PMI-ACP — Agile Certified Practitioner practice questions and exam guide

Which is the BEST description of 'value stream mapping'?

1. Diagramming an org chart
2. The product roadmap
3. Visualizing every step from concept to customer delivery, identifying value-add vs. non-value-add (waste) time
4. The Definition of Done

Answer: C — Visualizing every step from concept to customer delivery, identifying value-add vs. non-value-add (waste) time

VSM (Lean): map end-to-end flow, surface waste. Highlights wait time (often 90%+ of lead time) as primary improvement lever.

Which is the BEST way to make retro action items actually happen?

1. Capture them in a document and revisit next quarter
2. Limit to 1-3 items, assign an owner, and add them to the backlog (or working agreement) for the next sprint
3. Email them to management
4. Pick the largest items

Answer: B — Limit to 1-3 items, assign an owner, and add them to the backlog (or working agreement) for the next sprint

Action items die from over-commitment + no owner. Few + owned + on backlog → actually done. D is anti-pattern (too big to finish).

What is the CONE OF UNCERTAINTY?

1. Concept showing that estimation uncertainty is HIGH early in a project and DECREASES as the project progresses and more is learned
2. A meeting room shape
3. Pure linear scale
4. Risk register
5. Pareto chart

Answer: A — Concept showing that estimation uncertainty is HIGH early in a project and DECREASES as the project progresses and more is learned

Cone of Uncertainty (Boehm): early estimates can be 4x off; converge as work proceeds. Agile embraces this: defer detailed estimation, plan in waves, iterate. Justifies high-level early estimates with finer ones close-in. PMI-ACP planning topic.

Which is the BEST description of a 'Definition of Ready' (DoR)?

1. Same as DoD
2. Checklist for backlog items before they enter a sprint — clear, sized, no blockers, acceptance criteria defined — improves predictability
3. Sprint deadline
4. Hire criteria
5. Risk threshold

Answer: B — Checklist for backlog items before they enter a sprint — clear, sized, no blockers, acceptance criteria defined — improves predictability

DoR (vs. DoD): when a story is ready to be picked up. Reduces sprint failure due to under-refined work. Used in many teams. Counterweight to DoD (when done). PMI-ACP Domain 5.

All of the following are ways an agile leader builds psychological safety EXCEPT:

1. Treating failed experiments as learning opportunities in retrospectives
2. Inviting quieter members to contribute during team discussions
3. Modeling vulnerability by admitting their own mistakes
4. Tracking individual error counts and reviewing them in team meetings

Answer: D — Tracking individual error counts and reviewing them in team meetings

A) Framing failure as learning is a core safety practice. B) Inclusive facilitation increases safety. C) Leader vulnerability signals that candor is safe. D) Correct exception — publicly tracking individual errors creates fear and discourages transparency.

A high-fidelity prototype is MOST appropriate when:

1. Early in discovery
2. The customer is unavailable
3. The team wants to lock scope
4. Validating final visual details and usability nuances after concept is settled

Answer: D — Validating final visual details and usability nuances after concept is settled

Hi-fi after low-fi. Hi-fi signals 'done' so feedback narrows to nuances. Don't waste effort on hi-fi during concept exploration (A).

Kaizen is BEST described as:

1. A major reorganization
2. An annual planning event
3. Replacing the team
4. Continuous small improvements driven by the people doing the work

Answer: D — Continuous small improvements driven by the people doing the work

Kaizen (Japanese 'change for better'): small, ongoing, bottom-up. Foundation of Lean continuous improvement. A is the opposite (Kaikaku).

Which is TRUE about agile estimation accuracy improving over time?

1. Cone of Uncertainty narrows as more is learned — estimates remain ranges but tighten as the project progresses
2. Estimates become exact
3. Estimates lose value over time
4. The team should re-estimate every story every sprint

Answer: A — Cone of Uncertainty narrows as more is learned — estimates remain ranges but tighten as the project progresses

Cone of Uncertainty (McConnell): wide at start, narrow as work proceeds. Estimates are ranges, never points.

Which is the BEST way to handle a TEAM that has plateaued in performance?

1. Replace team
2. Add more meetings
3. Cut estimates
4. In retros, explore root cause (process, environment, skills, motivation, tech debt); experiment with small changes; measure impact; share learnings across org
5. Eliminate retros

Answer: D — In retros, explore root cause (process, environment, skills, motivation, tech debt); experiment with small changes; measure impact; share learnings across org

Continuous improvement: retros surface plateaus. Small experiments (one change at a time), measure, share. Often it's environment/process not effort. PMI-ACP Domain 7 (Continuous Improvement).

Speed Leas / Mahler classify conflict on which 5-level scale?

1. Level 1 Problem to solve → Level 5 World war
2. Level 1 Disagreement → Level 5 Intractable
3. Level 1 Mild → Level 5 Severe
4. Level 1 Friendly → Level 5 Hostile

Answer: A — Level 1 Problem to solve → Level 5 World war

Speed Leas levels: 1) Problem to solve, 2) Disagreement, 3) Contest, 4) Crusade, 5) World war. Used by facilitators to gauge intervention needed.

Which is the BEST approach when a stakeholder requests a new feature mid-sprint?

1. The Scrum Master adds it to the sprint
2. The team votes whether to take it on
3. Route to the Product Owner, who decides whether to add to the Product Backlog and re-prioritize
4. Refuse all changes during the sprint

Answer: C — Route to the Product Owner, who decides whether to add to the Product Backlog and re-prioritize

PO is single voice for stakeholders re: backlog. Off-by-one role trap (A — SM doesn't own backlog). D is too rigid — change can happen, just via PO.

Planning Poker uses which sequence to discourage false precision in large estimates?

1. Fibonacci or modified Fibonacci (e.g., 1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 13, 20, 40, 100)
2. Linear: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5...
3. Powers of 10
4. Random

Answer: A — Fibonacci or modified Fibonacci (e.g., 1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 13, 20, 40, 100)

Fibonacci gaps widen with size → acknowledges uncertainty grows with size. Linear (A) implies you can distinguish a 4 from a 5 in a big story.

Servant leadership?

Leader serves team. Removes obstacles. Empowers + supports vs commands.

Adaptive planning?

Plan iteratively. Adjust based on learning. Different from upfront waterfall planning.

Product Owner role?

Maximizes product value. Manages product backlog. Single voice for stakeholders.

Resistance to change?

Common. Address with education, leadership support, demonstrating wins.

Sprint Backlog?

Items selected for current sprint + plan to deliver. Owned by Dev Team.

Kaizen?

Continuous incremental improvement. Japanese. Lean origin.