Coaching and Facilitation Flashcards
7 cards from real Professional Scrum Master practice questions. Tap to flip, then mark Knew It or Still Learning — missed cards come back until you master them.
Read the first 7 Coaching and Facilitation flashcards as text
A Scrum Team is performing well technically but struggles to connect their work to business value. Which coaching approach should the Scrum Master take?
Answer: Facilitate sessions where the team explores customer outcomes and how their work creates value
Facilitated sessions that connect technical work to customer outcomes build business acumen and intrinsic motivation in the team.
What does 'coaching the organization' mean as part of the Scrum Master role?
Answer: Helping the broader organization understand and adapt its structures and practices to support agile teams
Scrum Masters coach not just their team but also the surrounding organization — helping it remove systemic impediments and create an environment where Scrum can thrive.
A team member tells the Scrum Master they feel overwhelmed by the pace of work but is afraid to speak up in team meetings. What should the Scrum Master do?
Answer: Create a safe environment and coach the team member on ways to voice concerns, while also addressing team psychological safety
Building psychological safety so all team members can speak freely is a core Scrum Master responsibility; coaching the individual and improving team safety address both symptoms and root cause.
Which of the following BEST describes the difference between coaching and mentoring in a Scrum Master's role?
Answer: Coaching draws out the coachee's own solutions while mentoring shares the mentor's knowledge and experience
Coaching is a facilitative approach that empowers through questioning, while mentoring involves transferring the mentor's own knowledge and experience to the mentee.
A Scrum Team is co-located but team members rarely interact outside of Scrum events. The Scrum Master wants to improve collaboration. What is the BEST first step?
Answer: Facilitate team-building activities and create opportunities for informal interaction
Facilitated team-building activities and informal interaction opportunities organically strengthen relationships and trust, which are prerequisites for effective collaboration.
During a retrospective, a team member suggests an improvement that the Scrum Master knows won't work based on past experience. What should the Scrum Master do?
Answer: Facilitate the team in exploring the idea, sharing relevant experience as input rather than a veto
A Scrum Master balances facilitation with coaching; sharing experience as input respects team autonomy while preventing clearly avoidable mistakes.
An organization insists that the Scrum Master provide weekly status reports on team productivity. What is the BEST response?
Answer: Coach the organization on using Scrum artifacts and events to gain visibility instead of separate reports
Coaching the organization to use Scrum's built-in transparency mechanisms (Sprint Reviews, Sprint Backlog, velocity) reduces reporting overhead while improving real visibility.