PMP · Question #866
Since the beginning of a project, the product owner keeps asking during ceremonies about the budget spent for each product iteration. The product owner seems much more interested in the cost rather th
The correct answer is D. Worked with the product owner to clarify their role in an agile project and the scope of the agile. The project manager should have clarified the product owner's role in an agile project early on, explaining the focus on value delivery and scope management rather than direct cost tracking per iteration.
Question
Options
- AWorked on different approaches of estimating to give confidence of the cost spent in each product
- BWorked on a fixed-price contract to switch the product owner's attention to value instead of
- CWorked on a communications management plan with reports of budget spent in each iteration
- DWorked with the product owner to clarify their role in an agile project and the scope of the agile
How the community answered
(52 responses)- A10% (5)
- B6% (3)
- C2% (1)
- D83% (43)
Why each option
The project manager should have clarified the product owner's role in an agile project early on, explaining the focus on value delivery and scope management rather than direct cost tracking per iteration.
Working on different estimation approaches primarily addresses the *method* of estimation, not the product owner's underlying behavior or misunderstanding of their agile role regarding financial oversight.
Switching to a fixed-price contract is a contractual decision, not a project management action to address a product owner's behavior or understanding of their role within an existing agile project.
Creating a communications management plan with budget reports would *enable* the product owner to track costs, reinforcing the very behavior the project manager is trying to change, rather than redirecting their focus to product value.
In an agile project, the product owner's primary focus is maximizing product value, managing the product backlog, and representing stakeholder needs, not typically deep-diving into iteration budgets. Clarifying their role and agile principles upfront would set appropriate expectations and shift focus to product value.
Concept tested: Agile roles and responsibilities clarification
Source: https://www.scrum.org/resources/what-is-a-product-owner
Topics
Community Discussion
8
Ola B.Apr 1, 2026D is right. The PO fixating on cost over value is a classic role confusion problem, and the PM should have sat down with them early to clarify what their job actually is in an agile context. If you want to see how fast this goes sideways, spin up a quick sandbox project and play the PO role yourself for a sprint or two, you will feel the pull to micromanage costs and realize why that role boundary needs setting on day one.
Prof. SaraApr 4, 2026D is correct, mapped to the People domain. I take slight issue with the wording because you cannot truly change someone's behavior, but you can clarify their agile role to focus on value prioritization. Option C is a tempting distractor because feeding the cost obsession seems helpful, but it actually enables the wrong focus.
Yuki V.Apr 16, 2026Picked D. Does anyone have a clean breakdown of PO role boundaries in agile?
Prof. SaraApr 18, 2026D is correct for prioritizing the backlog, but remember the PO owns the what and the why while the dev team owns the how, a boundary that trips up candidates who assume the PO also assigns tasks.
Anjali D.Apr 12, 2026Our group leaned toward B because a fixed-price contract removes the constant cost anxiety, which lets the product owner focus on value and the actual product instead of obsessing over every iteration's spend. A few people pushed back saying D is more about coaching the role, but in my view if the financial structure is still open-ended, no amount of role clarification will stop them from tracking the burn.
Ola B.Apr 13, 2026D is correct here because the question is really about the PO misunderstanding their role on an Agile team, not about the contracting model. If you spin up a quick scenario in your head where a PO is acting like a budget gatekeeper, the fix is coaching them back to value-based prioritization, not restructuring how the engagement is funded.
Bao N.Mar 31, 2026B is the one here. A fixed-price contract removes the cost anxiety entirely, which forces the product owner to stop obsessing over iteration spend and actually focus on value delivery like they should be.
Prof. SaraApr 1, 2026D is correct because a fixed-price contract actually creates the problem, not solves it, since the team is incentivized to deliver the minimum agreed scope to protect their margin rather than continuously maximize value. Bao's reasoning flips the dynamic, the real exam insight is that fixed-price in an Agile context forces scope-locking behavior, which directly contradicts the iterative value-driven approach the question is testing under the contract and procurement management domain.