PMP cheat sheet

Tuckman's stages run Forming -> Storming -> Norming -> Performing -> Adjourning; leadership style must match the stage, and a team can regress to an earlier stage when membership changes.

Conflict resolution durability, most to least: collaborating (win-win), compromising, accommodating, avoiding, forcing; forcing is acceptable for safety, emergencies, or non-negotiable deadlines.

Most common sources of project conflict, in order: schedules, project priorities, resources, technical opinions, administrative procedures; personality clashes rank last.

Herzberg two-factor theory: hygiene factors (pay, working conditions, policy) only prevent dissatisfaction; motivators (achievement, recognition, growth, responsibility) create satisfaction.

McClelland's three acquired needs are achievement (nAch), affiliation (nAff), and power (nPow); recognition and reward systems should match the dominant need of the individual.

Emotional intelligence has four domains: self-awareness, self-management, social awareness, and relationship management, developed in that order.

Principled negotiation separates people from the problem and focuses on interests rather than positions; know your BATNA and the ZOPA before entering any negotiation.

Maslow's order is physiological -> safety -> social -> esteem -> self-actualization; a team member blocked at a lower level is not motivated by higher-level rewards.

The team charter and ground rules are authored by the team at kickoff and revisited on membership change; colocation (war room) or shared virtual workspaces improve communication.

Scope baseline = approved scope statement + WBS + WBS dictionary; modifying any of the three requires integrated change control with CCB approval and baseline updates.

Critical path = longest path through the network diagram and carries zero (or least) total float; it determines the shortest possible project duration.

Total float = LS - ES = LF - EF; negative float means the imposed deadline is infeasible and requires compression, fast tracking, or a scope/date change.

Earned value: CPI = EV/AC, SPI = EV/PV, CV = EV - AC, SV = EV - PV; index above 1.0 or variance above 0 is favorable.

EAC formulas: atypical variance EAC = AC + (BAC - EV); typical variance EAC = BAC/CPI; combined EAC = AC + (BAC - EV)/(CPI x SPI). ETC = EAC - AC; VAC = BAC - EAC.

Threat responses: escalate, avoid, transfer, mitigate, accept. Opportunity responses: escalate, exploit, share, enhance, accept. EMV = probability x impact.

Cost of quality = cost of conformance (prevention + appraisal) + cost of nonconformance (internal + external failure); Pareto analysis targets the 20% of causes producing 80% of defects.

Control chart signals: any point outside +/-3 sigma, or seven consecutive points on one side of the mean, indicates a non-random assignable cause requiring investigation.

Agile metrics: velocity = story points completed per iteration; Little's Law (lead time = WIP / throughput) sizes workflow capacity, and WIP limits expose bottlenecks.

Hierarchy: portfolios align to strategy, programs deliver benefits, projects deliver outputs and products; a project charter should trace to the strategic objective or business case.

The benefits management plan defines benefit metrics, owners, and timing; the sponsor or business owner owns benefit realization, while the project manager owns delivery of outputs.

The business case compares benefits, costs, and risks across alternatives to justify investment; it precedes the charter and is revalidated at phase gates.

PESTLE = political, economic, social, technological, legal, environmental; the scan identifies external factors that feed the risk register and assumptions log.

Compliance sources are laws, regulations, contracts, and organizational policies (health and safety, data privacy, financial reporting); non-compliance is a recorded risk with an assigned owner.

Risk appetite = willingness to accept uncertainty in pursuit of value; risk threshold = the measurable limit that triggers escalation; risk tolerance = the acceptable range of variation.

Governance defines decision rights, escalation paths, phase gates, and who approves baselines, changes, and exceptions to plan.

Benefits materialize only after adoption: organizational change management activities (communication, training, sponsor sponsorship, readiness assessment) must be planned before go-live.

Sustainability and ESG factors (environmental impact, labor practices, ethics, supply chain transparency) are increasingly treated as project constraints and risk sources.