Agile Business Analysis General 3 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: Which agile estimation technique uses a non-linear scale (e.g., Fibonacci sequence) to account for uncertainty in larger work items?
- T-shirt sizing
- Planning Poker (Correct answer)
- Affinity mapping
- Story mapping
Correct answer: Planning Poker
Planning Poker uses a Fibonacci-like sequence because the uncertainty in estimates grows disproportionately as work items get larger.
Question 2: What is the primary role of a business analyst during a sprint retrospective?
- Presenting the business case for the next sprint
- Contributing observations about process improvements and communication gaps (Correct answer)
- Re-prioritizing the product backlog based on team feedback
- Approving the Definition of Done changes proposed by the team
Correct answer: Contributing observations about process improvements and communication gaps
In a retrospective, the BA contributes as a team member by sharing observations about process, collaboration, and communication improvements.
Question 3: A stakeholder requests a change to a story mid-sprint that would significantly increase its scope. What is the best response?
- Accept the change immediately to satisfy the stakeholder
- Reject all changes during a sprint without exception
- Evaluate the impact, add it to the backlog, and plan it for a future sprint (Correct answer)
- Split the current sprint into two shorter iterations to accommodate the change
Correct answer: Evaluate the impact, add it to the backlog, and plan it for a future sprint
Significant scope changes mid-sprint should be captured in the backlog and planned for a future sprint to protect the current sprint goal.
Question 4: Which of the following best describes 'value stream mapping' in agile business analysis?
- A technique for mapping customer personas to product features
- A visual tool for analyzing the flow of materials and information required to deliver a product (Correct answer)
- A method for calculating ROI of individual user stories
- A diagramming approach for designing database schemas
Correct answer: A visual tool for analyzing the flow of materials and information required to deliver a product
Value stream mapping visualizes the end-to-end flow of materials and information to identify waste and improve delivery efficiency.
Question 5: What does 'Definition of Ready' mean in agile business analysis?
- The criteria a story must meet before it can be accepted as complete
- The criteria a backlog item must meet before the team commits to working on it (Correct answer)
- The baseline requirements document approved by stakeholders
- The sprint goal agreed upon by the Product Owner and team
Correct answer: The criteria a backlog item must meet before the team commits to working on it
Definition of Ready defines the criteria a backlog item must meet—such as having clear acceptance criteria—before the team pulls it into a sprint.
Question 6: When conducting a stakeholder analysis in an agile project, which dimension is most critical to assess?
- Stakeholder salary and seniority level
- Stakeholder interest and influence on the project (Correct answer)
- Stakeholder geographic location
- Stakeholder technical proficiency with agile tools
Correct answer: Stakeholder interest and influence on the project
Interest and influence are the two key dimensions for stakeholder analysis, used to prioritize engagement strategies.
Question 7: In agile projects, what is meant by 'technical debt'?
- The cost of acquiring new development tools and licenses
- The implied cost of rework caused by choosing quick solutions over better approaches (Correct answer)
- Outstanding invoices owed to software vendors
- The gap between estimated and actual development hours
Correct answer: The implied cost of rework caused by choosing quick solutions over better approaches
Technical debt refers to the future rework cost incurred when teams take shortcuts or make suboptimal design decisions to deliver faster.
Agile Business Analysis General 3
Which agile estimation technique uses a non-linear scale (e.g., Fibonacci sequence) to account for uncertainty in larger work items?