Why is this considered an anti-pattern?

A. Because the team consistently meets their commitments, and the Product Owner accepts the Stories

B. Because the team is waterfalling the Iteration

C. Because it is difficult to manage dependencies with other teams

D. Because the team demonstrates the full Stories to the Product Owner during the Iteration review

The correct answer is

B. Because the team is waterfalling the Iteration

Explanation

Integrating and testing Stories on the last day of the Iteration is considered an anti-pattern because the team is waterfalling the Iteration.

This practice effectively compresses the Agile iteration into a mini-waterfall cycle, where development work is done up front without integrating and testing until the very end. This approach goes against Agile principles, which advocate for continuous integration, testing, and feedback throughout the iteration.

Here’s why this option is correct and the others are not:

• Because the team consistently meets their commitments, and the Product Owner accepts the Stories: While meeting commitments and having Stories accepted by the Product Owner are positive outcomes, they do not justify or negate the risks associated with integrating and testing only at the end of the iteration. This pattern can lead to significant issues being discovered too late for meaningful resolution within the iteration, impacting quality and predictability.


• Because the team is waterfalling the Iteration: This is the correct reason. By leaving integration and testing until the last day, the team is not leveraging the benefits of Agile methodologies, such as early discovery of issues, faster feedback loops, and improved quality. This approach can lead to a crunch time at the end of the iteration, with increased stress and a higher likelihood of defects slipping through.


• Because it is difficult to manage dependencies with other teams: While managing dependencies with other teams can indeed be challenging, this is not the primary reason why integrating and testing at the last moment is considered an anti-pattern. The core issue with the late integration and testing is the risk it poses to the quality and viability of the deliverables within the iteration, regardless of external dependencies.


• Because the team demonstrates the full Stories to the Product Owner during the Iteration review: Demonstrating Stories to the Product Owner during the iteration review is a standard practice and is not inherently problematic. The issue with the described pattern is not related to when or how Stories are demonstrated but to the risk introduced by delaying integration and testing.

Integrating and testing continuously throughout the Iteration allows for early detection of defects, more effective risk management, and ultimately leads to higher quality outcomes. Waiting until the last day to perform these critical activities undermines these benefits and introduces unnecessary risk and pressure on the team.

Other SAFe Scrum Master Question – Which statement is true about refactoring code?