Scrum Scrum Certifications PSM-II Questions & Answers

• Question 111:

  Which approach would you recommend to ensure that the Product Backlog items discussed at Sprint Planning are well understood, actionable, and easier to forecast?

  A. Having a separate group of business analysts and functional testers analyzing high-ordered Product Backlog items before Sprint Planning.

  B. Having the Product Owner work with stakeholders between the end of the last Sprint and before beginning the next to prepare the Product Backlog items so not to interrupt the Development Team.

  C. Having the business analysts in the Development Team create the upcoming Product Backlog items during a Sprint and adding them to the next Sprint's forecast.

  D. Having the Development Team use some time during each Sprint to help the Product Owner analyze, estimate, and design items at the top of the Product Backlog that is projected to be worked on in the upcoming Sprint.

  Correct Answer: D

  Product Backlog refinement is the act of adding detail, estimates, and order to items in the Product Backlog. This is an ongoing process in which the Product Owner and the Development Team collaborate on the details of Product Backlog items. During Product Backlog refinement, items are reviewed and revised. The Scrum Team decides how and when refinement is done. Refinement usually consumes no more than 10% of the capacity of the Development Team. However, Product Backlog items can be updated at any time by the Product Owner or at the Product Owner's discretion.

• Question 112:

  Your company has notified the stakeholders that they will be delivering the first release of a new product within ten Sprints. On the seventh Sprint, the Scrum Team discovers that they will not be able to include all of the expected features within the first release. The Product Owner believes if they remove some items from the Definition of Done they will be able to accelerate the development process. The Development Team objects to this idea as it will lead to technical debt.

  As a Scrum Master, what would be the best two ways to explain to the Product Owner the impact of technical debt? (Choose two.)

  A. As long as there is still technical debt in the current release, feature development for the next release cannot be started. The Product Owner must first agree to this impact before allowing changes to the Definition of Done.

  B. Reducing the Definition of Done will introduce unknown errors as development progresses and functionality is added. The system can become more difficult to stabilize as work progresses. Development for the actual release as well as future releases will be slowed down in unpredictable ways.

  C. Releasing the version upon a reduced Definition of Done creates false assumptions about the actual state of the system. This will create many interruptions during the development of the next release as fixes will need to be done to the previous release caused from a reduction of quality.

  D. The amount of technical debt will need to be analyzed in order to understand the impact on subsequent releases in order to allocate additional Sprints at the end of the project.

  Correct Answer: BC

  The Definition of Done helps the Scrum Team have a shared understanding of what it means for work to be complete, to ensure transparency. The Definition of Done is used to assess when work is complete on the product Increment. It also ensures that the work that is done is in usable condition and meets the Development Teams quality standards for future sustainability.

• Question 113:

  Steven, who is a Scrum Master, on one of the Scrum Teams has approached you asking for advice. Their Daily Scrum requires more than 15 minutes and the team has suggested dividing themselves into two separate teams in order to stay within the time box.

  As another Scrum Master, what would be the best response?

  A. Agree

  Correct Answer: C

  The relationship between cause and effect can become more clear when more information emerges.

• Question 114:

  An organization is using Scrum to build five new products.

  What would be the best two options for the number of Product Owners the organization should have? (Choose two.)

  A. There is one Product Owner for each product (so five in total). Each Product Owner may delegate, share and align work within their individual Product Backlog.

  B. Enough Product Owners to delegate as much work needed to maximize utilization of all Development Team members.

  C. There is one Product Owner responsible for all five products. This person is not allowed to delegate any of the Product Owner responsibilities as he/she is accountable for the success of each product.

  D. There is one Product Owner responsible for all five products. In order to scale his/her role, he/she can delegate some of the individual Product Owner responsibilities to others within each product but would still remain accountable for the value of the work produced.

  Correct Answer: AD

  The Product Owner is the sole person responsible for maximizing the value of the product through the ordering and management of the Product Backlog. This reduces complexity in communication and understanding who to go to when there are questions about the product. The Product Owner may delegate his/her responsibilities but still remains accountable for the outcome of those responsibilities.

• Question 115:

  Adding more resources in Scrum will proportionally increase the value delivered.

  A. True

  B. False

  Correct Answer: B

  When working on complex problems in complex environments, adding more resources (people, money, tools, etc.) cannot guarantee increased value or success.

• Question 116:

  Steven, a Scrum Master, has been hired by an organization that is new to Scrum. He has been invited to meet the IT and product management team to kick-off the project. During the meeting the Product Owner asks how many Sprints will be needed to address the entire architecture and infrastructure before working on the features for the new product.

  What are the two best responses for Steven to explain how such work is handled in Scrum? (Choose two.)

  A. You explain that product management should not worry about technical solutions. You inform them that the developers will work with the IT department when needed and keep the Product Owner updated on additional time required for each Sprint. The additional effort will be added to the top of the Sprint Backlog before Sprint Planning.

  B. You explain that it is more effective when architecture and infrastructure emerge alongside the development of business functionality. The additional advantage is that business value is created more quickly and earlier.

  C. You confirm that architecture and infrastructure is needed before starting on business functionality but the estimated budget will be difficult to estimate. You suggest that the first Sprint will be dedicated towards building the technical foundation in order to get an accurate estimation for any additional budget and time required.

  D. You coach the Product Owner and Development Team to add this work to Product Backlog to ensure transparency, have the Development Team estimate the work and do this in early Sprints while also creating some business functionality in the early Sprints.

  Correct Answer: BD

  When working on complex problems in complex environments, it is difficult to fully predict all future needs and the best solutions will emerge as the work is being performed.

• Question 117:

  According to the Scrum Guide, where should the Daily Scrum be held?

  A. Wherever the Development Team decides is most suitable.

  B. In a room where management can attend.

  C. In the same location where the Development Team is seated.

  D. In front of the Scrum board.

  E. Wherever the Scrum Master decides is best.

  Correct Answer: A

  Because the Daily Scrum is owned and managed by the Development Team, it is up to them to decide on the most effective place and time to hold the Daily Scrum.

• Question 118:

  During the Sprint Retrospective, the team is discussing the quality issues that prevented the team from delivering a releasable Increment at the end of the Sprint. The Development Team does, however, mention that they were able to achieve a high velocity.

  What are the best two responses for Steven, their Scrum Master, to take? (Choose two.)

  A. Stress the value of working software over measured velocity.

  B. Agree and acknowledge the Development Team's hard work, so they will be motivated to do even more in the next Sprint.

  C. Acknowledge the hard work but remind the Development Team that they need to improve in order to do even more in the next Sprint.

  D. Facilitate a discussion on how to improve the quality to a level high enough for the Increment to be releasable, even if the measured velocity drops in the next Sprint.

  Correct Answer: AD

  Scrum employs an iterative, incremental approach to optimize predictability and control risk. The primary objective of a Sprint (iteration) is to produce a potentially shippable product Increment. Having an Increment will allow the Scrum Team to know the right thing to do in the upcoming Sprint. Having a velocity is important but working software is the primary measure of progress.

• Question 119:

  You have a Scrum Team that has been working together for over a year. The Development Team consists of eleven members who rarely collaborate and work within their functional boundaries. There are no Sprint Goals and most of the items in the Sprint Backlog are unrelated. The Scrum Team has concluded that it is not possible to create Sprint Goals based on the items in the Product Backlog.

  What might explain why the Scrum Team is finding it difficult to craft Sprint Goals? (Choose all that apply.)

  A. The Sprints are too long.

  B. The Product Owner is not empowered to make decisions about items in the Product Backlog nor how they are ordered.

  C. The Product Owner doesn't set objectives that he/she wants to achieve with upcoming Sprints.

  D. Scrum might not be the best framework for this team.

  E. The Development Team is too big.

  Correct Answer: BCD

  Many people misinterpret the Scrum Guide as stating the Development Team size is limited to 3-9 members. In reality, it only states that there is inherent risk attached to having less than 3 members and more than 9 members. As the number of members increases, the lines of communication also increase. This can be calculated using the Group intercommunication formula: n(n - 1) / 2 where n is the number of members. Some teams are able to handle the risk and "synergize" whereas others might struggle. Saying that, the relationship between defining a Sprint Goal and Development Team size is unclear.

  But the relationship between the ordering of the Product Backlog, the PO having clear objectives, and the Sprint Goal are direct. The Product Owner typically comes to the Sprint Planning with a business objective in mind and Product Backlog items related to the business objective. After deciding what can be done for the upcoming Sprint, the Scrum Team will craft a Sprint Goal that would be met through the implementation of the items. This is not dependent on the size of the team nor length of the Sprint.

  Scrum is also a framework that's fit for purpose. Some projects/products are not fit for Scrum... or, better stated, Scrum is not suitable for all projects/products.

• Question 120:

  Collaboration issues and technical dependencies between multiple Scrum Teams working on the same product can be fully resolved by using the correct version control tools.

  A. True

  B. False

  Correct Answer: B

  When working on complex problems in complex environments, it cannot be guaranteed that applying a specific process or tool will fix the problem. Although, process and tools are important it's more important that people collaborate and try to find different solutions together and not rely solely on a tool to fix the problem.