An Agile Team decides they want to use pair programming in future Iterations. Where should this be captured?

A. In the team retrospective notes

B. In the team’s improvement backlog

C. In the Inspect and Adapt meeting notes

D. In the Program Backlog

Correct Answer is

B. In the team’s improvement backlog

Explanation

The decision to use pair programming in future iterations should be captured in the team’s improvement backlog.

Here’s why this option is the most appropriate:

• In the team retrospective notes: While the decision to adopt pair programming might be discussed and agreed upon during a retrospective, merely noting this decision in the retrospective notes might not ensure its implementation. Retrospective notes are important for capturing insights and decisions made during the meeting, but they are not always actionable or prioritized for future work.


• In the team’s improvement backlog: This is the correct place to capture such a decision. The team’s improvement backlog is specifically designed to hold improvements, adjustments, and experiments the team plans to implement to enhance their processes and workflows. Capturing the decision to use pair programming here ensures that it is prioritized, tracked, and reviewed for effectiveness in future iterations. It makes the commitment more visible and actionable.


• In the Inspect and Adapt meeting notes: The Inspect and Adapt (I&A) meeting is a SAFe event that occurs at the end of each Program Increment and involves the whole Agile Release Train. While it’s a venue for identifying larger-scale improvements, decisions about specific practices like pair programming, which are more tactical and team-specific, are best managed within the team’s domain, such as their improvement backlog.


• In the Program Backlog: The Program Backlog is intended for features, enablers, and capabilities that require attention at the program level across multiple teams within the Agile Release Train. Decisions about specific engineering practices or process improvements within a single agile team, like adopting pair programming, do not typically belong in the Program Backlog. This backlog focuses on larger work items that impact the delivery of value at the program level.

By capturing the decision to use pair programming in the team’s improvement backlog, the team ensures that such process enhancements are considered, planned, and implemented systematically as part of their continuous improvement efforts.

Other SAFe Scrum Master Question – During Iteration planning, the Product Owner introduces multiple new Stories to the team. After a lot of discussion, the team decides to insert spikes into the Iteration for research. How should a Scrum Master help resolve this issue?