In reference to the Scrum Guide, Scrum is a framework in which people can address complex situations productively and creatively solve them using adaptive methods to recur the highest quality product.
This Scrum Framework consists of three roles: Product Owner, Development Team, and the Scrum Master.
To fathom better, for who is responsible for assurance of Quality in the Scrum Team, we need to scrutinize the responsibilities of all Scrum Team Roles.
We have all heard this one line.That the entire Scrum Team is expected to ensure the Quality. But what does it mean in real life?
Before we dive into defining Quality Ownership, we need to delve into the meaning of Quality in the Agile Framework. When we describe the Agile Software Development Framework, the Quality is bifurcated into two parts :
- Intrinsic Quality
- Extrinsic Quality
- Â Thus we are today able to categorize the definition of Scrum Quality from two separate sources – from the client ( external source ) and the development team ( internal reference)Â
What is Quality in a Scrum Team?
We have already cited the two types of qualities in a Scrum Framework. Let’s dive more into this topic.
Intrinsic Quality: All built-in qualities of a product are a part of this Quality. It includes suitability, persistence, authenticity, and uniformity.
We can measure these types of qualities on a quantitative basis. To detect defects, bugs, test coverage.
Extrinsic Quality: the value of a quality product and the customer’s perception about the product are a part of this Quality. This type of Quality is measured depending upon the sales, client testimonies, customer feedback, and finally, the sales.
When often people speak about Quality, they are talking about the Intrinsic one.
That is why companies must undertake the responsibility of appointing Quality Assurance experts. This team of esteemed professionals will not waste time in evaluating the buyer’s perception but rather invest their time in verifying the performance of the product and validating its backlogs.
This team will be answerable to both of these following questions
- Are we building the right product?
- Are we making the product right?
Quality assurance, such as verification and validation, is done only to check whether the technical and business requirements of the client were met or not.
If not, proper strategic planning is due needed to change the course of the plan.
On Agile Products, companies pay keen attention to creating products to satisfy the requirements that tie back the development team to the original idea and Vision behind the client’s product.
If technical and business requirements do not align with the client’s Vision, then even the success of a product is of no value.
The objective of iterations and releases is to create a product of the highest value with balanced features. And this later becomes the goal of Scrum Sprints.
Is the Product Owner responsible for Quality in a Scrum Team?
We can provide data that is simple and filled with real-life examples of how the Product Owner can address intrinsic and extrinsic qualities to facilitate a Scrum Sprint Meeting. The development team works to submit the backlog item with the previously written code by refactoring it. The particular code causes an atrocious increase in storage every time a report is released, resulting in customer-facing unexpected problems.
That is why an in-depth discussion of the complex problem and analysis is required to lead us to a quantifiable measurement. Quantifying the situation allows the Product Owner to remove the requirement that was an applicant for the current release.
Ultimately, it is too tedious of a process to quantify all issues of an extrinsic quality against all intrinsic ones. However, suppose your respective Agile Team is mature enough. In that case, it can make a most efficient dialogue and decide that allows balancing short-term customer-facing objectives with the viability of the long-term product in mind. Knowledge makes you stay woke; thus, knowing more about the Product Owner interview questions will help you understand the role in more depth.
Ownership of Quality
Let’s turn back to our original question: who ensures the Quality in Scrum Framework?
When we speak about the Agile Framework, the best way to apply is in the Scrum Team. Nowadays, 90% of companies have started to practice Agile and Scrum Framework.
According to the Scrum Guide, “As the Scrum Team matures, It is expected of them that the definition of ‘done’ would be expanded to imbibe more ironclad criteria for the highest Quality of the product.”
But the Scrum Guide also indicates that the Product Owner (PO) is obliged to optimize the “value of work” performed by the Development Team.
Finally, it is possible to state that the extrinsic Quality of a product falls under the responsibility of the PO.
Who is responsible for Quality in Scrum in the Real-World?
Even though companies grasp quality ownership from a theoretical perspective, they rarely put it to practice.
Below we shall provide you with a list of some best practices that are crucial for the Product Owner to be genuinely responsible for Quality:
- Quality Assurance must report to the business;
- Sign of design documents;
- Must approve all performance and non-functional requirements;
- Product Owner must look into product backlog before the Sprint;
- The Product Owner is obliged to consent to the scope of pre-production testing.
If an organization wants quality assurance, it is necessary to provide the Product Owner with quality ownership. If above all, changes are implemented on a cultural and organizational level, then the Product Owner can genuinely bring changes in the Quality.
At least due to the urge of companies to use Development Team to educate the Product Owner on costs helps them resolve intrinsic quality issues faster and bring actual value and quality ownership to the Product Owner.
The Product Owner must comprehend that the support and maintenance of well-written codes require lesser capital. Eventually, there can be an obligation to pay back a particular technical debt. But a good Product Owner can choose the best time to put this plan into focus.
However, such approaches may result in conflict inside the emerging Scrum Team. But they can be very well be avoided in the Scrum environment. If the Scrum Team serves to deliver the value to their client and keep this as their primary goal.
We can create an environment where the Product Owner owns the Quality in Scrum.
