The answer is to ask the team to maintain a lightweight document of important decisions and changes. This is the best approach because it directly addresses the IS auditor’s concern for auditability without sacrificing agile velocity; lightweight documentation like Architecture Decision Records (ADRs) or acceptance criteria captures the rationale behind key changes, providing a clear, auditable trail while respecting agile principles. On the CISA exam, this question tests your understanding of how to balance risk mitigation with development methodology—a common trap is choosing a heavy, formal documentation process that would cripple an agile team, whereas the correct answer leverages the concept of “just enough” documentation. Remember the memory tip: “Lightweight logs leave a legal trail”—if you see an option that preserves team speed while still recording critical decisions, it is almost always the correct choice for an agile audit.
CISA Practice Question: Information Systems Acquisition, Development and Implementation
This CISA practice question tests your understanding of information systems acquisition, development and implementation. Read the scenario carefully and evaluate each option against the stated constraints before committing to an answer. After answering, compare your reasoning against the explanation and wrong-answer breakdown below. Once you have made your selection, read the full explanation to reinforce the concept and understand why each distractor is designed to mislead on exam day.
A company is using an agile development methodology for a critical business application. The IS auditor is concerned about the lack of formal documentation. What is the BEST approach to mitigate this risk?
Clue words in this question
Noticing these words before you look at the options changes how you read each choice.
Clue: "best"
Why it matters: Signals that multiple options may be partially correct. Choose the option that most directly solves the exact problem described, not the one that sounds most complete.
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
Ask the team to maintain a lightweight document of important decisions and changes.
Option D is the best approach because it balances agile principles with the need for auditability. In agile, lightweight documentation (e.g., architecture decision records, user story acceptance criteria) captures key decisions and changes without the overhead of full waterfall documentation. This mitigates the risk of knowledge loss while preserving the team's velocity.
Key principle: Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
✗
Require the project to switch to a waterfall methodology.
Why it's wrong here
Changing methodology is drastic and may not be feasible.
✗
Accept the lack of documentation because agile emphasizes working software.
Why it's wrong here
Auditors need evidence of controls and decisions.
✗
Perform a detailed code review to compensate for missing documentation.
Why it's wrong here
Code review does not replace documentation for audit trail.
✓
Ask the team to maintain a lightweight document of important decisions and changes.
Why this is correct
This balances agile flexibility with audit requirements.
Clue confirmation
The clue word "best" in the question point toward this answer.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
The trap here is that candidates may confuse agile's 'working software over comprehensive documentation' with 'no documentation at all,' leading them to choose Option B, while the correct answer recognizes that lightweight documentation is both agile-compliant and risk-mitigating.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
In agile frameworks like Scrum, the Definition of Done often includes minimal documentation such as a README, API specs, or decision logs. The ISO/IEC 25010 standard for software quality includes maintainability, which relies on documentation for future developers. Real-world scenarios, such as a critical application failing in production, require traceability of design decisions that code alone cannot provide.
KKey Concepts to Remember
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
Find the constraint that changes the correct option.
Eliminate answers that are true in general but not in this case.
TExam Day Tips
→Watch for words such as best, first, most likely and least administrative effort.
→Review why wrong options are wrong, not only why the correct option is correct.
Key takeaway
Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option.
Real-world example
How this comes up in practice
A practitioner preparing for the CISA exam encounters this exact type of scenario on the job. The correct answer here is not the most general option — it is the best answer for the specific constraint described. Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option. Real exam questions reward reading the full scenario before eliminating options, because the constraint defines which answer fits.
What to study next
Got this wrong? Here's your next step.
Identify which exam domain this question belongs to, review the core concept, then practise similar questions from the same domain.
Information Systems Acquisition, Development and Implementation — This question tests Information Systems Acquisition, Development and Implementation — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: Ask the team to maintain a lightweight document of important decisions and changes. — Option D is the best approach because it balances agile principles with the need for auditability. In agile, lightweight documentation (e.g., architecture decision records, user story acceptance criteria) captures key decisions and changes without the overhead of full waterfall documentation. This mitigates the risk of knowledge loss while preserving the team's velocity.
What should I do if I get this CISA question wrong?
Identify which exam domain this question belongs to, review the core concept, then practise similar questions from the same domain.
Are there clue words in this question I should notice?
Yes — watch for: "best". Signals that multiple options may be partially correct. Choose the option that most directly solves the exact problem described, not the one that sounds most complete.
What is the key concept behind this question?
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
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Question Discussion
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