A new project manager has been assigned to rescue a high-priority Olympic facility project that is behind schedule and facing heavy contractual penalties; the previous manager had many conflicts with team members and some stakeholders. What should the new project manager do first?

The correct answer is to meet the project team and stakeholders to identify the root cause of the issues and develop a solution. This approach aligns with adaptive project management principles, emphasizing collaboration and understanding before acting. The project is already in trouble, and a new manager needs to understand the underlying problems, not just the symptoms (like being behind schedule). Engaging the team and stakeholders fosters trust, gathers crucial information, and ensures buy-in for future solutions. Reviewing the lessons learned register with the former project manager might be helpful but is not the first step; direct engagement with the current situation and people is more critical. Asserting authority and reassigning tasks immediately would likely exacerbate existing team conflicts and stakeholder issues, as it doesn't address the root causes. Reviewing the schedule and requesting contingency reserves to crash the project is a reactive measure based on symptoms, not a proactive solution based on understanding the problems.