Key Terms for PMP Exam

 

Key Terms for PMP Exam

These are important project management terms that may appear as drag-and-drop or multiple-choice questions on the PMP exam. Understanding them will help you identify inefficiencies, improve project execution, and optimize team performance.

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1. Student Syndrome (Planned Procrastination)

• People delay tasks until the last possible moment.
• Effect: Eliminates safety margins, leading to stress, rushed work, and potential errors.
• Example:
  • A project task is assigned on Monday, due by Friday. Instead of starting early, the team waits until Thursday afternoon to begin.

✔ Solution: Encourage teams to start work early to avoid last-minute issues.

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2. Parkinson’s Law

• "Work expands to fill the time available for completion."
• Effect: People take longer to finish a task if given extra time, even if it could be done faster.
• Example:
  • If a developer is given 8 hours to complete a task that only requires 2 hours, they will likely use the full 8 hours.

✔ Solution: Use time-boxing or strict deadlines to increase efficiency.

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3. Self-Protection

• People take actions to avoid harm (now or in the future).
• Effect:
  • Team members may avoid completing tasks too early to prevent extra work.
  • Employees stay silent in conflicts to avoid trouble.
• Example:
  • A developer delays a task's completion to avoid getting assigned more work.

✔ Solution: Foster open communication and ensure work is distributed fairly.

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4. Sandbagging (Underpromising & Overdelivering)

• Teams intentionally set lower expectations and then exceed them.
• Effect: Creates a false sense of high performance while hiding actual capacity.
• Example:
  • A development team can complete 100 story points in an Agile sprint but commits to only 80 to ensure they always look successful.

✔ Solution: Encourage realistic goal-setting based on actual team capacity.

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5. Dropped Baton

• A delay occurs between handovers from one team to another.
• Effect: Wasted time due to lack of readiness.
• Example:
  • Development team finishes early, but the testing team is not ready, causing delays.

✔ Solution: Improve cross-team coordination and communication to avoid gaps.

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Summary of Key Terms

Term	Definition	Effect	Solution
Student Syndrome	Procrastination until the last minute.	Eliminates buffer time, increases stress.	Encourage early start of tasks.
Parkinson’s Law	Work expands to fill available time.	Reduces efficiency.	Set strict time limits.
Self-Protection	Avoiding work or conflict to prevent harm.	Delays or avoidance of issues.	Promote open discussions.
Sandbagging	Underpromising and overdelivering.	False expectations, inefficient planning.	Set realistic commitments.
Dropped Baton	Work delay due to unprepared handovers.	Wastes time, slows projects.	Improve team coordination.

Understanding these common project management challenges will help you anticipate and mitigate inefficiencies during your PMP exam and real-world projects. 🚀