HKSM
Shared Resources
People, environments, or equipment that multiple Scrum Teams rely on within the same project. On larger initiatives these assets are often constrained, and several teams may need them at the same time, creating scheduling and dependency challenges.
Key Points
- Includes personnel (e.g., UX, DevOps), environments (labs, test beds), and tools or equipment used by more than one team.
- Scarcity can create queues, delays, and cross-team dependencies that impact sprint goals.
- Access should be planned and made transparent with calendars, booking policies, and clear priorities.
- Chronic bottlenecks may require adding capacity, creating replicas, or dedicating the resource to reduce contention.
Example
Five Scrum Teams work on a large product. There is only one performance testing environment and a single security specialist. Teams reserve time on a shared calendar. When two teams need the lab in the same sprint, Product Owners coordinate priorities and one team adjusts its sprint plan while the other proceeds, reducing idle time and ensuring fair access.
PMP Example Question
In a scaled agile program, three Scrum Teams need the only UX designer and the same test environment during the current sprint. What is this situation an example of?
- Shared resources
- Dedicated teams
- Rolling wave planning
- Definition of Done
Correct Answer: A — Shared resources
Explanation: Multiple teams are competing for the same people and environments, which characterizes shared resources; the other options do not describe resource contention.
