Professional Scrum Master I (PSM I)Scrum FrameworkHard
A Scrum Master observes that the Developers are consistently waiting for the Product Owner to assign tasks to them within a Sprint. This leads to bottlenecks and reduced team efficiency. Which characteristic of the Developers' role is being undermined in this situation?
- AAccountability for stakeholder management.
- BSelf-managing on how to accomplish the Sprint Goal.
- CCollaboration with the Scrum Master on process improvements.
- DResponsibility for establishing the Definition of Done.
Show answer & explanationAnswer & explanation
Correct answer: B. Self-managing on how to accomplish the Sprint Goal.
The Developers are self-managing, meaning they decide who does what, when, and how within the Sprint to achieve the Sprint Goal. Waiting for the Product Owner to assign tasks undermines this core characteristic of self-management.
Why the other options are wrong
- A. Stakeholder management is primarily the Product Owner's accountability, not the Developers'.
- C. Collaboration is important, but the core issue described is about task assignment and self-organization, which falls under self-management.
- D. While Developers contribute to the DoD, it's a commitment of the entire Scrum Team, not solely their responsibility to establish.
Developers' Self-Management
Developers are self-managing, meaning they internally decide who does what, when, and how to best accomplish the work in the Sprint Backlog to achieve the Sprint Goal.
- Decide 'how' to do the work.
- No external task assignment.
- Focus on Sprint Goal.
Memory trick: Developers are like skilled artisans: they build (create Increment) and manage themselves (self-managing) to achieve the goal.