Professional Scrum Master Scrum Events and Activities Questions and Answers — Questions and Answers
Question 1: A Scrum Team is holding its Sprint Review. The Product Owner has invited key stakeholders to attend. What is the primary focus of this event?
- To demonstrate the Increment and for the Scrum Team and stakeholders to inspect the outcome of the Sprint and adapt the Product Backlog. (Correct answer)
- To provide a status report to the stakeholders and secure their approval for the work completed.
- For the Scrum Master to facilitate a session on how the team can improve its processes and increase velocity in the next Sprint.
- For the team to reflect on the past Sprint, identify what went well and what didn't, and create a plan for process improvements.
Correct answer: To demonstrate the Increment and for the Scrum Team and stakeholders to inspect the outcome of the Sprint and adapt the Product Backlog.
The purpose of the Sprint Review is to inspect the outcome of the Sprint and determine future adaptations. The Scrum Team presents the results of their work to key stakeholders, and progress toward the Product Goal is discussed. It is a working session, not just a presentation, where collaboration and feedback on the Increment lead to adapting the Product Backlog.
Question 2: The Developers on a Scrum Team are holding their Daily Scrum. The meeting has been taking more than 30 minutes recently because they use it to solve technical problems that have been discovered. What is the most appropriate action?
- The Scrum Master should stop the meeting at 15 minutes and remind the Developers that problem-solving should happen outside the Daily Scrum. (Correct answer)
- The Product Owner should attend to help resolve the issues quickly so the team can stay on track.
- The Developers should continue their discussions as it's important to resolve impediments as soon as they are identified.
- The Scrum Master should extend the timebox for the Daily Scrum to accommodate the necessary problem-solving discussions.
Correct answer: The Scrum Master should stop the meeting at 15 minutes and remind the Developers that problem-solving should happen outside the Daily Scrum.
The Daily Scrum is strictly timeboxed to 15 minutes. Its purpose is for the Developers to inspect progress toward the Sprint Goal and adapt the Sprint Backlog for the upcoming day, not for in-depth problem-solving. The Scrum Master's role is to teach the team to keep the Daily Scrum within the timebox and ensure it serves its purpose. Deeper discussions should occur after the Daily Scrum.
Question 3: Which of the following best describes the outputs of Sprint Planning?
- The Sprint Goal, a selection of Product Backlog items for the Sprint, and a plan for delivering the Increment. (Correct answer)
- A committed list of features that must be delivered by the end of the Sprint, regardless of any challenges.
- A detailed, hour-by-hour task list for each Developer for the entire duration of the Sprint.
- The Sprint Goal and a finalized set of tasks assigned to each individual Developer by the Product Owner.
Correct answer: The Sprint Goal, a selection of Product Backlog items for the Sprint, and a plan for delivering the Increment.
Sprint Planning addresses three topics: Why is this Sprint valuable (the Sprint Goal), What can be Done this Sprint (the selected Product Backlog items), and How will the chosen work get done (the plan for the Developers). This results in the Sprint Goal and the Sprint Backlog, which includes the selected items and the plan to deliver them.
Question 4: A Product Owner is struggling to get meaningful feedback from stakeholders during the Sprint Review. The stakeholders watch the demonstration passively and don't ask many questions. What is a likely cause of this anti-pattern?
- The Scrum Team is presenting the Sprint Review as a formal presentation or demo rather than a working session for inspection and adaptation. (Correct answer)
- The stakeholders are not the right people and do not have a specific interest in the product.
- The Increment is not yet 'Done' according to the team's Definition of Done, making it difficult for stakeholders to evaluate.
- The Scrum Master is not effectively facilitating the meeting and enforcing stakeholder participation.
Correct answer: The Scrum Team is presenting the Sprint Review as a formal presentation or demo rather than a working session for inspection and adaptation.
The Sprint Review should be a collaborative working session where the Scrum Team and stakeholders inspect the Increment and adapt the Product Backlog. If it is treated as a one-way presentation or demo, stakeholders are less likely to engage. The goal is to elicit feedback and foster collaboration about what to do next.
Question 5: What is the key difference between the Sprint Review and the Sprint Retrospective?
- The Sprint Review is focused on inspecting the product Increment with stakeholders, while the Sprint Retrospective is focused on inspecting the team's process and ways of working. (Correct answer)
- The Sprint Review is an informal meeting for the Developers only, while the Sprint Retrospective is a formal meeting for all stakeholders.
- The Sprint Review happens at the beginning of the Sprint to plan the work, while the Sprint Retrospective happens at the end to review the work.
- The Sprint Review's output is an updated Sprint Backlog, while the Sprint Retrospective's output is a report for management.
Correct answer: The Sprint Review is focused on inspecting the product Increment with stakeholders, while the Sprint Retrospective is focused on inspecting the team's process and ways of working.
The Sprint Review focuses on the 'what'—the product Increment that was built—and involves stakeholder collaboration. In contrast, the Sprint Retrospective focuses on the 'how'—the Scrum Team's interactions, processes, and tools—and is an internal event for the Scrum Team to create a plan for improvement.
Question 6: For a one-month Sprint, what are the maximum timeboxes for the Sprint Planning, Sprint Review, and Sprint Retrospective events?
- 8 hours for Sprint Planning, 4 hours for Sprint Review, and 3 hours for Sprint Retrospective. (Correct answer)
- 4 hours for Sprint Planning, 8 hours for Sprint Review, and 4 hours for Sprint Retrospective.
- 8 hours for Sprint Planning, 3 hours for Sprint Review, and 4 hours for Sprint Retrospective.
- There are no prescribed maximum timeboxes; teams decide what is appropriate for each event.
Correct answer: 8 hours for Sprint Planning, 4 hours for Sprint Review, and 3 hours for Sprint Retrospective.
The Scrum Guide prescribes maximum timeboxes for these events for a one-month Sprint. They are: Sprint Planning is at most 8 hours, Sprint Review is at most 4 hours, and Sprint Retrospective is at most 3 hours. For shorter Sprints, the events are usually shorter.
Professional Scrum Master Scrum Events and Activities Questions and Answers
A Scrum Team is holding its Sprint Review.
The Product Owner has invited key stakeholders to attend.
What is the primary focus of this event?