NCMA CPCM CERTIFICATION REVIEW SET
2026 ANSWERS GUARANTEED PASS
⫸ Agile. Answer: A project management methodology utilizing short-
term sprints to react to changing scope requirements
⫸ Baseline. Answer: The original plan (for a project, a work package,
or an activity) plus or minus approved changes; usually used with a
modifier (e.g., cost baseline, schedule baseline performance
measurement baseline)
⫸ Budget. Answer: When unqualified, refers to an estimate of funds
planned to cover a project or specified period of future time; when
approved, the estimate for the project or any work breakdown
component or any scheduled activity
⫸ Detailed contract analysis. Answer: A document listing the
contractual obligations and requirements for the seller as well as for the
buyer; the list contains the information extracted and provided in the
form of a contract calendar which listed as every "seller will or shall"
and its due date (if known) down to the task level
⫸ Change control. Answer: The process of controlling, documenting,
and storing the changes to control items; includes proposing the change,
evaluating, approving or rejecting, scheduling and tracking
,⫸ Change Control Board (CCB). Answer: A formally constituted group
of stakeholders responsible for approving or rejecting changes to the
project baselines
⫸ Charter. Answer: A document issued by the initiator of the project,
usually the project sponsor that formally authorizes the existence of the
project, and provides the project manager with the authority to apply
organizational resources to project activities
⫸ Condition. Answer: In terms and conditions, a phrase that either
activates (condition precedent) or suspends (condition subsequent) a
term
⫸ Constraint. Answer: The state, quality, or sense of being restricted to
a given course of action or interaction; an applicable restriction or
limitation, either internal or external, to the project that will affect the
performance of the project or a process
⫸ Contingency. Answer: Something that may happen: an event that
might occur in the future, especially a problem, emergency, or expense
that might arise unexpectedly and therefore must be prepared for.
Provision made against future unforeseen events
⫸ Deliverable. Answer: Any measurable, tangible, verifiable outcome,
result, or item that must be produced to complete a project or part of a
project
,⫸ Disposition. Answer: The act of moving goods out of one's internal
organization to another organization due to loss of value, obsolescence,
excess inventory or product change
⫸ Earned value. Answer: A method for measuring project performance
that compares the amount of work that was planned with what was
actually accomplished to determine if cost and schedule performance
went as planned
⫸ Inventory control. Answer: The management of inventories,
including: decisions about which items to stock at each location; how
much stock to keep on hand at various levels of operation; when to buy;
how much to buy; controlling pilferage and damage; and managing
shortages and back orders.
⫸ Kraljic Matrix. Answer: A tool for portfolio analysis: a four-box
matrix that reflects the segmentation of spend based on an assessment of
the value of the spend relative to the market risk to acquire
⫸ Logistics. Answer: The process of planning, implementing and
controlling the efficient, cost-effective flow and storage of raw
materials, in-process inventory, finished goods and related information
from point of origin to point of consumption for the purpose of
conforming to customer requirements
⫸ Manufacturing. Answer: Planning, managing and performing the
processing of materials into intermediate or final products, usually in
large quantities
, ⫸ Materials management. Answer: Involves the planning, acquisition,
flow and distribution of production materials from the raw state to the
finished product state
⫸ Opportunity. Answer: The measure of the probability of a positive
desired change occurring and the desired impact of that event
⫸ Opportunity and risk management (ORM). Answer: An iterative
approach to managing opportunities and risks that may occur during the
course of business that could affect the success or failure of the project,
in which the probability of each event's occurrence and its potential
effect on the project are analyzed and prioritized or ranked from highest
to lowest; beginning with the highest prioritized events and working
down, the project management team determines what options and
strategies are available and chooses the best strategy to maximize
opportunities and reduce or prevent the identified risks from occurring
⫸ Pareto analysis. Answer: Analysis (also known as ABC analysis or
80:20 rule) which can be used to categorize purchases according to
dollar value; for example, 20 percent of the total number of items bought
may account for 80 percent of the total value of the purchasing
⫸ Portfolio. Answer: Includes all of the programs and projects in an
organization; may be for the organization as a whole, or for individual
lines of business
2026 ANSWERS GUARANTEED PASS
⫸ Agile. Answer: A project management methodology utilizing short-
term sprints to react to changing scope requirements
⫸ Baseline. Answer: The original plan (for a project, a work package,
or an activity) plus or minus approved changes; usually used with a
modifier (e.g., cost baseline, schedule baseline performance
measurement baseline)
⫸ Budget. Answer: When unqualified, refers to an estimate of funds
planned to cover a project or specified period of future time; when
approved, the estimate for the project or any work breakdown
component or any scheduled activity
⫸ Detailed contract analysis. Answer: A document listing the
contractual obligations and requirements for the seller as well as for the
buyer; the list contains the information extracted and provided in the
form of a contract calendar which listed as every "seller will or shall"
and its due date (if known) down to the task level
⫸ Change control. Answer: The process of controlling, documenting,
and storing the changes to control items; includes proposing the change,
evaluating, approving or rejecting, scheduling and tracking
,⫸ Change Control Board (CCB). Answer: A formally constituted group
of stakeholders responsible for approving or rejecting changes to the
project baselines
⫸ Charter. Answer: A document issued by the initiator of the project,
usually the project sponsor that formally authorizes the existence of the
project, and provides the project manager with the authority to apply
organizational resources to project activities
⫸ Condition. Answer: In terms and conditions, a phrase that either
activates (condition precedent) or suspends (condition subsequent) a
term
⫸ Constraint. Answer: The state, quality, or sense of being restricted to
a given course of action or interaction; an applicable restriction or
limitation, either internal or external, to the project that will affect the
performance of the project or a process
⫸ Contingency. Answer: Something that may happen: an event that
might occur in the future, especially a problem, emergency, or expense
that might arise unexpectedly and therefore must be prepared for.
Provision made against future unforeseen events
⫸ Deliverable. Answer: Any measurable, tangible, verifiable outcome,
result, or item that must be produced to complete a project or part of a
project
,⫸ Disposition. Answer: The act of moving goods out of one's internal
organization to another organization due to loss of value, obsolescence,
excess inventory or product change
⫸ Earned value. Answer: A method for measuring project performance
that compares the amount of work that was planned with what was
actually accomplished to determine if cost and schedule performance
went as planned
⫸ Inventory control. Answer: The management of inventories,
including: decisions about which items to stock at each location; how
much stock to keep on hand at various levels of operation; when to buy;
how much to buy; controlling pilferage and damage; and managing
shortages and back orders.
⫸ Kraljic Matrix. Answer: A tool for portfolio analysis: a four-box
matrix that reflects the segmentation of spend based on an assessment of
the value of the spend relative to the market risk to acquire
⫸ Logistics. Answer: The process of planning, implementing and
controlling the efficient, cost-effective flow and storage of raw
materials, in-process inventory, finished goods and related information
from point of origin to point of consumption for the purpose of
conforming to customer requirements
⫸ Manufacturing. Answer: Planning, managing and performing the
processing of materials into intermediate or final products, usually in
large quantities
, ⫸ Materials management. Answer: Involves the planning, acquisition,
flow and distribution of production materials from the raw state to the
finished product state
⫸ Opportunity. Answer: The measure of the probability of a positive
desired change occurring and the desired impact of that event
⫸ Opportunity and risk management (ORM). Answer: An iterative
approach to managing opportunities and risks that may occur during the
course of business that could affect the success or failure of the project,
in which the probability of each event's occurrence and its potential
effect on the project are analyzed and prioritized or ranked from highest
to lowest; beginning with the highest prioritized events and working
down, the project management team determines what options and
strategies are available and chooses the best strategy to maximize
opportunities and reduce or prevent the identified risks from occurring
⫸ Pareto analysis. Answer: Analysis (also known as ABC analysis or
80:20 rule) which can be used to categorize purchases according to
dollar value; for example, 20 percent of the total number of items bought
may account for 80 percent of the total value of the purchasing
⫸ Portfolio. Answer: Includes all of the programs and projects in an
organization; may be for the organization as a whole, or for individual
lines of business
