How can you manage changes to the Sprint Backlog in Scrum?

In Scrum, the Sprint Backlog is managed primarily by the Developers. They may adjust its contents during the Sprint as they learn more and adapt their plan to achieve the Sprint Goal. However, changes should not affect the Sprint Goal or compromise the quality of the work. This self-management fosters agility and responsiveness, aligning with Scrum's values of commitment, focus, and courage. The Product Owner (PO) can negotiate scope changes with the Developers, but the overall goal of the Sprint should remain intact. The Daily Scrum is a key event for inspecting and adapting the Sprint Backlog as needed.

There is always a request to do but it's crucial to consider Sprint Goal when we want to make decisions. Sprint Goal makes transparency for organizations that what we will have at the end of Sprint and helps team to focus on the most valuable things.

The big flaw in the reasoning is that everything you do has to relate to the Sprint Goal - this does not have to be the case. Viewing changes to the Sprint as change requests is nothing but silly waterfall speak.

In my experience non-functional requirements not evaluated in planning are primary reason for such scope creep. A solution that worked out for me is to create a categorical non-functional requirement documentation and allowing developer to check them by default reduces the discussion or debate effort significantly.

"Managing changes to the sprint backlog in Scrum requires a careful approach to maintain stability and focus. It's crucial to emphasize stability during the sprint and minimize changes unless necessary. The Product Owner plays a vital role in engaging with the team to evaluate proposed changes. Assessing the impact of changes on the sprint goal, work in progress, and team capacity is essential in making informed decisions. Collaborative decision-making involving the Scrum team ensures everyone's understanding and agreement. If changes are approved, items may need to be removed and added to the sprint backlog, with clear communication to stakeholders. Updating the sprint burndown chart helps track progress amidst changes.

It's a myth that the sprint backlog cannot be changed during a sprint. Sprint backlog can be refined and redefined to accommodate the new changes and at the same time ensure not to distract from the sprint goal. Removing a few items or even dividing the features to even more simpler user stories and realigning the sprint backlog can really work wonders.

Embrace Flexibility Within Framework - Understand that the Sprint Backlog is not set in stone. It's crucial to maintain a balance between adhering to the planned work and being receptive to necessary changes. This flexibility within the Scrum framework allows for adapting to evolving project needs while keeping the team's focus Collaborative Decision-Making - Involve the entire Scrum team in discussions about changes to the Sprint Backlog. This collaborative approach ensures that all perspectives are considered, and the team collectively owns the decisions made. It also helps in assessing the impact of changes on the sprint goal Transparent Communication - Maintain transparency with stakeholders about any changes.

There is a missing piece... The sprint backlog is based on a commitment. The team is committed to completing the work they agreed to tackle on Sprint Planning. Any changes in Sprint Planning should be discussed, and the commitment should be renegotiated. If we are adding more work to the Sprint Backlog, what can we move back to the Backlog? Probably something in TO DO. Maybe not. But at least this conversation should happen, as we are dealing with team capacity. Think about a cup full of water and what happens if we add more water to it. Same as the team capacity, meaning the team will probably need to work extra hours to deal with it. The idea is to go back and renegotiate the sprint capacity with the team and get a new commitment.

It is also essential to keep in might the Sprint Goal. Otherwise, the team might miss it. It is not about the delivery of every single item in the Sprint Backlog.