Easy interview questions in Agile & Scrum, page 2
How do you handle an urgent request during a Sprint?
This tests your ability to protect team focus while managing stakeholders. Acknowledge the request, explain its impact on the Sprint Goal, and redirect the stakeholder to the Product Owner, who owns the backlog. A red flag is saying 'yes' or 'no' directly.
Daily Scrum runs over 15 minutes; what facilitation techniques realign it?
This tests if you view the Daily Scrum as an inspection and adaptation event. A strong answer proposes a parking lot, coaches self-management of the timebox, and keeps talk focused on adapting the plan. A red flag is asking the Scrum Master to extend the.
How do you fix a Daily Scrum that runs too long?
This tests your understanding of the Daily Scrum's purpose (inspection, not problem-solving). A good answer involves re-educating the team, using a 'parking lot' for deep dives, and coaching individuals.
How to fix a Daily Scrum that runs over its timebox?
Tests your understanding of the Daily Scrum's purpose: inspection and adaptation, not problem-solving. A good answer re-centers the team on the Sprint Goal, uses a 'parking lot' for deep dives, and addresses the root cause offline.
Definition of Done: how does a shared DoD impact quality and predictability?
Increment is Sprint value; opaque states mislead inspection; shared standards create predictability.
What is the Definition of Done (DoD)?
This tests your understanding of how DoD creates transparency and ensures a usable Increment. A good answer defines DoD as a quality standard, explains it applies to the entire Increment, and links it to predictability.
What is the Definition of Done and its impact?
Tests your grasp of Scrum's core quality mechanism and its link to predictability. Define DoD as the formal quality standard for a releasable Increment, creating transparency and ensuring all work is truly complete.
What are the key components of a well-written user story?
Tests your ability to turn vague needs into actionable, testable work. A strong answer covers who, what, and why; defines acceptance criteria as specific, testable scenarios; and references INVEST.
What are the components of a well-written user story?
This tests your understanding of user stories as conversation starters, not specs. A good answer covers the 3 C's (Card, Conversation, Confirmation) and INVEST criteria. A red flag is focusing only on the "As a..."
What are the components of a well-written user story?
Tests your ability to translate business needs into actionable engineering work. A great answer covers the '3 Cs' (Card, Conversation, Confirmation), the INVEST criteria, and specific, testable Acceptance Criteria. A red flag is just reciting the 'As a...'
What is the Sprint Goal and how does it guide planning?
Goal-driven Sprints vs ticket batches. The Sprint Goal is the agreed objective guiding selection of ordered backlog items to build a valuable Increment and enable inspection. Red flag: calling it optional or pulling the top N items without negotiation.
What is a Sprint Goal and how does it influence planning?
Tests if you grasp that a Sprint Goal defines a valuable outcome, not just a list of tasks. A good answer explains it's a filter for selecting work, provides flexibility, and creates team coherence. Red flag: equating the goal with 'finishing all the tickets'.
Sprint Goal: Purpose and Influence on Sprint Planning
Tests if you understand a Sprint is about a single objective, not just a list of tasks. Define the Sprint Goal as the 'why'—a commitment providing focus and flexibility that guides PBI selection. A red flag is defining the goal as a summary of tickets.
Daily Scrum ticket updates: what primary purpose is missing?
This tests whether you know the Daily Scrum inspects Sprint Goal progress and adapts the plan rather than reporting status. A strong answer identifies the missing purpose as team inspection and adaptation against the Sprint Goal.
What is the primary purpose of the Daily Scrum?
This tests your understanding of Scrum events as tools for inspection and adaptation, not status reports. A great answer states the purpose is to inspect progress toward the Sprint Goal and plan the next 24 hours.
What's missing from a ticket-focused Daily Scrum?
This tests if you know the Daily Scrum is for Developers to inspect progress toward the Sprint Goal, not a status report. A great answer states this purpose, explains how it enables adapting the next day's plan, and focuses on the team.
Explain the difference between code complete and Done. What artifact defines this?
Tests whether you know Done means a usable Increment, not just written code. Strong answer: code complete is a dev milestone; Done means the Increment meets quality standards. Red flag: saying testing happens after Done or that Done is optional.
Code Complete vs. Done: What's the Difference?
Tests your understanding of value delivery vs. task completion. A great answer defines 'code complete' as a developer milestone and 'Done' as a team-agreed state of shippable value, governed by the Definition of Done.
Difference Between 'Code Complete' and 'Done'?
Tests if you grasp value delivery vs. task completion. A great answer defines 'code complete' as a dev step and 'Done' as a team-agreed state of shippable value, governed by the Definition of Done. A red flag is equating 'Done' with just 'QA passed'.
What is the Sprint Retrospective output and what happens next?
Output is a concrete improvement plan enacted in the next Sprint, not parked.
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