Randomized Division of Audience

Correct Answer: Acknowledge their perspective but explain that randomized teaming promotes cross-functional understanding and collaboration, important principles in Agile.

The best response when dealing with a query about the rationale for random team allocation in an Agile activity is to 'Acknowledge their perspective but explain that randomized teaming promotes cross-functional understanding and collaboration, important principles in Agile.' This practice fosters learning and information sharing among a workforce composed of diverse skills and experiences. By encouraging team members to exchange knowledge and interact, it breaks down silos and consolidates a team’s competence base which ultimately results in a more effective and efficient team. This aligns perfectly with Agile's emphasis on individuals and interactions over processes and tools. Compared with the other options, this is the most empathetic and informative approach. 'Ignore their comment and carry on with the session.' undermines the team's need for understanding and might cause resentment or hinder engagement. 'Reshuffle the teams based on their expertise.' does not address the concern raised, and might reinforce silos and discourage cross-functional understanding. 'Tell them they must follow instructions without questioning.' contradicts Agile's collaborative and inclusive principles.

Correct Answer: To break down hierarchies and encourage cross-functional cooperation

The primary purpose of splitting the audience into random groups during a training session is 'to break down hierarchies and encourage cross-functional cooperation'. Agile methodologies are deeply rooted in collaboration and maximizing the team’s ability to deliver quickly and respond to changes. By establishing cross-functional cooperation, a wider range of skills can be utilized and hierarchies within the organization can be broken down. The other options 'to create competition between different groups', 'to separate people who already work together', and 'to identify the most skilled individuals' can potentially harm the unity and collaborative effort which is crucial in Agile environment. Healthy competition is good, but in this scenario, the objective is to foster cooperation rather than competition. Separating individuals who already work together may not always lead to an effective learning or collaboration environment as familiarity breeds productivity. Finally, identifying the most skilled individuals is not the emphasis of Agile, it is about creating self-organizing, cross-functional teams.

Correct Answer: Facilitate a discussion with the group to encourage collaborative problem solving

The answer 'Facilitate a discussion with the group to encourage collaborative problem solving' is the most appropriate course of action. Agile methodologies strongly emphasize teamwork, cooperation and effective communications. Facilitating a group discussion would be more likely to help the team members understand what barriers they need to overcome, rather than addressing the issue in an authoritarian manner. The answer 'Reassign the group members to different teams' doesn't address the root of the problem, and may just spread any dysfunction to other groups. The option of 'Having a one-on-one discussion with the problem individual' might not be appropriate as the source of the issue could be a group dynamics problem and not solely an individual's problem. Finally, 'Ignoring the issue and hoping it resolves itself' is usually not a good strategy in project management as it could lead to the issue escalating or repeating itself in subsequent activities.