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Social Network Analysis

5 minutes 5 Questions

Social Network Analysis (SNA) is a method used to analyze the relationships and communication patterns among stakeholders within and outside an organization. In the context of stakeholder identification, SNA helps project managers understand how stakeholders interact with each other, their influence on one another, and the informal networks that can impact the project. By mapping out the social connections between individuals and groups, SNA can reveal key influencers who may not hold formal positions of power but have significant sway over others. It can also identify bottlenecks or gatekeepers in communication flows and highlight potential alliances or conflicts among stakeholders. Understanding these social dynamics is crucial for developing effective stakeholder engagement strategies. For example, engaging with influential stakeholders who have strong connections can help spread positive messages about the project more widely and quickly. Conversely, being aware of stakeholders who might spread negative perceptions allows the project team to address concerns proactively. SNA provides insights beyond what traditional hierarchical organizational charts can offer, capturing the informal networks that often play a significant role in how information and influence are transmitted. Incorporating SNA into stakeholder identification ensures a more comprehensive understanding of the stakeholder landscape, leading to more effective management of stakeholder relationships.

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PMI-SP - Identifying Stakeholders Example Questions

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Question 1

In Social Network Analysis (SNA), what does high 'closeness centrality' indicate about a task in the project schedule?

Correct Answer: The task can quickly influence or be influenced by other tasks in the network

In Social Network Analysis (SNA), closeness centrality measures how quickly and efficiently a node (task) can interact with all other nodes in the network. A high closeness centrality indicates that the task has short paths to all other tasks, meaning it can quickly influence or be influenced by changes in other tasks. This is crucial for project scheduling as it helps identify tasks that can rapidly impact the entire project network. The other options are incorrect because: - Being a communication bridge between phases relates more to betweenness centrality, not closeness centrality - Having the highest number of dependencies relates to degree centrality, which measures direct connections, not the efficiency of reaching all nodes - Serving as a central hub for resource allocation is more related to organizational structure and resource management, not specifically to closeness centrality in network analysis

Question 2

In Social Network Analysis (SNA) for project scheduling, what does high 'betweenness centrality' indicate about a task or activity?

Correct Answer: The task serves as a critical bridge between different groups of activities in the network

In Social Network Analysis (SNA), betweenness centrality measures how often a node (task) acts as a bridge along the shortest path between two other nodes. The correct answer reflects this concept perfectly - it indicates a task that serves as a critical bridge between different groups of activities in the network. These bridge tasks are crucial because they connect otherwise separate clusters of activities and control the flow of information or work between these groups. The other options are incorrect because: - Having the most connections refers to 'degree centrality,' not betweenness centrality - Being a final milestone connecting to project completion describes a terminal node, not betweenness - Establishing a primary resource flow path describes more of a critical path concept rather than betweenness centrality Betweenness centrality helps identify tasks that might not have many direct connections but are vital in connecting different parts of the project network. These tasks often require special attention as their delay could affect communication and work flow between different project components.

Question 3

In Social Network Analysis (SNA) for project scheduling, which metric best indicates how well-connected a task is to other tasks in the network?

Correct Answer: Degree centrality measures the number of direct connections a task has with other tasks

Degree centrality is the most appropriate metric for measuring how well-connected a task is to other tasks in a project network because: It specifically measures the number of tasks that are connected to a given task, providing a clear indication of that task's interconnectedness in the network. A higher degree centrality means the task has more connections and thus more dependencies or relationships with other tasks, making it more critical for project coordination. The other options are less suitable because: Network density is a network-wide measure that looks at the entire system of connections, rather than focusing on individual task connectivity. Closeness centrality focuses on the distance between tasks in terms of path length, which is more about position in the network than direct connectivity. Eigenvector centrality considers the importance of connected nodes but specifically focuses on critical path activities, which is too narrow for general task connectivity measurement.

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