Adaptive Leadership

Correct Answer: Facilitate regular feedback loops and adapt the project plan accordingly

Facilitating regular feedback loops and adapting the project plan accordingly is the best approach for an Adaptive Leader navigating a project with rapidly changing requirements and stakeholder expectations. By proactively seeking feedback and being open to adjusting the project plan, the leader can ensure the project remains aligned with evolving needs and expectations. This agile approach allows for flexibility and responsiveness in the face of change. Sticking to the original project plan and resisting changes would not effectively address the dynamic nature of the project and could lead to misalignment with stakeholder needs. Delegating responsibility for managing changing requirements to the project sponsor would not demonstrate the leadership and adaptability required of the project manager. Simply communicating changes to the team and expecting them to adapt their work without further guidance does not provide the necessary support and direction for the team to successfully navigate the changes.

Correct Answer: Create an environment of psychological safety and trust, and encourage the team to experiment and learn from failures

As an Adaptive Leader, empowering a Scrum team involves fostering an environment where team members feel safe to express ideas, take risks, and learn from their experiences. Creating psychological safety and trust encourages the team to experiment and innovate without fear of criticism or failure. This approach aligns with Scrum principles that promote self-organization, collaboration, and continuous improvement. In contrast, strategies that involve micromanagement, limiting autonomy, or enforcing strict hierarchies undermine the team's ability to make independent decisions. Such approaches can stifle creativity, reduce motivation, and prevent team members from taking ownership of their work. Empowerment comes from allowing the team to collectively navigate challenges and grow through shared experiences.

Correct Answer: Encourage sustainable work practices and discuss as a team how to improve work-life balance.

The main responsibility of a Scrum leader is to create an environment where the team is motivated, productive and happy. Most importantly, the work must be sustainable. Encouraging sustainable work practices and discussing as a team how to improve work-life balance is thus the best way to deal with the burnout issue that the team faces due to continuous overtime. Ignoring the issue as it's not directly affecting project delivery is wrong because burnout can significantly reduce productivity over the long term. Telling the team members that pulling long hours is part of the job would lead to demotivation and reduced productivity. Taking over some of the tasks would lead to an imbalance in the workload distribution and doesn't necessarily contribute to solving the issue of burnout.