MoP® Foundation Management of Portfolios Courseware – English. Henny Portman
link between strategy and portfolio management
c) Portfolio management maintains the link between strategy and resource allocation
d) None of the above
17 The role of programme and project management in terms of delivering strategic objectives within a portfolio management environment is to provide mechanisms for which of the following?
a) management of limited resources
b) overall risk management
c) delivering change initiatives
d) dependency management
18 Which is NOT a way in which portfolio management should align with the performance management system?
a) Make appropriate use of existing performance management expertise to design and implement new portfolio key performance indicators
b) Align performance and portfolio reporting appropriately, in terms of timing and content
c) Make appropriate use of the existing management information system in designing portfolio reports
d) Develop delivery capability organisation-wide, via fit-for-purpose standards, processes and staff development
19 Which is NOT a way that portfolio management supports effective corporate governance?
a) Provides clarity on progress against the Portfolio Delivery Plan
b) Clarifies responsibility and accountability for making decisions on which programmes and projects will be funded
c) Dictates the use of MSP and PRINCE2 for the management of programmes and projects
d) Provides an audit trail demonstrating the rationale behind investment decisions
20 Which of the following are portfolio management principles?
1. Senior management commitment
2. Portfolio definition
3. Strategy alignment
4. Energized change culture
a) 1, 2, 3
b) 1, 2, 4
c) 1, 3, 4
d) 2, 3, 4
21 Which is an example of how senior managers should support portfolio management?
a) Explain the reasons for decisions to staff members
b) Delegate portfolio management decision-making to selected experts
c) Ensure that changes which affect their departments are not stopped
d) Contribute their expertise exclusively within their own department
22 Which is a 'key to success' of the portfolio management principle: governance alignment?
a) Multi-criteria analysis is used to augment net present value
b) New ways of working are reflected in reward and recognition structures
c) There is an agreed escalation path for sub-portfolios to report exceptions
d) Benefits are clearly identified in a business case
23 Where measures of strategic success have not been clearly defined, which is a suggested technique to align the portfolio with strategy?
a) Split the available funding across the portfolio to reflect the estimated time to deliver each initiative
b) Senior management makes a decision based on their personal interest in each initiative
c) Prioritize initiatives using financial metrics such as net present value
d) Weight the strategic objectives and rate the contribution of initiatives
24 Which is a characteristic of a Portfolio Office?
a) It is concerned with detailed delivery of change initiatives
b) It is a permanent structure independent of the management board
c) It provides an assurance on efficient and effective delivery of initiatives
d) It is a temporary structure in place until strategic objectives are met
25 Which of the following are sources of organizational energy within an organization?
1. Connection
2. Context
3. Climate
4. Culture
a) 1, 2, 3
b) 1, 2, 4
c) 1, 3, 4
d) 2, 3, 4
26 What is the purpose of the portfolio definition cycle?
a) To collate key information that will provide clarity to senior management on the collection of change initiatives that will deliver the greatest contribution to the strategic objectives, subject to consideration of risk/achievability, resource constraints and cost/affordability
b) To ensure the successful implementation of the planned change initiatives as agreed in the Portfolio Strategy and Delivery Plan, whilst also ensuring the portfolio adapts to changes in the strategic objectives, project and programme delivery, and lessons learned
c) To ensure clarity about what decisions are made, where, by whom, and what criteria are used in making these decisions
d) To coordinate, direct and oversee the implementation of a set of related projects and activities in order to deliver outcomes and benefits related to the organization’s strategic objectives
27 Which portfolio definition practice organizes change initiatives into groups, segments or sub-portfolios to make it easier for senior decision-makers to understand the make up of their portfolio?
a) Prioritize
b) Plan
c) Categorize
d) Balance
28 What is a result of the portfolio definition cycle being managed well?
a) Everything is planned in detail at a portfolio level
b) Decision-makers can focus on high-level scope, costs, benefits and risks
c) Managers will start their own change initiatives
d) Improved delivery on time and to budget
29 Identify the missing words in the following sentence.
Weighted value score [ ? ] the initiative’s cost can provide a relative value for money index.
a) added to
b) subtracted from
c) multiplied by
d) divided by
30 Which is NOT one of the 'keys to success' of the understand practice?
a) Identification of all relevant initiatives by the Portfolio Office and strategic planners
b) Validation of data and the building of effective working relationships with PPM professionals
c) Involving relevant stakeholders in the prioritization of initiatives
d) Collection of a consistent set of data to aid subsequent categorization and prioritization
31 Which statement about the categorize practice is true?
a) Each organization should adopt an industry-specific list of categories, to be used for all types of initiative
b) For clarity, categorization information is best presented as a numbered list
c) The amount of resource spent on a category should have no bearing on its relative priority
d) Investment criteria used to prioritize initiatives should be tailored