Product Owner role and responsibilities

Which agile planning artefact should be updated at least once semi-annually?

Product Roadmap should be updated at least once semi-annually

What is the benefit of using value points in ordering the Product Backlog?

Value points are relative units for the value assigned to the Product Backlog items. It increases transparency when applied correctly.

How many weeks are required to release increment based on the following information: - 240 points release backlog - 3-week per Sprint - 45 points velocity per Sprint

45 points are velocity for 1 Sprint (3 weeks). It means that velocity for 1 week is 15 points (45/3 = 15)There are 240 points to complete release. 240 points / 15 points (1 week) = 16 weeks. But the duration of Scrum is 3 weeks and the increment will be ready only after the third week of the Sprint. So the correct answer is 18 weeks.

A key measure of success for the Product Owner is velocity.

A key measure of success for the Product Owner is high value product

What should the Product Owner do in the middle of the Sprint, when the Development Team realises they are not able to finish all the Sprint Backlog items?

As it is the only one method to finish increment the Product Owner should help the developers adjust their work and meet the Sprint Goal

Why is the technical debt important for Product Owners?

Because it increases the total cost of ownership. Technical debt is shortcomings in the code that makes it less than "good enough", and therefore creates risks in the future. It usually decreases velocity in the future (because the team has to fix the shortcomings), and as some of the debt might remain in the final product, the maintenance cost will increase as well.The total cost of ownership is a combination of the project cost and maintenance cost.

Which 2 of the following are true about the Product Owner?

Can be influenced by a committee. Is accountable for prioritizing the Product Backlog items. There can be a committee for the product ownership, but only their representative will be called the Product Owner. So, there's only one Product Owner, even when there are multiple teams. This person can be full-time or part-time. One person can have more than one role in Scrum (e.g. both the Product Owner and the Scrum Master). While it's not forbidden, it's not recommended either

How can the success of the project be evaluated? (choose 2 answers) . How does an organization know that a product built through Scrum is successful?

Customer and end user satisfaction is important. It's not an abstract measure like lines of code or velocity.There can be some KPIs for measuring the value of the releases, and when improved, will show our success.Increased velocity is desired, but it's not directly connected to value and can be misleading.

Which of the following helps the Product Owner avoid waste in the project?

Don't add much detail to the Product Backlog items until they move to the top of the backlog. There's no need to spend too much time on the items at the bottom of the Product Backlog. They can be broken down into smaller items and have more details when they move to the top of the backlog.​

The customer has the final say on the order of Product Backlog items.

FALSE. The decision on the order of items can be influenced by a committee, the customer, or any other stakeholder, but the final say belongs to the Product Owner. This decision should be respected by the whole organization.

All interactions between the stakeholders and the Development Team should be through the Product Owner.

False. Almost always these interactions are going through Product Owner but of course, it is not prohibited to discuss some questions with stakeholders. But those who are wanting to change a Product Backlog item's priority must address the Product Owner.

The Product Owner is accountable for the result and therefore should have the final say over the definition of "Done".

False. Development Teams deliver an Increment of product functionality every Sprint. This Increment is usable, so a Product Owner may choose to immediately release it.

The Product Owner should invite stakeholders to the Sprint Retrospective.

False. The Product Owner invites the stakeholders to the Sprint Review meeting. The Sprint Retrospective is internal to the team. As usual, others can attend, but they cannot participate​

During a Sprint Review, the stakeholders notice that the product development progress is not very visible and lacked transparency. Moreover, they are not able to understand the next steps. Who is responsible for this?

From the Scrum Guide: The PO is ensuring that the Product Backlog is visible, transparent, and clear to all, and shows what the Scrum Team will work on next. The Product Owner is the Lead Facilitator of Key Stakeholder Involvement. The PO is responsible for identifying the key stakeholders for the product and involving them as necessary throughout the development effort.

If it's not possible to complete the Sprint Backlog, who would try to resolve it?

If this situation is happening Product Owner and Development team should discuss how they can resolve issues

The Product Owner has doubts about the quality of the definition of "Done". What should s/he do?

Increase product quality by adaptation the definition of "Done" in the next Sprint Retrospective. The Scrum Master encourages the Scrum Team to improve, within the Scrum process framework, its development process and practices to make it more effective and enjoyable for the next Sprint. During each Sprint Retrospective, the Scrum Team plans ways to increase product quality by improving work processes or adapting the definition of "Done", if appropriate and not in conflict with a product or organizational standards.

Which role is responsible for determining when a release can occur?

Only the Product Owner is responsible for this

What should the Product Owner do during the Sprint Retrospective?

Participate as a Scrum Team member. The whole Scrum Team should participate in the Sprint Retrospective to find an improvement to be applied in the next Sprint; including the Product Owner​

Who is responsible for representing the interests of the stakeholders?

Product Owner.The Product Owner may represent the desires of a committee in the Product Backlog, but those wanting to change a Product Backlog item's priority must address the Product Owner.​

What is Agile planning artefact updated minimally once a year by the Product Owner?

Product Vision is updated by Product Owner at least once a year

Who decides the duration of the Sprint?

Scrum team. The "right" duration of Sprint should balance the Product Owner's appetite for receiving increments of value, with the ability of the Development Team to supply those deliverables. The Scrum Master may have some coaching duties to perform in that regard. So, the Scrum Master is maybe the most important team member who decides the duration of Sprint but we do not agree that the Scrum Master is the only one who decides this duration.

In what ways does the Product Owner manage the value of the product? (choose 2 answers)

The Product Owner manages the value of the product by: 1 - Product Backlog Order 2 - Customer Feedback via frequent releases

How much time should a Product Owner spend with the team?

The Product Owner should spend as much time as needed with the Development Team to do all their responsibilities

Who monitors the remaining work of the Product Backlog?

The Product Owner. At any point in time, the total work remaining to reach a goal can be summed. The Product Owner tracks this total work remaining at least every Sprint Review. The Product Owner compares this amount with work remaining at previous Sprint Reviews to assess progress toward completing projected work by the desired time for the goal. This information is made transparent to all stakeholders.

Who should know the most about the project performance?

The Product Owner. Measuring the release or project performance is the Product Owner's responsibility. Measuring the Sprint performance is the Development Team's responsibility.

Who's responsible for engaging the stakeholders?

The Product Owner. The Product Owner is responsible for engaging them, understanding them, communicating with them and so on.

What's the most important metric for a Product Owner to measure, in order to make the progress of the project clear?

The forecast completion date. That's also the most important thing that should be communicated to the customer. Traditional criteria such as lines of code or man-hours spent on the project are not good measures of performance. The velocity can be a guide in forecasting the completion date, but is not enough, and is not the main reporting item.

Who is responsible for maximising the value of the work the Development Team performs?

The product Owner. The Product Owner is the sole person responsible for managing the Product Backlog. Product Backlog management includes: Clearly expressing Product Backlog items; Ordering the items in the Product Backlog to best achieve goals and missions; Optimizing the value of the work the Development Team performs;

When should the Product Owner update the project plan?

There's no "project plan" artefact in Scrum. The Product Backlog is a form of planning in Scrum projects, and it's updated continuously (Product Backlog refinement).

Scrum does not have a role called "project manager".

True. Scrum doesn't have a project manager role. The project management activities are distributed among the three Scrum roles. Also, you SHOULD NOT have a project manager role when using Scrum.

The Product Owner "owns" the Product Backlog.

True. The Product Owner is the sole responsible person, and they even "own" the Product Backlog. There are multiple implications by saying that the Product Owner "owns" the Product Backlog or is the sole responsible person. Only they can add items to the backlog or decompose them into smaller items, reorder them. While this is done by input from the customers and developers, and even the Product Owner can delegate this responsibility to the developers.

The Product Owner can ask the developers to order the Product Backlog items instead of him/her.

True.The Product Owner is the sole person responsible for managing the Product Backlog. Product Backlog management includes: Clearly expressing Product Backlog items; Ordering the items in the Product Backlog to best achieve goals and missions; Optimizing the value of the work the Development Team performs; Ensuring that the Product Backlog is visible, transparent, and clear to all, and shows what the Scrum Team will work on next; Ensuring the Development Team understands items in the Product Backlog to the level needed. The Product Owner may do the above work, or have the Development Team do it. However, the Product Owner remains accountable.

How should the Product Owner forecast the completion date?

Using a trend line in the burn-down chart can help (if the team is using that chart), as well as simple or complex formulas such as the one mentioned above. But all of these are just guides for the Product Owner and s/he should consider all factors and come up with a reliable completion date forecast.

A company has four products. Which two of the following are acceptable ways of forming Scrum teams?

When there's one product, there should be only one Product Owner, even if the product is large and there are many Development Teams. However, when there are multiple products, there are two options: 1) considering them separate and have a Product Owner for each of them, and 2) have only one Product Owner for all of them and develop them like a larger project to ensure compatibility.​

Which of the following are common Product Owner activities during the Sprint?

Work with the stakeholders. Answer questions from the Development Team about the items in the Sprint Backlog. The Product Owner keeps communicating with the stakeholders, creates new items in the Product Backlog, revises the order of items, answers questions and makes sure everyone has the right understanding of items, and checks the completed items with the Development Team to ensure they are complete based on the Definition of Done.