The Professional Scrum Master I (PSM-I)

According to the Scrum Guide, the purpose of a Sprint is to produce a valuable useful Increment that meets the Definition of Done and the Sprint Goal. This means that the Developers work on items from the Product Backlog that deliver value to the stakeholders and align with the product vision. The other option is not valid, as it implies that producing an Increment is not the purpose of a Sprint.

According to the Scrum Guide, a high-performance Scrum Team does not run a Release Sprint, as this is not a Scrum event. A Release Sprint is a term used to describe a Sprint that is dedicated to finalizing the product for release, such as fixing bugs, polishing features, or integrating components. This is contrary to the Scrum principle of delivering a potentially releasable Increment at the end of each Sprint, regardless of whether it is actually released or not. Therefore, the answer is false.

 According to the Scrum Guide 1 , ordering Product Backlog items is solely up to the Product Owner’s discretion. The Product Owner orders items in the Product Backlog to best achieve goals and missions. To do this, they optimize value by considering various factors such as cost and benefit, risk, dependencies, date needed, etc. The Product Owner is responsible for maximizing the value of the work the Development Team does. The Scrum Master is accountable for establishing Scrum as defined in the Scrum Guide. They do this by helping everyone understand Scrum theory and practice, both within the Scrum Team and the organization. Therefore, an appropriate action for the Scrum Master to take if the Product Owner is struggling with ordering the Product Backlog is to offer the Product Owner help in understanding that the goal of ordering the Product Backlog is to maximize value.

The correct answer is B, because the Scrum Guide states that “the Sprint Goal is an objective set for the Sprint that can be met through the implementation of Product Backlog. It provides guidance to the Development Team on why it is building the Increment.” Therefore, the Sprint Goal provides the Development Team with a target and overarching direction for the Sprint.

According to the Scrum Guide, the Developers are accountable for tracking the remaining work toward the Sprint Goal, as they are responsible for creating a valuable Increment that meets the Definition of Done and the Sprint Goal. The other options are not valid, as they imply that someone else outside the Development Team (such as the Scrum Master, the Product Owner, or the Project Manager) is accountable for tracking the remaining work, which is not consistent with Scrum values and principles.

According to the Scrum Guide 1 , Scrum does not require or provide any specific techniques or methods for product definition. Rather, Scrum provides a framework with roles, rules, and events within which complex products can be developed. To get started in terms of what to build, Scrum requires no more than a Product Owner with enough ideas for a first Sprint, a Development Team to implement those ideas and a Scrum Master to help guide the process.

According to the Scrum Guide 1 , the Sprint Backlog is the property of the Developers and no one else can tell them which items they should work on. The Developers can select any item from the Product Backlog that they forecast they can complete within a Sprint. The Developers are self-organizing and decide how to turn Product Backlog items into an Increment of value. Therefore, no one owns a Sprint Backlog item, but the entire Development Team is accountable for it.

The Development Team must do as much work as it has told the Product Owner will be done for every Product Backlog item it selects in conformance with the definition of “Done”, as stated in the Scrum Guide 1 : “The Development Team works to forecast the functionality that will be developed during the Sprint. The Product Owner discusses the objective that the Sprint should achieve and the Product Backlog items that, if completed in the Sprint, would achieve the Sprint Goal. The entire Scrum Team collaborates on understanding the work of the Sprint.”

The correct answer is A, because the Product Owner does not need to be present at the Daily Scrum. The Scrum Guide states that “the Daily Scrum is a 15-minute time-boxed event for the Development Team to synchronize activities and create a plan for the next 24 hours. … The structure of the meeting is set by the Development Team and can be conducted in different ways if it focuses on progress toward the Sprint Goal.” Therefore, the Daily Scrum is an internal event for the Development Team, and the Product Owner can attend only if invited by the Development Team.