B is correct because the Product Owner is accountable for maximizing the value of the product and the work of the Developers1, and delaying answers to the Developers can cause waste, rework, and missed opportunities2. E is correct because the Product Owneris responsible for ensuring that the product Increment is valuable and useful for thestakeholders and customers3, and this requires close collaboration and feedback with the Scrum Team and the users4. A is incorrect because the Product Owner does not need to dedicate 100% of their time to the Scrum Team, as they also have other accountabilities such as engaging with the market, managing the product vision, and aligning with the business strategy5. C is incorrect because the Product Owner is not a proxy for the stakeholders, and they should not delegate their role to business analysts or anyone else. D is incorrect because the Product Owner does not need the approval of the stakeholders to decide how much time they spend with the Scrum Team, as they are empowered to make the best decisions for the product. F is incorrect because the Product Owner should not base their time allocation on the complaints of the Developers, but on the value and quality of the product.

A. Importance to users or customers: The value an item brings to the customer is a key factor in ordering the Product Backlog1.

B. Alignment with organizational strategy and goals: The Product Owner should consider how well an item aligns with the organization’s strategy and goals1.

C. Risk: Business, market, and technology risks are important considerations when ordering the Product Backlog1.

D. Alignment with other Product Backlog items: Dependencies and impact on other items in the Product Backlog should be considered1.

Option A is correct because talking to users is one of the best ways to understand their needs, goals, and pain points. By spending more time with them, you can identify the impact they seek from your product and how your features align with that impact. This will help you validate your assumptions and learn from your customers12.

Option B is incorrect because disabling features that have never been used is a risky and potentially harmful action. It may cause frustration and confusion for the users who rely on those features, or who may want to use them in the future. It may also damage your reputation and trust with your customers. Instead of disabling features, you should seek feedback from your users and understand why they are not using them34.

Option C is correct because running experiments is a powerful way to increase your understanding of what customers find valuable. By testing different hypotheses and measuring the outcomes, you can learn from your data and evidence. You can also use experiments to validate your ideas and assumptions before investing in building features5 .

Option D is correct because examining whether the rarely used features solve the intended problem is a crucial step to evaluate your product performance. You should review your product vision and goals, and assess how your features contribute to them. You should also analyze the feedback and data you have collected from your users and stakeholders, and identify any gaps or mismatches between your features and their needs .

References:

1: Product Backlog Management

2: Stakeholders & Customers

3: Product Value

4: Evidence-Based Management

5: Product Vision

: Forecasting & Release Planning

: [Business Strategy](https://www

As a Product Owner, you are responsible for making decisions that maximize the value of the product and align with the product vision and strategy. However, you also need to collaborate with the Scrum Team and the stakeholders, and respect their input and feedback. Making decisions without consulting them or allowing them to make decisions they are not accountable for can lead to confusion, conflict, and waste. Therefore, options A and B are not reasonable.

Option C is a reasonable option because it helps you communicate your decision-making areas and delegate some decisions to the appropriate level of the organization. A delegation board is a tool that shows who has the authority to make which decisions, and how much involvement is expected from others. By creating and sharing a delegation board, you can clarify your role as a Product Owner, empower the Scrum Team and the stakeholders, and reduce the time and effort spent on decision making.

Option D is also a reasonable option because it helps you improve the company’s culture and mindset towards product ownership. As a Product Owner, you need to act as an entrepreneur, who is able to innovate, experiment, and validate assumptions. However, not all organizations are ready to support this kind of product ownership, and some may have a more traditional or bureaucratic approach. Working with your Scrum Master, you can identify the gaps and barriers that prevent you from being an effective Product Owner, and take steps to overcome them. For example, you can educate and coach the organization on the benefits of agile product management, create a shared product vision and roadmap, and foster a culture of trust and transparency.

Option E is another reasonable option because it helps you demonstrate the value of your decisions and the cost of delay. As a Product Owner, you need to use data and evidence to support your decisions and measure their impact. By showing how long it is taking you to make decisions and how that affects the delivery of value to the customer, you can justify your choices and persuade others to support them. You can also use data to identify the most important and urgent decisions, and prioritize them accordingly. This way, you can avoid analysis paralysis and focus on delivering value faster and more frequently.

 A user satisfaction gap exists when there is a difference between what the user expects from a product or service and what the user actually experiences12. The user’s desired outcome is the goal or benefit that the user wants to achieve by using the product or service3. The user’s actual experience is the perception and evaluation of the product or service by the user4. If the user’s actual experience does not meet or exceed the user’s desiredoutcome, the user will be dissatisfied and may switch to a different product or service. References:

1: Identifying and Closing the Customer Satisfaction Gap

2: Find the Gaps in Your User Experience

3: [Outcome-Driven Innovation]

4: [User Experience]

: Measure Business Opportunities with Unrealized Value

B. It helps the Scrum Team keep focus and they can check any decision against it: A well-understood Product Goal acts as a powerful magnet that propels Scrum teams towards value delivery34. It guides efforts, prioritizes activities, fosters collaboration, and ensures focus on delivering value to customers34.

C. It provides overall direction so Sprints will feel less like isolated pieces of work: The Product Goal provides context to the Product Backlog2. It can be thought of as the ‘why’ we are doing all of this work2. It can be used as the elevator pitch to 'what is the Scrum Team working on?'2.

D. It makes it easier to inspect incremental progress at the Sprint Review: As each Increment is produced, the Product incrementally moves toward the Product Goal2. How that value is incrementally determined is very context-specific2.

According to the PSPO II guide and Scrum.org competencies, when ordering Product Backlog items, a Product Owner should consider various factors to maximize the value of the work done by the Scrum Team. These factors include:

A. Dependencies to other products: Recognizing dependencies to other products is crucial for the Product Owner to ensure that the Scrum Team is working on items that can be completed and deliver value without being blocked by external dependencies.

B. Value of Product Backlog items: The primary role of a Product Owner is to maximize the value delivered by the Scrum Team, and ordering items based on their value is a fundamental aspect of this responsibility.

C. Dependencies between Product Backlog items: Understanding and managing dependencies between Product Backlog items helps in planning Sprints more effectively, ensuring that the team is working on items in a logical sequence.

D. Cost of delay: The cost of delay is a critical economic factor that influences the ordering of Product Backlog items. Items that would result in a higher cost if delayed should be prioritized.

E. Cost of implementation: While value maximization is the goal, the cost of implementation cannot be ignored. Balancing the cost and the expected value is essential for effective Product Backlog management.

These considerations are in line with the Scrum.org Professional Scrum competencies, particularly under 'Managing Products with Agility', where it's emphasized that Product Owners should have a deep understanding of market value, product feasibility, and the importance of making trade-offs to maximize value.

Verified Answer: A, B

Very Very Short Explanation: In the context of Scrum and the PSPO II guidelines, when there is uncertainty about customer needs or market desires, it is recommended to make smaller releases to allow for quicker feedback and adaptation (A), and to increase the focus on validating customer needs to ensure that the product development is aligned with what customers actually want (B).This approach is consistent with the principles of empiricism and agility, which emphasize the importance of transparency, inspection, and adaptation123.

According to the Scrum Guide, the Developers are accountable for creating a plan for the Sprint, which includes selecting the Product Backlog items that they can deliver in the Sprint1. If they realize that the workload is too high, they have two options: either reduce the scope or increase the capacity. Reducing the scope means removing or changing some of the Product Backlog items, in agreement with the Product Owner, so that theSprint Goal can still be achieved2. Increasing the capacity means adding more Developersto the team, but this is not recommended, as it can disrupt the team dynamics, lower the quality, and increase the communication overhead3. Therefore, the best actions to take are A and B, as they respect the self-organization and collaboration of the Scrum Team, and allow them to deliver a valuable and potentially releasable Increment at the end of the Sprint4.