Sprint planning is an event in Scrum that defines what can be delivered in the upcoming sprint and how the work will be achieved. This planning involves the collaborative effort of the Scrum team, including the Scrum Master, the product owner, and the development team.
Understanding the Sprint Planning Process
The sprint planning procedure comprises two components:
- What: Here, the Scrum team defines the work and goals for the upcoming sprint. By reviewing the product backlog, the team identifies the tasks required to achieve the product development objectives.
- How: Once the tasks are identified, the team discusses how they are going to complete the assigned tasks. The development team clarifies details and creates a sprint backlog.
With that in mind, here’s a detailed step-by-step process of how to conduct sprint planning.
Step 1: Review the Product Backlog
Sprint planning commences with reviewing the product backlog. The product owner discusses the items on the backlog and their importance. The overview familiarizes the development team with the objectives of the sprint.
Step 2: Define the Sprint Goal
The Scrum team, led by the product owner, defines the sprint goal. This goal provides guidance for the development team during the sprint, creating a shared understanding of why the sprint is valuable to the product’s success.
Step 3: Select Items for the Sprint
Once the sprint goal has been defined, the next step is to identify the product backlog items that align with this goal. The development team selects items based on the sprint capacity and their skill set. The product owner and the Scrum Master provide clarifications and prioritize the tasks.
Step 4: Break Down Selected Items
After the selection, the development team discusses each item in detail. They decompose the items into smaller, manageable chunks referred to as sprint tasks. These tasks are usually time-boxed to a day or less.
Step5: Confirm and Commit
Once the tasks have been identified, the development team confirms if the sprint backlog aligns with the sprint goal. If it does, the team commits to the sprint backlog, and the sprint planning meeting concludes.
Example of a Sprint Planning Process in a Project
To comprehend the above steps, consider a software development project for an e-commerce platform.
- Review of product backlog: The product owner outlines the overall scope of the project, from features like user registration, shopping cart, and payment processing.
- Defining the sprint goal: The Scrum team decides that this sprint’s goal will focus on user registration—ensuring a seamless process for new users to sign in and create their profiles.
- Selecting items for the sprint: The development team prioritizes tasks relating to user registration, like designing the user interface, setting up databases for storing user information, implementing security measures, and testing the functionality.
- Breaking down selected items: These items are then broken down into achievable tasks. For example, the design of the user interface may involve multiple tasks like sketching the layout, creating icons, coding, and review.
- Confirming and committing: After breaking down the tasks, the development team agrees that the sprint backlog aligns with the sprint goal. They then commit to the sprint backlog and the sprint kicks-off.
Ensuring Successful Sprint Planning
As a Scrum Master, it is your responsibility to facilitate a productive sprint planning meeting. You should ensure the meeting stays focused, everyone understands the sprint goal, and that all tasks are well-defined and doable. Encourage active participation and promote open communication.
Remember, the role of the ScrumMaster is commonly misunderstood as one who is meant to direct the team. However, the ScrumMaster’s primary responsibility is facilitation, removing obstacles, and leading the team to follow Scrum principles.
As a Certified ScrumMaster (CSM), your understanding and ability to perform sprint planning effectively can significantly impact the team’s future productivity and the overall outcome of the product. Effective sprint planning can ensure a smoother workflow, increased team collaboration, and improved product output.
Practice Test
True or False: Sprint Planning is the first step in every Scrum Sprint.
- True
- False
Answer: True
Explanation: The Scrum cycle begins with items in the Product Backlog and moves into a Sprint Planning meeting where a Sprint Goal is formed and tasks are selected for the upcoming Sprint.
Who are the major participants in the Sprint Planning process?
- A. Product Owner
- B. Scrum Master
- C. Development Team
- D. All of the above
Answer: D. All of the above
Explanation: Scrum encourages the involvement of all project members in every phase. In the Sprint Planning process, the Product Owner, Scrum Master, and the Development Team all participate.
The result of Sprint Planning is the Sprint Goal.
- A. True
- B. False
Answer: A. True
Explanation: The final aim of Sprint Planning is to define the Sprint Goal, which guides the Development Team on why it is building the increment.
Time boxes in Certified ScrumMaster (CSM) are flexible.
- A. True
- B. False
Answer: B. False
Explanation: In the Scrum framework, all activities, including Sprint Planning, are time-boxed. It means they have a maximum duration.
The Development Team is responsible for developing the Sprint Goal.
- A. True
- B. False
Answer: B. False
Explanation: The Product Owner develops the Sprint Goal, while the development team comes up with the list of product backlog items necessary to achieve this goal.
Sprint Planning only involves estimating and prioritizing product backlog items.
- A. True
- B. False
Answer: B. False
Explanation: Sprint Planning is not just about estimating and prioritizing but it’s also about creating a plan of action that includes selecting the right amount of work the team feels they can complete during the sprint.
In the Certified ScrumMaster (CSM) exam, Sprint Planning is often described as a one-step process.
- A. True
- B. False
Answer: B. False
Explanation: Sprint Planning is a two-step process; one for the What and another for the How.
Sprint Planning is only held when the Product Owner feels it is necessary.
- A. True
- B. False
Answer: B. False
Explanation: Sprint Planning is a critically important part of every Scrum Sprint and is not based on anyone’s whims.
If a Sprint Goal is not achieved, the Sprint Planning process has failed.
- A. True
- B. False
Answer: A. True
Explanation: One of the main objectives of Sprint Planning is to develop a clear Sprint Goal. If this is not achieved, the process could be seen as unsuccessful.
As per CSM, who has the final say on what can be completed in a sprint?
- A. Product Owner
- B. Scrum Master
- C. Both A and B
- D. Development Team
Answer: D. Development Team
Explanation: The Development Team makes the final decision on how much can realistically be completed during the upcoming Sprint during Sprint Planning.
It is not mandatory to revise estimates of backlog items during Sprint Planning.
- A. True
- B. False
Answer: B. False
Explanation: During Sprint planning, the Development Team should revise the estimates of the backlog items selected for the Sprint.
The Sprint Planning meeting should ideally last for 8 hours for a one-month sprint.
- A. True
- B. False
Answer: A. True
Explanation: For a one-month sprint, the meeting should ideally not exceed eight hours. The shorter the sprint, the shorter the meeting.
True or False: It is advisable for the Scrum Team to have a well-prepared Product Backlog before Sprint Planning.
- True
- False
Answer: True
Explanation: A well-prepared Product Backlog facilitates smoother and more efficient Sprint Planning, as the Scrum Team has a clear overview of what needs to be accomplished.
Sprint Planning only focuses on the functional aspects of use cases.
- A. True
- B. False
Answer: B. False
Explanation: Sprint Planning considers both functional and non-functional aspects of use cases and user stories.
The Product Owner is responsible for deciding how the work will be achieved.
- A. True
- B. False
Answer: B. False
Explanation: This is the responsibility of the Development Team. The Product Owner defines the “what” and the “why”, but the Development Team defines the “how”.
Interview Questions
What is a Sprint Planning in Scrum?
Sprint Planning is a time-boxed event that occurs at the start of a Sprint where the Scrum Team plans the work to be performed during the Sprint.
Who participates in Sprint Planning?
The entire Scrum Team, including the Scrum Master, Product Owner, and Development Team, participates in Sprint Planning.
What is the goal of Sprint Planning?
The goal of Sprint Planning is to define what can be delivered in the Sprint, and how the work will be achieved.
What is the output of Sprint Planning?
The output of Sprint Planning is a Sprint Goal and a Sprint Backlog, which is a list of tasks to be completed during the Sprint.
What is the recommended duration for Sprint Planning?
Sprint Planning is usually time-boxed to a maximum of eight hours for a one-month Sprint. For shorter Sprints, the duration is proportionally shorter.
What happens if Sprint Planning takes longer than the time-boxed duration?
If Sprint Planning goes beyond the time-boxed duration, the Scrum Master should help the team to wrap up discussions and carry over unfinished topics to the next Sprint Planning.
Who is responsible for organizing Sprint Planning?
The Scrum Master is responsible for ensuring that Sprint Planning is organized and that all necessary stakeholders are present.
What role does the Product Owner play in Sprint Planning?
The Product Owner presents the Product Backlog items to the team, clarifies their intent, priority, and answers any questions that the team may have during Sprint Planning.
What are some of the key questions discussed during Sprint Planning?
During Sprint Planning, the team typically discusses the scope of work, the capacity of team members, dependencies between tasks, and any potential risks that may impact the Sprint.
How often does Sprint Planning occur in a typical Sprint?
Sprint Planning occurs at the beginning of each Sprint, with the frequency depending on the length of the Sprint (e.g., once per month for a month-long Sprint).
What are the different levels of commitment in Sprint Planning?
During Sprint Planning, the team commits to completing the Sprint Backlog, while the Product Owner commits to the Sprint Goal.
How does the Development Team determine how much work they can take on in Sprint Planning?
The Development Team determines the amount of work they can take on in the Sprint based on their past performance, the team’s capacity, and their understanding of the work involved.
Why is it important to have a clear Sprint Goal in Sprint Planning?
Having a clear Sprint Goal helps the team stay focused and align its efforts towards achieving a specific objective within the Sprint.
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