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SMP practice questions

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Question 1Scrum Theory and Principles

Which three pillars support Scrum's empirical process control?

  1. Commitment, focus, and courage.
  2. Transparency, inspection, and adaptation. Correct answer.
  3. Analysis, design, and testing.
  4. Planning, execution, and review.

Explanation

Empirical process control rests on making work visible, checking it regularly, and adjusting based on what is found. These three pillars underpin every Scrum event and artifact. The other listed triples are generic project phases, Scrum values, or engineering activities.

Question 2Scrum Theory and Principles

Which set lists the five Scrum values?

  1. Commitment, focus, openness, respect, and courage. Correct answer.
  2. Courage, respect, transparency, inspection, and adaptation.
  3. Focus, trust, respect, inspection, and commitment.
  4. Commitment, courage, quality, trust, and openness.

Explanation

Scrum defines exactly five values: commitment, focus, openness, respect, and courage. They describe how the team works together and support the empirical pillars. The other sets mix in pillars, artifacts, or values Scrum does not name.

Question 3Scrum Theory and Principles

What is a timebox in Scrum?

  1. A minimum duration an event must run to count as complete.
  2. A fixed maximum duration for an event that is never extended. Correct answer.
  3. A schedule imposed by stakeholders for delivering the product.
  4. A deadline that may be extended when the work is unfinished.

Explanation

Every Scrum event is timeboxed, meaning it has a maximum duration that is respected rather than stretched. A timebox caps the event, so the team must focus on what matters within that limit. It is neither a minimum duration nor a negotiable deadline.

Question 4Scrum Theory and Principles

The Sprint is best described as which of the following?

  1. A container for the other Scrum events and activities. Correct answer.
  2. A phase of testing that follows development.
  3. An optional event used only when requirements are unclear.
  4. A meeting held at the start of each month.

Explanation

The Sprint is the heartbeat of Scrum and acts as a container in which the other events take place. It has a fixed length of one month or less and is never optional. It is not a meeting or a testing phase.

Question 5Scrum Theory and Principles

A Scrum Team is self-managing. Which statement best describes what that means?

  1. The team operates without any contact with the wider organization.
  2. The team receives its daily task assignments from the Product Owner.
  3. The team may rewrite the Scrum framework whenever it suits them.
  4. The team decides internally who does what, when, and how. Correct answer.

Explanation

Self-management means the people doing the work decide internally how to divide it, sequence it, and perform it. The team still works within the organization and within Scrum's rules. Direction comes from goals, not from assigned daily tasks.

Question 6Scrum Theory and Principles

What does it mean that the Scrum Team is cross-functional?

  1. The team shares members with other teams on a rotating basis.
  2. The team has all the skills needed to create value each Sprint. Correct answer.
  3. The team reports to several functional managers at once.
  4. Every member is trained in all of the same disciplines.

Explanation

Cross-functional means the team collectively holds the skills required to deliver a usable Increment every Sprint, without depending on outsiders. It does not require every member to be a generalist. Reporting lines and shared members have nothing to do with the concept.

Question 7Scrum Theory and Principles

How does the Scrum Guide describe Scrum itself?

  1. A lightweight framework for complex, adaptive work. Correct answer.
  2. A stage-gate process for approving large capital projects.
  3. A complete methodology that prescribes engineering practices in detail.
  4. A certification scheme for project managers and product owners.

Explanation

Scrum is deliberately lightweight and defines only what is needed to implement its theory. It does not prescribe engineering practices or detailed methods. Organizations add their own practices on top of the framework.

Question 8Scrum Theory and Principles

What does an incremental approach mean in Scrum?

  1. Each Sprint reworks the entire product from scratch.
  2. The product is documented fully before development starts.
  3. Deliverables are handed over only once, at the end of the project.
  4. The product grows in additive, verified pieces. Correct answer.

Explanation

Increments are additive: each one builds on the previous ones and is verified so that all pieces work together. This is what allows value to be delivered before the whole product is finished. Big-bang handover and complete up-front documentation are predictive practices.

Question 9Scrum Theory and Principles

Transparency requires that aspects of the process be visible to those performing and receiving the work. What else does it require?

  1. That only managers may view the Product Backlog.
  2. That all stakeholders have access to the source code.
  3. That the team documents every conversation it holds.
  4. A common standard so that observers share the same understanding. Correct answer.

Explanation

Visibility alone is not transparency; everyone must interpret what they see in the same way. That requires an agreed standard, such as a shared Definition of Done. Access to code or exhaustive documentation does not create a common understanding.

Question 10Scrum Theory and Principles

How often should inspection occur in Scrum?

  1. Continuously, so that every action is reviewed by someone.
  2. At intervals set by the quality assurance department.
  3. Often enough to detect problems without disrupting the work. Correct answer.
  4. Only at the end of the project, once the Increment is complete.

Explanation

Inspection must be frequent enough to catch undesirable variance early, yet not so frequent that it gets in the way of the work itself. Scrum balances this through its defined events. Constant review or a single end-of-project check both break that balance.

Question 11Scrum Theory and Principles

When inspection reveals that part of the process or product is unacceptable, when should adjustment happen?

  1. As soon as possible to limit further deviation. Correct answer.
  2. At the next quarterly planning cycle.
  3. Only after a change request has been formally approved.
  4. After the release has been delivered to customers.

Explanation

Adaptation should occur as soon as possible so that deviation does not grow. Delaying adjustment allows more work to be built on a flawed basis. Bureaucratic approval routes are not part of Scrum's adaptive loop.

Question 12Scrum Theory and Principles

Which behaviour best reflects the Scrum value of Openness?

  1. The team shares progress and problems honestly with stakeholders. Correct answer.
  2. The team limits access to the Product Backlog to managers.
  3. The team avoids discussing disagreements in the Daily Scrum.
  4. The team waits until the Sprint Review to reveal delays.

Explanation

Openness means the team and its stakeholders are candid about the work and the challenges it faces. Surfacing problems early is exactly what the empirical pillars depend on. Hiding delays, avoiding disagreement, or restricting visibility all work against it.

Question 13Scrum Theory and Principles

What does the Sprint Goal provide the Scrum Team?

  1. A guarantee that all planned items will be finished.
  2. A fixed list of backlog items that may not be changed.
  3. A replacement for the Definition of Done.
  4. A shared objective that gives focus while leaving room to negotiate the work. Correct answer.

Explanation

The Sprint Goal is a single objective for the Sprint that creates focus and coherence. It gives the team flexibility about the exact work needed to reach it. It is not a fixed scope list, nor does it replace other artifacts.

Question 14Scrum Theory and Principles

Why does Scrum require a Definition of Done?

  1. To give a shared understanding of what it means for work to be complete. Correct answer.
  2. To allow the Product Owner to skip the Sprint Review.
  3. To standardise velocity across the organization.
  4. To replace the need for acceptance criteria in the backlog.

Explanation

The Definition of Done is a formal description of the quality state required for an Increment, and it creates transparency about completion. Without it, people would judge completeness differently. It does not affect velocity comparisons across teams or remove other practices.

Question 15Scrum Theory and Principles

In which situation is empirical process control clearly preferable to a predictive plan?

  1. When the team has already built the identical product before.
  2. When a regulator requires a fixed scope and fixed schedule.
  3. When the work is repetitive and the causes of variation are known.
  4. When requirements and technology change frequently and much is unknown. Correct answer.

Explanation

Empiricism suits work where more is unknown than known and where cause and effect only become clear in retrospect. Frequent inspection and adaptation replace up-front certainty in such conditions. Repetitive or fully understood work fits defined, predictive processes better.

Question 16Scrum Theory and Principles

Partway through a Sprint the team learns a planned feature can be built a simpler way. What does Scrum permit?

  1. Clarifying and renegotiating scope with the Product Owner. Correct answer.
  2. Escalating the decision to a change control board.
  3. Terminating the Sprint and replanning from scratch.
  4. Freezing the Sprint Backlog so the original plan is preserved.

Explanation

As more is learned, the scope of the Sprint may be clarified and renegotiated between the Product Owner and the developers. What must be protected is the Sprint Goal, not the original task list. Cancelling the Sprint or freezing the plan would remove the adaptability Scrum relies on.

Question 17Scrum Theory and Principles

A Scrum Master who serves the team most typically spends time on which activity?

  1. Approving the team's technical design decisions.
  2. Assigning daily tasks to each developer.
  3. Reporting the team's velocity to line managers.
  4. Causing the removal of impediments to the team's progress. Correct answer.

Explanation

The Scrum Master serves the team by helping remove obstacles and by coaching the team and organization toward better use of Scrum. This is a serving-leadership stance, not a command-and-control one. Assigning tasks and approving designs would undermine self-management.

Question 18Scrum Theory and Principles

Which of these is an example of waste in the Lean sense as applied to product development?

  1. Holding a fifteen-minute Daily Scrum.
  2. Refining Product Backlog items with the team.
  3. Automating a repetitive build step.
  4. Work that is started but never finished or integrated. Correct answer.

Explanation

Lean thinking treats partially done work that never reaches use as inventory and therefore waste. Refinement, the Daily Scrum, and automation all reduce uncertainty or effort and are not waste. Scrum's short, complete Increments exist partly to avoid this kind of build-up.

Question 19Scrum Theory and Principles

Why does Scrum limit Sprints to one month or less?

  1. To cap risk and cost exposure and enable more frequent adaptation. Correct answer.
  2. To match the organization's financial reporting cycle.
  3. So that each team can hold one Sprint Review per quarter.
  4. So that the Product Owner can reorder the backlog monthly.

Explanation

Short Sprints limit the risk of building the wrong thing to the cost of a single Sprint, and they create more frequent opportunities to inspect and adapt. The length comes from risk and learning, not from reporting cycles. Backlog ordering happens continuously regardless.

Question 20Scrum Theory and Principles

Which statement best distinguishes iterative from incremental development?

  1. Iterative is for software only; incremental is for hardware only.
  2. Iterative avoids feedback; incremental seeks it.
  3. Iterative refines through repeated cycles; incremental builds in pieces. Correct answer.
  4. Iterative delivers once; incremental delivers often.

Explanation

Iteration is about revisiting and refining the same thing across cycles, while incrementing is about adding finished pieces to what already exists. Scrum uses both together, which is why each Sprint produces a refined, additive Increment. The two are complementary rather than opposed.

Question 21Scrum Theory and Principles

A developer repeatedly talks over a junior teammate and dismisses their input as irrelevant. Which Scrum value is most directly undermined?

  1. Commitment
  2. Respect Correct answer.
  3. Focus
  4. Openness

Explanation

Respect means team members treat one another as capable professionals and value each other's contributions. Dismissing a colleague's input on status rather than substance attacks that foundation directly. The other values may suffer as a side effect, but respect is the value being violated.

Question 22Scrum Theory and Principles

Which statement best captures empiricism as Scrum applies it?

  1. Knowledge comes from experience, and decisions follow from what is observed. Correct answer.
  2. Experience is unreliable, so plans should be fixed early and defended.
  3. Knowledge comes from documentation, and decisions follow from contracts.
  4. Decisions should follow from detailed upfront analysis of requirements.

Explanation

Empiricism holds that knowledge comes from experience and that decisions should be based on observation. Scrum operationalises this through short cycles of doing, inspecting, and adapting. Up-front analysis, contractual certainty, and defended plans all belong to predictive thinking.

Question 23Scrum Theory and Principles

At the end of a Sprint, an item does not meet the Definition of Done. How should this be treated?

  1. It is not part of the Increment and returns to the Product Backlog. Correct answer.
  2. It is counted in the team's velocity but excluded from the review.
  3. It is presented at the Sprint Review as a completed Increment.
  4. The Definition of Done is relaxed so the item can be delivered.

Explanation

Work that does not meet the Definition of Done cannot be considered part of the Increment; it goes back to the Product Backlog for later consideration. This keeps the Increment transparent and genuinely usable. Weakening the Definition of Done to make the item fit destroys that transparency.

Question 24Scrum Theory and Principles

Which statement best describes how the three pillars relate to one another?

  1. Adaptation makes inspection possible, which in turn creates transparency.
  2. Transparency enables inspection, and inspection enables adaptation. Correct answer.
  3. Inspection works independently of transparency, but adaptation requires both.
  4. Adaptation is only needed when transparency has failed.

Explanation

The pillars form a sequence: work must be visible before it can be meaningfully inspected, and inspection is what provides the basis for adaptation. This is why transparency problems undermine everything downstream. Treating the pillars as independent or reversing the order breaks the logic of empiricism.

Question 25Scrum Theory and Principles

Scrum is described as intentionally incomplete. What does this imply for a Scrum Team?

  1. It must follow a prescribed set of engineering practices from the Guide.
  2. It may ignore the Scrum rules that do not suit its context.
  3. It should wait for the organization to define its processes first.
  4. It adds practices and tools as needed within Scrum's rules. Correct answer.

Explanation

Scrum defines only the minimum needed to implement its theory, and teams fill the rest with their own practices and tools. That freedom operates inside the framework's rules, which remain intact. The Guide does not prescribe engineering practices, and teams do not wait for permission to adapt.

Question 26Scrum Theory and Principles

Scrum rests on empirical process control, which is supported by three pillars. Which of the following is one of those pillars?

  1. Commitment
  2. Transparency Correct answer.
  3. Respect
  4. Focus

Explanation

The three pillars of empiricism are transparency, inspection and adaptation. Focus, respect and commitment belong to the set of five Scrum values, not to the pillars. Keeping the two lists distinct matters because the values shape behaviour while the pillars describe how knowledge is gained and used.

Question 27Scrum Theory and Principles

The Scrum value of Commitment is best described by which statement?

  1. Being personally dedicated to the team's goals Correct answer.
  2. Following the Sprint plan exactly as written
  3. Delivering every item forecast at Sprint Planning
  4. Promising stakeholders a fixed release date

Explanation

Commitment means the Scrum Team dedicates itself to achieving its goals and supports one another in doing so. It is a disposition toward goals and colleagues, not a guarantee about scope or dates. Forecasts and plans remain adjustable as new learning appears.

Question 28Scrum Theory and Principles

The Scrum Guide describes the Scrum Team as self-managing. What does that mean in practice?

  1. A manager assigns each team member their daily tasks
  2. The team may set aside the Definition of Done under time pressure
  3. The team decides internally who does what, when and how Correct answer.
  4. The team may change the organisation's pricing strategy on its own

Explanation

Self-managing means the people doing the work decide among themselves how to organise it, including task allocation and working methods. It is an internal authority over the how and who, exercised inside the boundaries of the framework. It does not remove the need to meet the Definition of Done or to respect wider organisational limits.

Question 29Scrum Theory and Principles

A team must forecast how much work it can complete in the coming Sprint. Which approach is most consistent with empiricism?

  1. Commit to finishing the whole Product Backlog in the Sprint
  2. Adopt the figure the customer finds most reassuring
  3. Base the forecast on what recent Sprints have shown to be achievable Correct answer.
  4. Accept the highest figure offered by the most senior engineer

Explanation

Empiricism builds decisions on observation and experience rather than on assertion or hope. Recent Sprint outcomes are the evidence the team actually has about its capacity. Forecasts derived from that evidence can be inspected and adjusted as the Sprint proceeds.

Question 30Scrum Theory and Principles

An organisation runs Sprints but also keeps a fixed twelve-month scope-and-schedule plan that no one may change during the year. Which statement best captures the problem?

  1. The fixed plan blocks the adaptation that inspection should enable, so empiricism is lost Correct answer.
  2. The only problem is that the Sprints are not timeboxed to one month or less
  3. The only problem is that the Product Owner lacks authority over the annual budget
  4. Nothing is wrong, because running Sprints already provides the inspection that Scrum requires

Explanation

Inspection has value only when it can lead to adjustment of product and process. A frozen annual plan keeps the ceremonies of Scrum while removing the adaptive response that makes it empirical. The framework is then used as a label on predictive management rather than as a way of working.

Question 31Scrum Roles and Accountabilities

Which three accountabilities together make up the Scrum Team?

  1. Product Owner, Scrum Master, and Developers Correct answer.
  2. Product Owner, Scrum Master, and Stakeholders
  3. Product Owner, Developers, and Business Analysts
  4. Scrum Master, Developers, and Project Manager

Explanation

Scrum defines a single team structure containing exactly three accountabilities: the Product Owner, the Scrum Master, and the Developers. All three together form the Scrum Team, which is self-managing and cross-functional. Roles such as project manager or business analyst are not Scrum accountabilities.

Question 32Scrum Roles and Accountabilities

Several departments want a say in what the product contains. How many Product Owners does a Scrum Team have?

  1. Exactly one Correct answer.
  2. One per contributing department
  3. One from the business side and one from technology
  4. One for each Scrum Team working on the product

Explanation

The Product Owner is one person, not a committee, even when many stakeholders have interests in the product. Having a single accountable person keeps the Product Backlog ordered and decisions clear. Groups wanting to influence the product must do so by persuading that one Product Owner.

Question 33Scrum Roles and Accountabilities

What is the recommended maximum size of a Scrum Team?

  1. Three to nine people
  2. Ten or fewer people Correct answer.
  3. Five to eleven people
  4. There is no guideline for team size

Explanation

Scrum guidance is that the Scrum Team is typically ten or fewer people, including the Product Owner and Scrum Master. Smaller teams communicate better and need less coordination. If a team grows beyond that, it is usually better to form additional Scrum Teams on the same product.

Question 34Scrum Roles and Accountabilities

Who is accountable for producing an Increment in every Sprint?

  1. The stakeholders who requested the work
  2. The Product Owner
  3. The Developers Correct answer.
  4. The Scrum Master

Explanation

The Developers are accountable for creating the Increment each Sprint and for meeting the Definition of Done. The Product Owner orders the work and the Scrum Master coaches, but neither builds the Increment. Creating a usable, valuable increment is squarely the Developers' accountability.

Question 35Scrum Roles and Accountabilities

Who is required to attend the Daily Scrum?

  1. The whole Scrum Team together with interested stakeholders
  2. The Developers Correct answer.
  3. The Scrum Master and Product Owner
  4. Anyone who contributes to the Sprint Backlog

Explanation

The Daily Scrum is an event for the Developers to inspect progress toward the Sprint Goal and adapt their plan. The Product Owner and Scrum Master may attend, but they are not required unless they are actively doing work in the Sprint Backlog. Others are generally not needed and can disrupt focus.

Question 36Scrum Roles and Accountabilities

Who has the authority to cancel a Sprint?

  1. Senior stakeholders
  2. The Scrum Team by majority vote
  3. The Scrum Master
  4. Only the Product Owner Correct answer.

Explanation

A Sprint can be cancelled only by the Product Owner, and only when the Sprint Goal becomes obsolete. Cancellation is rare and is driven by a change in direction or value, which is the Product Owner's accountability. The Scrum Master has no authority to cancel a Sprint.

Question 37Scrum Roles and Accountabilities

Which of these is an accountability of the Product Owner?

  1. Assigning daily tasks to the Developers
  2. Maximizing the value of the product Correct answer.
  3. Coaching the organization in Scrum adoption
  4. Deciding how the Developers will do their work

Explanation

The Product Owner is accountable for maximizing the value of the product resulting from the work of the Scrum Team, primarily through effective Product Backlog management. Coaching the organization and deciding how work is performed belong elsewhere. The Product Owner focuses on what and why, not on task assignment or technical approach.

Question 38Scrum Roles and Accountabilities

Who participates in the Sprint Retrospective?

  1. Only the Developers
  2. The Scrum Team plus invited stakeholders
  3. The Scrum Master and Product Owner only
  4. The Scrum Team Correct answer.

Explanation

The Sprint Retrospective is an event for the Scrum Team as a whole, which includes the Product Owner, Scrum Master, and Developers. Stakeholders are not part of it, because the Retrospective is about how the team itself works. The team plans improvements to its quality and effectiveness.

Question 39Scrum Roles and Accountabilities

A Product Owner asks a senior Developer to keep the Product Backlog refined and well ordered. Who remains accountable for the Product Backlog?

  1. The Scrum Team collectively
  2. The Scrum Master
  3. The senior Developer
  4. The Product Owner Correct answer.

Explanation

The Product Owner may delegate work on the Product Backlog but never the accountability for it. Delegation changes who does the task, not who answers for the outcome. The Product Owner therefore remains accountable for ordering, clarity, and value.

Question 40Scrum Roles and Accountabilities

A department manager asks the Scrum Master to assign each Developer a daily task and to report individual productivity. What is the most appropriate response?

  1. Accept, because the Scrum Master leads the team
  2. Have the Developers vote on whether to accept the request
  3. Explain that the Developers self-manage their work and that the Scrum Master does not direct individuals Correct answer.
  4. Ask the Product Owner to assign the tasks instead

Explanation

The Scrum Master is a true leader who serves, but has no authority to direct people or assign their work. The Developers are self-managing and decide internally who does what, when, and how. The Scrum Master's response is to coach the surrounding organization toward that understanding.

Question 41Scrum Roles and Accountabilities

Halfway through a Sprint, the Developers realize their chosen technical approach will not deliver the Sprint Goal by the end of the Sprint. What should happen?

  1. The Product Owner reorders the Product Backlog to compensate
  2. The team waits for the next Sprint Planning to change the plan
  3. The Developers adjust their Sprint Backlog and continue toward the Sprint Goal Correct answer.
  4. The Scrum Master cancels the Sprint

Explanation

The Sprint Backlog is owned by the Developers, who adapt it as more is learned while keeping the Sprint Goal in view. Re-planning inside the Sprint is expected behaviour, not a failure. Only if the Sprint Goal itself becomes obsolete does cancellation become relevant, and only the Product Owner can cancel.

Question 42Scrum Roles and Accountabilities

The organization has no standard Definition of Done. Who creates one for the product?

  1. The Product Owner
  2. The Developers Correct answer.
  3. The quality assurance department
  4. The Scrum Master

Explanation

If the organization does not already define a Definition of Done, the Developers must create one for the product. It expresses the quality standard the Increment must meet and is used to judge completeness. The Developers own it because they own the creation of the Increment.

Question 43Scrum Roles and Accountabilities

A Developer reports that the shared build server has been offline for two days. What is the Scrum Master's most appropriate action?

  1. Add it to the Product Backlog so the Product Owner can order it
  2. Help remove the impediment and escalate it where the team cannot Correct answer.
  3. Tell the Developers to keep working around it without raising it
  4. Note it for discussion at the next Sprint Retrospective

Explanation

Causing the removal of impediments to the team's progress is a core Scrum Master accountability. Where the team cannot resolve a blocker itself, the Scrum Master works with the wider organization to remove it. Deferring a live blocker to a later event leaves the team stuck.

Question 44Scrum Roles and Accountabilities

How is the Sprint Goal produced?

  1. The Product Owner writes it before Sprint Planning and presents it
  2. The Scrum Master derives it from the Definition of Done
  3. It is crafted collaboratively by the Scrum Team during Sprint Planning Correct answer.
  4. Stakeholders agree it during the Sprint Review

Explanation

The Sprint Goal is a single objective for the Sprint and is crafted during Sprint Planning by the Scrum Team as a whole. The Product Owner brings the target and value perspective, while the Developers bring feasibility. It is a collaborative commitment, not a document handed down.

Question 45Scrum Roles and Accountabilities

Which activity belongs to the Product Owner's accountability?

  1. Removing impediments reported by the Developers
  2. Engaging stakeholders to understand their needs and to communicate progress Correct answer.
  3. Deciding the technical design of backlog items
  4. Ensuring Scrum events take place on time

Explanation

The Product Owner represents the interests of stakeholders and is accountable for effective communication with them about the product and its progress. This keeps the Product Backlog aligned with real needs. Technical design, impediment removal, and event facilitation sit with other accountabilities.

Question 46Scrum Roles and Accountabilities

Which of these is a legitimate way the Scrum Master serves the Product Owner?

  1. Writing the acceptance criteria for every Product Backlog item
  2. Helping the Product Owner find effective Product Backlog management techniques Correct answer.
  3. Approving the Sprint Goal on behalf of the Product Owner before Sprint Planning ends
  4. Deciding which backlog items will deliver the most revenue to the organization

Explanation

One way the Scrum Master serves the Product Owner is helping find techniques for effective Product Goal definition and Product Backlog management. The help is coaching and facilitation, not doing the Product Owner's decisions for them. Value judgements and backlog content remain the Product Owner's accountability.

Question 47Scrum Roles and Accountabilities

In Scrum, what does it mean that the Scrum Team is cross-functional?

  1. It contains at least one member from each business department
  2. It has all the competencies needed to create value each Sprint Correct answer.
  3. Every member is able to perform every role in the team
  4. It is organized around specialist functions rather than a product

Explanation

Cross-functional means the team collectively holds the skills required to deliver value without depending on people outside the team. It describes the mix of competencies in the team, not the range of any individual. Individuals may still be specialists.

Question 48Scrum Roles and Accountabilities

Mid-Sprint the Developers find a Product Backlog item ambiguous and cannot continue. What does Scrum expect?

  1. The Scrum Master decides the intended meaning of the item
  2. The Developers collaborate with the Product Owner, who is accountable for the backlog content Correct answer.
  3. The item is returned to the Product Backlog and dropped from the Sprint
  4. The Developers interpret the item as written and proceed

Explanation

The Product Owner is accountable for the Product Backlog being transparent and understood, so clarification and collaboration between the Product Owner and Developers is expected. Direct conversation is the fastest route to shared understanding. Neither the Scrum Master nor guesswork substitutes for that dialogue.

Question 49Scrum Roles and Accountabilities

Which statement best describes the Scrum Master's relationship to the Scrum events?

  1. The Scrum Master may skip events once the team is mature
  2. The Scrum Master facilitates the events as requested or needed Correct answer.
  3. The Scrum Master leads each event and presents the results
  4. The Scrum Master decides which events the team needs each Sprint

Explanation

The Scrum Master facilitates Scrum events as requested or needed, keeping them within their timeboxes and purpose. Facilitation is a service to the team, not ownership of the content or outcomes. The events themselves are required by Scrum and are not optional.

Question 50Scrum Roles and Accountabilities

A Scrum Team of nine people splits into a 'requirements group' and a 'coding group' with separate meetings. Why does this conflict with Scrum?

  1. It prevents the Definition of Done from being applied
  2. It makes the team too large to hold a Daily Scrum
  3. Scrum Teams have no sub-teams or hierarchies Correct answer.
  4. It stops the Product Owner from ordering the backlog properly

Explanation

A Scrum Team is one unit with shared accountability and contains no sub-teams or hierarchies. Splitting into separate groups with separate meetings fragments that accountability and reintroduces handoffs. The team is meant to be self-managing as a whole.