HKSM

Scrum Guidance Body Expertise is the use of organizational experts and their documented standards to guide how Scrum is applied across projects. It helps teams interpret policies, tailor practices, and make informed decisions while keeping self-organization intact.

Key Points

• Advisory expertise drawn from an organization-level Scrum Guidance Body (SGB).
• Promotes consistency and compliance without removing team autonomy.
• Used to tailor Scrum practices, refine Definition of Done, and standardize templates.
• Supports risk, quality, and regulatory alignment across multiple teams.
• Delivers practical outputs such as guidelines, checklists, and recommendations.
• Engaged early and on demand when new constraints or opportunities arise.

Purpose of Analysis

The aim is to analyze how organizational standards, compliance needs, and proven practices should influence the team’s day-to-day Scrum implementation. This ensures Scrum remains lightweight while meeting enterprise, regulatory, and quality expectations.

The analysis focuses on aligning the product backlog, Definition of Ready, Definition of Done, and working agreements with shared guidance so that outcomes are consistent and auditable across teams.

Method Steps

• Identify the need: a new regulation, cross-team dependency, quality gap, or scaling concern.
• Access the SGB repository: review policies, standards, templates, and lessons learned relevant to the need.
• Consult experts: schedule a brief clinic, Q and A, or workshop to clarify intent and options.
• Tailor guidance: agree on what to adopt, adapt, or request an exception for, keeping it as lightweight as possible.
• Operationalize: update Definition of Done, acceptance criteria patterns, and working agreements; create backlog items to implement changes.
• Socialize and train: communicate updates to stakeholders and provide quick enablement as needed.
• Inspect and adapt: collect metrics and feedback to refine the guidance in future sprints.

Inputs Needed

• Product vision, product backlog, and current sprint goals.
• Existing organizational policies, standards, and SGB templates.
• Compliance or regulatory requirements and constraints.
• Current Definition of Ready and Definition of Done.
• Team impediments, risks, and quality metrics or defect trends.
• Cross-team agreements and dependency maps.

Outputs Produced

• Tailored Scrum guidelines and recommended practices for the team.
• Updated Definition of Done, checklists, and acceptance criteria patterns.
• Templates and standards for user stories, estimation, and documentation.
• Recommendations or decisions, including any approved exceptions or waivers.
• Backlog items to implement compliance, quality, or process improvements.
• Training or coaching plans to support adoption.

Interpretation Tips

• Treat guidance as enabling constraints, not as heavy governance.
• Prefer minimal, testable changes that can be validated within a sprint.
• Make updates visible on team boards and in working agreements.
• Timebox consultations to avoid delaying delivery and decision making.
• Escalate conflicts between guidance and product value to the Product Owner and SGB for resolution.
• Continuously inspect outcomes to confirm the guidance is improving value and quality.

Example

A company introduces new security requirements. The Scrum Master engages the Scrum Guidance Body to understand the policy and obtain a lightweight checklist and acceptance criteria patterns.

Together, they add security items to the product backlog, update the Definition of Done with static analysis and secure coding checks, and train the team on using the new template. After two sprints, defect leakage drops and the SGB refines the checklist based on feedback.

Pitfalls

• Turning the SGB into a gatekeeping approval board that blocks sprints.
• Over-prescribing processes that dilute empiricism and slow delivery.
• Applying generic guidance without considering product context.
• Failing to update guidance, leaving teams with outdated standards.
• Skipping backlog changes, resulting in invisible work and surprises.
• Inconsistent adoption across teams causing compliance and quality drift.

PMP/SCRUM Example Question

A Scrum Team must meet a new regulatory requirement for data retention starting next sprint. What should the Scrum Master do first?

1. Create a stage-gate requiring SGB sign-off before each Sprint Review.
2. Engage the Scrum Guidance Body to obtain applicable standards and update the Definition of Done and backlog accordingly.
3. Ask the Product Owner to defer the requirement until a future release.
4. Tell Developers to proceed and wait for an external audit to provide direction.

Correct Answer: B — Engage the Scrum Guidance Body to obtain applicable standards and update the Definition of Done and backlog accordingly.

Explanation: Consulting SGB expertise provides clear, organization-approved guidance that can be operationalized via DoD updates and backlog items. Other options delay or add unnecessary gates that hinder empiricism.