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The correct answer is A – Facilitate a team discussion to identify knowledge gaps and determine the best way to address them.

The agile coach's role is to foster team ownership and encourage collaborative problem solving. When knowledge gaps are uncovered, the first step is to create transparency and engage the team in identifying how to resolve the gap—through pairing, mentoring, spikes, or backlog adjustments.

From the PMI Agile Practice Guide:

“Agile leaders coach teams to self-identify impediments and explore solutions collaboratively. Coaching helps teams build awareness and take ownership of their development and process improvements.”

(PMI Agile Practice Guide, Section 6.2 – Coaching the Agile Team)

Mike Griffiths adds:

“Rather than providing direct solutions, agile coaches should help teams uncover their own improvements through retrospection, facilitated discussion, and group problem solving.”

(Mike Griffiths, PMI-ACP Exam Prep Book, Chapter 7 – Continuous Improvement / Coaching)

Why the other options fall short:

B & C externalize the problem instead of building team capability.

D may be part of the solution, but the team should explore it collectively—not as a unilateral decision.

Answer: A

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In agile environments, planning should be flexible and adaptable to changing circumstances. Just-in-time (JIT) refinement refers to the practice of refining the backlog and details of the product features as they become more relevant, rather than attempting to plan everything upfront. This allows the team to respond to changes and new information as they emerge, which aligns with agile principles of iterative development and adaptability.

The correct answer is B — They most likely discussed the best approach for this project with the team and will adapt and tailor the approach periodically by reviewing and verifying the scope with the customer.

In Agile, tailoring and adaptiveness are key. Agile projects are not "one-size-fits-all" — teams assess the context and collaboratively select and continuously tailor the best-fit practices. Agile also emphasizes engaging stakeholders frequently and iteratively refining scope.

PMI Agile Practice Guide:

“Agile teams tailor their processes and continually adapt to changing needs. The decision to use agile practices should be based on the nature of the work and team collaboration.”

(PMI Agile Practice Guide, Section 2.1 – Tailoring Agile)

Mike Griffiths:

“Agile promotes adaptive planning and continuous stakeholder engagement to ensure alignment and responsiveness to change.”

(PMI-ACP Exam Prep, Chapter 1 – Agile Principles and Mindset)

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The correct answer is A – Prioritize the stakeholder feedback, considering the impact on strategic objectives and current workload, and discuss these priorities with the team in the next sprint planning meeting to collaboratively decide on the next steps.

Agile promotes adaptive planning and continuous stakeholder engagement. While feedback is highly valuable, especially from a sprint review, changes to the product backlog must be carefully prioritized and collaboratively discussed with the team. The product owner’s responsibility is to maintain and refine the backlog, ensuring alignment with stakeholder needs while also preserving team focus and avoiding unnecessary disruption during an ongoing sprint.

From the PMI Agile Practice Guide:

“Product backlog refinement is an ongoing process in which the product owner and the team collaborate on the details of backlog items. This includes analyzing, estimating, and prioritizing items to reflect the latest feedback and business needs.”

(PMI Agile Practice Guide, Section 5.2 – Product Backlog Refinement)

“Agile teams embrace change, especially when it delivers value. However, they also maintain sustainable pace and focus by avoiding mid-sprint scope changes unless absolutely necessary. Backlog items are reviewed and reprioritized before the next sprint begins.”

(PMI Agile Practice Guide, Section 3.4 – Value-Driven Delivery)

From Mike Griffiths’ PMI-ACP Exam Prep Book:

“While agile encourages responding to change, disrupting sprint commitments can erode team trust and productivity. Sprint planning is the correct forum to reprioritize work based on new stakeholder insights.”

(Mike Griffiths, Chapter 5 – Adaptive Planning)

Why the other options are incorrect:

B introduces mid-sprint disruption and disregards agile best practices for maintaining sprint integrity and team focus.

C eliminates team collaboration and risks breakdowns in communication, violating agile’s emphasis on transparency and teamwork.

D disregards valuable feedback and delays addressing important stakeholder needs, which could compromise customer satisfaction and strategic alignment.

Answer: A

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