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Sprint Result

Last post 09:08 am June 3, 2020 by Mohamed Riaz Ibrahim
7 replies
11:02 am June 1, 2020

 Hello All,

Who is accountable for the sprint out come ? In the sense, end result of the sprint ? Please advice.

Product owner or the Scrum Team ?


08:35 pm June 1, 2020

What does the Scrum Guide say about this?


10:10 pm June 1, 2020

It depends on what you mean by "outcome".

The Product Owner is, among other things, accountable for ordering the items in the Product Backlog in the manner to best achieve the goals and missions of the stakeholders in the effort as well as to optimize the value produced by the Development Team.

At Sprint Planning, the Development Team and only the Development Team has a say in assessing the amount of work that is likely to be completed in the Sprint and selecting the appropriate number of Product Backlog Items. During the Sprint, the Development Team is responsible and accountable for self-organizing in a way that enables them to turn the Product Backlog Items selected for the Sprint into a Done Increment.

The Scrum Master provides coaching to ensure that the Product Owner has the best techniques to manage the Product Backlog, to coach the Development Team in self-organization and cross-functionality, to remove impediments, and to ensure the whole team knows the domain and goals and scope of work.

Everyone on the Scrum Team is, in some way, responsible and accountable for contributing to the outcome of the Sprint. See the Scrum values. Everyone needs to be committed to the goals, both of the organization in general and the Sprint in particular. There needs to be courage and openness to ask questions and ask for help from others when it is required. There needs to be a focus on the goals. The team needs to have respect for each other's knowledge, skills, and abilities to contribute to success.


05:11 am June 2, 2020

Thank you Thomas. I mean the completed work at the end of the sprint -The Product Increment. The explanation gives more clarity on the result of the sprint. What my thought was, since PO was aligned to stakeholder management who best understands the goals/missions and optimize the Value of the product and in case during the Sprint review meeting the stakeholder point out any deviation form their expectations, then who stand accountable.    

Thanks again.


11:34 am June 2, 2020

I don't think that you can simply say that the Product Owner is accountable for the completed work. I'd recommend reading my previous comment again. Everyone on the Scrum Team is accountable for some aspect of getting the work completed and completed to the appropriate level of quality. A Scrum Team is highly collaborative and the team shares the burdens of getting work done.


06:17 pm June 2, 2020

I mean the completed work at the end of the sprint

I'd suggest that the Development Team ought to consider themselves accountable for building a "Done" increment of release quality, while the Product Owner would be accountable for the value of this work being maximized.

Let's remind ourselves that accountability is not about allocating blame if things go wrong. It's about being able to account for a given situation and explain the available evidence to others.


07:46 pm June 2, 2020

It can't be the Product Owner that is accountable for the increment, that makes the PO no different than a Project Manager.


09:08 am June 3, 2020

Thanks @Thomas Owens , @Ian Mitchell ,@Curtis Slough

Thank you all for the detailed explanation, I now make better understanding of scrum as I learn :) 


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