Topic: Multiple Short Answer Questions from Project Management Overview

The following six short response statements need to be a minimum of 183 words and the course that it is centered around is project management overview and the textbook is Ghattas, R., & McKee, S. (2001). Practical project management. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall.

(1)The ability to read people and adapt your behavior to fit what will work most effectively with them is a good skill or talent for a leader to have. Why is this, especially for a project manager? Discuss the ethical implications of making people accountable for tasks over which you give them no authority.

(2)Since the word ?communication? is such a broad term, give 3 possible specific communication problems that can plague the project manager. Discuss why a sexual harassment lawsuit might be considered a harsh example of a failure to communicate?

(3)Define critical path and list its most important characteristics. Discuss the importance of identifying the critical path of a project plan. Describe two of the methods used to identify it and explain why you would choose one method over the other. Support your decision with reasons from the text.

(4)Of the two main resources (human and capital), which is probably the most challenging to manage? Why? Explain the positives and negatives associated with utilizing independent contractors for your projects.

(5)Is it necessary for all team members to have good problem solving skills? Why or why not? What would you do with an employee who was committed to action, but had poor analysis skills?

(6)Your manager needs your assistance on a major project. He is worried that he will lose control of the project if it is not tightly managed. He has asked you to set up a plan to keep him up-to-date on the status of the project. Based on what you have learned, how would you proceed? What tools would you use? Briefly describe a time when you or a colleague were in this position and it was handled successfully.