Preparing for the Certified Scrum Master certification exam is a difficult process for many Agile professionals.
However, if you have sample exam questions and answers, your chances of passing the certification exam are higher.
What is Scrum?
Scrum is a framework for product development management. The main task of Scrum is the constant connection with the customer, as a result of which unexpected changes may occur, new requirements from the customer to the final product, and they must be included. To achieve an adequate response to these challenges, the product development team learns to be self-organized and work on individual aspects of the task as a whole.
How the organization has changed since the introduction of Scrum:
Higher productivity.
Better quality products.
Faster implementation of projects.
Increased job satisfaction – for all stakeholders.
What is Scrum Master?
The Scrum framework has 3 roles – Scrum Master, Product Owner, and Development team.
The main tasks of Scrum Master are:
- Educates and encourages the main stakeholders of the product to the principles of Scrum.
- Train the team in the principles of Scrum to ensure high-quality product results.
- Encourages self-organization in the team.
- Ensures that the Scrum process is followed and followed.
- Helps the team follow the agreed processes in Scrum
- Participates in team meetings to ensure continuous progress.
- Ensures that all stakeholders comply with the rules, regulations, and principles of Scrum
- Protecting the team from outside interference
- Support meetings and Scrum events
- Collaborate with the Product Owner role
Preparation for Certified Scrum Master certification exam: example questions
The presented material is suitable for preparation for the certification exam for BVOP Certified Scrum Master, PSM II, and CSM (Certified Scrum Master).
The Development team shares your idea that they want to nominate you for a Product Owner appointment and take over its functions, and for the Product Owner assigned to your team to go to another team and have no contact with it.
I would like to thank the team for having such confidence in me, but I would explain to them that the idea is not very good. Reasons:
1. Insufficient working time to combine the two roles professionally
2. Conflict of interest, which can lead to a poor end product
I would talk to the Development Team and the Product Owner to fix the relationship between them if there is a problem.
In 2 days you have a meeting to present the current progress of the product. Your Product Owner role and most of the Development team are on leave for another 5 days.
Reschedule the meeting if the rest of the team is not professionally trained enough or is not familiar enough with the product. Reference: “Preparation for Certified Scrum Master certification exam with sample questions“, https://www.shihannews.net/preparation-for-certified-scrum-master-certification-exam/
(Honestly, the leave should be combined with the meeting in advance or the meeting should be set in the time after the leave – depending on which is determined first. This would be more professional and hassle-free).
Business stakeholders share the view that the product is not progressing as expected.
Talk to the Product Owner and the Development team about what they are not happy with. Why did it happen? – non-observance of time; budget quality, etc. Once the problem is identified – together the whole team to draw up an action plan.
You notice that the team spends more and more time in the games and entertainment hall in your office.
Initially, I would like to check with the Product Owner whether the set of User Stories is running on time and quality.
But in general – in my office, there is no room for games and entertainment. I would remove it.
The Product Owner role in your team goes on a business trip for 2 months to one of your customer support centers. No one has made any plans, no comments. The client has not shared anything more, the Development team does not know what it will work on and your colleagues are worried about the future of the project.
Meeting with the Product Owner to clarify the situation and make a plan for future actions. If you need a Product Owner to take over your work remotely. Reference: “Example questions for the Scrum Master certification exam“, https://customer-service-us.com/example-questions-for-the-scrum-master-certification-exam/
If the Product Owner has so far not paid attention to me and the Development team for these 2 months and how he sees his role in product development during this time, it may not be his place in our team and the issue should be brought to the attention of The Director of the company.
One of the programmers in the team asks the designer for regular adjustments to the visual concepts he offers.
I will have a meeting with him and with the Product Owner. From now on, consult him. If the Product Owner decides that there is no need for constant consultation and everything about the project is explained well enough – to explain to the programmer to do his part of the job.
The QA specialists on your product testing team plan to integrate additional technologies, tools, and testing procedures. According to the product owner, this will double the work and the progress after the sprints will decrease.
Have a joint meeting with the team and find out if there is a need for these additional features. Clarify with the Product Owner which is more important – time or quality. If the Product Owner needs to discuss the time of the product with potential investors/stakeholders. Reference: “Preparation for the certification exam for CSM and PSM I (BVOSM) Scrum Master“, https://www.mu7club.com/preparation-for-certification-exam-scrum-master/
The designer and the programmer have decided to exchange part of their work on their initiative. The designer will take on some of the easy programming tasks, and the programmer will make parts of the interface.
That they are self-replaceable is good. If it does not interfere with the quality of the product – I see no problem.
QA specialists want you to assign them good testing tools for the next sprints, as you will already be developing new components that require a different type of test.
If the budget allows it and they need it for better quality – then why not. I’m just not sure that this issue should not be discussed, with the CFO, etc., after discussion with the whole team. who approves of things.
The Development Team wants to replace the main software part of your product. We currently use the paid Enterprise popular environment. The license is paid by your customer, who does not think that the cost is a problem.
If it is good for the product and there is no problem for the customer, the Product Owner agrees and will not lead to additional problems with the timing/quality of the product – why not. Reference: “Certified Scrum Master exam preparation with sample questions“, https://customessaysonline.net/certified-scrum-master-exam-preparation-with-sample-questions/
The Product Owner role wants the designer to increase communication with the product testing team.
The Product Owner should generally not interfere with the work of the team. But if he sees that there is a real problem with the product, he must justify it at a meeting with the whole team so that the whole team can decide how best to work.
Your client is not happy with the tests and wants to urgently increase the number of QA specialists in your team, with an additional 6 people as soon as possible. He wants three more senior programmers to join the team by the end of the week. The project budget has been increased accordingly.
If the customer is not satisfied, then something must change for sure. On the other hand, it is not good for the client to say how many and what kind of specialists the team will consist of. Increasing it by 9 people automatically means that the maximum number for a team will be exceeded, according to Scrum.
To hold a more in-depth meeting with the client to find out exactly what he is not happy with and then to assess what new additions and how many will be needed.
Explain to the client the practices of the Scrum process. Reference: “Preparation for the Certified Scrum Master exam (PSM, CSM, BVOSM)“, https://mpmu.org/preparation-for-the-certified-scrum-master-exam-psm-csm-bvosm/
Your director wants you to move temporarily, for about a month, to another team. He has discussed moving your role with the Product Owner, who will take over the Scrum Master function in a month, as he said he has time for that.
If the director wants it, on the one hand, he can’t pretend much on another. However, it is good to explain the pros and cons of this endeavor beforehand.
Leaving the team for a month is not very serious. The other team will also not accept the new Scrum Master for 1 month. Assigning the Product Owner role and the Scrum Master leads to a conflict of interest regarding the quality and execution time of the product on the one hand and the normal functioning of the team on the other. Reference: “Preparation for Scrum Master certification exam on Sprint event“, https://medfd.org/preparation-for-scrum-master-certification-exam-on-sprint-event/
Your colleague, a beginner Scrum Master, asks you a question. He asks you if, for their 3-week sprints, they can accept the Sprint Review event lasting 2 and a half hours.
Technically, the Sprint review event for 3-week sprints should last 3 hours. Since my colleague is a beginner, I would advise him to start planning 3 hours for this event. Better a poor horse than no horse at all.
Over time, and with the experience gained from holding such meetings, he will be able to judge for himself whether the duration of 2.30 hours will be sufficient for his meetings.
You gather at the usual place for your Sprint Review event. Attendees include You as the Scrum Master, the Development Team without a new budding colleague, the Client Project Manager, their Product Manager, Business Analyst, and a hired external usability consultant.
Apart from the novice colleague from the Dev team, I do not see our Product Owner, and his role is crucial, as he must officially accept or reject the work done, citing Definitions of Done.
Beginner colleagues should also, if possible, not miss these meetings, because this is where important feedback about the product is received and it is discussed and decided on what to work on in the next sprint. Read more: “Professional Scrum Master Certification Online“, https://pm.mba/posts/scrummaster-certification-online/
A project manager from your organization came to your Sprint Review event. He listens carefully and watches. He is pleased that the work is going well. Finally, he turns to you and asks you when you expect as a guide to releasing the latest finished developments to the real product in the living environment.
The release of finished and accepted as completed (Definition of Done complied with) by Product Owner developments to the product in the living environment should take place at the request of the customer. The answer to this question should rather come from the client.
The Sprint Review event begins. Shortly after greeting each other, the customer’s product manager opens a topic about the project budget. He is not sure if his organization’s resources will be enough to continue working on the product for another 6 months. Ask your Product Owner for comments and advice on their Roadmap. There is no way for both parties to know and plan at this stage exactly what resources will be needed in 6 months, as this is a long period and many things in the work on the product can change in this time frame. I suggest to our colleagues focus on what lies ahead in the next few sprints to move forward and save efforts that may even be completely unnecessary at a later stage. The idea of the Scrum methodology is flexibility that requires short-term planning and adaptability. Reference: “Preparation for Scrum Master certification and tips for Scrum professionals”, https://www.kievpress.info/preparation-for-scrum-master-certification/
At the Sprint Review event, business people and all representatives outside your Scrum team review what has been achieved and inform you that they have no questions or any other comments or suggestions, and prepare to leave the meeting.
It also depends on the expressions of the people. If they are cheerful and smiling, it will be a sign that the team is still going in the right direction. But if they are expressionless and people are not interested, it may mean that something else is happening on the client’s side and for some external reason, the project may be terminated.
In both cases, I would urge the team to get some feedback on the sprint and the work done in it. I can address one of the attendees by name and ask them what they think about one of the product’s functionalities or what their opinion is about the design. At all costs, I will try to start a discussion by asking open-ended questions addressed personally. Additional information can always be found in a conversation to give me some guidance. But customer feedback, whether positive or negative, is very important to the team.
Your client’s Account Manager has contacted you and asked if you can demonstrate your product one day before the end of your sprint because he needs to prepare presentations.
I would answer this question in the negative. It is uncertain whether we will have a completed part of the demonstration product the day before the end of the sprint, especially if the sprint is shorter. It is very likely that at the end of the sprint the team will be very busy with its completion, completing important functionalities and I would not allow them to be distracted in the end. On the other hand, on the last day, there may be problems of different nature in the development and some of the planned User stories may not be completed in this sprint. Read more: “Preparation with sample questions for Scrum Master certification exam CSM & PSMI”, https://wikipedia-lab.org/preparation-sample-questions-scrummaster-certification-exam/
Since I’m not sure exactly what information is needed for the presentations in question, I would still ask what the Account manager needs in particular, I would discuss the situation with the Product owner and whether we could be useful to the client in any way. without disrupting the work of the Development Team.
Your client’s product manager disapproves of Definitions of Done for one of your User Stories and refuses to accept work on it. Everyone is staring at you, including your product owner.
I am entering into a dialogue to clarify what specifically the Product Manager disapproves of in the completion criteria in question and to what extent the expectations of both parties differ. In case it turns out that the definitions need to be revised and the team needs to redo the development, then we discuss again the priority of this User story and the option to include it in the next sprint.
In the Sprint Retrospective meeting, I would like to raise the issue with the team to comment on how to avoid such situations in the future.
One day before your Sprint Review event, your client’s Account Manager contacted you and explained that they were working with the Marketing Department to prepare new plans. He asks you to send him the items that your team will complete during the sprint.
I could send the Sprint Backlog items that are scheduled to work in the sprint in question to the Account Manager, but until the sprint is over, we don’t know which and how many will be considered complete. I immediately contact our Product Owner to see if he is aware of the changes that are coming from the client and what to expect after the end of the current sprint. Read more: “Free preparation for the Scrum Master certification exam (CSM, PSMI, PSMII, BVOP)”, https://brightonbot.com/preparation-scrum-master-certification-exam/
You have already presented your increment at the Sprint Review meeting. Product Backlog items have been officially announced as completed. There is no work left unfinished. Everyone seems happy. Business people offer, as everything is fine, to discuss possible promotions of team members who have performed well, and then want to take you for a drink.
Success should be celebrated and celebrated properly. This helps a lot to maintain and increase the motivation of the team.
However, if this is not the last sprint in the project, it is good that the team is not distracted too much and does not lose focus. We can note the success of this sprint, but in the Retrospective meeting, the team must return to the ground and analyze as usual our actions and problems that have arisen and decide how to clear up any mistakes in the future to continue to be successful until the end of the project.
Shortly before the Sprint Review event, a team member told you that User Story covers all definitions of completion, but the finished work visually differs from the sketches included in the Product Backlog item.
I ask in detail what is the reason for this discrepancy with the sketches. We need to know exactly what led to this result to know how to present the increment and be fully prepared to answer questions that are sure to arise in this User Story. The options are for the client to like what we have done and accept it as it seems, even though it differs from the sketches in the Backlog, or not to like it and return the work for processing in a subsequent sprint. We will find out at the Sprint Review meeting. Read more: “Free training to prepare for the Scrum Master Certification exam”, https://www.islandjournal.net/scrum-master-certification-exam/
While browsing the Product Backlog items, the customer’s project manager interrupts the conversation and asks a question to your Product Owner. He asks him why two very similar items are rated Story Points 3 and 13. Your product is looking at you.
The fact that the items look similar at first glance does not mean that the work done in the background is also similar and takes the same time. It is possible that the items are complementary and the development of the one with more points, which indicates a more complex and time-consuming task, lays the foundation for the one with fewer points – a smaller or easier task. Or vice versa. It depends on the functionality of the product behind the items in question. Read more: “Best Scrum Master Certifications for 2022 and 2023“, https://eduwiki.me/best-scrum-master-certifications-for-2021-and-2022/
Prepare for the Certified Scrum Master certification exam with sample questions on the Development team topic
The meeting starts and a member of the Development team starts asking questions to the other participants.
I follow the discussion closely and interrupt my colleagues if they engage in very detailed stories or topics that are out of the focus of the meeting, asking them to discuss them outside the daily. However, the time for the meeting is limited, and the focus should remain on achieving the goal of the sprint.
You receive an email from the marketing department upstairs. As they do not know where the place where you hold your Daily Scrum meeting is, they ask you to show it to them in advance so that they are not late.
I answer them that the daily meetings concern only the Dev team and other colleagues are not desirable to participate. If marketing colleagues have any questions about the product we are developing, they can address them to the Product Owner and me via email or arrange a meeting to ask them. Read more: “Best Scrum Master certification online”, https://scrumtime.org/best-scrum-master-certification-online/
A representative of your client is on a business trip to your office, but only for a short time. He will leave early in the morning tomorrow. 15 minutes before your meeting, a member of the team asks you to call him so that he can provide as much important information as possible while he is here.
I understand that the team would like to take advantage of the presence of the customer’s representative to extract as much information as possible about the product, but the Daily Scrum meeting is not the place for that. I try to organize a separate short meeting with the representative and the team at a convenient time before the departure of the person and I ask the team to prepare in advance with questions.
Your colleague is late for your Daily Scrum meeting and has sent the following email with answers to the team’s usual questions:
“Hello! Yesterday I was working on recovering the user password. It is not ready yet and I am continuing today. I think I will succeed by the end of the day. I encountered several problems, but I avoided them quite flexibly.”
It is good that the colleague shares this information, which I can easily pass on to the rest of the team, but in case of any questions, no one could explain at the moment, except the colleague in question. However, this can happen after the meeting itself. Perhaps the worst thing, in this case, is that the colleague will not hear how far the others are in development and what other problems have arisen, and whether and how they have been eliminated. I could send him summary information after the daily so that he is up to date with what is happening on the project.
I remind my colleague that it is not advisable to be late or miss the Daily Scrum meeting. Reference: “Preparation for the Scrum Master certification exam (BVOSM, CSM, PSM)“, https://mstsnl.net/preparation-for-the-scrum-master-certification-exam-bvosm-csm-psm/
During your Daily Scrum meeting, a colleague tells the others:
“Yesterday I was working on uploading the profile picture for users. Today I will create several automated tests with different common situations to make sure there will be no shoots. It turned out that the test server does not have libraries installed for all supported photo file formats. I will go down to the Development Operation colleagues today and ask them to put them on, and then I will tell you. In the meantime, know that you may encounter this problem as well. “
Here it may be that the problem with the test server is bigger and affects other elements of product development. If no one on the team is proactive and raises a question, I still draw their attention to this possibility (no matter how stupid and incompetent the questions maybe). I prefer to be sure that the problem is not bigger than it seems at first glance and that it will not hinder the work of the whole team until it is eliminated.
During your Daily Scrum meeting, a colleague tells the others:
“Yesterday I was in the designers’ room to discuss the graphics for the next sprint. Today I will integrate all the icons into the registration form. I think there will be a small problem, but I will manage.”
I understand that my colleague yesterday was working on things that concern the next, not the current sprint, and I pay attention to this in front of everyone. I remind you that the focus of work should be solely on the current tasks in the current sprint and we should not be distracted and waste time with things that we may, perhaps, do in the next sprints, because the tasks we know today that we can work, it is possible to change or drop out altogether. What matters is what we do here and now and what we deliver at the end of this sprint.
Your Product Owner comes to your Daily Scrum meeting just before the end and politely asks everyone to repeat what they shared, because in a little while he will meet with a representative of the client, who asked him for an up-to-date development situation.
In this situation, I would ask the Product Owner to wait 2 minutes for the meeting to end, after which I will summarize the information shared by colleagues about him so that other colleagues can continue their work. I do not consider it necessary for the whole team to be involved in providing this information and I tell the PO that I am in a meeting in case of additional questions.
Just before your Daily Scrum meeting, your director sent you the following email:
“Hello! Can colleagues from another department come to your daily team meeting to watch your Scrum events? I promise they won’t interfere in any way.”
According to Scrum’s principles, it is not desirable for outsiders to attend daily meetings. Even if they stand and just watch, they can cause confusion and anxiety in their colleagues, which will cause distraction and incomplete holding of the meeting. I suggest to the director instead to explain to the colleagues from the other department the idea and the way of holding this type of event and to have a practical meeting with them within 10-15 minutes. In this way, they will enter a role and will be able to draw much better conclusions about the value of this type of meeting. Reference: “Quick and easy preparation for the Scrum Master certification exam“, https://www.businesspad.org/quick-and-easy-preparation-for-the-scrum-master-certification-exam/
One of the members of the Development team asked your Product Owner to attend the meeting to share important information, but others are strongly opposed, as they believe that your Product Owner will understand important details about how they are implemented and this will disrupt Development their harmony.
I explain to the Development team that even if they understand the details of how they are implemented, which is good for full transparency within the Scrum team and in defense of Scrum principles, the Product Owner has no right to interfere in their way of implementing. work and disturb their harmony and it is my responsibility not to allow this to happen. I can suggest that the meeting with the Product Owner with the team be held immediately after the Daily Rally within 5-10 minutes so that we can have a relaxed meeting and at the same time everyone will have the opportunity to learn the important information that Product Owner has to share.
The Daily Scrum meeting is underway. Tomorrow is the last day of the sprint. Several User Stories remain unfinished, which is certain that they cannot be completed by tomorrow.
Incomplete services should be returned to the Product Backlog by the Product Owner, who has given them new priorities at his discretion. It is logical to be arranged to work in the next sprint.
A member of the Development team says that he tried all day yesterday to speed up the responses of your client’s marketing department. They take too long to answer and do not send him the information he needs to complete his work.
I am sending an email to the marketing department, with a copy to the head of the department, asking them to return a response to the colleague as soon as possible, as the information is needed to meet the project schedule. I follow the situation closely and in case we do not receive an answer in a short time or at least some excuse for the delay to help me make a more adequate decision on my further actions, I contact the head of the department and ask for help from his part.
