Scrum PSM II Practice Test - Questions Answers, Page 7

One of the ways to do this is by facilitating the Scrum events, such as the Sprint Review, where the Scrum Team and the stakeholders inspect the product Increment and adapt the Product Backlog2. In this situation, where there is a conflict among the stakeholders about the budget and the funding, your two best options are:

Encourage the stakeholders to focus on delivering the highest value items for the next Sprint. This option aligns with the purpose of the Sprint Review, which is to collaborate on what was done in the Sprint and what to do next2. By encouraging the stakeholders to focus on delivering value, you are helping them prioritize the most important features or functionalities that can maximize the return on investment and reduce risk3. This can also help them align their expectations and goals, and create a shared understanding of the product vision.

Ask for a short break for people to calm down and be objective. This option aligns with your role as a facilitator, who helps the participants have constructive and respectful conversations4. By asking for a short break, you are giving them a chance to cool off and regain their composure. This can also help them be more objective and rational, and avoid emotional reactions that can escalate the conflict or damage the relationship.

The other options are not advisable because:

It is the Product Owner's meeting, so do nothing. This option is incorrect because it contradicts your accountability as a Scrum Master. The Sprint Review is not only the Product Owner's meeting, but a collaborative event that involves the whole Scrum Team and the stakeholders2. As a Scrum Master, you have a responsibility to facilitate this event and ensure that it is productive and valuable1. Doing nothing would mean neglecting your duty and allowing the conflict to persist or worsen.

Defend the budget, asking the stakeholders to support the funding of the work. This option is incorrect because it goes beyond your scope as a Scrum Master. The budget and the funding are not your primary concerns, but rather the value and quality of the product that you deliver1. Defending the budget would mean taking sides in the conflict, which can compromise your neutrality and credibility as a facilitator. It can also create more tension and resentment among the stakeholders, who may feel that you are not listening to their perspectives or interests.

Argue that the Scrum Team needs to be kept busy while the funding is confirmed. This option is incorrect because it contradicts the principle of empiricism, which is the foundation of Scrum5. Empiricism means that you make decisions based on what is known, rather than what is assumed or predicted5. Arguing that the Scrum Team needs to be kept busy while the funding is confirmed would mean ignoring or denying the reality of the situation, which can lead to waste or inefficiency. It can also undermine the trust and collaboration between the Scrum Team and the stakeholders, who may feel that you are not transparent or accountable.

As a Scrum Master, you are accountable for establishing an environment where the Scrum Team can be effective and deliver valuable products1.One of the ways to do this is by supporting the Product Owner in managing the Product Backlog and engaging with the stakeholders2. In this situation, where there is a performance issue with the product, your best option is:

Encourage the Product Owner to bring the performance concerns to the rest of the Scrum Team and work together to improve the Definition of Done.This option aligns with the principle of empiricism, which is the foundation of Scrum3.Empiricism means that you make decisions based on what is known, rather than what is assumed or predicted3.By encouraging the Product Owner to bring the performance concerns to the rest of the Scrum Team, you are helping them inspect the product Increment and adapt the Product Backlog based on transparent feedback from the stakeholder4. You are also helping them collaborate on improving the Definition of Done, which is a shared understanding of what it means for a product Increment to be complete and potentially releasable. The Definition of Done should reflect the quality standards and expectations of the stakeholders, and should be updated as needed to ensure that the product meets their needs and delivers value.

The other options are not advisable because:

Wait to bring this up in the next Sprint Retrospective as this is the appropriate time for the Developers to re-consider the Definition of Done.This option is incorrect because it contradicts your accountability as a Scrum Master. The Sprint Retrospective is an opportunity for the Scrum Team to reflect on their performance and identify improvements for the next Sprint. However, it is not the only time for them to inspect and adapt their product and process.As a Scrum Master, you should promote continuous improvement and help the Scrum Team address any issues or impediments as soon as they arise1. Waiting to bring this up in the next Sprint Retrospective would mean delaying feedback and action, which can lead to waste or dissatisfaction.

Bring the concern to the quality assurance members of the Scrum Team and ask them to improve how the system is tested.This option is incorrect because it goes against your role as a facilitator, who helps the participants have constructive and respectful conversations. By bringing the concern to only a subset of the Scrum Team, you are creating silos and excluding others from contributing or learning. You are also implying that quality is only their responsibility, rather than a shared accountability of the whole Scrum Team. Moreover, you are not asking them for their input or feedback, but telling them what to do, which can undermine their autonomy and motivation.

Explain to the Product Owner that it is up to the Developers to decide on acceptable performance standards as they own the Definition of Done.This option is incorrect because it contradicts your role as a coach, who helps people grow and improve their skills and behaviors. By explaining to the Product Owner that it is up to the Developers to decide on acceptable performance standards, you are dismissing their concern and creating a gap between them and the Developers. You are also ignoring their valuable perspective and input as a stakeholder representative, who has a clear vision of what value means for the product. Instead of explaining, you should be asking questions and listening actively, and facilitating a dialogue between them and the Developers.

B: The Scrum Master coaches the Scrum Team and the organization how to work empirically. This is a true statement, as the Scrum Master is responsible for helping everyone understand and apply the principles and practices of Scrum, which is based on empirical process control. The Scrum Master can teach the Scrum Team and the organization how to use transparency, inspection, and adaptation to deliver valuable products in a complex environment.

C: The Scrum Master facilitates Scrum events as requested or needed. This is a true statement, as the Scrum Master is responsible for ensuring that all Scrum events take place and are positive, productive, and kept within the timebox. The Scrum Master can facilitate the communication and collaboration among the Scrum Team and the stakeholders during the Sprint Planning, Daily Scrum, Sprint Review, and Sprint Retrospective.

Scrum Guide 2020, page 6: ''The Scrum Master is accountable for establishing Scrum as defined in the Scrum Guide. They do this by helping everyone understand Scrum theory and practice, both within the Scrum Team and the organization.''

Scrum Guide 2020, page 13: ''The purpose of each event in Scrum is to create an opportunity for inspection and adaptation. These events are specifically designed to enable critical transparency and inspection.''

Professional Scrum Master II Course, page 13: ''The Scrum Master serves the Scrum Team by facilitating the Scrum events and ensuring that they are effective and valuable.''

B: Developers can artificially increase velocity by incurring technical debt. This is a true statement, as some Developers may choose to take shortcuts or compromise on quality in order to deliver more work in a Sprint. However, this is not a sustainable or ethical practice, as it will create more problems and costs in the future. The Scrum Master can help the Developers to avoid this temptation and focus on delivering value and quality instead.

D: Velocity may unexpectedly drop when the Developers run into technical debt while attempting to complete new Product Backlog items. This is a true statement, as technical debt can act as a drag on the productivity and progress of the Developers. Technical debt can make the work more difficult, complex, or risky, and may require more time and effort to fix or refactor. The Scrum Master can help the Developers to identify and manage technical debt, and communicate its impact to the Product Owner and the stakeholders.

How Technical Debt Affects Your Velocity1

Understanding the impact of technical debt on the capacity and velocity2

Scrum is a framework for addressing complex adaptive problems, such as product development, that require empirical process control and frequent inspection and adaptation. Scrum helps to mitigate the risks of:

The timescale of the planned work (A), by delivering potentially releasable increments of value at the end of each Sprint, which is a fixed time-box of one month or less.

The stability and complexity of the technology (B), by allowing the Development Team to self-organize and choose the best way to create a ''Done'' increment that meets the Definition of Done.

The complexity and unpredictability of the requirements , by enabling the Product Owner to manage the Product Backlog, which is an ordered list of what is needed in the product and can change as more is learned about the product, users, market, and technology.

The skills and working relationships of the people on the teams (D), by fostering a culture of collaboration, transparency, and accountability among the Scrum Team members and stakeholders.

The Sprint Review is an event that inspects the outcome of the Sprint and determines future adaptations. The Product Owner has the authority to release the Increment to production at any time, but this does not mean that the Sprint has to be stopped or changed. The stakeholders can provide feedback and suggestions for the product, but they cannot interfere with the Sprint Goal or the Sprint Backlog within the Sprint. The Scrum Team can decide to:

Continue sprinting but shorten the Sprint length to allow for shorter feedback loops (A), which is a valid option if the Scrum Team agrees that this will improve their agility and value delivery. However, this should not be done frequently or arbitrarily, as it may disrupt the rhythm and focus of the team.

Continue sprinting and include the customer feedback in the Product Backlog , which is the most appropriate option as it respects the empirical nature of Scrum and allows the Product Owner to prioritize and order the Product Backlog based on new insights and stakeholder needs.

https://www.scrum.org/resources/what-is-a-sprint-retrospectiveThe Sprint Retrospective is a Scrum event in which the Scrum Team inspects how the last Sprint went with regards to individuals, interactions, processes, tools, and their Definition of Done1.The purpose of the Sprint Retrospective is to plan ways to increase quality and effectiveness1. The Scrum Team should focus on improving the quality of the product Increment, not on increasing the measured velocity. Velocity is a metric that indicates how much work the team has completed in a Sprint, but it does not reflect the value or quality of that work. Working product is one of the primary measures of progress in Agile.

Some actions that the Scrum Master can take in this situation are:

Facilitate a discussion on how to improve the quality to a level sufficient for production, even if the measured velocity will drop in the next Sprint. This action will help the Scrum Team to identify and address the root causes of the quality issues, and to plan actions for improvement. The Scrum Master should encourage the Scrum Team to inspect their Definition of Done, their testing and quality assurance practices, their technical debt, and their collaboration with stakeholders. The Scrum Master should also help the Scrum Team to prioritize quality over quantity, and to understand that delivering a potentially releasable Increment at the end of every Sprint is one of the goals of Scrum.

Stress the value of working product over measured velocity. This action will help the Scrum Team to align their work with the Agile values and principles, and to focus on delivering value to the customers and users. The Scrum Master should remind the Scrum Team that velocity is not a goal or a measure of success, but a tool for planning and forecasting. The Scrum Master should also help the Scrum Team to avoid falling into the trap of velocity-driven development, where they sacrifice quality, sustainability, and customer satisfaction for higher numbers.

Some actions that the Scrum Master should not take in this situation are:

Agree and praise the Developers for their hard work, so they are motivated to do even more in the next Sprint. This action will not help the Scrum Team to improve their quality or effectiveness, but rather reinforce a false sense of achievement based on velocity. The Scrum Master should acknowledge and appreciate the Developers' efforts, but also challenge them to inspect and adapt their work processes and outcomes. The Scrum Master should also help the Developers to balance their motivation with realism, and to avoid overcommitting or overestimating their capacity.

Acknowledge the hard work, but remind the Developers that they need to improve to do even more in the next Sprint. This action will not help the Scrum Team to improve their quality or effectiveness, but rather put pressure on them to increase their velocity. The Scrum Master should not imply that doing more work is equivalent to doing better work, or that higher velocity is expected or desired. The Scrum Master should also help the Developers to avoid burnout, stress, and fatigue caused by unrealistic or unsustainable expectations.

The Sprint Retrospective - What It Is & Tips for Making the Most of Your Meeting | Scrum Alliance

How to Measure Sprint Velocity in Agile | Parabol

What is a Sprint Retrospective? - Zeolearn

What Is the Goal of Sprint Retrospective Meeting? | Wrike

What is a Sprint Retrospective? | Scrum.org

[Principles behind the Agile Manifesto]

[What is a Product Increment? | Scrum.org]

[Velocity-driven development: A trap waiting for you | Agile Alliance]

As the Scrum Master, your role is to serve the Scrum Team by helping them to work effectively and deliver value. You are not responsible for managing the work or assigning tasks to the Developers. You should respect the self-organization and autonomy of the Developers, and support them in finding their own solutions to the problem. You should also facilitate collaboration and communication among the Developers and with other stakeholders, such as Phil and the Product Owner.

Some reasons why the other options are not correct are:

A: Preparing the Sprint Backlogs each day for the teams so Phil can spend some time in each team. This option is not correct because it violates the Scrum framework and the Scrum Master role. The Sprint Backlog is owned and managed by the Developers, not by the Scrum Master. The Scrum Master should not interfere with or dictate how the Developers plan and execute their work. The Scrum Master should also not impose a solution that may not be optimal or feasible for the teams or for Phil.

B: Allocate Phil to one team per Sprint, so that over four Sprints every team will have had the support it requires. This option is not correct because it violates the Scrum framework and the Scrum Master role. The Scrum Master should not allocate resources or assign tasks to the teams or to Phil. The Scrum Master should also not impose a solution that may not be aligned with the Product Owner's priorities or the teams' needs.

D: Ask Phil for a plan to hire and train additional people in his domain, and in the meantime work with the Product Owner and Developers to re-prioritize the work so that tasks not depending on Phil can be done first. This option is not correct because it violates the Scrum framework and the Scrum Master role. The Scrum Master should not ask Phil to do something that may be beyond his authority or responsibility. The Scrum Master should also not work with the Product Owner and Developers to re-prioritize the work, as this is the Product Owner's accountability. The Scrum Master should respect the Product Owner's decisions on what is valuable and what is not, and support the Developers in delivering that value.

What is a Scrum Master? | Scrum.org

What is a Sprint Backlog? | Scrum.org

Who is responsible for dependency management? | Scrum.org

[Managing Dependencies in Scrum - Scrum Alliance]

As the Scrum Master, your role is to serve the Scrum Team by helping them to work effectively and deliver value. You are not responsible for managing the work or assigning tasks to the Developers. You should respect the self-organization and autonomy of the Developers, and support them in finding their own solutions to the problem. You should also facilitate collaboration and communication among the Developers and with other stakeholders.

Some reasons why option B is the correct answer are:

Asking the Developers what value they get by having the Daily Scrum with all team members present and what might go wrong if all Developers do not attend. This action will help the Scrum Team to understand the purpose and benefits of the Daily Scrum, and to identify and address the risks and consequences of missing it.The Daily Scrum is a 15-minute event for the Developers of the Scrum Team to inspect progress toward the Sprint Goal and adapt the Sprint Backlog as necessary, adjusting the upcoming planned work12.The Daily Scrum also provides an opportunity for the Developers to identify and communicate any impediments that are hindering their progress, and request help from the Scrum Master or other team members to resolve them12.The Daily Scrum improves communications, identifies impediments, promotes quick decision-making, and consequently eliminates the need for other meetings12.The Daily Scrum is not a status meeting, but a way for the Developers to collaborate and self-organize around the most important work for the next 24 hours12. If a Developer is missing the Daily Scrum, they may miss important information, feedback, or support from their peers, or they may cause delays, confusion, or conflicts for their team. The Scrum Master should encourage the Developers to share their perspectives and experiences on how the Daily Scrum helps them achieve their Sprint Goal and create a valuable Increment.

The Scrum Master should also help the Developers to come up with their own solutions on how to ensure full attendance and participation in the Daily Scrum. The Scrum Master should not impose or dictate a solution, but rather coach and guide the Developers to find what works best for them. The Scrum Master should also help the Developers to agree on some ground rules or norms for their Daily Scrum, such as when, where, and how to conduct it, what topics to discuss, and how to handle any issues or conflicts that may arise.

Some reasons why the other options are not correct are:

A: You do not intervene. The Developers own the Daily Scrum, so they should deal with any issues with attendance. This option is not correct because it violates the Scrum Master role.The Scrum Master is accountable for establishing Scrum as defined in the Scrum Guide1, causing change that increases the productivity of the Scrum Team1, and working with other Scrum Masters to increase the effectiveness of the application of Scrum in the organization1. The Scrum Master should not ignore or avoid a problem that affects the performance or well-being of the Scrum Team, but rather help them address it in a constructive and respectful way. The Scrum Master should also not assume that the Developers know how to deal with any issues with attendance, but rather teach them how to do so effectively.

C: Talk to the Developer who is missing the Daily Scrum and ask her to always attend the Daily Scrum. This option is not correct because it violates the Scrum framework and the Scrum Master role.The Daily Scrum is an event for and by the Developers12, not for reporting or accountability to anyone else. The Scrum Master should not interfere with or dictate how the Developers conduct their Daily Scrum, or make unilateral decisions on behalf of them. The Scrum Master should also not single out or confront a Developer who is missing the Daily Scrum, but rather involve all Developers in finding a solution that works for everyone.

D: Teach the Developers how to deal with this situation by attending the Daily Scrum yourself. This option is not correct because it violates the Scrum framework and the Scrum Master role.The Daily Scrum is an event for and by the Developers12, not for anyone else's inspection or intervention.The Scrum Master should not attend or participate in the Daily Scrum unless they are actively working on items in the Sprint Backlog12. The presence of an outsider may disrupt or influence the dynamics of the Developers' communication and collaboration. The Scrum Master should also not teach by doing, but rather by coaching and facilitating.

What is a Daily Scrum? | Scrum.org

What Is a Daily Standup? | A Guide to Running Effective Standup Meetings | Atlassian