Scrum Theory and Principles
Foundations
Scrum is a lightweight framework built on empirical process control: decisions rest on observation, experience, and experimentation. Three pillars support it - transparency (the work and its state are visible to those accountable), inspection (frequent checks of artifacts and progress toward goals), and adaptation (adjusting promptly when results deviate). Five values - commitment, focus, openness, respect, and courage - give the pillars behavioral substance.
The Rules vs. the Theory
Candidates must separate the immutable rules (events exist, timeboxes hold, accountabilities are defined) from the adaptable practices (estimation technique, tooling, refinement style). A common trap presents a team experimenting with a technique and asks whether it violates Scrum - usually it does not, provided the events, accountabilities, and artifacts remain intact. Another trap confuses empiricism with "no planning": Scrum favors just-enough, just-in-time planning over predictive plans, not the absence of planning.
Iterative and Incremental
Scrum is both iterative (refining assumptions through repeated cycles) and incremental (delivering usable additions). Questions often test whether you can identify which property a practice serves - a retrospective is largely iterative; a released increment is incremental.
Worked rule of thumb
When a scenario describes a problem, ask: "Is the problem a lack of transparency, a missed inspection, or a failure to adapt?" Classify it before choosing an answer. Example: a team reports 80% done for weeks with no demonstrable increment - that is a transparency failure, so the fix is making work genuinely visible (a clear Definition of Done), not adding status meetings.
Exam traps
- Treating the values as optional slogans rather than decision criteria.
- Assuming Scrum requires a specific tool, estimation unit, or documentation format.
- Confusing "self-managing" with "no accountability to the organization."