Which of the following are the Developers accountable for? (choose the best two answers)

Correct Answer:AD
The Developers are the people in the Scrum Team who are committed to creating any aspect of a usable Increment each Sprint. The Developers are accountable for organizing and managing their work. Only the Developers can decide how to perform the work during the Sprint1. The Developers plan the work necessary to create an Increment that meets the Definition of Done during the Sprint Planning event. This is often done by decomposing Product Backlog items into smaller work items of one day or less. How this is done is at the sole discretion of the Developers. The Sprint Backlog is the set of Product Backlog items selected for the Sprint, plus a plan for delivering the product Increment and realizing the Sprint Goal1. The Developers are responsible for creating and maintaining the Sprint Backlog1. The Developers are not accountable for selecting the Product Owner, reporting productivity, or any other activities that are not related to creating a Done Increment that meets the Sprint Goal123. References:
✑ Scrum Guide
✑ What is a Developer?
✑ Who Determines How Work Is Performed During The Sprint?
✑ [What is Sprint Planning?]

Which are appropriate topics for discussion in a Sprint Retrospective? (choose the best three answers)

Correct Answer:ACD
The Sprint Retrospective is an event where the Scrum Team reflects on how they worked together in the last Sprint and identifies ways to improve their collaboration, processes, and quality. Therefore, appropriate topics for discussion in a Sprint Retrospective are:
✑ Team relations: The Scrum Team should discuss how they communicated, interacted, and supported each other during the Sprint. They should celebrate their successes, acknowledge their challenges, and address any conflicts or issues that arose. They should also share feedback, appreciation, and suggestions for improvement with each other.
✑ How the Scrum Team does its work: The Scrum Team should inspect the methods, tools, and practices they used to deliver the product increment. They should evaluate what worked well and what could be improved. They should also identify any impediments, risks, or dependencies that affected their work and how they handled them.
✑ Definition of Done: The Scrum Team should review their Definition of Done and check if it is still relevant, clear, and achievable. They should also assess how well they adhered to it and if they delivered a potentially releasable product increment that meets the quality standards. They should also consider if they need to update or adapt their Definition of Done based on new insights or feedback.
The following topics are not appropriate for discussion in a Sprint Retrospective:
✑ The value of work currently represented in the Product Backlog: The value of the Product Backlog items is the responsibility of the Product Owner, who should continuously refine and order them based on stakeholder needs and feedback. The value of the Product Backlog items is not directly related to how the Scrum Team works together and does not affect their improvement actions for the next Sprint.
✑ Arranging the Sprint Backlog for the next Sprint: The Sprint Backlog is the plan for the next Sprint that is created by the Scrum Team during the Sprint Planning event. The Sprint Backlog is based on the Product Backlog items that are selected for the next Sprint and how the Developers intend to accomplish them. The Sprint Retrospective is not a planning event but a reflection event that focuses on the past Sprint.
References:
✑ [Scrum Guide], section 3.5: “The purpose of the Sprint Retrospective is to plan ways to increase quality and effectiveness.”
✑ [Professional Scrum Product Owner], chapter 7: “The Sprint Retrospective is an opportunity for the Scrum Team to inspect itself and create a plan for improvements to be enacted during the next Sprint.”
✑ What is a Sprint Retrospective? | Scrum.org: “During each Sprint Retrospective, the Scrum Team plans ways to increase product quality by improving work processes or adapting the definition of “Done” if appropriate and not in conflict with product or organizational standards.”
✑ The Sprint Retrospective - What It Is & Tips for Making the Most of Your Meeting: “The focus is on how the team worked together in the last sprint, including: Communication Teamwork Process Tools Systems Work environment Missing competencies Collaboration with external parties”

True or False: The Product Owner makes sure the correct stakeholders are invited to the
Sprint Retrospective. They might have important instructions for team improvements.

Correct Answer:B
It is not true that the Product Owner makes sure the correct stakeholders are invited to the Sprint Retrospective. They might have important instructions for team improvements. This is because:
✑ The Sprint Retrospective is an event where the Scrum Team inspects how the last Sprint went with regards to individuals, interactions, processes, tools, and their Definition of Done. The purpose of the Sprint Retrospective is to plan ways to improve quality and effectiveness.
✑ The Sprint Retrospective is an internal event for the Scrum Team only. It is a safe and confidential space where the Scrum Team can openly and honestly reflect on their strengths and weaknesses, and identify actions to improve their performance and collaboration.
✑ The stakeholders are not invited to the Sprint Retrospective. They do not have a say in how the Scrum Team works or what they should improve. The stakeholders can provide feedback and suggestions to the Scrum Team in other events, such as the Sprint Review or the Product Backlog refinement sessions.
✑ The Product Owner is a member of the Scrum Team who is accountable for maximizing the value of the product resulting from the work of the Scrum Team. They are responsible for identifying and articulating the Product Goal, which is a long-term objective for the product that guides all the activities of the Scrum Team.
✑ The Product Owner does not make sure the correct stakeholders are invited to the Sprint Retrospective. They might have important instructions for team improvements. This would violate the self-management and autonomy of the Scrum Team and undermine their trust and empowerment.
References:
✑ [Scrum Guide], page 18, section “Sprint Retrospective”
✑ [Scrum Guide], page 7, section “The Scrum Team”
✑ [Scrum Guide], page 17, section “Sprint Review”
✑ [Scrum Guide], page 6, section “Product Owner”
✑ [Scrum Guide], page 10, section “Product Goal”

All Scrum artifacts must be transparent to ensure sufficient accuracy of inspection. Which two measures ensure that the Product Backlog is transparent?
(choose the best two answers)

Correct Answer:AB
✑ Transparency is one of the three pillars of Scrum, along with inspection and adaptation. Transparency means that all aspects of the Scrum process and the product are visible and understandable to everyone who needs to work on or with them. Transparency enables effective inspection and adaptation, which are essential for delivering valuable products and improving the Scrum Team’s performance.
✑ All Scrum artifacts must be transparent to ensure sufficient accuracy of inspection.
Scrum artifacts include the Product Backlog, the Sprint Backlog, and the Increment. The Product Backlog is an ordered list of everything that is known to be needed in the product. It is the single source of truth for the Scrum Team and the stakeholders. It contains all the requirements, features, functions, enhancements, fixes, and anything else that can deliver value to the customers and users of the product.
✑ Two measures that ensure that the Product Backlog is transparent are:
✑ The other options are not valid or relevant measures to ensure that the Product Backlog is transparent. They are either too restrictive, arbitrary, or unrelated to the Product Backlog’s transparency. They are:
References:
✑ Scrum Guide: https://www.scrumguides.org/scrum-guide.html
✑ Transparency: https://www.scrum.org/resources/blog/transparency-scrum-value
✑ Product Backlog: https://www.scrum.org/resources/what-is-a-product-backlog
✑ MoSCoW: https://www.agilealliance.org/glossary/moscow/

In order to maximize the value of the product, a Product Owner needs awareness of the following: (choose the best answer)

Correct Answer:E
In order to maximize the value of the product, a Product Owner needs awareness of the following:
✑ Competitive research. The Product Owner should be aware of the competitive landscape and the market trends that affect the product. They should know who are the competitors, what are their strengths and weaknesses, how do they differentiate themselves, and what are their strategies and goals. This can help the Product Owner to identify opportunities, threats, and gaps in the market, and to position the product accordingly.
✑ Customer feedback. The Product Owner should be aware of the customer needs, preferences, expectations, and satisfaction with the product. They should collect and analyze feedback from various sources, such as surveys, interviews, reviews, analytics, etc. This can help the Product Owner to validate assumptions, test hypotheses, measure outcomes, and discover insights that can inform the product decisions and priorities.
✑ Product vision. The Product Owner should be aware of the product vision, which is a clear and compelling statement of the desired future state of the product. The product vision describes the purpose, value proposition, target audience, and key features of the product. It also aligns with the organizational vision and mission. This can help the Product Owner to communicate and inspire the stakeholders, to guide and focus the Scrum Team, and to evaluate and adjust the product direction.
✑ Forecasting & feasibility. The Product Owner should be aware of the forecasting and feasibility of the product. They should estimate and plan the scope, time, cost, quality, and risk of delivering the product. They should also assess the technical, operational, legal, ethical, and social feasibility of developing and releasing the product. This can help the Product Owner to optimize the value of the work of the Scrum Team, to manage expectations and dependencies, and to handle uncertainties and changes.
References:
✑ Scrum Guide 2020, page 6: “The Product Owner is accountable for maximizing the value of the product resulting from the work of the Scrum Team.”
✑ Scrum Guide 2020, page 11: “The Product Goal describes a future state of the product which can serve as a target for the Scrum Team to plan against.”
✑ Scrum Guide 2020, page 11: “The Product Owner is accountable for effective Product Backlog management, which includes … optimizing the value of the work the Scrum Team performs.”

How much of the Sprint Backlog must be defined during the Sprint Planning event? (choose the best answer)

Correct Answer:B
The amount of the Sprint Backlog that must be defined during the Sprint Planning event is enough so the Developers can create their forecast of what work they can do. This is because:
✑ Sprint Planning is an event where the Scrum Team plans for the upcoming Sprint.
The purpose of Sprint Planning is to align the entire Scrum Team around a common goal and a plan for delivering an Increment that meets that goal.
✑ The Developers are accountable for creating a Sprint forecast, which is a selection
of Product Backlog items that they intend to work on during the Sprint. The Sprint forecast should be realistic, achievable, and valuable.
✑ The Developers are also accountable for creating a plan for how they will deliver
the selected Product Backlog items as a “Done” Increment. The plan may include tasks, dependencies, risks, estimates, or other information that helps them organize and manage their work.
✑ The amount of the Sprint Backlog that must be defined during Sprint Planning may vary depending on the context, complexity, and uncertainty of the product development. However, it should be enough so that the Developers can create their forecast of what work they can do and have a clear direction for the first few days of the Sprint.
Other options, such as just enough to understand design and architectural implications, the entire Sprint Backlog being identified and estimated by the end of Sprint Planning, or just enough tasks for the Scrum Master to be confident in the Developers’ understanding of the Sprint, are not valid answers as they do not reflect what must be defined during Sprint Planning or what is required for creating a Sprint forecast.
References:
✑ [Scrum Guide], page 14, section “Sprint Planning”
✑ [Scrum Guide], page 7, section “Developers”
✑ [Scrum Guide], page 15, section “Sprint Backlog”
✑ [Scrum Guide], page 14, section “Sprint Planning”