Agile Scrum Terms

Question 1

Acceptance Criteria

Answer 1

Acceptance criteria are a set of conditions that software must meet in order to be accepted by a customer or stakeholder.

And how are these conditions decided?

It’s all up to the product owner. They need to determine whether the feature is doing what the users want it to do (user story).

Synonyms:
Client accepted
Definition of Done (DoD)

Question 2

Acceptance Test

Answer 2

An acceptance test ensures that a software feature is working correctly and meets the acceptance criteria. It’s usually run after the software has been developed.

Synonyms:
User test, functional test

Question 3

Agile Manifesto

Answer 3

The Agile Manifesto is a document that sums up the 12 Agile principles that guide the Agile framework.

Every Agile methodology strictly follows the principles and practices outlined in the Agile Manifesto.

12 agile principles: https://www.agilealliance.org/agile101/12-principles-behind-the-agile-manifesto/

Question 4

12 Agile Principles

Answer 4

https://www.agilealliance.org/agile101/12-principles-behind-the-agile-manifesto/

Question 5

Agile marketing

Answer 5

It’s a marketing technique that borrows heavily from Agile practices and values. Agile marketing professionals work in sprints so that their team can complete high-value projects in a very short period of time.

After each sprint, they measure how well their project has fared, and see what changes they can make in order to improve their performance in the next sprint.

Agile marketing is also a great way for your marketing team to respond quickly to the rapidly changing markets we see today.

Question 6

Agile Mindset

Answer 6

An Agile mindset is a set of attitudes that an Agile or Scrum team should have towards their work.

These attitudes are inspired by Agile values and principles, such as:

Respect
Collaboration
Continuous improvement
Focus on delivering value

Question 7

Agile Principle

Answer 7

An Agile principle is a guiding practice that helps teams understand and adopt Agile.

There are 12 Agile principles that revolve around customer satisfaction, increasing the speed of software development, and flexibility.

Question 8

Agile Release Train

Answer 8

An Agile Release Train is a combination of multiple Agile software development teams used to tackle large enterprise-scale projects.

Think it of as a mega Scrum team!

On average, it consists of around 50-125 team members working together on different parts of the project. Just like a Scrum team, an Agile Release Train works in short bursts called iterations.

However, their iterations (called program increments) are 5x the length of a regular iteration!

They are an essential part of the Scaled Agile Framework.

Question 9

Agile Software Development

Answer 9

Agile Software Development is a project management technique that allows developers to create a working software model in just a few weeks.

Wait, isn’t this too fast? How is this possible?

An Agile team breaks down in their project into smaller development cycles called iterations or sprints.

At the end of the iteration, the Agile team is able to deliver working software with just the essential features. Users give their feedback and suggestions, and the Agile team includes it in future iterations, like us!

This cycle continues until you’ve created a final software that delights your customers.

Over the years, it has split into different frameworks and methodologies like Scrum, Kanban, Lean, and XP.

Question 10

Agile transformation

Answer 10

Agile transformation is the process of transitioning your entire organization to adapt to the Agile mindset.

This involves creating a work environment that supports innovation and flexibility. It also allows your project team to be cross-functional (having members with different skill sets).

Note: Agile transformation does not mean teaching your team to use Agile software development methodologies.

Question 11

Backlog

Answer 11

It’s a list of new product features, updates, bug fixes, etc. that are required by the user.

At the start of every iteration, the product owner decides which backlog items the team needs to work on. After every iteration, the backlog is regularly updated with user suggestions and new features.

Question 12

Backlog Refinement

Answer 12

It’s a Scrum meeting where the Scrum team organizes the backlog to make sure it’s ready for the next sprint or iteration. In other words, it’s like spring cleaning… but for Scrum teams!

It is normally held at the end of the sprint.

Here’s what the team does during this meeting:

Removes unnecessary user stories
Creates new user stories based on user feedback
Prioritizes features that must be included in the next sprint

Synonyms:
Backlog grooming

Question 13

Bottleneck

Answer 13

Bottlenecks are issues that can completely slow down the development process.

Let us explain:

A sprint task goes through multiple stages during the development process, such as: ‘To do’, ‘In Progress’, ‘Review’. A bottleneck occurs when too many tasks are stuck at one stage, like a traffic jam of project tasks!

As a result, the project workflow slows to a crawl, something that you wouldn’t want in a quick Agile process!

That’s why an Agile team usually uses a Kanban board to prevent this from happening.

Synonyms:
Obstacle, impediment

Question 14

Burndown Chart

Answer 14

A burndown chart is an important chart that helps Agile project managers track:

The amount of work left in the project
The time remaining to complete the work

Synonyms:
Release burndown chart, sprint burndown chart

Question 15

Continuous Integration (CI)

Answer 15

Continuous integration is an Agile practice where developers constantly add their code to the main system.

How does it work?

Development professionals work independently on a feature. Once a feature is completed, it’s tested for any bugs.

Only after it’s passed the automated test is it added to the final software.

Synonyms:
Continuous delivery, CI

Question 16

Daily Scrum

Answer 16

It’s a daily meeting usually hosted by the Scrum master. Every morning, the Scrum team gets together for 15 minutes to discuss their day ahead.

Each member briefly talks about the following topics:

What they plan to do today
What they did yesterday
Issues they have encountered
The Scrum master steps up to solve any impediments the Scrum team might have.

Synonyms
Daily standup, Daily Scrum meeting

Question 17

DSDM (Dynamic systems development method)

Answer 17

It’s a business-oriented Agile framework that focuses on the entire project from start to finish. The core belief of DSDM is that the work done on the Agile project should align with the strategy of the company.

Question 18

Epics

Answer 18

An epic is a big idea or feature that can be broken down into smaller user stories. Much like how large ‘epics’ like Lord of the Rings are split into 3 books.

For example: an epic called ‘Improve Mobile UI’ can consist of 3 user stories: ‘Add mobile Shopping Cart’, ‘Optimize Speed’, and ‘Consistent Font’.

Each user story, in turn, can be broken into manageable tasks.

Synonyms:
Epic stories

Question 19

Gantt Chart

Answer 19

It’s a horizontal bar chart that visualizes the sequence of tasks within the project timeline. Each task has a start date and end date so that your team doesn’t exceed deadlines.

Use a Gantt chart to see what tasks are dependent on each other.

Synonyms:
Project timeline

Question 20

Impediment

Answer 20

It’s an obstacle that reduces an Agile team’s productivity or prevents them from completing an Agile project altogether.

For example:

Communication issues, distractions at the workplace, hangovers after a team outing 😉, etc.

During a Scrum meeting, it’s the Scrum master’s responsibility to remove any impediments that a team may have, even if it involves treating them with a hangover cure!

Synonyms:
Roadblocks, issues

Question 21

Iteration

Answer 21

It’s a period of time in which an Agile team needs to develop working software. An iteration generally lasts for around 2-4 weeks for Kanban and Scrum teams.

Synonyms:
Sprint, timebox

Question 22

Kanban

Answer 22

It’s a highly visual Agile framework.

Instead of working in fixed and planned iterations like in Scrum, Kanban teams work on priority tasks whenever they come in. The goal of Kanban is to have a constant stream of work without any bottlenecks.

How do they do that?

Teams add a limit to the number of tasks that can be worked upon simultaneously (known as WIP limit), so the team doesn’t multitask and slow down productivity.

Question 23

Kanban board

Answer 23

A Kanban board visualizes all the work within the project.

It’s a physical or visual corkboard that is split into 3-4 columns.

Each column in a Kanban board represents a status of the task, ranging from ‘To Do’, ‘In Progress’, and ‘Done’.

In Kanban, each task is visualized as a sticky note or card. Every time a team member finishes a task, the card is moved to the relevant column like so:

Synonyms:
Task board, whiteboard, corkboard

Question 24

Lean

Answer 24

It’s a set of principles and practices that optimizes the development process. It was inspired by the lean manufacturing approach introduced by Toyota in the 50s.

Synonyms:
Lean software development

Question 25

Product backlog

Answer 25

A product backlog is Scrum terminology that refers to a list of new features, updates, bug fixes, etc. that are required by the user. The product owner is in charge of prioritizing items in the product backlog. They decide every product backlog item the team needs to work on at the beginning of each iteration.

Synonyms:
Backlog

Question 26

Product manager

Answer 26

A product manager assists the Agile team with the development process from start to finish.

Their main responsibilities include:

dealing with problems in the development process
ensuring the team meets project deadlines
collaborating with other departments of the company like sales, marketing and, customer service

Note: Product manager and Product owner are not interchangeable Agile terms.

Synonyms:
Project manager

Question 27

Product owner

Answer 27

They are the key members of an Agile or Scrum team.

They decide the vision and features of the final software, but the features are not chosen on a whim!

They carefully understand the customer’s needs and requirements and add those items to the product backlog.

But that’s not all!

They also receive feedback from the customers and relay it to the development team.

Question 28

Refactoring

Answer 28

Refactoring is an extreme programming practice.

Here Agile software development teams ‘clean up’ the code by:

Removing redundant pieces of code
Edit out unnecessary functions
The result is a simpler code that could be understood by any developer.

Note: Refactoring doesn’t change how the code works; it just improves its internal structure and architecture.

Synonyms
Restructuring

Question 29

Release plan

Answer 29

A release plan showcases all the features to be included in the next release, along with an estimated release date.

It’s kind of like the movie trailer of an Agile project!

A release plan usually spans for a period of a few months.

Question 30

Scaled Agile Framework

Answer 30

It’s an Agile methodology that allows large companies to implement Lean and Agile practices throughout the organization. SAFe unites all software development teams within a company to work towards developing large enterprise-scale software.

How does it do this?

It organizes multiple Agile teams into a large team called Agile Release Train, so they can collaborate effectively.

Curious about Scaled Agile Framework? Click here to know more about this Agile method.

Synonyms:
SAFe

Question 31

Scrum

Answer 31

Scrum is an Agile methodology in which a team works in short bursts of work ranging from 2-4 weeks, called sprints. At the end of the sprint, they deliver the product to the customers, and in turn, the customers give the developers their feedback.

What goes on in a Scrum sprint?

A Scrum team sets a rigorous plan for the sprint, so everyone knows what they have to do. Moreover, teams host regular Scrum meetings in order to manage processes within the sprint.

In the world of Agile, Scrum is the popular kid.

In fact, around 66% of Agile teams use Scrum or a form of Scrum!

Question 32

Scrumban

Answer 32

Scrumban is a hybrid Agile methodology that combines elements of, you guessed it… Scrum and Kanban!

It has the structure of Scrum and the continuous workflow of Kanban. This comes in handy when the Kanban team wants to follow a few Scrum practices, and the Scrum team wants to try out the Kanban method.

Question 33

Scrum board

Answer 33

It’s a virtual or physical board that displays tasks that need to be done in a sprint.

The Scrum board is almost identical to a Kanban board.

But don’t be fooled!

Unlike a Kanban board, the Scrum board doesn’t have a limit on the number of tasks that can be in one column simultaneously.

Synonyms
Task board, whiteboard, cork board.

Question 34

Scrum master

Answer 34

The Scrum master is the leader of the Scrum. They organize meetings, remove impediments, and work with the product owner to ensure that the product backlog is up to date.

Note: They don’t boss their team members around.

Instead, they solve problems team members might have.

Question 35

Scrum meeting

Answer 35

A Scrum meeting is an essential part of the Scrum framework. Without them, the sprint would have no structure or project plan in place!

There are five types of Scrum meetings that occur during the sprint.

Each Scrum meeting enables the whole team to do important sprint tasks like:

Create a plan for the sprint in a sprint planning meeting
Solve problems together in the Daily Scrum
Organize the backlog in the backlog refinement meeting
Demonstrate a working software to the customer in a sprint review
Analyze the sprint performance in a sprint retrospective
Want to take a closer look at Scrum meetings? Click here.

Synonyms:
Scrum ceremonies, Agile ceremonies

Question 36

Scrum of Scrums

Answer 36

It’s a special Scrum meeting for large Scrum teams.

Here, large Agile teams (more than 12 team members) are divided into smaller Scrum teams (around 5-10 members). Each small Scrum team designates one member as an ‘ambassador’.

Every day, all the ambassadors meet in the Scrum of Scrums to update their progress and resolve their issues.

Synonyms:
Meta Scrum

Question 37

Scrum team

Answer 37

It’s a cross-functional team of 5-10 individuals with different skill sets ranging from graphic design, UX, coding, etc. They work together to develop a product under the Scrum framework.

Each Scrum team usually contains 3 key roles:

Product owner
Scrum master
Developers

Question 38

Sprint

Answer 38

It’s another term for an iteration.

However, sprint is a Scrum term and is usually a phrase used by Scrum teams.

Another difference between the two is that sprints maintain a uniform length (2-4 weeks) during the Agile development process. Whereas, iterations can have varying lengths, depending on the nature of the work.

Synonyms:
Timebox, iterations

Question 39

Sprint backlog

Answer 39

It’s a list of features, bug fixes, user requirements, and tasks that the Scrum team needs to work on during the sprint.

During the sprint planning meeting, the product owner decides the backlog items that need to be added to the sprint backlog.

Note: Once the sprint backlog has been set, it can’t be changed during the sprint.

Synonyms:
Iteration backlog

Question 40

Sprint goal

Answer 40

The sprint goal is the desired result the Scrum team wants to achieve during the sprint. In most cases, the end result is a working model of the software that can be shown to the stakeholders.

And how do teams achieve the sprint goal?

Scrum teams have to finish developing all the items in the sprint backlog before the sprint ends.

Synonyms:
Iteration goals

Question 41

Sprint planning

Answer 41

Sprint planning is a Scrum meeting where the Scrum team decides the work they need to do during the sprint.

This includes picking up items (like user stories) from the sprint backlog and breaking them down into smaller, more manageable tasks.

Note: A good sprint planning meeting often guarantees a successful sprint.

Synonyms:
Sprint planning meeting, Agile planning meeting

Question 42

Sprint retrospective

Answer 42

A sprint retrospective is a Scrum meeting where the Scrum team analyzes their performance, at the end of the sprint.

The team uses Agile metrics, charts, and reports to see where they excel and where they need to improve.

Synonyms:
Retrospective meeting

Question 43

Sprint review

Answer 43

A sprint review is a Scrum meeting where the Scrum team demonstrates a working software model to the stakeholders.

Along with the product demo, the Scrum team prepares a presentation that outlines the new features added, bug fixes, and other changes.

At the end of the review, the stakeholder provides valuable feedback, which is implemented in the next sprint.

Synonyms:
Sprint review meeting

Question 44

Stakeholder

Answer 44

It’s a term that refers to anyone outside of the Agile team who is connected to the project. It could be an investor, account manager, sales team, or the client.

Question 45

Story points

Answer 45

It’s a measure of effort that your team would need to complete project tasks (user story).

How are they calculated?

The time taken to complete the simplest user story is taken as the baseline and is given 1 point. Other user stories are assigned story points proportional to the baseline.

For example, if a feature that takes 2 hours to develop is given 1 point, then a feature that takes 4 hours receives 2 points.

Question 46

Task board

Answer 46

It’s a generic Agile term that can refer to either a Kanban board or Scrum board.

Synonyms:
Kanban board, Scrum board, Cork board, Whiteboard.

Question 47

User story

Answer 47

It’s a brief description of a specific product feature or a function that customers would find helpful.

A user story looks something like this:

‘As (user name/type), I want to (do a thing), so I can (achieve a goal).

During the sprint planning meeting, the product owner is responsible for breaking down a product backlog item into different user stories.

Synonyms:
User goals

Question 48

Work item

Answer 48

A work item is an Agile term that refers to the different types of work that need to be done within the project.

Here are a few examples:

User Story
Task
Bug fixes
Epics

Synonyms:
Work object

Question 49

Velocity

Answer 49

It’s a unit of measurement that determines the amount of work your team can handle during an iteration.

It’s measured by calculating the average number of tasks/user stories completed in a sprint. Agile teams use a velocity chart to do this.

Question 50

XP (Extreme programming)

Answer 50

Extreme Programming is a software development methodology in which a team has to complete a working software in 1-2 weeks, rather than the usual 2-4 week iteration.

Here all the conventional practices of the Scrum methodology are cranked up to an 11, so teams can quickly respond to the customer’s requirements.

Synonyms:
Extreme Scrum