If not please clarify exactly what you mean.
4. Do we do shareholder survey on feedback first or release resources in closing? What's the final step in closing?
# Every project is different and there is no “one size fits all”. In some instances especially if working in a project that is part of either a portfolio or interdependent programs, the resources which are most likely shared may be released way before shareholder (stakeholder) survey has been done. (PMBOK 6th Edition, Pgs. 13, 14 & 15)
5. What's the best way to communicate with geographical distributed team which cany be colocated?
# In this day and age there are a vast array of ways to communicate effectively with geographically distributed teams. These are not limited to the following: email, video calls, voice calls, video calls etc. There is no “best way” as each project is unique.
6. Contract terminated in mid of project. Do we handover the unfinished product to customer or just close the project? Or what's the best thing to do?
# Contract termination would fall under the Control Procurements process under the M&C process group. A contract should clearly state the deliverables and results expected, including any knowledge transfer from the seller to the buyer. Penalties for non-conformance should also be in the contract document including what happens during mid-term termination. Anything not in the contract cannot be legally enforced. You, therefore, need to follow the contract; if it states that you hand over the unfinished product to the customer, then you need to do exactly that. (PMBOK 6th Edition, Pgs. 25, 461)