Blocker vs. Impediment: How do you escalate an impediment?
This tests your proactivity in removing systemic friction. Define a blocker (full stop) vs. an impediment (drag). Explain how you surface impediments in retros, track them in a backlog, and escalate systemic issues to leadership.
How does management's role evolve in scaled agile frameworks like LeSS?
This tests your grasp of modern agile management, moving from command-and-control to enabling teams. Contrast Theory X (directing) with Theory Y (coaching). In LeSS, managers improve the system and teach, not assign tasks.
How would you create a probabilistic forecast for 40 stories?
This tests your ability to use statistical methods for forecasting. A great answer explains how to use historical throughput in a Monte Carlo simulation to generate a probability distribution of completion dates, not a single point estimate.
When Does Cycle Time Begin and End?
This tests your grasp of process metrics. Define Cycle Time as starting when active work begins ('In Progress') and ending when it's 'done' (code complete/merged), not when the ticket was created. A red flag is confusing this with customer-facing Lead Time.
Explain Little's Law and its application in Kanban
Tests your grasp of flow metrics beyond the formula. A great answer defines the law (Lead Time = WIP / Throughput), explains the trade-offs (e.g., more WIP increases lead time), and shows how to set WIP limits.
How would you use a spike to de-risk a story?
Tests your use of Agile spikes for de-risking, not for building features. A good answer defines the goal, sets a strict time-box, and clarifies the deliverable is knowledge (e.g., a POC), not production code. A red flag is merging spike code into main.
Explain backlog refinement: purpose, participants, and outcomes
Tests your grasp of continuous planning for predictability. A good answer defines the purpose (clarify, estimate, prioritize), participants (whole team + PO), and outcomes (a 'Ready' backlog). A red flag is describing it as a one-off pre-sprint meeting.
How do you resolve a heated technical debate between two developers?
Tests your ability to facilitate conflict, moving a team from argument to a structured decision. A great answer involves de-escalating, using a technique like conflict mapping to understand the core issue, and guiding the team to a resolution.
How would you apply Conway's Law to design team structures?
This tests applying organizational theory to technical strategy. A great answer defines the law, explains the 'Inverse Conway Maneuver' by structuring teams around business capabilities, and avoids imposing an architecture without changing team structure…
Why is team velocity a poor KPI for agile success?
Tests your grasp of agile principles and Goodhart's Law. Explain velocity is for forecasting, not performance. Detail dysfunctions like point inflation and ignoring quality. Propose outcome-focused alternatives like cycle time.
Decomposing a Monolith: Technical Strategy
This tests your ability to create a practical, phased migration strategy from monolith to microservices. A strong answer defines service boundaries via Bounded Contexts, manages data with events, and uses an API Gateway for contracts.
Estimating Cross-Team Initiatives in PI Planning
This tests your ability to lead multi-team estimation. A good answer covers decomposing work, bottom-up team estimates, mapping dependencies, and synthesizing a risk-assessed plan. A red flag is a single top-down estimate that ignores team capacity.
Technical Prerequisites for LeSS Feature Teams
Tests if you can link agile structure to technical architecture. A great answer covers codebase design for shared ownership, a fast CI pipeline for frequent integration, and a robust automated testing strategy.
Design and Implement an Upstream Kanban Process
Tests your understanding of managing demand vs. capability. A great answer defines Upstream Kanban as a pre-commitment filter, outlines board stages and policies, and explains how vetting work improves downstream predictability.
Diagnosing a Widening CFD 'Testing' Band
Tests your ability to interpret a CFD and propose data-driven experiments. A widening 'Testing' band means work enters faster than it leaves. Diagnose with experiments (e.g., tracking test failures, environment downtime) before proposing solutions.
How would you implement Classes of Service in Kanban?
This tests your understanding of risk management and differentiated service delivery. A good answer defines the 4 classes (Expedite, Fixed Date, Standard, Intangible), explains their different pull policies, and gives a risk-based example.
How do you strategically manage tech debt during product discovery?
This tests your strategic view of tech debt. A great answer defines intentional vs. unintentional debt, outlines a framework for tracking and repayment (like a debt backlog), and explains when it's a valid tool for MVPs.
MVP vs. Throwaway Prototype: Technical Differences
This tests your understanding of Minimum Viable Architecture (MVA). Differentiate by intent: a prototype is a throwaway concept test, while an MVP is a sustainable first version built on an MVA. A red flag is describing a sacrificial architecture for an MVP.
How would you A/B test a redesigned dashboard?
Tests translating a vague goal ('more engagement') into a concrete engineering plan. A good answer defines key metrics first, then outlines user bucketing, instrumentation, and statistical analysis.
How do you fix an inverted test pyramid?
This tests your ability to create a pragmatic, multi-sprint plan to improve test suite health. A good answer involves analyzing tests, getting buy-in, then incrementally adding unit/integration tests while refactoring old E2E tests.