PMI Agile Certified Practitioner

To improve accuracy in estimating product backlog items, the team should begin tracking estimated effort metrics as an input to performance evaluation. Tracking these metrics over several sprints can help the team understand their velocity and make more accurate estimates, addressing the root cause of their current difficulties. Sprint duration should remain fixed to have a consistent basis for measurement, and increasing team size or discussing estimating techniques during daily scrums are not appropriate solutions.

In Scrum, the development team is self-organizing and self-managing. The Scrum Master facilitates the process but does not directly assign or reassign tasks. Therefore, the Scrum Master should allow the team to decide if the task should be reassigned to ensure they meet their sprint goals.

In an agile team, the principle of self-organization is crucial. Teams are encouraged to independently manage their tasks and workflows. After high-priority user stories are added to the iteration backlog, it is essential for the team to self-organize to define the necessary tasks for implementation. This approach allows the team to leverage collective knowledge, skills, and intercommunication to efficiently break down user stories into actionable tasks and ensure that all aspects of the implementation are considered.

In agile practices, the focus should remain on completing the current iteration before starting tasks for the next iteration to avoid spreading the team's attention too thin. By deferring the design of item B until the second iteration is being planned, it ensures that any learnings or dependencies from item A are addressed adequately. This approach minimizes the risk of cascading issues related to the delay of item A and maintains a disciplined and manageable workflow.

The Agile team should continuously work with the product owner to do backlog refinement and product reviews. This approach aligns with the Agile principle of embracing change and adapting to new information. Continuously refining the backlog ensures that the team's efforts are always focused on the most valuable and current requirements, while regular product reviews help validate the product's progress and make necessary adjustments based on feedback. This method maintains flexibility and responsiveness to customer needs, which is essential in an Agile environment.