Agile Practice Exam Questions with
Verified Solutions
A smart phone manufacturer is re-assessing its product development methods in
response to a sharp increase in user complaints. Analysis of the complaints indicates
that the users try to use some features in ways that designers did not anticipate.Given
these findings, which agile practice would most effectively prevent the problem?
Select one:
a. Smoke Testing
b. Acceptance Test-Driven Development
c. Red, green, refactor
d. Behavior-Driven Development - ANS-Behavior-Driven Development is an extension
of Test-Driven Development whereby automated tests and simulations are created
before developing the product. Flaws are discovered by forcing the tests to fail before
producing the unit in a way that will pass the tests. Distractors are incorrect because the
tests are either based on team assumptions (ATDD), minimal (smoke) or too limited
(persona).
The correct answer is: Behavior-Driven Development
Six months into a strategic agile project, company executives are closely monitoring its
progress. The COO expresses his frustration that the last weekly burn-down charts
show the projected completion date significantly moving back and forward several
times.How can the project manager forecast the completion date with more accuracy
and stability?
Select one:
a. Educate the executive committee on the flexible nature of agile planning.
b. Reduce frequency of the progress reports sent to senior stakeholders.
c. Plan for variable-size iterations according to story complexity and load.
d. Ensure upcoming backlog items are elaborated in more detail with the team. - ANS-
Erratic progress curve variations are typical of inconsistent or uninformed story point
estimates. Backlog refinement can ensure that overly complex stories are broken down
and that past progress informs new story estimates. Distractors are false because they
either ignore stakeholder needs or violate agile timeboxing principle (variable-size
iterations).
The correct answer is: Ensure upcoming backlog items are elaborated in more detail
with the team.
A project manager experienced in predictive methods is taking on an agile project for
the first time. To help in adjusting, the project manager makes a watchlist of situations
that arise from inadequate action as a servant leader.Which situations would result from
a lack of servant leadership? (Choose THREE.)
,Select one or more:
a. Team members avoid taking on challenging tasks
b. Team members avoid direct communication with other departments
c. Team members raise impediments they are unable to eliminate
d. High performers in the team move to more senior positions
e. Project stakeholders express skepticism of agile methods - ANS-A is correct because
servant leaders must promote professional development through challenges. B is
correct because servant leaders help team build bridges with external groups. E is
correct because servant leaders educate stakeholders on agile business value. C and D
are incorrect, because servant leaders remove impediments and support personal
growth beyond project interests.
The correct answers are: Team members avoid taking on challenging tasks, Team
members avoid direct communication with other departments, Project stakeholders
express skepticism of agile methods
A new team member, unaccustomed to agile practices, becomes nervous when an
operations engineer who often criticized his previous work appears at the morning
standup meeting.What could justify the project manager's invitation to the operations
engineer?
Select one:
a. It is a way for the project manager to learn more about the new member
b. It is an agile practice used to prevent routine setting in to daily meetings
c. It is a way to boost the new member's performance and keep him on his toes
d. It is a standard practice in agile to proactively correct misalignments - ANS-
Proactively seeking input from different stakeholders and transparency of project
communications is considered good Agile practice. Distractors are wrong because they
do not promote the team member's integration to the team by promoting trust (breaking
routine, boost performance) or not favoring direct communication (learning about
member indirectly).
The correct answer is: It is a standard practice in agile to proactively correct
misalignments
A trend of stories uncompleted at the end of iterations has become apparent. Multiple
team members worked on these stories and no blockers were identified .What can the
agile team do to resolve the situation?
Select one:
a. Work with the product owner to further break down the stories in the backlog and
update the Definition of Ready
b. Put the stories in the blocked column and work with the product owner to remove
impediments
c. Put the stories back into the product backlog and wait for a less intensive iteration to
work on them
d. Use the next iteration for a team spike to determine feasibility of completing the
stories - ANS-When stories cannot be completed within one iteration, it is typically
because the story is not broken down into small enough goals. Distractors are incorrect
because:- they do not address the root cause by waiting or setting to blocked- product
, owner cannot remove impediments if they are not identified and analyzed- devoting full
team to a spike is inefficient and bypasses normal backlog refinement.
The correct answer is: Work with the product owner to further break down the stories in
the backlog and update the Definition of Ready
The empowered agile team showed impressive progress in the first four iterations, but
now the product owner has noticed low output in the latest five iterations without any
apparent reason.What could be the cause of this situation?
Select one:
a. Technical debt has set in and the team's output will keep dropping until the cause is
eliminated
b. The team worked on low complexity stories from the backlog in the first four
interactions
c. There is most likely a specific under-performing team member slowing the team down
d. The team was in the storming stage of the development and now have moved to
norming - ANS-Some agile teams want to favor faster progress by completing less
complex stories before more complex ones. Prioritization of backlog should be value-
based, not speed-based. Distractors are wrong because:- the change is abrupt:
technical debt is a slow degradation- a low performer would have been apparent in
earlier iterations- the team is autonomous (post-norming).
The correct answer is: The team worked on low complexity stories from the backlog in
the first four interactions
Several items remain in the Kanban blocked column despite the team's efforts to
address them. The retrospective reveals that all the impediments can be traced back to
a particular department head, one the project manager has tried to educate previously
but who still shows resistance.What should the project manager do next?
Select one:
a. Set up an information radiator ranking stakeholders according to their active support
of the project goals
b. Ask the department head for budgetary compensation proportional to the delays
incurred due to lack of cooperation
c. Ask the team members to find other stakeholders who can help work around the
department head's barriers
d. Use stakeholder analysis to identify an aligned senior stakeholder to influence the
department head - ANS-If stakeholders remain resistant despite the project manager's
efforts it can be a case where escalation is required. Distractors are wrong because:
- the project manager normally would have to resolve problems within an established
budget
- bypassing the stakeholder does not address the root cause, which would be likely to
resurface
- public "shaming" by rank does not promote trust and cooperation
Verified Solutions
A smart phone manufacturer is re-assessing its product development methods in
response to a sharp increase in user complaints. Analysis of the complaints indicates
that the users try to use some features in ways that designers did not anticipate.Given
these findings, which agile practice would most effectively prevent the problem?
Select one:
a. Smoke Testing
b. Acceptance Test-Driven Development
c. Red, green, refactor
d. Behavior-Driven Development - ANS-Behavior-Driven Development is an extension
of Test-Driven Development whereby automated tests and simulations are created
before developing the product. Flaws are discovered by forcing the tests to fail before
producing the unit in a way that will pass the tests. Distractors are incorrect because the
tests are either based on team assumptions (ATDD), minimal (smoke) or too limited
(persona).
The correct answer is: Behavior-Driven Development
Six months into a strategic agile project, company executives are closely monitoring its
progress. The COO expresses his frustration that the last weekly burn-down charts
show the projected completion date significantly moving back and forward several
times.How can the project manager forecast the completion date with more accuracy
and stability?
Select one:
a. Educate the executive committee on the flexible nature of agile planning.
b. Reduce frequency of the progress reports sent to senior stakeholders.
c. Plan for variable-size iterations according to story complexity and load.
d. Ensure upcoming backlog items are elaborated in more detail with the team. - ANS-
Erratic progress curve variations are typical of inconsistent or uninformed story point
estimates. Backlog refinement can ensure that overly complex stories are broken down
and that past progress informs new story estimates. Distractors are false because they
either ignore stakeholder needs or violate agile timeboxing principle (variable-size
iterations).
The correct answer is: Ensure upcoming backlog items are elaborated in more detail
with the team.
A project manager experienced in predictive methods is taking on an agile project for
the first time. To help in adjusting, the project manager makes a watchlist of situations
that arise from inadequate action as a servant leader.Which situations would result from
a lack of servant leadership? (Choose THREE.)
,Select one or more:
a. Team members avoid taking on challenging tasks
b. Team members avoid direct communication with other departments
c. Team members raise impediments they are unable to eliminate
d. High performers in the team move to more senior positions
e. Project stakeholders express skepticism of agile methods - ANS-A is correct because
servant leaders must promote professional development through challenges. B is
correct because servant leaders help team build bridges with external groups. E is
correct because servant leaders educate stakeholders on agile business value. C and D
are incorrect, because servant leaders remove impediments and support personal
growth beyond project interests.
The correct answers are: Team members avoid taking on challenging tasks, Team
members avoid direct communication with other departments, Project stakeholders
express skepticism of agile methods
A new team member, unaccustomed to agile practices, becomes nervous when an
operations engineer who often criticized his previous work appears at the morning
standup meeting.What could justify the project manager's invitation to the operations
engineer?
Select one:
a. It is a way for the project manager to learn more about the new member
b. It is an agile practice used to prevent routine setting in to daily meetings
c. It is a way to boost the new member's performance and keep him on his toes
d. It is a standard practice in agile to proactively correct misalignments - ANS-
Proactively seeking input from different stakeholders and transparency of project
communications is considered good Agile practice. Distractors are wrong because they
do not promote the team member's integration to the team by promoting trust (breaking
routine, boost performance) or not favoring direct communication (learning about
member indirectly).
The correct answer is: It is a standard practice in agile to proactively correct
misalignments
A trend of stories uncompleted at the end of iterations has become apparent. Multiple
team members worked on these stories and no blockers were identified .What can the
agile team do to resolve the situation?
Select one:
a. Work with the product owner to further break down the stories in the backlog and
update the Definition of Ready
b. Put the stories in the blocked column and work with the product owner to remove
impediments
c. Put the stories back into the product backlog and wait for a less intensive iteration to
work on them
d. Use the next iteration for a team spike to determine feasibility of completing the
stories - ANS-When stories cannot be completed within one iteration, it is typically
because the story is not broken down into small enough goals. Distractors are incorrect
because:- they do not address the root cause by waiting or setting to blocked- product
, owner cannot remove impediments if they are not identified and analyzed- devoting full
team to a spike is inefficient and bypasses normal backlog refinement.
The correct answer is: Work with the product owner to further break down the stories in
the backlog and update the Definition of Ready
The empowered agile team showed impressive progress in the first four iterations, but
now the product owner has noticed low output in the latest five iterations without any
apparent reason.What could be the cause of this situation?
Select one:
a. Technical debt has set in and the team's output will keep dropping until the cause is
eliminated
b. The team worked on low complexity stories from the backlog in the first four
interactions
c. There is most likely a specific under-performing team member slowing the team down
d. The team was in the storming stage of the development and now have moved to
norming - ANS-Some agile teams want to favor faster progress by completing less
complex stories before more complex ones. Prioritization of backlog should be value-
based, not speed-based. Distractors are wrong because:- the change is abrupt:
technical debt is a slow degradation- a low performer would have been apparent in
earlier iterations- the team is autonomous (post-norming).
The correct answer is: The team worked on low complexity stories from the backlog in
the first four interactions
Several items remain in the Kanban blocked column despite the team's efforts to
address them. The retrospective reveals that all the impediments can be traced back to
a particular department head, one the project manager has tried to educate previously
but who still shows resistance.What should the project manager do next?
Select one:
a. Set up an information radiator ranking stakeholders according to their active support
of the project goals
b. Ask the department head for budgetary compensation proportional to the delays
incurred due to lack of cooperation
c. Ask the team members to find other stakeholders who can help work around the
department head's barriers
d. Use stakeholder analysis to identify an aligned senior stakeholder to influence the
department head - ANS-If stakeholders remain resistant despite the project manager's
efforts it can be a case where escalation is required. Distractors are wrong because:
- the project manager normally would have to resolve problems within an established
budget
- bypassing the stakeholder does not address the root cause, which would be likely to
resurface
- public "shaming" by rank does not promote trust and cooperation
