PMI-PBA® · PMI · Planning · Bank updated 2026-07-02
PMI-PBA® practice questions: Planning
5 free questions from 66 on this area · answer and explanation for each · no sign-up
These 5 questions come from the Planning section of our PMI-PBA® bank (66 questions on this area, which carries 22% of the real exam). Every question is original, with the correct answer explained and linked to the source it is drawn from.
1/5 · Planning
A product team has adopted Scrum for a new mobile application with rapidly evolving market feedback. When planning the business analysis approach, how should the business analyst tailor elicitation and analysis activities for this adaptive lifecycle?
ASchedule all elicitation for a single requirements phase and freeze the backlog before the first sprint begins
BRequire a fully signed-off requirements specification before any sprint can start, matching predictive practice
CPlan for elicitation and analysis to occur continuously and iteratively, refining and reprioritizing backlog items each sprint or iteration based on stakeholder feedback
DDelegate all elicitation responsibility to the development team so the business analyst can focus solely on final acceptance testing
Show answer & explanation
C is correct. When tailoring the BA approach for adaptive lifecycles, planning should embed elicitation and analysis as ongoing, iterative activities tied to sprint or iteration cadence, allowing requirements (backlog items) to be refined progressively rather than fully defined upfront. This flexibility is a defining feature distinguishing adaptive from predictive BA planning.
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2/5 · Planning · hard
A business analyst is planning the requirements management approach for a project subject to strict regulatory audit requirements, where every implemented feature must be demonstrably linked back to an approved business requirement. What should the business analyst prioritize when planning traceability for this project?
APlan a robust traceability approach that links business requirements through functional requirements, design elements, and test cases, with clearly defined attributes and a maintained traceability matrix suitable for audit review
BRely exclusively on the development team's source code comments to demonstrate traceability to auditors
CPlan for a lightweight, informal tracking approach similar to a low-risk internal project, since traceability primarily benefits the BA rather than external auditors
DDefer all traceability planning until after the regulatory audit occurs, addressing gaps reactively
Show answer & explanation
A is correct. For projects with strict regulatory or audit obligations, business analysis planning must call for a rigorous, well-structured traceability approach — clearly linking business requirements to functional requirements, design, and test cases, with attributes and a maintained matrix — so that compliance can be demonstrated on demand. This is a higher standard of rigor than would be planned for lower-risk, non-regulated projects.
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3/5 · Planning · hard
A developer informally asks the business analyst to add a new field to a report because 'it would be nice to have,' without going through the documented change control process. The business analyst is under schedule pressure and wants to keep the team productive. What is the MOST appropriate action?
AIgnore the request entirely because it did not come from the primary business stakeholder
BAdd the field quietly, since it is a minor change and does not require formal approval
CDirect the developer to submit the request through the defined requirements change control process so it can be assessed and approved before implementation
DEscalate the request immediately to the project sponsor without first documenting or analyzing it
Show answer & explanation
C is correct. Even seemingly minor, informally requested changes should be routed through the documented requirements change control process so they can be properly assessed for impact and formally approved or rejected. Bypassing this process under schedule pressure is a common cause of uncontrolled scope creep on projects.
↗ PMI-PBA Examination Content Outline — Planning
4/5 · Planning
A business analyst is planning communication for a global ERP rollout with stakeholders spread across four time zones, some of whom have limited English proficiency and infrequent access to synchronous meetings. Which approach to the communication plan best addresses these constraints while still meeting the needs of key decision-makers?
ALimit communication to the executive sponsor only, since remote stakeholders have lower influence
BCommunicate exclusively through detailed technical documentation to avoid the complexity of scheduling meetings
CCombine recorded or asynchronous updates and written summaries, translated where needed, with periodically scheduled synchronous sessions timed to rotate fairness across time zones for key decisions
DRequire all stakeholders to attend the same live meeting scheduled during the business analyst's local business hours
Show answer & explanation
C is correct. Effective communication planning for distributed stakeholders adapts format (written, recorded, translated) and timing (rotating synchronous sessions) to real-world constraints such as time zone and language, rather than defaulting to a single, convenient method. This ensures all key decision-makers can meaningfully participate regardless of location.
↗ PMI-PBA Examination Content Outline — Planning
5/5 · Planning · easy
As part of developing the business analysis plan, reviewing lessons learned from previous, similar projects is MOST accurately described as an example of using which type of input?
AA validation activity performed only after the solution has been deployed
BA regulatory requirement imposed uniformly on every project by an external certifying body
COrganizational process assets that inform tailoring of the business analysis approach, tools, and techniques
DEnterprise environmental factors that cannot be modified or referenced by the project team
Show answer & explanation
C is correct. Lessons learned from prior projects are categorized as an organizational process asset, and reviewing them during planning helps the business analyst tailor the current project's approach, tools, and techniques based on what previously worked well or caused problems.
↗ PMI-PBA Examination Content Outline — Planning
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