Sprint Goal Setting

Correct Answer: Encourage the team to collaborate and identify the most valuable increment they can deliver in the upcoming Sprint, considering the Product Goal and the current state of the product.

Encouraging the team to collaborate and identify the most valuable increment they can deliver in the upcoming Sprint, considering the Product Goal and the current state of the product, is the best approach. As a Scrum Master, your role is to facilitate the team's self-organization and guide them towards creating a clear and focused Sprint Goal that aligns with the Product Goal and delivers value to stakeholders. Directing the team to select items based solely on priority or the Product Owner's expectations may not lead to a cohesive and achievable Sprint Goal. Focusing on completing as many user stories as possible without considering their coherence and alignment with the Product Goal may result in a scattered and less effective Sprint. Adopting the Product Owner's desired features as the Sprint Goal without considering the team's ability to deliver them within the Sprint can lead to unrealistic expectations and potential failure.

Correct Answer: Facilitate a discussion between the Product Owner and the team to negotiate the scope, impact and then, if agreed, adapt the Sprint Goal.

In Agile methodology, a particular Sprint goal is agreed upon by both the Product Owner and the development team before the start of the Sprint. Should the Product Owner decide to change the Sprint goal, as posed in the question, the Scrum Master should facilitate a discussion between the Product Owner and the team. They should negotiate the scope, impact and, if agreed, adapt the Sprint Goal. This is because Agile encourages the ability to adapt to change while keeping all stakeholder's perspectives in mind. The other options represent actions that would break from Agile principles. Instantly rejecting the Product Owner's request, changing the Sprint Goal without discussing with the development team, and permitting the Product Owner to change the goal without assessing the impact, all limit the possibilities of mutual interaction and adaptation, which are the core aspects of the Agile methodology.

Correct Answer: Welcome the change and discuss with the team and product owner about modifying the sprint goal and its impact on the product backlog.

The most appropriate role of a Scrum Master in this given situation is to welcome the change and discuss it with the entire team, including the product owner. This is because Scrum embraces changes that optimize the value of the work. Ignoring the feedback or starting a new sprint without addressing feedback contradicts this practice. Also, it is not up to the Scrum Master to single-handedly modify the sprint goal without discussing it with the team, including the product owner. Therefore, the right choice is to welcome the changes and discuss the potential need to modify the sprint goal and its impacts on the product backlog.