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PRINCE2 Foundation (PRINCE2) practice questions

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Question 1Principles

How many principles does PRINCE2 define?

  1. Four
  2. Nine
  3. Six
  4. Seven Correct answer.

Explanation

PRINCE2 rests on seven principles: continued business justification, learn from experience, defined roles and responsibilities, manage by stages, manage by exception, focus on products, and tailor to suit the project environment. These principles are the foundation that the themes, processes and products are built on.

Question 2Principles

Which principle requires that a project has a justifiable reason for starting and that this reason remains valid throughout its life?

  1. Focus on products
  2. Manage by stages
  3. Continued business justification Correct answer.
  4. Manage by exception

Explanation

Continued business justification requires a justifiable reason for the project that is documented in the business case and re-assessed as the project progresses. If the justification lapses, the project should be stopped or re-scoped.

Question 3Principles

Which principle requires the project team to seek, record and act on knowledge gained from earlier work?

  1. Manage by exception
  2. Learn from experience Correct answer.
  3. Focus on products
  4. Defined roles and responsibilities

Explanation

Learn from experience requires that lessons are sought from previous and similar projects, recorded as they arise, and then acted upon during the project and passed on afterwards. It applies to everyone involved, not just the project manager.

Question 4Principles

Which principle ensures that accountability for the project is allocated to named people within an agreed structure?

  1. Focus on products
  2. Defined roles and responsibilities Correct answer.
  3. Manage by stages
  4. Continued business justification

Explanation

Defined roles and responsibilities requires an explicit organisation structure with agreed roles that engage the business, user and supplier interests. It ensures that accountability for decisions and deliverables sits with identifiable people.

Question 5Principles

Which principle requires that the project is planned, monitored and controlled on a stage-by-stage basis?

  1. Learn from experience
  2. Manage by stages Correct answer.
  3. Manage by exception
  4. Tailor to suit the project environment

Explanation

Manage by stages means the project is broken into management stages, each with its own plan and decision point. This gives the project board control points at which progress is reviewed and continuation is approved.

Question 6Principles

The focus on products principle directs the project to concentrate on which of the following?

  1. The lessons recorded by previous similar projects
  2. The sequence of activities set out in the stage plan
  3. The products required with agreed quality criteria Correct answer.
  4. The tolerances delegated by the project board

Explanation

Focus on products means the project is driven by the definition and delivery of products, particularly their quality requirements. Activities and plans are derived from what must be delivered, not the other way round.

Question 7Principles

What does the principle 'tailor to suit the project environment' require?

  1. PRINCE2 is adapted to the project's size, complexity, risk and environment Correct answer.
  2. Every project must use the same set of PRINCE2 documents without change
  3. The seven principles may be replaced by locally agreed organisational standards
  4. Stages that are considered unnecessary may be dropped from the project

Explanation

Tailoring means adapting the processes, themes, roles and documentation so that they are proportionate to the project's scale, complexity, importance and risk. The principles themselves are never tailored away; only the way they are applied is adapted.

Question 8Principles

Which principle allows a project board to delegate authority within agreed limits, so that only deviations beyond those limits are escalated?

  1. Manage by exception Correct answer.
  2. Defined roles and responsibilities
  3. Manage by stages
  4. Focus on products

Explanation

Manage by exception sets tolerances for each project objective, creating the limits of delegated authority at each management level. Work proceeds within those limits and only forecast breaches are escalated as exceptions.

Question 9Principles

A project uses PRINCE2 processes, themes and products but leaves out one of the seven principles. What does this mean for the project?

  1. The omission is acceptable if the project board formally approves it
  2. It is not applying PRINCE2, because all seven principles must be applied Correct answer.
  3. The omitted principle may be replaced by a locally written equivalent
  4. It can still be described as PRINCE2 because the documentation is the same

Explanation

The seven principles are mandatory and must all be evident in a PRINCE2 project; using the processes and documents alone is not sufficient. If a principle is not applied, the project cannot claim to be following PRINCE2.

Question 10Principles

Under the continued business justification principle, when should the business case be reviewed and, if necessary, updated?

  1. Only at the end of the project, as part of the final lessons report
  2. Only at the start of the project, when the business case is first written
  3. At each stage boundary, and whenever a change or exception may affect it Correct answer.
  4. Only when the project board explicitly asks for a review of it

Explanation

The business justification must remain valid, so the business case is reviewed and updated at every stage boundary and whenever a change or exception could affect the costs, risks or benefits. This allows the board to decide whether continuation is still justified.

Question 11Principles

A stage's forecast cost is about to exceed its cost tolerance. What does the manage by exception principle require the project manager to do?

  1. Escalate to the project board by raising an exception Correct answer.
  2. Wait until the end of stage assessment to report it
  3. Reduce quality criteria to bring costs back within tolerance
  4. Absorb the overspend from another stage's budget

Explanation

Under manage by exception, a forecast breach of an agreed tolerance is escalated to the level that set that tolerance, in this case the project board, by raising an exception. The project manager must not take decisions reserved for the board, such as changing scope or quality.

Question 12Principles

Which approach is most consistent with the focus on products principle?

  1. Describe the products only when they are handed over to the customer
  2. Plan the activities first and then identify what each activity will produce
  3. Define each product and its quality criteria before planning the activities to deliver it Correct answer.
  4. Focus on the deliverables listed in the supplier contract and nothing else

Explanation

Focus on products means products are identified, described and given quality criteria before the work needed to create them is planned. Plans and activities are then derived from the product descriptions.

Question 13Principles

When should lessons be sought in a project that applies the learn from experience principle?

  1. Only during the initiation stage, when the lessons log is first created
  2. Whenever the project board asks to see the lessons log during a stage
  3. Only at the end of the project, when the final report is prepared
  4. At the start, throughout the project, and when passing lessons on Correct answer.

Explanation

Lessons should be sought from previous projects before work begins, captured as they arise during the project, and passed on to the organisation at the end. The principle is continuous rather than a single event.

Question 14Principles

Under the defined roles and responsibilities principle, which three stakeholder interests must be represented on the project board?

  1. Customer, supplier and regulator
  2. Business, user and supplier Correct answer.
  3. Business, project manager and supplier
  4. Sponsor, user and team manager

Explanation

The project board must represent the business, user and supplier interests so that decisions reflect viability, fitness for purpose and the feasibility of delivery. These interests are represented by the Executive, Senior User(s) and Senior Supplier(s).

Question 15Principles

Why does PRINCE2 divide a project into management stages?

  1. To provide decision points at which the board can review progress and approve continuation Correct answer.
  2. To make sure that the number of stages matches the number of delivery teams
  3. To reduce the amount of documentation required on smaller projects
  4. To avoid the need to maintain a business case after the initiation stage

Explanation

Management stages create control points at which the board can review the end stage information, reassess the business case and authorise the next stage. This keeps investment under review as uncertainty reduces.

Question 16Principles

Which statement best describes tailoring under PRINCE2?

  1. Removing stages and documents that the project board considers to be low value
  2. Adapting the method to the project's scale and risk while applying all the principles Correct answer.
  3. Creating organisation-specific principles to replace the PRINCE2 ones
  4. Selecting, from the seven principles, those that this particular project will apply

Explanation

Tailoring adapts the processes, themes, roles and documentation to the project's size, complexity, risk and environment. Crucially, all seven principles still apply; tailoring changes how they are applied, not whether they are applied.

Question 17Principles

Which statement best reflects the defined roles and responsibilities principle?

  1. The project board must include the project manager so that decisions can be made quickly
  2. Those who direct, manage and deliver are identified with accountabilities agreed and separated Correct answer.
  3. Every project must have a full-time project manager and a full-time support office
  4. Roles are defined at the start of the project and cannot change during it

Explanation

The principle requires an explicit structure in which the directing, managing and delivering roles are identified with agreed responsibilities. Separating these roles preserves accountability and ensures the board can hold the project manager to account.

Question 18Principles

Which role is accountable for the business case, and therefore for the continued business justification principle?

  1. Project Assurance
  2. The Senior User
  3. The Project Manager
  4. The Executive Correct answer.

Explanation

The Executive is accountable for the business case and owns the justification for the project. The project manager prepares and maintains the business case, and other roles contribute, but accountability rests with the Executive.

Question 19Principles

What is the purpose of the lessons log?

  1. To record the issues that the project board has escalated
  2. To record lessons that may be useful to the project and to future projects Correct answer.
  3. To record the changes made to the business case
  4. To record the quality checks that are carried out during each stage

Explanation

The lessons log captures lessons identified as the project progresses, together with any lessons brought in from earlier work, so they can be acted upon now and passed on later. It supports the learn from experience principle.

Question 20Principles

In PRINCE2, what is an exception?

  1. Any problem that a team member reports to the project manager during a stage
  2. A deviation that is discovered only after the tolerance has already been breached
  3. Any change that a stakeholder requests after the project has been baselined
  4. A forecast situation where a tolerance will be exceeded without corrective action Correct answer.

Explanation

An exception is a situation where it can be forecast that a tolerance will be exceeded, which triggers escalation to the management level that set the tolerance. Acting on forecasts gives the board time to decide on corrective action.

Question 21Principles

A small, low-risk project's board decides to remove all stage boundaries so the project runs as one stage with a single report at the end. Which principle is being compromised, and why?

  1. Manage by exception, because tolerances can only be agreed at stage boundaries
  2. Tailor to suit the project environment, because small projects should have fewer controls
  3. Manage by stages, because a PRINCE2 project must have at least two management stages Correct answer.
  4. Continued business justification, because the business case cannot be reviewed without stages

Explanation

Tailoring can reduce the number of stages and lighten control, but a PRINCE2 project still needs at least an initiation stage and one further management stage. Without stage boundaries the board loses the decision points at which progress and justification are reviewed.

Question 22Principles

An organisation adopting PRINCE2 wants to drop manage by exception and instead escalate every issue to the board. What is the correct PRINCE2 position?

  1. Acceptable, because principles may be tailored to fit local governance arrangements
  2. Acceptable, provided the change is approved by corporate or programme management
  3. Acceptable, provided the change is recorded in the lessons log and approved by the board
  4. Not acceptable, because all seven principles must be applied; only their application is tailored Correct answer.

Explanation

The principles are mandatory and cannot be removed or replaced, whatever governance arrangements an organisation uses. Tailoring may change how tolerances are set and reported, but delegated authority within tolerances must still operate.

Question 23Principles

A team plans its work as a list of activities and writes acceptance criteria only after each deliverable has been produced. Which principle is most clearly breached?

  1. Learn from experience, because acceptance criteria should be taken from lessons
  2. Manage by stages, because acceptance criteria are agreed at stage boundaries
  3. Defined roles and responsibilities, because only the board may define acceptance criteria
  4. Focus on products, because quality criteria must be defined before the work is planned Correct answer.

Explanation

Focus on products requires products to be identified and described, with their quality criteria, before the activities needed to create them are planned. Writing criteria after delivery removes the basis for quality control and acceptance.

Question 24Principles

A project's business case shows that costs now outweigh the expected benefits, but the board continues because the project is politically sensitive. Which principle is breached, and what should happen?

  1. Continued business justification; the project should be stopped or re-scoped so that it is justifiable Correct answer.
  2. Tailor to suit the project environment; the business case should be tailored to the political context
  3. Manage by exception; the board should escalate the decision to corporate management
  4. Learn from experience; the decision should be recorded in the lessons log

Explanation

Continued business justification requires that the justification remains valid, and a business case that no longer shows benefits outweighing costs removes that justification. If the justification cannot be restored through change, the project should be stopped.

Question 25Principles

Which statement correctly describes how tolerances are set under manage by exception?

  1. The board sets stage tolerances for the project manager, who sets team tolerances Correct answer.
  2. Team managers agree their tolerances directly with corporate or programme management
  3. Tolerances are set once at project level and then applied uniformly to every stage
  4. The project manager sets stage tolerances for the board, which sets team tolerances

Explanation

Tolerances are agreed at every level of the management structure: the board agrees project and stage tolerances with the project manager, who agrees team-level tolerances with team managers. Each level then works within its own tolerances and escalates only forecast breaches upward.

Question 26Principles

Which of the following is one of the seven PRINCE2 principles?

  1. Manage by exception Correct answer.
  2. Manage by stakeholders
  3. Manage by deliverables
  4. Manage by objectives

Explanation

The seven principles are continued business justification, learn from experience, defined roles and responsibilities, manage by stages, manage by exception, focus on products, and tailor to suit the project environment. Manage by exception is the only option taken from that list.

Question 27Principles

How are the PRINCE2 principles best described?

  1. Documents produced during project initiation
  2. Mandatory obligations that guide project management Correct answer.
  3. Optional guidelines that may be adopted when convenient
  4. Techniques used only when planning a stage

Explanation

The principles are mandatory; a project only uses PRINCE2 if all seven are applied. They guide how the project is managed rather than being optional techniques or documents.

Question 28Principles

Which management product provides the justification for a project and is central to the continued business justification principle?

  1. The lessons log
  2. The project plan
  3. The business case Correct answer.
  4. The project's risk register

Explanation

The business case records the reasons for the project, expected benefits, costs, risks, and timescale. It is reviewed throughout so the project continues only while it remains justified.

Question 29Principles

At the start of a project, which action best applies the learn from experience principle?

  1. Asking the project board to approve the lessons log
  2. Waiting until project closure to record lessons
  3. Recording only lessons that affect cost
  4. Reviewing lessons from similar past projects Correct answer.

Explanation

The principle requires lessons to be sought and applied from the beginning, not just at the end. Reviewing relevant past projects helps avoid repeating problems and improves planning.

Question 30Principles

Which project board role represents the business interest in a PRINCE2 project?

  1. Senior supplier
  2. Project assurance
  3. Executive Correct answer.
  4. Senior user

Explanation

The executive is accountable for the project and represents the business interest, ensuring it delivers value for money. The senior user represents users and the senior supplier represents suppliers.

Question 31Principles

What is the minimum number of management stages in a PRINCE2 project?

  1. One
  2. Four
  3. Two Correct answer.
  4. Three

Explanation

A PRINCE2 project must have at least two management stages: an initiation stage and at least one further stage for delivery work. This gives the board at least one stage boundary at which to review and decide whether to continue.

Question 32Principles

Which of the following is one of the six aspects for which tolerances are set under the manage by exception principle?

  1. Morale
  2. Technology
  3. Risk Correct answer.
  4. Culture

Explanation

Tolerances are set for time, cost, scope, quality, risk, and benefits. Risk is the only option in that list, and it allows the board to specify how much uncertainty can be accepted before escalation.

Question 33Principles

What is the main purpose of a product description in PRINCE2?

  1. To define a product's purpose, composition, and quality criteria Correct answer.
  2. To replace the business case for small projects
  3. To list the project's stakeholders
  4. To record the project's tolerances

Explanation

A product description defines what a product is, what it is made of, and the quality criteria it must meet. This supports the focus on products principle by making the deliverable and its quality requirements explicit.

Question 34Principles

Where is a project's tailoring approach normally recorded?

  1. In the quality register for the current stage
  2. In the daily log
  3. In the project initiation documentation Correct answer.
  4. In the risk register

Explanation

The project initiation documentation records how PRINCE2 has been tailored for the project, including changes to processes, themes, roles, or management products. This makes the tailoring visible and auditable.

Question 35Principles

At a stage boundary, the project board reviews the business case before deciding whether to continue. Which principle is being applied most directly?

  1. Learn from experience
  2. Focus on products
  3. Continued business justification Correct answer.
  4. Defined roles and responsibilities

Explanation

Reviewing the business case at each stage boundary checks that the project is still justified. If the justification has weakened, the board may change or stop the project.

Question 36Principles

A project produces a lessons report at closure. What should happen to this report?

  1. It should be added to the corporate lessons repository for future projects Correct answer.
  2. It should be filed with the project's daily log and archived with the project files
  3. It should be sent only to the project manager for personal reference
  4. It should be deleted once the project board has approved closure

Explanation

The learn from experience principle requires lessons to be shared beyond the project. A lessons report should be added to the organization's lessons repository so future projects can benefit.

Question 37Principles

Why does a PRINCE2 project board include a senior user role?

  1. To manage the project team on a day-to-day basis
  2. To provide independent assurance to the executive
  3. To approve the project's budget on behalf of the finance department
  4. To represent users' interests and confirm their needs are met Correct answer.

Explanation

The senior user represents the users' interests and is responsible for specifying their needs and confirming that products meet them. This reflects the business, user, and supplier interests required by defined roles and responsibilities.

Question 38Principles

Who appoints the project manager in a PRINCE2 project?

  1. The project board as a whole
  2. The executive Correct answer.
  3. The senior user
  4. Project assurance

Explanation

The executive is appointed first and then appoints the other project board members and the project manager. This is part of the defined roles and responsibilities principle.

Question 39Principles

What is decided at an end stage assessment?

  1. Whether the project manager should be replaced
  2. Whether to continue and approve the next stage plan Correct answer.
  3. Whether the quality register should be closed
  4. Whether the business case should be written for the first time

Explanation

At an end stage assessment the board reviews progress and the updated business case, then decides whether to continue and approves the next stage plan. This is how manage by stages gives the board control points.

Question 40Principles

What is the purpose of agreeing work package tolerances with a team manager?

  1. To transfer accountability for the business case to the team manager
  2. To set the project board's overall stage tolerances
  3. To remove the need for the project manager to monitor progress
  4. To allow the team manager to manage work within agreed limits Correct answer.

Explanation

Work package tolerances delegate limited authority to the team manager. The team manager manages within those limits and escalates only if a forecast exceeds them, applying manage by exception at the lowest appropriate level.

Question 41Principles

How does the focus on products principle help to manage quality?

  1. It guarantees that every product will be completed within cost tolerance
  2. It removes the need for a quality register
  3. It allows quality checks to be performed only at project closure
  4. It defines quality criteria for each product before work begins Correct answer.

Explanation

Focus on products requires each product and its quality criteria to be defined before work starts. This allows the team to plan the required quality activities and to judge acceptance objectively.

Question 42Principles

On what should the tailoring of PRINCE2 be based?

  1. The amount of budget remaining at the start of every stage
  2. The number of stakeholders who regularly attend board meetings
  3. The project's size, complexity, importance, capability, and risk Correct answer.
  4. The personal preferences of the project manager alone

Explanation

Tailoring should reflect the project's context, including its size, complexity, importance, capability, and risk. This ensures the method is proportionate without removing the principles.

Question 43Principles

What does the senior supplier role represent on a PRINCE2 project board?

  1. The interests of the end users and their acceptance criteria
  2. The interests of the project manager and the team
  3. The interests of the finance department and the project's funding
  4. The interests of those designing and producing the products Correct answer.

Explanation

The senior supplier represents the supplier interest and is accountable for supplier resources and the feasibility of the products. This ensures the board has the supplier perspective when making decisions.

Question 44Principles

Which PRINCE2 principle is most directly supported by creating a product breakdown structure?

  1. Focus on products Correct answer.
  2. Continued business justification
  3. Learn from experience
  4. Manage by exception

Explanation

A product breakdown structure identifies the products to be delivered and how they relate to one another. This is a direct application of the focus on products principle, which starts planning from the required outputs.

Question 45Principles

What distinguishes a management stage from a technical stage in PRINCE2?

  1. A management stage is used only for IT projects; a technical stage is used for all projects
  2. A management stage is owned by the team manager; a technical stage is owned by the project board
  3. A management stage is a control period; a technical stage is a work phase Correct answer.
  4. A management stage is optional; a technical stage is mandatory

Explanation

Management stages are the project board's control points and end at stage boundaries. Technical stages are specialist phases of work, such as design or build, and may span management stages or sit within them.

Question 46Principles

An executive wants to start a project because a competitor has launched a similar product, but no cost or benefit analysis has been prepared. What does the continued business justification principle require?

  1. The project may start immediately because the competitive threat is sufficient justification
  2. The senior user should decide whether a business case is needed
  3. An outline business case should be prepared before initiation Correct answer.
  4. The project should start and the business case should be written only at closure

Explanation

Continued business justification requires a justifiable reason for starting the project before significant work begins. The outline business case is developed during starting up a project and refined during initiation, so competitive pressure alone is not enough.

Question 47Principles

A project team records lessons only in the final lessons report at closure. Which principle is most poorly applied, and why?

  1. Learn from experience, because lessons should be applied throughout Correct answer.
  2. Tailor to suit the project environment, because the lessons report has been tailored
  3. Focus on products, because lessons are not products
  4. Manage by exception, because lessons are outside tolerances

Explanation

Learn from experience requires lessons to be identified, recorded, and acted on continuously, not just at the end. Waiting until closure means the project cannot benefit from those lessons while work is still in progress.

Question 48Principles

A project board has an executive and a senior user but no senior supplier. What is the main consequence for the defined roles and responsibilities principle?

  1. The supplier interest is unrepresented on the board Correct answer.
  2. The senior user automatically becomes accountable for supplier performance
  3. The business case can no longer be reviewed at stage boundaries
  4. The project manager must take on the executive role

Explanation

Defined roles and responsibilities requires the business, user, and supplier interests to be represented on the board. Without a senior supplier, the supplier perspective and authority to commit supplier resources are missing.

Question 49Principles

A project manager allows delivery work to continue past a stage boundary without project board approval because progress is good. Which principle is being breached?

  1. Learn from experience
  2. Manage by stages Correct answer.
  3. Focus on products
  4. Continued business justification

Explanation

Manage by stages gives the board control at stage boundaries, where it decides whether work should continue. Proceeding without that decision removes the board's control point and breaches the principle.

Question 50Principles

The project board sets stage tolerances and the project manager sets work package tolerances for team managers. Why is this hierarchy consistent with manage by exception?

  1. It removes the need for tolerances at stage level
  2. It ensures every decision is escalated to the project board for approval
  3. It allows team managers to change the project's business justification
  4. It delegates authority and escalates only forecast exceptions Correct answer.

Explanation

Manage by exception works through tolerances set at each management level. The board delegates within stage tolerances, and the project manager delegates within work package tolerances, so only exceptions are escalated.