You are facilitating sprint planning for a new feature that involves complex data migration. The development team estimates the work at 34 story points, but the sprint capacity is only 28 story points based on historical velocity. One developer suggests reducing quality checks to fit everything into the sprint, while another proposes splitting the migration into smaller, independently deliverable chunks. The product owner is concerned about delaying the feature launch. How should you proceed with sprint planning?

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Accepted Answer

The correct answer is B. Decomposing work into smaller vertical slices (option B) aligns with agile principles of delivering value incrementally and respecting sustainable pace. This approach maintains quality standards while delivering working software each sprint (PMBOK 8 Principle of Build Quality into Processes). Option D might seem reasonable but accepting 34 points when capacity is 28 sets unrealistic expectations and likely leads to incomplete work. Option A explicitly compromises quality and creates technical debt, violating the Definition of Done and sustainable development practices. Option C changes the sprint cadence mid-project, disrupting the team's rhythm and stakeholder expectations. Breaking work into valuable increments is a fundamental agile practice that addresses both capacity constraints and value delivery.

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