PMI Risk Management Professional Practice Exam

Your project has a dependency requiring that the design be completed prior to the beginning of manufacturing. What type of dependency is this?

1. Mandatory

2. Discretionary

3. External

4. Internal

The correct answer is: Discretionary

The situation described involves a clear requirement that the design must be completed before manufacturing can commence. This is characteristic of a mandatory dependency, which signifies that one task is dependent on the completion of another due to its inherent nature or the type of work involved. Mandatory dependencies often arise in situations where there are legal, contractual, or procedural constraints that must be followed. In this case, the design's completion must precede manufacturing because the manufacturing process cannot begin without finalized design specifications. This ensures that manufacturing can proceed correctly and efficiently, aligning with the project's requirements. Discretionary dependencies, on the other hand, can be modified or managed at the discretion of the project manager or team. They are defined by choices and best practices rather than necessity. External and internal dependencies speak more to the relationship between project elements and external or internal factors but do not directly apply to the requirement imposed by the project itself in this scenario. Therefore, understanding this type of relationship solidifies the concept that certain dependencies must exist for successful project execution, particularly in structured industries like manufacturing.