PMP · Question #550
A project team has finished its first iteration out of six. The iteration's delivery performance (velocity) was 50%. During the iteration retrospective, the team realizes that the complexity of the…
The correct answer is C. Meet with the team to review internal actions to resolve the situation. Following an iteration with 50% velocity due to underestimated work complexity, the project manager should meet with the team to review internal actions to resolve the situation.
Question
A project team has finished its first iteration out of six. The iteration's delivery performance (velocity) was 50%. During the iteration retrospective, the team realizes that the complexity of the work was underestimated. What should the project manager do?
Options
- AUpdate the issue log and escalate it to the project sponsor.
- BAsk the technical manager to help the team with the issue.
- CMeet with the team to review internal actions to resolve the situation.
- DAsk to replace some team members with more experienced ones.
How the community answered
(24 responses)- A13% (3)
- C79% (19)
- D8% (2)
Why each option
Following an iteration with 50% velocity due to underestimated work complexity, the project manager should meet with the team to review internal actions to resolve the situation.
Escalating to the project sponsor without first allowing the team to self-organize and address the issue internally contradicts agile principles of team autonomy and problem-solving.
While a technical manager might assist, the primary agile response is for the team to collaboratively identify solutions during their retrospective, fostering ownership and learning.
The iteration retrospective is the designated agile event for the team to self-inspect and adapt its processes, including improving estimation accuracy. The project manager's role is to support the team in collaboratively identifying and committing to internal solutions for continuous improvement, rather than immediately escalating or seeking external help.
Replacing team members is an extreme and disruptive measure; underestimation is a common issue for new teams and should first be addressed through process improvement and coaching rather than personnel changes.
Concept tested: Agile retrospectives and continuous improvement
Source: https://www.scrum.org/resources/what-is-a-sprint-retrospective
Topics
Community Discussion
3
Brenda K.Jan 8, 2026C is the correct answer and it is a quick win, so bank it and move on. The retrospective is where the team owns its own improvement process, so the PM facilitates the conversation and lets the team review internal actions to fix the underestimated complexity. A and B push the problem outside the team, which violates the self-organizing principle in agile. D is a time sink trap because swapping people mid-project adds onboarding drag and kills velocity further.
Wei W.Dec 25, 2025C is correct. Self-organizing teams own their retrospective actions and improvement.
Viktor S.Jan 4, 2026C is the right call here because the retrospective is exactly where the team owns its own improvement, not where the PM runs to the sponsor or starts swapping bodies. Question for anyone who's seen this on the real exam: does PMI ever expect you to escalate velocity problems in an agile context, or is that always a trap option designed to lure you back into waterfall instincts?