Mock 2

107. After a few weeks of observation, an agile coach that was hired to guide a company through their transition from a waterfall to an agile project management approach told the company's management that the company was still trapped in between waterfall and agile methods. Which of the following might be a reason to support the agile coach's claim? A. Using a predictive life cycle B. Advocating small batch hand-offs C. Decentralized control D. Mandatory product vision statement

A. Correct. A predictive life cycle is associated with traditional or waterfall project management. Whereas, agile life cycles are iterative and incremental in nature.

96. In order to remove a roadblock a developer has encountered, a scrum master is trying to clarify the issue as much as possible. During the conversation the scrum master repeats back what the developer has said by paraphrasing it and asks the developer to confirm that what the scrum master heard is an accurate description of the roadblock.What technique is the scrum master using? A. Active listening B. Servant leadership C. Emotional intelligence D. Participatory decision making

A. Correct. Active listening

79. An agile team is geographically distributed. To manage their workflow, the team members use a physical task board. To share the progress, the team members send each other photos of the board once a day. What should the project manager do about such a practice? A. Do nothing, as it is up to the team to decide which method or tool to use B. Direct the team to use an electronic communication tool since the team is distributed C. Meet with the product owner and decide on the best course of action D. Call for a meeting with external and internal stakeholders to resolve this issue

A. Correct. Agile teams are self-organizing, self-directing, and are empowered to make decisions about their own work, including the tools of their preference.

22. An information radiator for a colocated team is most effective when it is: A. Dynamic and low-tech B. Static and high-tech C. Dynamic and high-tech D. Static and low-tech

A. Correct. An effective information radiator is one that allows the team to make updates easily and quickly to keep the information dynamic and changed over time. Additionally, a low-tech and high-touch information radiator is preferred because it is quicker and easier to update and is likely to be a less costly solution.

8. A team lead is working on an agile project with an overly aggressive delivery schedule that will replace an existing system. Which of the following should the team lead advocate for given the fact that the schedule is overly aggressive? A. Focusing on delivering the highest-value features first B. Compensating the team generously for overtime C. Adding more agile practitioner to the team D. Delivering all features available in the existing system

A. Correct. By focusing on high-value features and prioritizing accordingly, the team will deliver the most valuable features sooner within the schedule constraints.

21. During a meeting, the agile coach proposed that the team implement a defined process for reporting defects on their online tracking tool. Since the team members were well familiar with the tool, they by consensus agreed that they did not need to waste their time discussing this matter. The agile coach opposed, arguing that it was a major risk not to have a defined process.What is the best course of action for the agile coach? A. Wait and see if the team experiences fast failure B. Document defects tracking standards C. Praise the team for their choice D. Force the team to use the tool

A. Correct. Fast failure is one of the concepts used in agile projects. The idea behind this concept is that if a project/initiative is doomed to fall, it's better to let it fail fast so that organizational resources are not wasted. Therefore, instead of arguing with the team, it's better for the agile coach to let the team fail (assuming this failure does not jeopardize the entire project, which is not the case according to the scenario described).

52. The defect rate for code produced by an agile team has been increasing for the last two iterations. Which of the following would be the most effective action to help lower the defect rate? A. Implement pair programming B. Create defect repair user stories C. Replace automated testing with manual testing tools D. Capture the number of escaped defects on a control chart

A. Correct. In XP, production code is written by two developers working as a pair. While one person writes the code, the other developer reviews the code as it is being written. This practice helps reduce defect rates as issues can be caught and corrected as the code is written.

108. Agile leaders differ from traditional managers in that agile leaders: A. Enable team members to act B. Solve problems for the team C. Create working agreements D. Handles uncertainties, risks, and changes

A. Correct. In order to empower teams, agile leaders enable team members to act and make their own decisions.

20. A newly hired scrum master is working on an agile project in a highly regulated industry. An experienced agile practitioner is mentoring the scrum master to review processes and ensure agile best practices are being implemented. After shadowing the scrum master, the agile practitioner identifies one significant issue with the scrum master's implementation of agile best practices. A. Directing the team on how to implement the work related to the regulatory compliance requirements on the project B. Ensuring that agile best practices are being implemented by the project team to comply with regulatory requirements C. Collecting the supporting regulatory information as the team does the project work without interrupting the flow of work D. Ensuring the amount of additional work required to fulfill the regulatory obligations is limited to the necessary minimum

A. Correct. It would be best for the scrum master to describe the regulations to the team and solicit input from them on how to manage and control the project rather than direct them on how to implement the requirements. It is up to the team to determine how best to handle regulatory compliance on the project.

32. During a software development project, developers spent two days to repair a defect that was found a day earlier. The deployment team then spent another day to deploy the fix at the customer premises. Which of the following does this four-day period represent? A. Lead time B. Actual time C. Cycle time D. Response time

A. Correct. Lead time refers to the time required for the work item to go through the entire process. So, from the time the defect was identified, it took four days for the fix to be deployed to users.

105. During a meeting, the product owner restated the product vision, described the target user groups, the business goals, and main features to be delivered in the upcoming releases. The team then created a product roadmap, which is a visual depiction of the features to be delivered in each product release. Which of the following best describes the purpose of the meeting? A. Establish a shared project vision among the stakeholders B. Establish a shared product vision among the stakeholders C. Establish a shared release vision among the stakeholders D. Determine an initial estimate of scope, schedule, and cost

A. Correct. Main features to be delivered in the upcoming releases, the target user groups, business goals, product roadmap, high-level features for each product release, are all part of the project vision.

99. Which of the following would be the most helpful in creating a collaborative work environment? A. Physical colocation B. Caves and common C. Tacit knowledge D. Cultural diversity

A. Correct. Physical colocation, when possible, is one of the most effective ways to create a collaborative work environment. Physical colocation enables the face-to-face interaction among the team members, which contributes to a collaborative work environment.

55. Which factors should be considered while prioritizing items in the product backlog? A. Risk, cost, value B. Risk, cost, priority C. NPV, ROI, IRR D. Mad, sad, glad

A. Correct. Risk, cost, value are all factors contributing to the decision of how items in the product backlog should be prioritized.

57. An agile team lead wants to ensure that the team receives timely feedback so they can respond to changes and adapt the product they are developing. Which of the following should the team use to obtain customer feedback in order to validate that the product works as expected? A. Product simulations B. Design review meeting C. Value stream analysis D. Business case

A. Correct. Simulation is a product demonstration method that is used to show the functionality of the product and gain feedback.

87. A junior software developed will be paired with a senior developer in an eXtreme Programming (XP) project. What can the senior developer teach the junior developer about the XP pair programming practices? A. The product quality is higher because defects are caught early in development. B. Refactoring is done more frequently as both developers code at the same time. C. The defect rate is doubled because the code is produced by two developers. D. The learning curve is halved because each developer has only half the time to learn.

A. Correct. The earliest time the defect can be caught is when it is first coded. Pair programming allows one developed to watch another developed code and catch any issues as soon as possible. Therefore, in this way, the code quality is higher.

49. The team is working on an application for gathering customer feedback on the company's top-selling products. The project is half way done when the CEO announced that a new VP of Product Development and Marketing has been hired. As far as the scrum master is aware, the executive sponsor who also acts as the product owner for the project remains unchanged.What should the scrum master do next? A. Engage the executive sponsor in conversation to understand the impact of this organizational change on the project B. Engage the VP of Product Development and Marketing by inviting them to the sprint retrospective C. Do nothing. The executive sponsor for the project remains unchanged. D. Do nothing. The project stakeholders have already been identified and the project is half way done.

A. Correct. The executive sponsor is the product owner of this project and would be pivotal in ensuring that the new VP of Product and Marketing is appropriately engaged and aware of this project.

36. Two days before the end of the sprint, the customer tells the product owner that they forgot to include an important feature in this sprint. One of the senior managers overheard this conversation and stated that including this feature represents scope creep and that it should not be included in the product.What is the product owner's best course of action in this situation? A. Work with the customer to prioritize the feature in the product backlog. B. Have the customer submit a change request form. C. Enforce the rule that scope creep is not allowed in Agile. D. Work with the customer to prioritize the feature in the current sprint backlog.

A. Correct. The product owner should let the team finish their assigned work for the current sprint and then, with the customer, to prioritize this feature in the product backlog.

25. During project execution, the agile team realizes that to develop some of the product increments, a very expensive software development tool is required. The project manager cannot purchase the tool right away as the budget allocated for the project does not cover this unexpected expense. One of the developers bypassed the software security, obtained the required copies and offered them to the project manager.What should the project manager do? A. Decline the offer and approach the sponsor to determine how to obtain additional funding for the required software B. Take as many copies from the developer as needed and thank them for helping resolve the issue C. Decline the offer from the developer and find creative ways to perform the project work without the use of the necessary software D. Accept the copies and use them on the project because it will provide what is needed and save the company's money at the same time

A. Correct. This is the only option in compliance with the PMI Code of Ethics and Professional Conduct.

97. An agile team and stakeholders are discussing the product to be developed in their upcoming project. They arranged user stories on a whiteboard using sticky notes by placing the essential functions from left to right across the top of the matrix, and by descending order of priority from top to bottom. Which of the following visual tool did the project stakeholders use? A. Story map B. Prioritized product backlog C. Product roadmap D. Regression backlog plan

A. Correct. User story mapping is a visual practice for organizing work into a useful model to help understand the sets of high-value features to be created over time, identify omissions in the backlog, and effectively plan releases that deliver value to users.

91. An agile coach suggests using a wideband Delphi technique to gather estimates from the team members. How would the team use such an approach? A. The team repeats the estimation process several times and provide reasoning for their estimates between each round to reach consensus B. The team maximizes the halo effect by giving extra weight to the opinion of the senior team members. C. The team improves buy-in through collaboration after openly voting on the best estimate. D. The team must estimate the entire project without breaking it into smaller chunks.

A. Correct. Wideband Delphi technique uses anonymous estimating where the team achieves buy-in and consensus through discussion and collaboration.

116. An organization has seven different XP teams working together to develop, test, and implement a large complex system. With a larger and more complex project, which of the following is the most likely challenge the teams will encountered? A. Slower feedback loops B. Use of continuous integration C. Use of pair programming D. Maintaining a sustainable pace

A. Correct. With larger, more complex systems, more people are involved in testing in different levels, which needs to be coordinated more closely. Therefore, longer slower feedback loops are expected, and this is the most likely challenge the team will encounter.

112. An agile team wants to take sure they can properly manage issues and risks on other agile project. Which of the following practices of managing issues and risks on agile projects should be avoided? A. Maintaining an issues management log B. Refraining from additional artifacts and documents as risk management is built into the agile process C. Conducting a risk review meeting D. Creating a risk-adjusted backlog

B. Correct since this is false. Although you should try to limit overly cumbersome artifacts and documents, some documents and artifacts may be useful in managing issues.

117. The acronym INVEST is used as a checklist to evaluate user stories for quality. An agile coach is explaining INVEST to their team. What is a characteristic of a good user story for the team to aim for using the INVEST model? A. "I" for iterative (developed over time) B. "I" for independent (of all other user stories) C. "I" for incremental (occurring over a series of gradual increments) D. "I" for interdependent (associated with related user stories in the iteration)

B. Correct. "I" for independent (of all other user stories)

86. A junior agile practitioner is learning that Agile utilizes burnup charts to demonstrate the delivery of value. What is a burnup chart and what does it show? A. A list of features and tasks against the remaining story points in a product backlog B. A graph that shows the accumulation of tested and working features over time C. A chart that gives full credit to completed requirements, design, and coding D. A diagram of integrated user stories prioritized by the cost, scope, and time

B. Correct. A burnup chart shows the accumulation of tested and working features over time.

66. A new team member has recently joined an experienced high performing team. The new team member approaches the agile coach and recommends using a new testing methodology that if successful would save the team time in each iteration. If the new testing methods is unsuccessful, it could threaten the iteration goals. What should the agile coach do? A. Allow the new testing approach for next iteration B. Let the team decide whether to use the new testing methodology in the next iteration C. Don't do anything that would jeopardize the iteration goals D. Check with the product owner

B. Correct. A team should not play it too safe. They should be open to discussing new approaches and experiment, since these innovations and changes may improve their performance. The team should not just blindly introduce new process or change their existing one. The team has to decide if and how the new testing methodology should be introduced in the next iteration.

33. Two agile practitioners are discussing whether to implement Kanban's pull system with their respective agile teams. One of them believes that Kanban is not a true agile method and cites several reasons why Kanban may be considered controversial in some organizations. Which of the following is a reason why Kanban may be considered controversial? A. Kanban is demand driven using a push system. B. Kanban requires little planning and may eliminate estimation. C. User stories remain in the process only for a prescribed length of time. D. User stories are completed in strict iteration lengths.

B. Correct. Although there may be some planning involved in Kanban, there is no need to plan for when or what to push or estimate when or how much demand there will be for work by the teams. Kanban does reduce planning and may eliminate estimation. This is partially why Kanban is controversial.

45. A product owner on a scrum team represents the interests of an external customer. After the sprint review meeting, a key stakeholder takes the product owner aside and suggests an improvement to one of the report screens that the stakeholder insists will make it easier for the user to navigate the application. What is the product owner's next logical step? A. Implement the stakeholder's request in the next sprint because it will enhance the customer experience and provide customer value B. Meet with the customer as soon as possible to decide if and when the stakeholder's request will be implemented C. Create a user story for the stakeholder's request and place it at the very bottom of the product backlog D. Discuss the stakeholder's request in the daily scrum meeting and let the team decide if and when the request will be implemented

B. Correct. As the product owner working on a project for an external customer, they must meet with the customer to determine first 'if' the customer wants to implement this new requirement.

56. An agile practitioner is working on code for a prototype with a very aggressive deadline. Which of the following would be the best practice for the agile practitioner to follow? A. Increase velocity at the sacrifice of code quality B. Establish minimum compliance required on the work products and practices C. Create an excellent user guide D. Strictly follow very high levels of coding standards

B. Correct. By establishing minimum compliance required on the work products and practices, the team is balancing the need for velocity and maintaining quality.

27. While building a working area for an agile team, which of the following approaches will ensure that the team space will be conducive to effective team collaboration and communication, there team members can work in a quiet environment for a short period of times, and allow project stakeholders who are not members of the team to check project performance status on a regular basis? A. Agile modeling B. Caves and common C. Colocation D. War room

B. Correct. Caves and common is an agile concept referring to the team's workspace design approach that creates a common area that fosters colocation, face-to-face and osmotic communication, as well as 'caves' where the team members can work in a quiet environment for short periods of time, or where one-on-one meetings or confidential project issues can be discussed in private.

7. The customer was not happy with the product increment that was delivered to them in the last sprint. At the sprint retrospective meeting, the team discussed some communication issues with the remote team members who were primarily using email. What was the most likely cause the product increment did not meet customer expectations? A. Demotivated team members B. Non colocated team members C. Delivering working software in each sprint D. Failure to respond to changes in scope

B. Correct. Colocating team members would likely remove communication issues and improve communication. Colocation typically leads to greater productivity and the team being on the same page.

92. A newly formed agile team is creating the working agreements for their current project. Which of the following might an agile practitioner recommend as a best practice? A. Having every team member contribute as many agreements as they want to incorporate into the working agreements document B. Conducting a workshop where all team members collaborate on drafting and approving working agreements C. Once completed, the working agreements should be kept private to maintain confidentiality D. Empowering a facilitator to create the working agreements and then sharing with the team.

B. Correct. Conducting a workshop is an excellent method for creating effective working agreements. This method encourages team participation and collaboration so the team can gain consensus on the content of the working agreements.

23. Due to new cost reduction efforts undertaken by the company, a scrum team who used to be co-located in the same office will now work from home. Which would most likely be retained when the team members switch from physical to virtual co-location? A. Osmotic communication B. Daily scrum C. Caves and common D. Tacit knowledge

B. Correct. Daily scrum

70. During a meeting, five agile teams are supposed to choose a shared development infrastructure to be used by all the teams on their upcoming project. Despite intense debate and voting, the teams cannot come to an agreement on what infrastructure to select. In this situation, how should the decision about the development infrastructure be made? A. Each team should choose a development infrastructure that works for them. B. The teams should accept the decision of the appropriate decision-making authority. C. The teams should use agile voting techniques and accept the majority decision. D. The project management office should make decisions for multiple team projects.

B. Correct. Even through the teams on agile projects are self-organizing, self-directing, and empowered to make decisions about their own work, when a disagreement happens on issues affecting all teams, a decision-making authority, for example the development team lead with the appropriate subject matter expertise, should be called on to make the decision. In this case, the team lead should make a decision with input from all teams as she is still action as a servant leader and not a dictator.

85. An experienced software tested has joined an agile team to perform exploratory testing. Which of the following would the tester use or have as part of their exploratory tests? A. Formal test plan B. Checklists C. Developer's point of view D. Sequential test phases

B. Correct. Exploratory testers often find it helpful to have checklists to capture relevant information and use as an aid while executing tests.

78. A product owner is prioritizing features in the product backlog based on the risk associated with their development and the value they provide to the customer. Which features should be developed first in order to maximize the probability of project success? A. Low-risk / high-value B. High-risk / high-value C. Low-risk / low-value D. High-risk / low-value

B. Correct. High-risk / high-value features should be developed first. These features deliver the most value, and working on them eliminates significant risk.

74. An agile project to develop a new application has just finished its first iteration. To better assess marketing and support needs, the company's management has requested that the team provide a date for when the application can be launched. What is the best course of action for the team? A. Carry out an agile estimation-based spike B. If possible, defer estimating until after a few iterations C. Estimate based on the actual performance from a non-agile project D. Provide a precise estimate in story points per iteration

B. Correct. If and when possible, the team should defer estimating until after a few iterations as this should provide a more accurate forecast.

37. Customer requirements for the new application to be developed by the agile team, limit the technology choices to two approaches with which the team is not familiar. What would help the team determine the best choice to make? A. A risk-based spike B. An architectural spike C. Exploratory testing D. Prototyping

B. Correct. In order to determine the best development approach, the team should conduct an architectural spike to determine which technology should be selected.

18. The members of an agile team have been very productive for the last four sprints. However, the current sprint is much more complex. Two team members have spent days arguing over the best technical approach to develop the product increment, while the rest of the team were quiet and disinterested. Where is the team on Tuckman's ladder? A. Swarming B. Storming C. Performing D. Conflicting

B. Correct. In storming stage, the team begins to address the project work, technical decisions, and project management approach. The environment can be counterproductive if the team is not collaborating with each other.

3. Agile team members are concerned that the Kanban method suggested by the scrum master for their upcoming project is not agile 'enough' for the project's needs. Which of the following would support the team members' concern? A. Kanban focuses on delivering value. B. Kanban relies on staff specialization in each phase. C. Kanban includes reflection as part of its process. D. Kanban is as adaptable as other agile methods.

B. Correct. Kanban relies on staff specialization in each phase.

90. A manufacturer wants to use lean practices to reduce waste and improve its processes. Which of the following strategies should the company focus on to reach these objectives? A. Train employees to get their work done as early as possible B. Encourage employees to review their processes for possible optimization C. Organize lean manufacturing workshops for the employees D. Coach different departments to resolve their own issues

B. Correct. One aspect of lean is respecting people. In this case, respect means empowering employees to be involved in improving their own processes and being responsible and accountable for the results of their work.

9. During a release planning session, the user stories were selected, a determination was made on how much the team could get done, and an estimate was created for the team's initial velocity. What else may occur during the release planning session? A. Creating the product vision B. Slicing the stories C. Demonstrating the evolving product to the product owner D. Gathering lessons learned and opportunities for improvement

B. Correct. One of the key activities done in the release planning meeting is slicing stories. This action involves breaking down any stories that are too large to be completed within one iteration.

106. A stakeholder frequently calls and emails the development team to get status on the project. How should an agile coach handle this situation? A. Escalate to the project manager B. Contact and guide the stakeholder C. Ask the product owner how to handle the stakeholder D. Let the team continue to answer emails and phone calls

B. Correct. The agile coach should contact the project stakeholder and guide, coach, and educate them about the proper channels to use to address their need for project status.

62. A scrum team has just completed their fourth sprint with the average velocity of 25 points per sprint. Given the fact that the team has earned 1/3 of the story points required to complete the entire project and they estimate the average cost per story point at $575, what is the expected cost for completing the remainder of the project? A. $57,500 B. $115,000 C. $14,375 D. $172,500

B. Correct. The expected cost remaining for the project is $115,000 which is the product of the story points remaining (200) and the cost per story point ($575).

51. New complex technology is being used on an agile project. The constantly changing priorities, strict deadlines, and the customer's lack of familiarity with agile delivery methods have left the team members stressed, exhausted, and frustrated. Many of them started to come to see the project team leader complaining about issues. What should the team leader do first? A. Resign from their position B. Absorb the frustration of the team C. Escalate the issue to management D. Replace the team members with experienced practitioners who are familiar with the new technology

B. Correct. The project team leader should use their emotional intelligence and absorb the frustration of the team members.

41. The Chief Technology Officer for a large enterprise is working hard to create a learning organization. The CTO knows that Scrum helps an organization with continuous process improvement with its defined roles, artifacts, and ceremonies. Which scrum ceremony is dedicated to continuous process improvement? A. Sprint planning meeting B. Sprint retrospective meeting C. Sprint review meeting D. Daily scrum meeting

B. Correct. The sprint retrospective meeting is held by the scrum team at the end of each sprint to discuss and agree upon ways they could improve their processes, practices, teamwork, environment, or organization for the next sprint.

81. A virtual agile team has recently received additional funds to help improve the team's performance. Given the following four possibilities for how to use these funds, which of these would best reflect the values of an agile team? A. Upgrade the team's computers with the latest technology to increase work productivity B. Colocate the team members to improve team collaboration and communication C. Purchase additional software tools to improve the team's remote communication D. Assign a cubicle to each team member to help them better maintain their focus

B. Correct. This answer choice best represents the Agile Manifesto values, one of which states, "Individuals and interactions over processes and tools."

5. Agile projects stakeholders were asked what project goal was the most important one. One stakeholder stresses the importance of the project deadline, another mentioned the project performance, and others were not sure about the goals. What could be the reason for such a difference in the opinions about the project goals among the stakeholders? A. The project charter was two pages long. B. The product vision and project objectives were not initially discussed and agreed upon by the project stakeholders. C. The project charter signatory had limited authority over resources. D. The objectives in the project charter did not include details on how to assess them.

B. Correct. This answer choice represents the most likely reason for the different perceptions of the product vision and project objectives among the project stakeholders.

53. An agile project leader is helping the team prioritize requirements for a software product by utilizing dot voting. What is the most appropriate description of dot voting? A. Dot voting, also called the 100-Point Method, allows customers to allocate dots to various features. B. Dot voting, also called multi-voting, provides everyone a limited number of dots for voting purposes. C. Dot voting plots the features on a graph with axes with dots, classifying each feature by how customers will respond. D. Dot voting uses a limited number of dots to rank priorities in a simple scheme from high to low.

B. Correct. This choice best describes dot voting.

24. It is Which of the following is a value stated in the Agile Manifesto? A. Customer collaboration over comprehensive documentation B. Responding to change over following a plan C. Individuals and interactions over processes and techniques D. Working software over contract negotiation

B. Correct. Value #4 from the Agile Manifesto states, "Responding to change over following a plan."

43. After analyzing the flow of materials and information in their product development process, the team has discovered and subsequently removed several wasteful steps, making the process more efficient. What tool did the team use? A. Value stream analysis B. Value stream mapping C. Value driven delivery D. Value based prioritization

B. Correct. Value stream mapping is a lean manufacturing technique used to analyze and improve the flow of materials and/or information during the development of a product, and make changes as necessary to increase the 'value' of the product delivered to the customer.

59. A scrum master is conducting a sprint retrospective meeting which is becoming contentious. Which of the following actions might the scrum master take to address team conflict? A. Intervening at the first sign of conflict to avoid escalation and potentially damaged relationships B. Intervening when heated discussions occur, and taking a break if needed to address individuals privately C. Addressing inappropriate behavior during the meeting to hold individuals accountable to the team D. Using authority as a scrum master to decide for the team when the discussion reaches an impasse

B. Correct. When conflict becomes destructive, it may be appropriate and necessary for the scrum master to intervene. The appropriate action for the scrum master to take in this circumstance is to take a break and address individuals in private.

39. A new manager insists that the team has to extensively document the code in a formal document. The product owner explains that while a certain amount of documentation is necessary, the team's time is better spent writing code because the code is what represents the most value to the customer. Which of the following agile concepts does the product owner explain to the new manager? A. Fractionally assigned B. Servant leadership C. Barely sufficient D. Pair programming

C. Correct. 'Barely sufficient' is the agile term used to describe the approach of doing only as much as is necessary to accomplish the work without including non-value added activities.

67. Crystal family of methods has been chosen for the upcoming very complex project involving multiple teams to developed a critical medical application. What methodology using the Crystal grid would an agile practitioner recommend for this project? A. A clearer color and a softer crystal methodology from the lower left corner B. A clearer color and a harder crystal methodology from the upper left corner C. A darker color and a harder crystal methodology from the upper right corner D. A darker color and a softer crystal methodology from the lower right corner

C. Correct. A darker color and a harder crystal methodology from the upper right corner

114. Agile team members wish to review the product they are building. Which of the following would an agile practitioner recommend to the team members to address their request? A. Project premortem B. Refactoring C. Release demonstration D. Iteration retrospective

C. Correct. A demonstration of a product release allows teams to show the product in order to get feedback from customers and other stakeholders. While 'release demonstration' is not a frequently used term, of the choices provided, this option is the best answer to the question asked.

75. An agile team is working on a new software application for an online purchasing system. The product owner has instructed the team to prioritize the development of the features based on their net present value (NPV). Which of the following features should the team develop first? A. A customer relationship management feature that has an investment of $900,000 and NPV of $87, 500 B. A website interface feature that has an investment of $500,000 and NPV of $100,000 C. A network upgrade feature that has an investment of $750,000 and NPV of $175,000 D. A date warehouse feature that has an investment of $1,000,000 and NPV of $50,000

C. Correct. A network upgrade feature that has an investment of $750,000 and NPV of $175,000

16. How should a product owner use Kano analysis to ensure the product meets customer expectations? A. Remove exciters to focus instead on dissatisfiers and indifferent features B. Market the indifferent features as exciters, and deliver dissatisfiers in the next release C. Eliminate indifferent features, and focus working on dissatisfiers D. Prioritize the features in the following order: exciters, satisfiers, dissatisfiers, indifferent

C. Correct. A product owner should eliminate the indifferent features because they bring no value and address dissatisfiers as soon as possible as dissatisfiers are 'must have' features.

100. A product owner is currently attending a meeting before the first iteration has started. The facilitator of the meeting conducts a brainstorming session to determine how the project can be improved by assuming that it has already failed. What meeting is the product owner currently attending? A. Iteration retrospective B. Sprint retrospective C. Project pre-mortem D. Project kick-off meeting

C. Correct. A project 'pre-mortem retrospective' in an agile setting comes at the beginning of a project and is conducted so that the project can be improved rather than autopsied. Of the choices provided, project pre-mortem best addresses the question asked.

113. An agile team is conducting an iteration review after missing their iteration goal. One team member indicates that tactics that may have worked well for other types of projects were not effective for the current project. Of the following options, what most likely caused the team to miss their iteration gola? A. Created their team norms and working agreements B. Made local decisions regarding their work C. Executed work as directed by the scrum master D. Created emergent leaders to lead different initiatives

C. Correct. A scrum master's role is to facilitate the team's work and act as a servant leader, rather than to manage the team in a command-and-control fashion by directing the work of the team members.

111. Early in the design process of a new web site development project, an agile practitioner uses simple prototypes that demonstrate to the client how the webpages flow together. Which of the following tools can the agile practitioner utilize to help clients visualize what the website will look like when their end users navigate through the web pages? A. Product roadmaps B. Personas C. Wireframes D. Fishbone diagrams

C. Correct. A wireframe is a skeletal framework of a website that serves as a visual guide.

102. Which of the following best describes cycle time in a software development environment? A. Cycle time is how long it will take to complete all tasks defined in the work breakdown structure. B. Cycle time maximizes the order of magnitude to increase variability with the size of work. C. Cycle time is the time from when the team begins work on a feature until the feature is ready to be delivered. D. Cycle time maximizes the amount of work in progress (WIP) with every iteration.

C. Correct. According to the Agile Practices Guide, the cycle time is the time that passes from the moment one starts working on a task until she completes it.

115. A product manager is talking to the human resources department staff about obtaining resources to create an agile team to build what the organization aspires to be its new bestselling product. What is the best approach to take when creating this new agile team? A. Hire 20 new members for the team B. Hire a virtual team to save money C. Hire team members who can work on tasks outside their formal job titles D. Hire the best talent even if they will work on the project tasks only part time

C. Correct. Agile teams aim to have generalized specialists so that any team member can perform tasks outside of their traditional role.

77. The sponsor of an agile project is going on a two-month business trip and has requested a weekly project status report. What is the best way to accommodate the sponsor's request? A. Speak to the sponsor over the phone to communicate the project status B. Email a slideshow presentation and a spreadsheet report to the sponsor C. Take pictures of the information radiators and email them to the sponsor D. Wait until the sponsor is back and provide them with the latest project status

C. Correct. Agile teams are using information radiators to display the project status to all concerned project stakeholders. Taking pictures of the information radiators and sending them to the sponsor via email on a weekly basis is the easiest, the most effective, and information rich way to keep the sponsor up to date.

29. Due to organizational constraints, some of the agile team members are co-located in the same building, while others are located in other parts of the country. What agile techniques can the team implement to help increase communication among the team members? A. Set up a meeting for the team to determine team ground rules B. Have developers sit near each other C. Set up a war room with video conferencing capability D. Use information radiators extensively

C. Correct. Agile teams thrive on co-location and having video conferencing for distributed members enables face-to-face communication without incurring travel or relocation expenses.

98. Before starting actual development of a new software system, an agile team is testing different technical approaches to understand the viability of their potential solutions. What are the team members doing? A. Software spike B. System spike C. Architectural spike D. Technical spike

C. Correct. Architectural spike

71. A project team is using a risk-adjusted backlog to compare the value of addressing the existing projects risks and the business value of the product's features. The team has estimated a dollar value for delivering the product features. Which of the following should the use to determine the value of addressing project risks? A. Internal rate of return (IRR) B. Net present value (NPV) C. Expected monetary value (EMV) D. Estimate at completion (EAC)

C. Correct. Calculation of expected monetary value is a common approach used to determine the value of addressing an identified risk to the project. EMV uses the probability of the risk occurring and the impact of that risk to determine the business value of addressing the risk.

69. An agile practitioner overheard a conversation between a customer, a tester, and a developer on the best testing approach to use on their project. Which of the following approaches would the agile practitioner most likely recommend? A. Initiating testing later in the development cycle B. Using manual instead of automated testing tools C. Driving code development based on results of acceptance tests D. Limiting the activities of quality assurance to identifying defects

C. Correct. Driving code development from acceptance tests improves quality by having the team consider quality early in the development process.

4. An agile coach is asked to help a team estimate user stories, and the team is considering using epics. Which of the following might the agile coach tell the team regarding the use of epics? A. Epics should be used for features that stakeholders are certain they want. B. Epics are required for all features that are to be built in the near future. C. Epics can reduce the amount of time a team spends estimating. D. Epics allow agile teams to break down big tasks into smaller user stories and features.

C. Correct. Epics can reduce the time a team spends on upfront estimation. When it gets closer to development, the team would still need to progressively elaborate the user stories to decompose and refine their associated tasks. However, by delaying detailed planning and estimation, the team does not unnecessarily spend time in detailed estimates, which would need to be redone if things were to change.

68. A developer joins a new agile team after working with a different team for 3 years. The developer's former manager keeps asking her for help resolving defects from their previous project. As a result, the developer multitasks and cannot fully dedicate herself to either project, negatively impacting the throughput of both and making both teams frustrated. What is the best course of action for the project manager who leads the current project? A. Allow the developer to support both projects B. Recommend the termination of both projects C. Escalate the issue to the project sponsor D. Remove a few items from the product backlog

C. Correct. Escalating issues to higher management levels is typically considered among the last steps when resolving problematic situations. However, under the circumstances described in this scenario and with the given set of answer choices, escalating the issue to the project sponsor is the only viable way to try to resolve the issue.

13. Which of the following sequences lists the cost from the most expensive to the least expensive to fix with respect to when a defect is found during the product development? A. Exploratory testing, pair programming, continuous integration B. Pair programming, continuous integration, exploratory testing C. Exploratory testing, continuous integration, pair programming D. Continuous integration, exploratory testing, pair programming

C. Correct. Exploratory testing, continuous integration, pair programming

94. An agile practitioner was explaining the relationships between and responsibilities of the customer and the development teams in agile project management. Which of the following statements is most correct? A. It is the customer, not the development team, who defines how the work will be performed. B. It is the development team, not the customer, who defines what features should be developed first. C. It is the customer, not the development team, who defines value and judges the user experience. D. It is the development team, not the customer, who defines the product scope and requirements.

C. Correct. It is the customer, not the development team, who defines value and judges the user experience.

6. An agile project manager and the business sponsor were discussing the need for an iteration zero for the new project that was to be initiated. Which of the following is an activity commonly performed during this iteration? A. Hiring new team members for the project B. Conducting a spike C. Setting up a development environment D. Developing the product

C. Correct. Iteration zero can be used to set up the development environment, investigate technology, develop the architecture, etc.

14. At the end of the sprint, the agile team has delivered four user stories estimated at a total of 28 story points that were 100% complete per definition of done, white one user story estimated at 5story points 70% complete. What is the team's velocity for this sprint? A. 33 B. 31.5 C. 28 D. 7

C. Correct. Only the estimated story points associated with user stories completed as per the definition of done are valid for inclusion in the sprint's velocity.

54. An agile team is working on a systems upgrade project. One of the known risks is that the team members are supposed to fulfill their responsibilities to the new project and their usual maintenance and support activities. What should an agile leader advocate for in this situation? A. Reducing the system's software maintenance budget B. Refactoring the system code to make it more efficient rather than replacing it C. Adjusting the team's capacity according to existing team commitments when estimating the effort involved in the upgrade D. There is not enough information provided in this question to make a determination.

C. Correct. Other work commitments and demands must be considered in estimating the project team's capacity.

2. On an agile project, in what sequence would the agile team typically apply the following tools, techniques, and artifacts? A. Iteration backlog, estimating durations, planning poker B. Estimating durations, planning poker, iteration backlog C. Planning poker, estimating durations, iteration backlog D. Planning poker, iteration backlog, estimating durations

C. Correct. Planning poker, estimating durations, iteration backlog

101. Agile team members are gathering inputs for planning their first iteration of a software development project. Which of the following would help the team the most to save time and reduce a risk of a failure? A. Velocity values from similar project executed by another team B. Retrospective decisions from the best team in the organization C. The source code of a similar product from a previous project D. Definition of done of a similar product from a previous project

C. Correct. Re-using of a source code of a similar product is a common agile practice and may help the team save time and reduce a risk of a failure while developing the product for their new project.

82. When agile teams focus on creating comprehensive documentation, they will have less time to: A. Play collaborative games to have fun at work B. Prepare progress status reports for management C. Respond to changes requested by the customer D. Negotiate contracts with the third-party vendors

C. Correct. Responding to changes requested by the customer is one of the main agile practices. Creating comprehensive documentation would leave the team with less time to focus on responding to changes requested by the customer. The team's inability to respond to change would eventually negatively affect the project.

12. How would an agile practitioner correctly rank the richness, or temperature, of the following communication channels from cold to hot? A. Two people at a whiteboard, two people on the phone, two people communicating via email B. Two people on the phone, two people communicating via email, two people at a whiteboard C. Two people communicating via email, two people on the phone, two people at a whiteboard D. Two people communicating via email, two people at a whiteboard, two people on the phone

C. Correct. Two people communicating via email, two people on the phone, two people at a whiteboard

58. Agile enterprise framework consists of four layers: portfolio governance, project management, iteration management, and technical practices. What layers are the most suitable for the implementation of Scrum and eXtreme Programming (XP) methods? A. Portfolio governance and project management B. All layers are equally suitable C. Iteration management and technical practices D. None of the layers are suitable

C. Correct. Scrum might be applied for the iteration management layer to focus on planning, execution, and team self-organization and leadership during short individual iterations. XP practices might be suitable for the technical layer to focus on pair programming, test-driven development, continuous integration, and refactoring.

73. The find the bottleneck in the process, an agile team creates a cumulative flow diagram. The diagram is shown below. Today is Day 8. Where is the bottleneck in the process? A. Analysis B. Development C. Testing D. Deployment

C. Correct. Testing

17. During a retrospective meeting, an agile team identified a recurring problem that has been causing a delay in their development cycle, consequently increasing the cost of the product. What specific tool or technique should the team members use to get to the root cause of the problem? A. Value stream mapping B. Root cause analysis C. Five whys D. Cost of delay

C. Correct. The 'five whys' technique is commonly used by agile teams to get to the root cause of a problem.

61. A team that is new to agile methodologies and has been instructed by senior management to adopt an iterative development approach using Lean thinking and the Plan-Do Check-Act (PDCA) cycle. Which of the following would be true if the team is following the PDCA cycle? A. The team members are not expected to perform their work according to an explicit plan of execution. B. The team members are only expected to use the PDCA cycle for their development efforts. C. The team members are expected to perform their work according to an explicit plan of execution. D. The team members are only expected to use the PDCA cycle once during a development cycle.

C. Correct. The PDCA cycle requires that the team performs its work according to an explicit plan of execution that is guided by experience, good principles, and lessons learned.

30. What is at the heart of continuous improvement of most agile projects? A. Learning cycle B. DMAIC cycle C. Plan-Do-Check-Act cycle D. Theory of constraints

C. Correct. The Plan-Do-Check-Act (PDCA) cycle is a repetitive four-stage model for continuous improvement in business process management. The PDCA model is also known as the Deming cycle.

80. Which of the following would be the most likely reason for user stories not to be sufficiently tested? A. Vague project scope B. Lack of tacit knowledge C. Incomplete definition of done D. Poor osmotic communication

C. Correct. The definition of done is created by the agile project team, and is a description of the mandatory steps that must be completed within a user story to indicate that the user story is 100% tested and is ready to be delivered to the customer.

28. During the sprint planning meeting, an issue with one of the user stories already included in the sprint backlog was found. As a result, the user story has been removed from the sprint backlog, and the sprint has been successfuily completed. However, at the retrospective meeting, an agile practitioner mentioned that the user story had been removed from the sprint backlog for the wrong reason. What reason did the agile practitioner most likely mention? A. Sliced a complex user story because it cannot be completed in one sprint B. Sliced a compound user story because it cannot be completed in one sprint C. Removed a user story because the scrum master thought the team overcommitted D. Removed a user story because it has interdependencies with other user stories

C. Correct. The development team has the final say on the amount of work that can be accomplished in the sprint. Therefore, if the team thinks it can complete all user stories included in the sprint backlog, the scrum master should not intervene. Therefore, this answer choice represents the most likely reason that the agile practitioner mentioned at the retrospective, making this choice the best answer to the question asked.

1. Due to a shortage of personnel, an experienced agile practitioner has been assigned to work on two different projects simultaneously. On any given day, the practitioner is working roughly 50% of their time on each of the projects. Which of the following types of waste will definitely occur in such arrangement? A. Defects B. Partially done work C. Task switching D. Motion

C. Correct. The question clearly describes a situation where the practitioner will switch between two projects, so task switching will definitely occur as a result.

47. Which of the following practices is recommended for a vendor company to use while contracting with a customer for an agile project? A. Adding a clause allowing the buyer to cancer the contract if the vendor fails to deliver as agreed B. Using standard form contracts recommended by the project management office C. Clearly stating the need for customer involvement D. Insisting on legal involvement

C. Correct. The requirements for customer involvement should be clearly stated in the contract because Agile is predicated on continuous feedback and involvement of the customer.

119. In 2004, one of the Agile Manifesto's authors, Alistair Cockburn, wrote in one of his articles what an agile toolbox should contain. Which of the following is one of the items that can be found in the agile toolbox? A. Guidelines for the change control board B. Virtual teams C. Colocated teams D. Change request template

C. Correct. The use of colocated teams is an agile best practice. This approach permits face-to-face communication and enhances collaboration. Additionally, colocation is required to take advantage of osmotic communication, where information that flows in the background can be overheard by the team members and learning is enhanced. The use of colocated teams is one of the tools identified by Cockburn for inclusion in the agile toolbox.

10. An agile team is using an adaptive project management life cycle to manage their current project. Which of the following is a characteristic of an adaptive project management life cycle? A. Only used for low risk projects B. Limits scope change requests to a minimum C. Just-in-time planning D. Up-front planning for the entire project

C. Correct. To avoid potential waste of time speculating on solutions, planning is confined to the next iteration.

76. Which of the following is false about how agile teams should approach testing to reduce the defect rate? A. Accomplish as many tests as possible B. Execute tests as early as possible C. Perform as few unit tests as possible D. Test in a continuous integration environment

C. Correct. Unit testing helps to examine the software at the level of individual units/components. This allows validating that each unit of the softwar functions as designed. The more unit testing is carried out, the higher the probability of catching defects before the software is passed on to the next level of testing, thus reducing the cost of change. Since performing as fewer unit tests as possible goes against the described approach, this choice is the correct answer.

38. During a retrospective meeting, an agile team used value stream mapping to improve processes that were causing bottlenecks in their last sprint. The team has implemented the retrospective decisions in the next sprint, but unfortunately, no improvement has been made. After the sprint was over, the scrum master who attended the retrospective, told the team that they were incorrectly applying the value stream mapping technique. The scrum master said the team was trying to improve something that was not part of the technique. Which of the following choices describes the issue the scrum master most likely noticed? A. Improving the total time from the beginning to the end of the entire value stream B. Identifying and reducing waste throughout the value stream C. Improving the performance of the team throughout the value stream D. Optimizing the whole process throughout the value stream

C. Correct. Value stream mapping is not aimed to improve the performance of the team. Rather, this technique is looking to improve the process used by the team.

63. During which of the following agile events are burndown charts used to review the variance and trend in the team's past technical performance? A. Sprint performance meeting B. Daily standup meeting C. Sprint review meeting D. Burndown review meeting

C. Correct. While the main goal of the sprint review meeting is to review the product increment developed by the team during the sprint, burndown charts that reflect the team's performance can also be reviewed during the sprint review meeting. These charts are used in order to understand the trends in team performance, how many story points the team has completed and ultimately, whether or not the team has achieved the sprint goal.

15. An agile team wants to apply a tool to visually analyze their work in progress for each step in a process in order to determine quickly where bottlenecks exist in the overall process. What tool would help them the most? A. Kanban board B. Release burndown chart C. Control chart D. Cumulative flow diagram

D. Correct. A cumulative flow diagram allows the team to track the work in progress, the work performed over time, and cycle time, it also provides a means to interpret bottlenecks in process steps.

50. During a meeting to make decisions about project goals and product features, it was observed that some project stakeholders did not express whether they were for or against the inclusion of particular goals for their agile project. Which of the following tools could be used to help elicit a response from all participants in order to help ensure a productive discussion? A. Convergence B. Rolling wave planning C. Story points D. Decision spectrum

D. Correct. A decision spectrum that includes responses other than simply 'yes' or 'no' allows each stakeholder to participate in the decision and render an opinion.

44. A newly certified scrum master is in the process of moving from a micro-manager mindset in a traditional project management environment from her previous manager roles to more of an agile mindset, which encourages coaching. What advice would a seasoned agile coach provide the new scrum master on how best to use agile coaching in the scrum master role? A. Agile coaches view non-attainment of tasks as a motivation problem, not a capability issue. B. Agile coaches utilize continued intervention as the biggest indicator of success, regardless of information, tools, and experience. C. Agile coaches believe motivational problems occur with most of the teams, and that the availability of information, tools, and experience is irrelevant. D. Agile coaches first assume that team members who aren't performing lack the capability, not the motivation.

D. Correct. Agile coaches understand that motivation is not necessarily the problem with performance, but rather capability.

72. An agile team has one subject matter expert that understands the complex business rules of a legacy system that will be integrated with a new application. Agile promotes knowledge sharing among team members. Which of the following would most likely improve knowledge sharing in the team? A. Encourage business rule questions be addressed by just the subject matter expert B. Organize as a virtual team over colocation C. Forego writing of test cases for obvious success scenarios D. Ensure access to the legacy system and documents by all team members

D. Correct. Allowing access to the legacy system and documents will allow the team members to understand the complex business rules better.

34. An agile team is creating a new and innovative technology product, and the first release to consumers will be a minimal marketable feature (MMF). What is one way an agile practitioner might describe an MMF's ability to create market value? A. Provides comprehensive functionality B. User interface prototypes C. Provides value for late adopters D. Early revenue generation

D. Correct. An MMF is a set of features that contains the minimum functionality to be of value to end users. By releasing the minimum of features to the market, the customer can generate revenue while the remainder of the product is being built.

48. At the sprint review meeting, an agile team is demonstrating the product increment developed during the sprint. Which of the following is most important for the team to define ahead of time in order to ensure the product increments is potentially shippable to the customer? A. Definition of acceptance criteria B. Definition of complete C. Definition of conditions of satisfaction D. Definition of done

D. Correct. An effective definition of done is the most important thing that should be defined to ensure that a product increment is potentially shippable to the customer.

93. An agile team is planning their new project and agreed on iteration length of two weeks. How should the team decide on how many user stories they can complete in their first iteration? A. Use velocity of other teams who developed similar projects in their organization B. Do not commit to any number of user stories for the first iteration C. Commit to some number of user stories and, if unable to complete them, extend iteration length as needed D. Use the time estimated for each user story and the "real time" available for development during the iteration length

D. Correct. Because there is no historical velocity available to use as a guideline for the first iteration, the team should use the "real time" available for development during the two-week iteration and include only those user stories that will add up to the real time available.

103. An agile practitioner is requesting responses to proposals from potential sellers for an agile project they are to conduct in her organization. Which of the following activities would she be most likely to perform? A. Conducting contract negotiations to ensure that the scope is clearly defined in the contract terms B. Utilizing a fixed-price contract for all vendors to reduce the overall risk for the project C. Ensuring the vendors cushion their estimates with buffers to account for uncertainty in scope D. Holding a bidder conference to communicate procurement expectations and requirements

D. Correct. Bidder conferences are not only useful for traditional projects but can also be used in agile. A bidder conference is one way to emphasize procurement expectations and requirements, including specific agile requirements.

31. A new senior manager who has never been exposed to agile practices, asks an agile practitioner about how servant leadership works to deliver results on an agile project. Which of the following would be the most appropriate response to the manager's inquiry? A. Demonstrating empathy and support by encouraging the team members to secure their own resources B. Managing the team throughout the software development lifecycle C. Shielding the team from interruptions that are part of the project D. Clearing impediments to progress that could lower team productivity

D. Correct. Clearing obstacles and impediments to progress is a key responsibility of a servant leader as it clears the road for the team to get the work that contributes to the iteration goal accomplished. A servant leader removes the roadblocks that are revealed during the daily stand up meeting.

110. An agile practitioner has to follow a lot of rules and guidelines, which at times becomes overwhelming. As time goes by, the practitioner becomes more experienced in deciding on which rules fit each situation, thus making the practitioner feel more personally responsible for the choices they make. Which stage in the Dreyfus model of adult skill acquisition has the practitioner reached? A. Novice B. Proficient C. Advanced beginner D. Competent

D. Correct. Competent is the third stage of the Dreyfus model. At this stage, an agile practitioner understands that a number of rules and guidelines they need to follow sometimes becomes overwhelming, so the practitioner is becoming experienced in deciding which rules best fit each individual situation.

104. Team members are complaining that they cannot get their work done because the new sponsor, who is not familiar with agile practices, keeps contacting them for project details. How should the scrum master address this? A. Ask a team member to serve as a team's spokesperson to respond to the sponsor B. Meet with the product owner and ask for their assistance in dealing with the sponsor C. Tell the team to get permission from the scrum master's to respond to the sponsor D. Contact the sponsor and request her to direct all questions to the scrum master

D. Correct. Contacting the sponsor would be the best action for the scrum master to take in order to explain to the sponsor how agile works and what is the right way to get the project details.

95. During the sprint planning meeting, an agile team is struggling with some of the user stories that they will have to develop since the user stories are insufficient in detail. Which of the following actions would be most appropriate for the team? A. Breaking down the user stories into epics B. Demonstrating the product increment to the product owner C. Ensuring that all user stories are fully elaborated before including them in the product backlog D. Discussing each user story with the appropriate stakeholders

D. Correct. Discussing user stories with the appropriate stakeholders is necessary for the team to confirm their understanding of the user stories.

84. An agile project leader wants to ensure that the product vision does not fade away in the team member's minds throughout the course of the project. Which of the following would be the best way for the agile leader to achieve that goal? A. Present the product vision statement at the kickoff meeting B. Display the product vision statement as an information radiator C. Email the product vision statement to all project stakeholders D. Re-communicate the product vision at the beginning of each iteration

D. Correct. Envisioning (a process of creating the product vision) doesn't stop after the envisioning phase. At the beginning of each iteration or milestone, as the team meets to discuss their next steps, team members need to revisit the product vision to remind them of the purpose of their endeavors.

109. An agile leader wants to ensure that the team follows the Agile Manifesto value of working software over comprehensive documentation. What should the agile leader recommend to the team? A. Create only those documents that are legally required B. Apply refactoring to documentation after it has been created C. Develop only software without creating any documentation D. Add must-have documentation user stories to the backlog

D. Correct. Even minimal, barely sufficient documentation is typically required for an agile project. Creating documentation requires an effort from the agile team. Therefore, the team should account for this work and add it to the product backlog as a documentation user story (or multiple user stories, if needed).

120. Since the beginning of the project, the agile team has been experiencing long cycle times. The team has determined that these long cycle times are due to communication issues with the stakeholders because the project had been operating in a very siloed organization. What is the best course of action for the team lead to improve and shorten cycle time under these circumstances? A. Dedicate a team member to focus on communicating with stakeholders B. Employ root cause analysis techniques during the next retrospective meeting C. Encourage the team to innovate to shorten cycle time to make up for communication delays D. Work with the silos' managers and explain to them the importance of cross-functional teams

D. Correct. Even through it is expected that project leaders resolve the issues they encounter using their own authority and skills, when an issue is repetitive and beyond the team's control, management needs to be involved to come up with a solution that works for everyone.

35. Which of the following is considered a benefit of using iterative adaptive planning on an agile project? A. Eliminating project risk and uncertainty B. Supporting a project where the scope is fixed, and time and cost are variable C. Predicting specific project milestone dates D. Minimizes the chance that the plan will not meet the needs of the customer

D. Correct. Iterative adaptive planning allows for flexibility and minimizes the chances the plan and project outcomes will become outdated and not representative of the customer's needs.

11. A scrum master has successfully facilitated the work of team members by rigidly following the three pillars of Scrum. Which of the following represents one of these pillars? A. Responding to change over following a plan B. Maintaining respect for the members at all times C. Maximizing the amount of work not done D. Ensuring that the work is visible to stakeholders

D. Correct. Significant aspects of the process must be visible to those responsible for the outcome. Transparency requires those aspects to be defined by a common standard, so observers share a common understanding of what is being seen. This answer choice represents the Scrum pillar of transparency.

60. An agile team is engaged in a decision-making process during a team meeting, and they decide to use a technique called 'fist-of-five' voting. Which of the following is a valid reason for using the 'fist-of-five' voting technique? A. Is a slow process but has the advantage of allowing team members to indicate their level of agreement B. Has the advantage of anonymity to prevent undue influence from more senior members of the group C. Allows team members' voices that are unheard to surface and helps encourage conversation dominators D. Participants are voting from their conscience at the same time and are not being swayed by other team members' votes

D. Correct. The 'fist-of-five' voting technique permits all participants to vote at the same time to ensure they are not swayed by other team members' votes.

19. At the backlog prioritization session, each attendee is given 100 points, which they can distribute between the features. More points are assigned to higher priority features and less points to the lower ones. At the end of the session, the points assigned to each feature are added up resulting in a prioritize features' list.Which prioritization scheme is used in this case? A. Planning poker scheme B. 100-dot voting technique C. Customer-based prioritization D. 100-point method

D. Correct. The 100-point method is one of the schemes used by agile project stakeholders to prioritize features.

88. Which of the following is true regarding the risk exposure on an agile project? A. The risk exposure is computed based on the likelihood of the risk and trend analysis. B. The risk exposure is calculated by distributing the remaining risk equally throughout the remaining iterations. C. The risk exposure is the average of the likelihood of the risk occurring and the size of loss if the risk occurs. D. The risk exposure is the product of the likelihood of the risk occurring and the size of loos if the risk occurs.

D. Correct. The choice accurately describes how the risk exposure is calculated.

46. During the team's daily stand-up meeting, two of the team members are arguing about how to solve an issue that is delaying development of one of the modules. What is the best course of action for the agile coach to take? A. Do nothing as agile methods encourage constructive disagreement B. Do nothing as the team needs to learn to work out disagreements without outside influence C. Allow the opinion of the majority determine how to remove the impediment D. Remind the team members that the daily stand-up is not the forum to discuss such issues

D. Correct. The coach should remind the team members of what should be discussed in the daily stand-up meeting and encourage the team to set aside time outside of the daily stand-up to discuss and resolve the issue.

40. Agile team members are establishing some rules of engagement as they begin their project. They post these rules in a visible location so that each team member understands the nature of their relationship as a team. Which of the following is true regarding these rules? A. Developed in a prescriptive manager at the start of the project and maintained throughout the project B. Are captured in the project charter C. Should be developed by the agile coach and then covered by the project team D. Describe relationship building, practice definition, and decision making

D. Correct. The rules of engagement, also known as ground rules or working agreements, provide structure and boundaries for how team members are expected to treat each other. They serve in relationship building, practice definition, and decision making.

89. Midway through the project, two eXtreme Programming (XP) team members who had unique project skills were reassigned permanently without any chance of replacement. Which characteristic of an XP team will help the team overcome their resource constraints? A. Self-organizing B. Empowered C. Self-directing D. Cross-functional

D. Correct. The team has to become 'cross-functional' to complete the project successfully. A cross-functional team means the team is no longer made up solely of subject matter experts, but instead, of generalizing specialists able to perform any task.

65. A stakeholder wants to delay the completion date of an iteration so that the features that the stakeholder requested can be completed. How should the team respond? A. Delay the iteration completion date B. Work extra hours on the project C. Bring additional developers on the team for this iteration only D. Continue working at their sustainable pace and not extend the iteration

D. Correct. The team operates within a fixed iteration length and should not extend it. The team should also maintain a sustainable pace.

118. After completing three iterations, an agile team has determined that it will take 292 story points to complete the remaining portion of the project. The average velocity of the team for the first three iterations was 30 story points. How many additional iterations will it take for the team to complete the project? A. 7 iterations B. 8 iterations C. 9 iterations D. 10 iterations

D. Correct. To calculate the number of iterations required to complete the remaining portion of the project, the number of story points remaining (270 story points) needs to be divided by the average velocity (30 story points). 292 divided by 30 yields 9.74 iterations. Therefore, at the current velocity, it should take another 10 iterations to complete the project.

64. A product owner has configured a room with four laptops and invited four different end users to test the new system's capabilities. The developers from the project team will be in the room to answer basic questions, but mostly to take notes and observe the users. Which of the following agile tools &techniques is described in the scenario? A. Scripted testing B. Exploratory testing C. Automated testing D. Usability testing

D. Correct. Usability testing involves having end users test the system to see how they respond to the system under realistic conditions.

26. A couple of days before the end of the current iteration, which is the last in the release, the team informs the product owner that they will be unable to finish two user stories, story A and story B that are part of the iteration goal. The team might be able to complete user story A in the time left but most likely will need an additional week to complete story B which has a higher priority. The team feels the iteration backlog has been insufficiently refined. What is the best course of action for the team? A. Extend the iteration length in order to finish both stories A and B B. Extend the iteration by a week as an exception since it is the last one in this release C. Work on user story A first since it likely can be completed with the time left in the iteration D. Have the product owner determine what should be done and follow their instructions

D. Correct. When the project experiences work delays/overruns due to insufficiently refined iteration backlog items, splitting user stories should be considered. However, since this action will decrease the value delivered to the customer, such decisions should be made by the product owner.

83. After about two months of work, an agile team has just completed their fourth iteration out of eight. The release burndown chart shows that for the last three iterations, the curve representing the actual completed work is approximately 40 points above the straight descending line of the projected work. Given the fact that the team's velocity is 20, which conclusion can be drawn at this stage? A. The team is ahead of schedule B. The team is behind schedule and work will be finished two weeks later than originally planned. C. The team is behind schedule and work will be finished four weeks later than originally planned. D. The team is behind schedule.

D. Correct. With only approximations for the completed work, the only conclusion that can be definitively drawn, in this scenario, is that the team is behind schedule.

42. A newly hired junior programmer has some experience in eXtreme Programming (XP) practices. She is cross-functional and likes to participate in the testing phase of product development. She gave the team an example of one common practice that her old team adopted which allowed them to make the code more efficient. Which XP best practice was the programmer most likely referring to? A. Every week, two team members were chosen to test the features of the product developed so far B. Every couple of days, the newly hired junior programmer wrote code in a pair with a senior programmer C. Once per week, the team met to check if the team members adhere to coding standards D. Twice per week, the newly hired junior programmer worked in pair with a senior member for code refactoring

D. Correct.Writing more efficient code can be done through refactoring.