Story Points

5 minutes 5 Questions

Story points is a unit of measure for the amount of work it will take to complete a particular task. Rather than estimating this effort in hours or days, teams assign a point value to the task based on complexity, size or risk involved with it. This technique is abstract and requires the team to co…

Complete Guide to Agile Estimation Techniques: Story Points

Importance: br Story points are a unit of measure for expressing the overall size of a user story, feature, or other pieces of work in the Agile framework. They allow teams to express the difficulty of work in a number that is easy to understand, enables useful comparisons, and facilitates planning, prioritization, and prediction of work.

What it is: br Story points are a relative measure of effort required to implement a user story. They are unit-less, factoring in the complexity, effort, risks, and uncertainties associated with the work.

How it works: br The team sizes each user story by comparing it to one or more 'baseline' stories. A common approach is using the Fibonacci sequence (1, 2, 3, 5, 8, etc.) for the relative sizing. The team then uses these story points to predict how much work they can complete in future iterations.

Exam Tips: Answering Questions on Story Points: br - Understand the concept of relative sizing: Story points measure the relative size of stories, not the exact time or effort required.
- Make sure you know how story points can help in iteration planning and forecasting.
- Teams use story points differently, so there might not be a 'one-size-fits-all' answer. Remember, story points are a tool for the team, not a standard measurement.
- The value given to a story point depends on the team’s baseline and can vary from team to team. It is essential to make this clear when answering questions.

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PMI-ACP - Story Points Example Questions

Test your knowledge of Story Points

Question 1

During sprint planning, two team members disagree on the story points for a task. Other members have not estimated yet. What should you do?

Cancel the sprint planning meeting and postpone the discussion Accept the highest story point estimate given Accept the lowest story point estimate given Average the given story points and assign the result Ask the product owner for their opinion Initiate a discussion among the team members and re-estimate the story points

Correct Answer: Initiate a discussion among the team members and re-estimate the story points

Having a discussion among the team members helps to better understand the task and align estimates. Averaging the given story points or canceling the meeting does not provide clarity or alignment in the team.

Question 2

During retrospective, a team member suggested tweaking the way story points are estimated to reflect complexity rather than time efforts. The Scrum Master should...

Delegate this decision to the higher management of the company. Accept the idea immediately without discussing with the whole team. Support the team in the understanding that Story Points represent complexity, size, and risk of the User Story, not time. Reject the idea as Story Points should only reflect time efforts.

Correct Answer: Support the team in the understanding that Story Points represent complexity, size, and risk of the User Story, not time.

The best answer is 'Support the team in the understanding that Story Points represent complexity, size, and risk of the User Story, not time.' This is because in Scrum, Story Points are a measure of the complexity of a task, not the time it will take to complete. Estimating Story Points in relation to time will lead to inaccurate estimations and inconsistencies. As such, the Scrum Master should indeed support the team in understanding and implementing this concept. The second answer 'Reject the idea as Story Points should only reflect time efforts.' is incorrect because, as explained, Story Points should reflect complexity, not time. The third answer 'Accept the idea immediately without discussing with the whole team.' is not the best answer because a Scrum Master should facilitate team discussions, not make unilateral decisions. Lastly, the Scrum Master definitely should not 'Delegate this decision to the higher management of the company.' as it's his responsibility to guide his team in the Scrum principles, including how to accurately estimate Story Points.

Question 3

A new member joined the development team who has never worked with Story Points before. As a Scrum Master, your role should be to...

Advise the new team member to observe and learn during planning sessions without actively participating until comfortable. Schedule a formal training session about Estimation Techniques in Agile, ensuring comprehensive coverage beyond just Story Points. Coach the new team member on estimating backlog items with Story Points, emphasizing its purpose and benefits in fostering a collaborative estimation process. Introduce a mix of estimation techniques simultaneously to give the new member a broad perspective, including T-shirt sizing, planning poker, and Story Points.

Correct Answer: Coach the new team member on estimating backlog items with Story Points, emphasizing its purpose and benefits in fostering a collaborative estimation process.

The correct answer focuses on the Scrum Master's role in coaching and guiding team members, specifically about Story Points which is closely related to the question's context. The wrong answers, while plausible and related to Agile practices, either extend beyond the immediate need (formal training session), passively involve the new member (observe and learn), or complicate the learning process (introducing multiple techniques at once), which are not as effective as direct coaching for this scenario.

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