Domain 2 - Process, Lifecycle, and Roles (scope unverified; validate against the official outline)
What to expect
The source returned no content for this domain, so this section is a placeholder rebuild around process-and-roles reasoning - the second most common domain pattern across professional exams. Confirm the actual topic list against the official outline; do not treat this as a verified scope statement.
Concepts you must own
- Lifecycle phases and their boundaries. Every phase has entry criteria, activities, outputs, and an exit gate. Questions love to ask what happens immediately before or immediately after a named phase.
- Inputs and outputs. Memorize the primary artifact each phase produces and who consumes it downstream.
- Role separation. Who does the work, who reviews it, who approves it, and who is merely informed. Confusing the doer with the approver is the single most common failure here.
- Sequencing and iteration. Some activities are strictly ordered; others run in parallel or loop back. Know which is which.
- Gate and escalation logic. What triggers a formal review, who can waive a gate, and what the default is when no decision is recorded.
Traps that show up
- Plausible-but-swapped sequence. Two options list the same steps in different orders. Only one respects the dependencies.
- Role conflation. An option assigns approval to the person who performed the work - efficient, but usually a control failure.
- Skipped-gate temptation. The "fastest path" option often bypasses a required review. Correct answers usually preserve the control even when it costs time.
- Default assumptions. If the stem is silent on an approval, the safe answer is the one that follows documented process rather than informal practice.
Rule of thumb
Ask "who signs off, and what did they see?" For any process question, identify the approving role and the evidence available at that moment. Options that have someone approve work they could not have reviewed are wrong.
Worked example: A stem asks the next step after a deliverable is produced. An option to "release to the customer" competes with "route to independent review." Because no approval has occurred, review precedes release - the control is preserved.
Review flag: domain scope unverified; re-check before publication.