Retrospective Meeting

Correct Answer: Implement a lean coffee format where team members can anonymously write down their issues and concerns, then collectively prioritize and discuss each topic to find a common ground and solutions.

The correct approach in a scrum team is to ensure a safe and respectful environment where the team can openly discuss failures and improvements without placing blame. Implementing a lean coffee format promotes this by allowing anonymous discussion points, prioritizing them as a team, and collaboratively devising solutions. Wrong answers either miss the mark on scrum values, encourage individual blame, or bypass the opportunity for open dialogue in a retrospective.

Correct Answer: Change up the format or activities used during the retrospectives and involve the team in determining what would be most helpful.

The best approach as a Scrum Master in such a situation is to 'Change up the format or activities used during the retrospectives and involve the team in determining what would be most helpful'. In an Agile environment, a Scrum Master is a servant leader who facilitates the team's progress towards its goals and one of the ways to do this is through effective retrospectives. When the team doesn’t find them useful, it’s best to change the format or involve the team for their views and adapt accordingly. This is because it's important to keep the team involved and motivated, and their feedback is invaluable in this process. The answer 'Ignore the team's feedback and continue the retrospectives as they are' is incorrect because it negates the key values of Agile and Scrum which promote regular reflection for effective adjustment. 'Cancel all Retrospectives until further notice' is wrong because retrospectives are a critical part of the scrum cycle aimed at continuous improvement, and missing them would obstruct this process. Finally, 'Blame the team for the lack of enthusiasm in retrospectives' is also incorrect because blaming the team would not solve the problem. Instead, the Scrum Master should work together with the team to find an effective solution.

Correct Answer: Setup a meeting with the external team, along with representation from your Scrum team, to openly discuss the issues and find ways to improve collaboration.

The professional and collaborative course of action as a Scrum Master when an external team doesn't provide adequate support would be to setup a meeting with the external team, along with representation from your Scrum team, to openly discuss the issues and find ways to improve collaboration. This approach allows for active communication and problem-solving, key components of Scrum philosophy. Ignoring the complaint, as suggested in one of the answers, is not suitable as it would not address the problem at hand and contradicts proactivity. Complaining to the senior management, as suggested in another answer, might not yield a constructive result, it might trigger unnecessary conflicts instead. Recommending to replace the external team, as per another answer, is a drastic and potentially disruptive solution that doesn't necessarily guarantee that the new team would be any better. Besides, it doesn't encourage problem-solving and communication, and instead promotes a blame culture.