PMP® Exam: A Condensed Study Guide

Books by Stuart Brunt (author):

-The PMP® Exam: A Condensed Study Guide

-The PMP® Exam: 7 Things that keep you up at Night

-The PMP® Exam: Master and Leverage the ITTOs

-A Roadmap to Cracking the PMP Exam – A PMP Exam Preparation Study Guide

Disclaimer

The contents of this book are intended to supplement study efforts and provide precise materials to prepare the reader for the PMP (Project Management Professional) or CAPM (Certified Associate Project Manager) Exams. Every effort has been made to confirm the accuracy of the contents of this book. However, the publisher and author accept no legal responsibility for the contents within.

The publisher and author strongly recommend to the reader that this book should be used in conjunction with A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK® Guide), and other study materials, in their efforts to pass the PMP or CAPM Exams. The author does not assure that the purchase of this book will guarantee that the reader will pass the PMP Exam. The publisher and author will not be held liable for individuals who fail to acknowledge this notice.

The views of the author in this book do not necessarily reflect that of the Project Management Institute (PMI) ®. The PMI did not partake in the development of this publication. PMI does not endorse or otherwise sponsor this publication and makes no warranty, guarantee, or representation, expressed or implied, as to its accuracy or content.

For any feedback or errors discovered in this book, please contact: information@baseline3.com

Copyright

You may not copy, lease, lend, simulate, modify, transmit, resell or redistribute this publication or any part of its contents without expressed permission from baseline3.

PMP, PgMP, PMBOK® Guide, and PMI® are registered marks of Project Management Institute, Inc.

Copyright @ baseline3 2012-2019. All rights reserved.

Acknowledgements

I would like to offer my sincere thanks to Lori, Gordon (PMP), Sarah, Emily and Christian for their help and support with this book.

Thank you to the folks at Bookbaby for their help while guiding me through the book formatting in preparation for publishing and distribution. You made the experience quite painless.

Last but not least, please forgive me if I failed to mention anyone involved in the making of this book.

Table of Contents

Disclaimer

Copyright

Acknowledgements

Preface

ITTO Overview

Project Management Knowledge Areas

Project Integration Management

Project Scope Management

Project Schedule Management

Project Cost Management

Project Quality Management

Project Resource Management

Project Communications Management

Project Risk Management

Project Procurement Management

Project Stakeholder Management

ITTO Tips & Tricks

50 PMP Exam Simulation Questions

50 PMP Exam Simulation Detailed Answers

Appendix A: Process Matrix

Appendix B: ITTO Calculations

Preface

Thank you for selecting this book. If your goal is to reinforce your preparation for the PMP or CAPM Exams then you’ve come to the right place. I truly believe this exam gets tougher with each release of the PMBOK® Guide since the study content is continuously expanding. The PMBOK® Guide - Sixth Edition, with the inclusion of the Agile Methodology, is no exception. The latest edition includes ~980 pages compared with ~620 pages in the Fifth Edition.

This book covers the necessary information throughout the PMBOK® Guide to enhance your study effort for either the PMP or CAPM Exams. Our goal to condense the essential content in the PMBOK® Guide is performed without compromise to the information needed to successfully negotiate the PMP Exam. This book is written in an easy-to-understand format with regards to project management life cycles, knowledge areas, process groups, processes, ITTOs and best practices. Furthermore, it provides many graphs, charts and tables to reinforce vital concepts.

My many years of experience in project management and teaching PMP Exam Preparation courses allow me to meet with countless PMP candidates. Common feedback indicates that Inputs - Tools & Techniques - Outputs (ITTOs) is a primary area of difficulty and uncertainty. Their concern is that failure to master ITTOs will negatively impact their prospects of exam success. Our goal is to reverse that concern.

We address the issue by probing deeper into the ITTOs associated with the 49 project management processes documented throughout the latest PMBOK® Guide. We offer information to boost your confidence when answering ITTO related questions. Subsequently, you will answer such questions more confidently and quickly by identifying correct ITTO options, and by dismissing incorrect ITTO options (i.e. distractors).

We recommend employing multiple study sources (e.g. PMBOK® Guide, this book) and tools (e.g. simulation tests) when studying for the PMP Exam. Subsequently, this book should prove to be a valuable study supplement. Multiple study sources, and their different writing styles, will increase your understanding of the many project management terms and concepts. Furthermore, this recommended study approach will provide a superior and overall understanding of the knowledge needed to write the PMP Exam.

Important: the PMBOK® Guide is an ideal study source for the CAPM Exam. However, it will not account for everything you need to successfully negotiate the PMP Exam. Hence, the reason we recommend using multiple study sources (such as this one).

The PMBOK® Guide provides excellent theory to support the project management processes and life cycle. However, the PMP Exam is designed to test your project management knowledge in the real world of managing projects. Additional knowledge, supplementary to the content within the PMBOK® Guide, is necessary to ideally prepare for the PMP Exam. The following lists some of the knowledge needed for the exam that is not included in the PMBOK® Guide:

1. PMP Exam simulation questions. Excellent method to enhance your exam preparation.

2. The ability to answer situational questions that typically comes from practice and experience.

3. Earned Value metrics and formulas are provided; however, there are no examples on how to apply them to particular scenarios and problems.

4. Additional theory is needed with regards to the Project Resource Management knowledge area.

The PMBOK® Guide provides a great deal of the information needed. However, additional study materials will serve as a complement to the PMBOK® Guide and produce a more wide-ranging approach to your preparation for the PMP Exam. Moreover, this will increase your chances of passing the exam at the first attempt.

Exploring multiple websites to establish the total number of ITTOs in the latest PMBOK® Guide revealed inconsistent results. Therefore, if in doubt, do it yourself. The following table is based on our count directly from the PMBOK® Guide to produce the total ITTO count, and their respective totals by Knowledge Area. Refer to Appendix B - ITTO Calculations for a tabulated view by knowledge area, process and ITTOs.

As you can see, there are 665 ITTOs compared with 618 ITTOs in the previous edition. However, this does not include ITTO Attributes (covered later in the book) that sends the overall count to well over one thousand.

Will you remember all 665 ITTOs? The answer is highly unlikely. Will you remember 665 items relating to anything? I am very impressed if you can. However, a better understanding of their application, sequence, where they belong and where they are needed will enhance your self-confidence when answering such questions. ITTO understanding over memorization can greatly enhance your ability to recall vital information during the exam.

The following chapters are presented in a logical manner and align with the ten project management knowledge areas outlined in the PMBOK® Guide. Each chapter includes a brief description of the knowledge area in question, the processes specific to each knowledge area, descriptions of each process, the process groups where each process belongs and concise descriptions of the ITTOs associated with each process.

We condensed the ITTO definitions to include only the information considered essential for the PMP® Exam. Moreover, the definitions still provide a comprehensive understanding of the many project management terms, concepts, and patterns. This is deliberate in order to conserve your study time by providing a quick reference to critical information for the PMP Exam. There are exceptions to this rule for certain ITTOs (e.g. Earned Value, scheduling tools, risk analysis techniques, etc.) where a more detailed study effort is deemed necessary.

We have included 50 PMP Exam simulation questions based on the PMBOK® Guide – Sixth Edition at the end of the book. We pride ourselves on the quality of our questions. This is exemplified by the variety of questions, varying degree of difficulty and the descriptive answers to aid your understanding of the topics.

Tip: attempt these 50 questions now, review this book then repeat the questions so you can monitor your scores and gauge your improvement.

Our concept of exam preparation is to maximize your odds of exam success at the first attempt. This publication is intended to serve as a companion study source to the PMBOK® Guide. Subsequently, this forms an ideal approach and preparation for writing the PMP Exam. This book is designed to provide you with easy access to valuable study information in an easy-read format.

Be sure to read the ITTO Overview and Tips & Tricks sections as they offer valuable information on understanding ITTOs. It will also describe ITTOs in terms of their classification as either unique or repeatable. Furthermore, it will describe ITTO Attributes and their application.

Obtaining the PMP® credential is a worthwhile commitment to advancing your career. It also broadens your horizons with regards to the many industries where you can apply this knowledge while contributing to organizational goals and success. We are confident this book will satisfy your expectations during your preparation to become PMP certified. All the best with your studies, and we wish you every success on exam day.

Best Wishes,

Stuart Brunt, PMP | PgMP | PMI-RMP

Founder/Owner

baseline3

Project Management Training

GGTTH

ITTO Overview

The PMP Exam is considered a challenging experience for many candidates. The overall goal for baseline3 project management training materials is to increase your prospects of passing the exam. Since the application of ITTOs is identified as a common problem area for many, this book strives to boost the exam taker’s confidence by emphasizing the need for understanding ITTOs over memorization.

The PMBOK® Guide - Sixth Edition includes 49 processes that span 10 knowledge areas and are grouped by 5 process groups (see PMBOK® Guide p.25 for a useful process matrix). The challenge is further compounded by the fact there are 665 ITTOs associated with the processes. Here are the knowledge areas and process groups as outlined in the PMBOK® Guide:

What are ITTOs? The PMBOK® Guide defines ITTOs as Inputs - Tools & Techniques - Outputs. They are associated with each of the 49 project management processes. Ask yourself the following:

1. Will you remember all 665 ITTOs during the PMP Exam? The answer to that in most cases is NO .

2. Will a better understanding of ITTOs help you recall vital information when answering questions during the PMP Exam? The answer to that is a resounding YES !

Let’s start with a definition for a process:

Processes typically transform inputs into outputs by employing a group of interrelated activities. Therefore, for a process to be effective, it needs ITTOs to ensure the activities work towards accomplishing the planned results (i.e. the output(s)). Processes are usually interrelated since an output from one process frequently serves as an input to another.

Here is a simple example to convey this concept including a process output serving as an input to another process:

Process One: Study for PMP Exam

Inputs: PMP Exam publications, virtual training, live classroom

Tools & Techniques: study methods, review, networking, exam simulation testing

Output: prepared PMP Exam candidate

Process Two: Write PMP Exam

Inputs: prepared PMP Exam candidate

Tools & Techniques: exam tactics, knowledge dump, knowledge recall

Output: PMP certified candidate

The following definitions for Inputs - Tools & Techniques - Outputs are intended to provide deeper understanding before we commence with the individual and concise definitions for each of the 655 ITTOs:

Inputs: there