PMP Process — Managing Technical Aspects Practice Question
Your agile team has been using Scrum for six months, but the product owner is not consistently available for sprint planning and reviews. The team is frustrated and the last two sprints did not meet the definition of done. Which THREE actions should you take to address this?
⚠ Common exam trap
The trap is choosing a tool or structural workaround (proxy PO) instead of addressing the human/process root cause; PMP agile questions reward servant-leadership and coaching over quick technical fixes.
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 a retrospective to discuss the challenges and agree on improvements
Option A is correct because a retrospective is the Scrum ceremony specifically designed for the team to inspect its process and identify actionable improvements, making it the right first step to surface the product owner availability problem and agree on remedies. Option D is correct because the last two sprints failed to meet the definition of done, so the team and product owner must jointly review and revise that definition to make it achievable and unambiguous, which is a core Scrum practice for restoring quality. Option E is correct because the product owner's inconsistent availability directly undermines sprint planning and review, so coaching them on the importance of their role and required availability addresses the root cause rather than a symptom. Option B does not belong because introducing a new tool adds overhead without fixing the underlying collaboration and availability issue. Option C does not belong because assigning a proxy product owner from the development team violates Scrum's separation of accountabilities and does not resolve the actual problem of the product owner's engagement.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✓
Facilitate a retrospective to discuss the challenges and agree on improvements
Why this is correct
A retrospective gives the team a dedicated Scrum ceremony to surface the product owner's unavailability and agree on concrete improvements. It directly addresses the root cause of missed sprint goals and definition of done failures through inspect-and-adapt, which is the agile coach's prescribed response.
- ✗
Implement a new project management tool to improve transparency
Why it's wrong here
A new tool addresses transparency of work items, not the product owner's absence from sprint planning and reviews, which is a people and process problem. It is tempting because tooling genuinely helps distributed teams, and would be right if the issue were unclear backlog visibility rather than unavailability.
- ✗
Assign a proxy product owner from the development team
Why it's wrong here
A developer acting as proxy product owner creates a conflict of interest and splits accountability for backlog prioritisation, which the Scrum Guide vests in one product owner. It is tempting because it restores meeting attendance quickly, and would work only where a genuine product owner delegates with retained authority.
- ✓
Review and revise the definition of done with the team and product owner
Why this is correct
Revising the definition of done with both team and product owner clarifies the quality bar and rebuilds shared ownership. Since the last two sprints failed the definition of done, renegotiating it collaboratively addresses ambiguity and the product owner's absence from refinement discussions.
- ✓
Coach the product owner on the importance of their role and availability
Why this is correct
Coaching the product owner targets the root cause: their inconsistent availability undermines sprint planning and review. A servant-leader helps the product owner understand how their engagement enables value delivery, restoring the Scrum accountabilities the team depends on.
Visual reference
Go deeper
Related to this question
Learn chapter
Team Building and Psychological Safety
Key term
Sprint Planning
Sprint Planning is a time-boxed meeting at the start of a Scrum sprint where the team decides what work they can deliver and how they will do it.
Key term
Scrum Methodology
Scrum is a lightweight process framework that helps teams deliver complex projects in small, iterative chunks called sprints.
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JA
Written and reviewed by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
Last reviewed September 2026 · checked against the official PMI exam blueprint
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.