Question

On an agile project, tension is rising during the daily standups. Several developers openly express frustration that the product owner keeps adding 'small' features mid-sprint, while the product owner accuses the team of being uncooperative and slow. The atmosphere is becoming hostile and productivity is dropping. As the project manager acting as a servant leader, what should you do FIRST to address the conflict?

Accepted Answer

Facilitate a conversation between the team and product owner to understand the root cause and reinforce the agreed sprint commitment process

Answer

Escalate the product owner's behavior to the sponsor and request that mid-sprint changes be formally prohibited

Answer

Tell the developers to accommodate the additional features since satisfying the customer is the highest priority in agile

Answer

Reassign the most vocal developers to reduce the visible friction during standups