CAPM Agile Frameworks and Methodologies Practice Question
A company uses Scrum with two-week sprints. The team's velocity is 30 story points per sprint, and they have a well-refined product backlog. However, stakeholders frequently introduce urgent, high-priority requests mid-sprint, which the Product Owner accepts because of stakeholder pressure. As a result, the team is overcommitted each sprint, often leaving 40% of planned work incomplete. The Product Owner is frustrated because promised features are delayed, and the team feels demotivated due to constant interruptions. The Scrum Master has been asked to intervene. What is the best course of action for the Scrum Master?
⚠ Common exam trap
The PMI-CAPM exam often tests the misconception that the Scrum Master should enforce rigid rules (like deferring all changes) or add buffers, rather than facilitating collaboration and coaching the Product Owner on stakeholder management.
Answer choices
Why each option matters
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
Facilitate stakeholder negotiation to limit mid-sprint changes and reinforce the importance of the sprint goal.
The Scrum Master's primary role is to protect the Scrum framework and facilitate collaboration. By negotiating with stakeholders and reinforcing the sprint goal's importance, the Scrum Master addresses the root cause—uncontrolled scope changes—without violating Scrum principles. This approach preserves the team's focus and velocity, preventing overcommitment and demotivation.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
Instruct the Product Owner to defer all mid-sprint changes to the next sprint.
Why it's wrong here
This is too rigid and may ignore genuinely urgent business needs, damaging stakeholder relationships.
- ✗
Add a capacity buffer to each sprint to accommodate unexpected requests.
Why it's wrong here
Buffers reduce transparency and often lead to even more scope creep; they do not address the root cause.
- ✗
Implement a change control board to approve all mid-sprint changes.
Why it's wrong here
A change control board is a traditional project management approach; it adds rigidity and does not align with agile principles.
- ✓
Facilitate stakeholder negotiation to limit mid-sprint changes and reinforce the importance of the sprint goal.
Why this is correct
This balances protecting the sprint while allowing flexibility for critical changes, and it aligns with the Scrum Master's role as a facilitator.
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This CAPM practice question is part of Courseiva's free PMI certification practice question bank. Courseiva provides original exam-style practice questions with explanations, topic-based practice, mock exams, readiness tracking, and study analytics to help learners prepare for the CAPM exam.