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Remaining questions from PSMI (PO+Fire Member)

Last post 07:14 am January 28, 2014 by Sergej Werfel
4 replies
04:54 am January 24, 2014

After my PSM assessment there are still some unclear things. I don't fully remember the questions and answers, but that is what I want to know:

1. Which task better fits to the PO role?
- Provide Feedback
- To advise with stakeholders

=> I'm sure, that both is quite important. First the PO must explain all questions and details of the PBIs to the DevTeam. Otherwise they cannot work. Second the PO represents the interests of all stakeholders, so he/she must know what they want and explain it to the team if necessary. But answering that question I must select one of them (there were also other answers that I has excluded)

2. One person makes problems in the DevTeam, who can fire that person?
- DevTeam
- Management
- s.o. else

=> Here it was difficult to decide. In my opinion the DevTeam should talk about the problem and try to resolve it as a self-organizing group. If this is not possible they should try to satisfy the person to go by itself. The DevTeam has not the rights to fire a member, but the decision should come from them. The only one who is able to fire a person (or to assign it to an other team) is the management (independent on scrum). So here it is quite difficult to select the "right" answer. For scrum I would answer DevTeam, but this is unrealistic because of laws or working contracts.


What do you think about the upper questions?


07:39 am January 24, 2014

1. I'd go for "provide feedback", on the grounds that this is most clearly of value to the rest of the Scrum Team. "Advising stakeholders" is less precise in terms of the value a PO would be expected to provide as a Scrum Team member. Then again, "advising stakeholders" could be seen to encompass the provision of feedback, so it is indeed a tricky one.

2. I think you're spot on. I cannot disagree with either your analysis or your conclusion.


08:31 am January 24, 2014

Agree with Ian.
I'd add that Development Team is self-organising, but not self-managed (which would mean they can fire, recruit, pay bonuses). There's a slight difference here.


04:14 pm January 24, 2014

The Managers are responsible for the boundaries of the team.
Even in the context of Scrum, you'll have some kind of managers, who are able to hire, pay and fire people if necessary.


07:14 am January 28, 2014

Thank you for your answers. Especially Illya for clarifying self-organizing and self-managed.


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