Answering: “Who is responsible for collaboration with stakeholders?” (PSM I)

The Scrum Team as a whole is responsible for collaborating with stakeholders. It is not handed off to a manager, an analyst or just the Developers.

Exam Question

Who is responsible for collaboration with stakeholders?
(choose the best answer)
A. The Team Manager.
B. The Business Analyst.
C. The Project Manager.
D. The Developers.
E. The Scrum Team.

Correct Answer

E. The Scrum Team.

Why This Is the Correct Answer

The Scrum Guide says “the Scrum Team is responsible for all product-related activities from stakeholder collaboration, verification, maintenance, operation, experimentation, research and development, and anything else that might be required.” Stakeholder collaboration is listed first. The Product Owner often leads it by representing stakeholder needs in the Product Backlog, but the Developers and Scrum Master also work with stakeholders, for example at the Sprint Review. Keeping this within the Scrum Team avoids relays through intermediaries, which slow feedback and distort what users need.

Why the Other Options Are Wrong

A. The Team Manager. Scrum has no team manager. Placing collaboration outside the team breaks direct feedback.

B. The Business Analyst. Business analyst is not a Scrum accountability. Any analysis work belongs to the Scrum Team.

C. The Project Manager. Scrum has no project manager role. The Scrum Team handles product-related activities itself.

D. The Developers. Developers do collaborate with stakeholders, but responsibility belongs to the whole Scrum Team, including the Product Owner and Scrum Master.

Exam Tip

When the answer choices include “Scrum Team” and the activity is product-related, check whether the Scrum Guide gives it to the whole team. Stakeholder collaboration is one such case.

Key Takeaways

• Stakeholder collaboration belongs to the whole Scrum Team.
• The Product Owner often leads but does not own it alone.
• Intermediaries outside the team slow down feedback.