Story points and velocity in Agile in Software Engineering - Cheat Sheet & Quick Revision

Recall & Review

beginner

What are story points in Agile?

Story points are a way to measure the effort needed to complete a task or user story. They consider complexity, time, and risk, but are not tied to exact hours.

beginner

How is velocity used in Agile teams?

Velocity is the amount of work a team completes in a sprint, usually measured in story points. It helps predict how much work the team can do in future sprints.

intermediate

Why don't Agile teams use exact hours for estimating tasks?

Exact hours can be misleading because tasks vary in complexity and uncertainty. Story points allow teams to estimate effort more flexibly and focus on relative size.

intermediate

What does a stable velocity indicate about an Agile team?

A stable velocity means the team’s work output is consistent over time, which helps in reliable sprint planning and forecasting project timelines.

advanced

Can velocity be used to compare different Agile teams? Why or why not?

No, velocity is unique to each team because story points are relative and based on that team’s understanding. Comparing velocities between teams can be misleading.

What do story points measure in Agile?

A Exact hours to complete a task

B Effort and complexity of a task

C Number of team members

D Project budget

Story points measure the effort and complexity, not exact hours or other unrelated factors.

Velocity in Agile is usually measured in:

A Story points completed per sprint

B Number of bugs fixed

C Hours worked per day

D Lines of code written

Velocity tracks how many story points a team completes in a sprint to help plan future work.

Why is velocity not a good metric to compare different Agile teams?

A Because teams use different story point scales

B Because velocity measures bugs

C Because velocity is based on hours

D Because velocity changes daily

Each team defines story points differently, so velocity is unique to each team.

What does a sudden drop in velocity usually indicate?

A Sprint length has changed

B Team is working faster

C Story points have increased

D Team is facing challenges or blockers

A drop in velocity often means the team encountered problems slowing progress.

Which of these is NOT a factor considered in story points?

A Task complexity

B Risk and uncertainty

C Exact time in hours

D Effort required

Story points do not measure exact time but relative effort and complexity.

Explain what story points are and why Agile teams use them instead of exact hours.

Think about how teams estimate work without guessing exact time.

Describe how velocity helps Agile teams plan their work and what it means if velocity changes.

Consider velocity as a team’s speed in completing work.