PSPO-I Practice Questions

According to the Scrum Guide, if a Product Backlog item does not meet the Definition of Done, it should not be included in the Increment for the Sprint1. The item is considered unfinished and therefore cannot be part of the Increment that may be released or presented as ‘Done’. The undone work should be re-estimated and put back on the Product Backlog for the Product Owner to prioritize for future Sprints2. This ensures transparency and maintains the integrity of the Increment’s quality.

References: The Scrum Guide provides clear guidance on handling undone work and emphasizes the importance of the Definition of Done as a quality standard for the Increment1. The Professional Scrum Product Owner™ (PSPO I) materials also align with this approach, underscoring the Product Owner’s role in managing the Product Backlog and ensuring that only ‘Done’ items are considered for release

• The Product Owner is accountable for maximizing the value of the product resulting from the work of the Scrum Team. The Product Owner is responsible for managing and refining the Product Backlog, collaborating with the stakeholders and the Developers, and ordering the items in a way that best achieves goals and missions. The Product Owner represents the interests of everyone with a stake in the product and ensures that the Scrum Team works on the right things at the right time.
• To ensure that the product delivers value, a Scrum Product Owner might focus on the following aspects:
• The other options are not valid or relevant aspects that a Scrum Product Owner might focus on to ensure that the product delivers value. They are either too narrow, unrealistic, or unrelated to the product value delivery. They are:

References:

• Scrum Guide: https://www.scrumguides.org/scrum-guide.html
• Product Owner: https://www.scrum.org/resources/what-is-a-product-owner
• Value: https://www.scrum.org/resources/blog/value-scrum-value
• Velocity: https://www.agilealliance.org/glossary/velocity

 A Scrum Team is required to deliver a done Increment by the end of a Sprint. Done means:

• No work is left to meet the Definition of Done. The Definition of Done is a formal description of the state of the Increment when it meets the quality measures required for the product. It is a shared understanding among the Scrum Team and the stakeholders of what it means for work to be complete. It may include criteria such as coding standards, testing, documentation, security, performance, etc. If a Product Backlog item or an Increment does not meet the Definition of Done, it cannot be released or presented at the Sprint Review.
• Ready to be released to end users. The Increment is a concrete output of the Sprint that adds value to the product. It is a potentially releasable functionality that adheres to the Scrum Team’s current Definition of Done. It is not necessarily released at the end of each Sprint, but it must be in a state that allows for immediate release if the Product Owner decides so. The Increment should also align with the Sprint Goal and the Product Goal, and satisfy the needs and expectations of the customers and stakeholders.

References:

• Scrum Guide 2020, page 10: “The Definition of Done is a formal description of the state of the Increment when it meets the quality measures required for the product.”
• Scrum Guide 2020, page 10: “The moment a Product Backlog item meets the Definition of Done, an Increment is born.”
• Scrum Guide 2020, page 14: “The purpose of each Sprint is to deliver Increments of potentially releasable functionality that adhere to the Scrum Team’s current Definition of Done.”

 The Product Owner orders the Product Backlog items according to various criteria, such as:

• The value of Product Backlog items. The Product Owner aims to maximize the value of the product and the work of the Scrum Team. Therefore, they prioritize the items that deliver the most value to the stakeholders and the users, considering factors such as customer satisfaction, market share, revenue, social impact, etc.
• The dependencies between Product Backlog items. The Product Owner tries to minimize the dependencies between items, as they may create complexity, uncertainty, and risk. Therefore, they order the items in a way that reduces or eliminates the dependencies, or resolves them as early as possible.
• The dependencies to other products. The Product Owner also considers the dependencies that the product has to other products, such as platforms, frameworks, libraries, services, etc. Therefore, they order the items in a way that aligns with the availability and compatibility of those products.

References:

• Scrum Guide 2020, page 11: “The Product Owner is accountable for effective Product Backlog management, which includes … ordering Product Backlog items; and, ensuring that the Product Backlog is transparent, visible and understood.”
• Scrum Guide 2020, page 11: “The ordering of the items in the Product Backlog is the sole responsibility of the Product Owner. They order Product Backlog items to best achieve goals and missions.”
• Scrum Guide 2020, page 11: “Higher ordered Product Backlog items are clearer and more refined than lower ordered ones.”