Sprint in Trouble? Here’s What Great Scrum Teams Do Next
Updated content and language on August 26, 2021 and May 15, 2025
Every Scrum team wants to be predictable, reliable, and high-performing. That doesn’t happen by accident—it’s built through deliberate practices like limiting work in progress, refining small backlog items, following a clear Definition of Done, and running effective Sprint Planning.
But even great teams hit turbulence.
The question is: What happens when the Sprint Goal is in jeopardy?
Do they scramble? Ignore it? Hope for a miracle?
Or do they respond like a professional team—clear-eyed, adaptive, and self-accountable?
It Starts with Daily Inspection
Checking progress toward the Sprint Goal every day may sound obvious—but it’s often neglected. The Daily Scrum isn’t just a status meeting; it’s a checkpoint to inspect and adapt toward the goal.
If a team member shares that a critical backlog item is behind, that’s not just a data point. It’s a signal to act.
Here’s how responsible teams respond.
✅ Five Steps for When the Sprint Goal Is at Risk
Change How Work Is Done
Take a hard look at how you’re working:
Are the right people collaborating?
Are tools or processes slowing things down?
Are we pursuing “perfect” when “good enough” would deliver more value?
Small changes in how work is approached can unlock significant gains in flow and focus.
💡 Tip: Sometimes cross-training slows a team down temporarily. That’s okay—just choose deliberately when it’s worth it.
Ask for Help or Redistribute Work
If your team can’t finish everything, find support:
Can other teams take overflow?
Can someone with specific expertise assist temporarily?
In cross-team settings, some organizations use visual cues (like red/yellow/green team boards) to signal capacity and trigger collaboration. It builds a culture of shared ownership and collective delivery.
Reduce Scope—Now, Not Later
Don’t wait until Sprint Review to admit something won’t get done. Be proactive:
Remove low-priority items from the Sprint Backlog.
Return them to the Product Backlog for future consideration.
Scrum is built on transparency. It’s better to finish less and finish well than to pretend everything’s fine while quality erodes.
Abort the Sprint and Replan (If Necessary)
If the Sprint is completely off course—due to scope explosions, shifting goals, or external changes—it may be better to stop and replan.
This isn’t failure. It’s agility in action.
“Fail fast” only works if you’re willing to call it and reset.
Inform Management of Impact
If scope or delivery changes affect release dates or expectations, inform stakeholders right away:
Share what changed, why, and what the team is doing about it.
Don’t sugarcoat it—but don’t overdramatize it either.
Management doesn’t expect perfection. They expect professionalism and clarity.
🧭 Who Owns the Sprint Goal?
The Developers are responsible for achieving the Sprint Goal—not management, not the Product Owner alone. When trouble hits, it’s the team’s job to diagnose and adjust.
Scrum gives you the tools to respond. Use them. Don’t hope things will magically fix themselves.
Bottom Line:
Great Scrum teams stay focused, inspect often, and adapt early.
Keep your eyes on the goal, take action when things slip, and build the muscle of self-correction. That’s how predictability is built—and how trust is earned.