The answer is to coach the product owner on the importance of stable sprint goals. This is correct because the Scrum framework mandates that once a sprint begins, the sprint goal should remain fixed to protect the team’s focus and enable a potentially releasable increment; frequent priority changes violate this core principle. On the Project Management Professional PMP exam, this scenario tests your understanding of the Scrum Master’s servant-leader role in safeguarding the process, often appearing as a distractor where candidates mistakenly escalate to management or adjust the sprint backlog directly. A common trap is choosing to “reprioritize with the team,” which undermines sprint stability, whereas coaching addresses the root cause. Remember the mnemonic “Coach, Don’t Change” — the Scrum Master coaches the product owner on sprint stability rather than changing the sprint itself.
PMP People — Leading Projects Practice Question
This PMP practice question tests your understanding of people — leading projects. 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.
In a Scrum team, the product owner frequently changes priorities during the sprint, causing the team to lose focus. The team has raised this concern in the retrospective. What should the scrum master do?
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
Coach the product owner on the importance of stable sprint goals.
The Scrum Master is responsible for ensuring the Scrum framework is followed. Changing priorities mid-sprint violates the principle of a stable Sprint Goal, which protects the team from disruption and allows them to deliver a potentially releasable increment. Coaching the Product Owner on this principle directly addresses the root cause without bypassing Scrum rules or escalating prematurely.
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.
✓
Coach the product owner on the importance of stable sprint goals.
Why this is correct
The scrum master's role includes coaching the product owner on Scrum practices.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
✗
Allow the changes if they add value, and adjust the sprint backlog.
Why it's wrong here
Changing the sprint goal mid-sprint disrupts the team and Scrum principles.
✗
Update the definition of done to accommodate changes.
Why it's wrong here
The definition of done is about quality, not scope changes.
✗
Escalate the issue to the project sponsor.
Why it's wrong here
Escalation is not the first step; coaching is more appropriate.
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
The trap here is that candidates confuse the Product Owner's authority to reorder the Product Backlog with the ability to change Sprint priorities mid-sprint, leading them to choose Option B under the misconception that value trumps process.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
The Sprint Goal is a commitment to a single objective that unifies the Sprint Backlog items; changing priorities mid-sprint breaks this commitment and forces the team to re-plan, reducing velocity and increasing technical debt. In real-world scenarios, a Product Owner might confuse 'maximizing value' with 'changing scope arbitrarily', but the Scrum Master must reinforce that value is maximized by stable, focused sprints that deliver a coherent increment. The Scrum Guide explicitly states that the Sprint Backlog is 'visible' and can be refined, but the Sprint Goal must remain stable unless the Product Owner and team agree the goal is no longer valid.
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 PMP 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.
Related glossary terms
Concepts from this question explained
These glossary pages explain the core terms tested in this PMP question in full detail.
People — Leading Projects — This question tests People — Leading Projects — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: Coach the product owner on the importance of stable sprint goals. — The Scrum Master is responsible for ensuring the Scrum framework is followed. Changing priorities mid-sprint violates the principle of a stable Sprint Goal, which protects the team from disruption and allows them to deliver a potentially releasable increment. Coaching the Product Owner on this principle directly addresses the root cause without bypassing Scrum rules or escalating prematurely.
What should I do if I get this PMP question wrong?
Identify which exam domain this question belongs to, review the core concept, then practise similar questions from the same domain.
What is the key concept behind this question?
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
About these practice questions
Courseiva creates original exam-style practice questions with explanations and wrong-answer analysis. It does not publish real exam questions, exam dumps, or protected exam content. Learn why practice questions differ from exam dumps →
These questions test the same concept from different angles. Work through them to make sure you can recognise it however the exam phrases it.
Variation 1. In a Scrum team, the product owner frequently changes priorities within a sprint, causing the team to abandon work mid-task. The team is becoming demotivated. What should the scrum master do?
hard
A.Escalate the issue to the project sponsor to overrule the product owner
B.Shorten the sprint length to two or three days to accommodate frequent changes
C.Accept the changes as the product owner has authority over priorities
✓ D.Coach the product owner on the impact of changing priorities mid-sprint and reinforce the sprint backlog agreement
Why D: Option D is correct because the Scrum Master's primary role is to coach the Product Owner and the team on Scrum principles, including the importance of a stable Sprint Backlog. Changing priorities mid-sprint violates the Sprint Goal and undermines team focus, leading to demotivation. By reinforcing the Sprint Backlog agreement, the Scrum Master protects the team from disruption while respecting the Product Owner's authority outside the sprint.
Last reviewed: Jun 24, 2026
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This PMP 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 PMP exam.
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