How to handle when Developers have bandwidth but QA cannot complete user stories?
I’m facing a situation where our Developers have bandwidth to pick up more user stories, but our QA team is unable to keep up with testing and completing them within the sprint. This is leading to stories being partially done and spilling over.
Currently, what I am doing is asking developers to work in the backlog itself and at the time of sprint planning I cut off the story points already done by the developers and take same story points extra than our capacity. For example, if developer is working on 8 story point user story and he has completed his story within the current sprint in backlog. In sprint planning let's say we have capacity to take 29 story points then I will take 35 sprint capacity as we have already completed 4 SP's. Is it the right way of doing the things. Is it advised to move user story in current sprint even if QE's are not having bandwidth?
According to the Scrum Guide, Scrum relies on transparency, inspection, and adaptation — and openness is a core value. My question is:
- How should a Scrum Team handle this imbalance in bandwidth?
- Should we still allow developers to pick up more work, or limit the Sprint Backlog based on QA capacity?
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How do transparency and openness apply here in practical terms?
I’d really appreciate guidance or examples of how other Scrum Masters and teams have handled similar situations.
This is a case where, as a whole, the Scrum Team is cross-functional in that the team members have the skills necessary to complete the work, but the individuals on that team are not necessarily cross-functional and are organized into sub-teams. Focusing on developing cross-functional skills on an individual level and organizing to get work to meet the Definition of Done will help.
There shouldn't be a distinction between "Developers" and "QA team". This doesn't mean that you won't have specialists. However, it means that people with specialized knowledge and experience in a particular area collaborate with others on the team to share their expertise. This way, when a specific skillset is in high demand, non-specialists can contribute.
I’m facing a situation where our Developers have bandwidth to pick up more user stories, but our QA team is unable to keep up with testing and completing them within the sprint. This is leading to stories being partially done and spilling over.
I don't think it is. It's just exposing that the Developers -- and they include QA testers -- are unable to frame and meet Scrum commitments. These commitments include a Sprint Goal which would make the selection of work coherent in the first place, and a Definition of Done which would ensure that each Increment is of usable quality.
Instead, individuals are just sawing away as best they can at a backlog of stuff. That's what's causing work to be "partially done" and "spilling over".
So, Ian, if coaching developers is not doing the cut, then I guess that SM as a Scrum Project Manager (Schwaber Agile Project Management With Scrum 2004, which was never denied or overwritten) should actually enforce some rules to deliver to his/her's clients, right?
Right?
And please provide me a binary answer, not Socratic method questions.
The latest version of the Scrum Guide says:
The Scrum Master is accountable for establishing Scrum as defined in the Scrum Guide. They do this by helping everyone understand Scrum theory and practice, both within the Scrum Team and the organization.
So rather than enforcing rules, it might be better to think of a Scrum Master as enforcing people's understanding of the rules. To the extent that a Scrum Master is a manager at all, they manage people's understanding of Scrum.