acsm practice test Advanced Practice Exam: Hard Questions 2025

During a Sprint, a critical production incident occurs. Senior management wants to immediately stop all Sprint work and reassign the Developers to fix the incident, but the Product Owner argues this will jeopardize the Sprint Goal. The ScrumMaster is asked what Scrum allows and what the best action is. What is the most appropriate response and next step?

A Product Owner is pressured by multiple stakeholders to guarantee a fixed scope delivery by the end of the Sprint. The team has a Definition of Done, but historically has struggled with quality issues and missed Sprint forecasts. Which approach best aligns with Scrum values and empiricism while improving predictability over time?

Your organization runs Scrum across five teams on a shared product. Each team has its own Product Owner, and stakeholders complain about conflicting priorities and inconsistent product behavior. Teams also argue about who owns cross-team architectural decisions. As a Certified ScrumMaster, what change best aligns with Scrum and addresses the root cause?

Midway through a Sprint, the Developers discover that several completed Product Backlog Items meet their internal coding standards but fail a critical compliance step that was not included in the Definition of Done. The Product Owner wants to count the work as Done anyway to show progress. What is the best Scrum-consistent decision and why?

A Scrum Team’s Daily Scrum regularly turns into a 40-minute problem-solving session. Some Developers say it’s valuable collaboration; others complain it disrupts flow and excludes remote members who can’t stay longer. What is the best ScrumMaster intervention to preserve the purpose of the Daily Scrum while enabling problem-solving?

A stakeholder demands detailed up-front requirements and a signed scope baseline before allowing the team to start. The Product Owner agrees to provide the baseline to secure funding, and asks the ScrumMaster how to do this "in Scrum" without losing agility. What is the most appropriate guidance?

The Product Owner frequently attends the Developers’ refinement discussions and assigns tasks to individuals, then later complains about low ownership and slow progress. Developers feel micromanaged but say nothing in meetings. As ScrumMaster, what action best addresses this situation?

At Sprint Review, stakeholders focus on why certain planned items were not completed and demand a detailed variance report. The Scrum Team did achieve the Sprint Goal and produced a valuable Increment. Which facilitation approach best keeps the Sprint Review aligned with Scrum while addressing stakeholder concerns?

A team reports high velocity but releases are frequently delayed because final integration and testing happen after multiple Sprints. Stakeholders believe the team is making steady progress, but customer value arrives late and defects spike near release. What is the most effective Scrum-based change?

A Scrum Team uses a Sprint Backlog that is heavily detailed at Sprint start. Mid-Sprint, new information forces a change in approach. A manager insists the team must follow the original Sprint Backlog because it was "approved" in Sprint Planning. What is the most Scrum-aligned response?