Scrum Roles, Events and Artifacts
Domain focus
This domain tests the Scrum Guide's accountabilities, events, artifacts, and their commitments. Questions often ask who owns an artifact, what an event's purpose is, which timebox applies, or which rule applies when a Sprint is cancelled.
Accountabilities
The Product Owner is accountable for maximizing product value and for the Product Backlog, including its ordering and transparency. The Product Owner is one person, not a committee; they may delegate work but remain accountable. The Scrum Master is accountable for the Scrum Team's effectiveness, coaches the team and organization, facilitates events as needed, and removes impediments. The Scrum Master is not a project manager or line manager. Developers are accountable for creating the Sprint Backlog, adhering to the Definition of Done, delivering a usable Increment each Sprint, and adapting their plan daily. They are self-managing and cross-functional.
Events and artifacts
The Sprint is the container for all other events and is one month or less. Sprint Planning addresses why, what, and how, and produces the Sprint Goal. The Daily Scrum is a 15-minute event for Developers to inspect progress toward the Sprint Goal and adapt the Sprint Backlog. The Sprint Review inspects the outcome with stakeholders and determines future adaptations; it is not merely a demo. The Sprint Retrospective inspects how the last Sprint went and identifies improvements. Artifacts are the Product Backlog (commitment: Product Goal), the Sprint Backlog (commitment: Sprint Goal), and the Increment (commitment: Definition of Done).
Worked example
A Product Owner orders backlog items; Developers select the top items during Sprint Planning and agree a Sprint Goal of reducing checkout errors. The Sprint Backlog contains the selected items plus the plan. At the Daily Scrum, Developers discover a payment-provider dependency. The Scrum Master does not assign the work; they help remove the organizational impediment and coach the team on transparency. At the Sprint Review, stakeholders inspect an Increment that meets the Definition of Done and change backlog ordering. The Retrospective produces one improvement to test data management.
Traps that cost marks
Do not make the Product Owner a committee or a proxy who only writes tickets. Do not describe the Scrum Master as the team's boss or as a status reporter. Do not limit Developers to programmers; testers, analysts, and others who create the Increment are included. Do not call the Sprint Review a status meeting or a demo only. Do not treat the Retrospective as optional. Do not let the Definition of Done vary by backlog item if the question asks about the Increment commitment.