POPM PI Execution Practice Question
During a sprint, the Product Owner identifies a critical defect in a feature that is currently in development. What is the best way to handle this?
⚠ Common exam trap
Candidates often choose answers that suggest ignoring the defect until the next sprint or deferring it to the QA team, forgetting that the Product Owner must immediately prioritize critical issues affecting quality.
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
✓
Prioritize the defect as a high-priority item in the team backlog.
The PO should add the defect to the backlog and prioritize it immediately, as critical defects can jeopardize the team's ability to achieve PI objectives. By addressing it within the current sprint, the PO prevents it from becoming a larger, more costly issue later. This transparency with the team allows them to adjust their sprint plan to incorporate the fix, ensuring the final deliverable meets the required quality standard.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
Wait until the next sprint to fix the defect so the current sprint commitment is met.
Why it's wrong here
Waiting to fix a critical defect increases the cost of repair and puts the final PI goals at risk. The PO should prioritize quality and immediate resolution. Leaving a known critical bug in the code for an entire sprint is contrary to the principle of built-in quality at all times.
- ✗
Ask the developers to work secretly on the fix so as not to disrupt velocity.
Why it's wrong here
Secret work creates hidden tasks and inaccurate metrics, which ruins trust and predictability. Every piece of work should be visible on the board. The PO must encourage transparency, ensuring that the team addresses the defect openly as part of their commitment to deliver high-quality, working, and tested software.
- ✓
Prioritize the defect as a high-priority item in the team backlog.
Why this is correct
Treating the defect as a high-priority backlog item ensures it gets the attention it needs within the current sprint. This maintains the integrity of the PI objectives and keeps the product quality high. The PO's role is to ensure that critical work is always visible and prioritized appropriately for the team.
- ✗
Ignore the defect and hope it is caught by the automated regression testing.
Why it's wrong here
Relying on hope is not a strategy. If the PO knows about a critical defect, they have an obligation to bring it to the team's attention. Ignoring it is irresponsible and risks a major failure during the system demo or, worse, in the production environment for the end customer.
About these practice questions
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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 Scaled Agile exam blueprint
This POPM practice question is part of Courseiva's free Scaled Agile 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 POPM exam.