What is the expected output of a Planning Poker meeting?

Choose one or more of the following:

• The stories were discussed and each had a story point estimate assigned
• The team gave feedback to the Product Owner about the acceptance criteria
• The team decided what stories should be developed within the same sprint
• The team made a preliminary plan for which stories will be completed in the next quarter

Why this is the correct answer

Planning Poker, also known as Scrum Poker, is an agile estimating and planning technique that is consensus-based. In Planning Poker, members of the development team make estimates by playing numbered cards face-down to the table for their estimates. Once everyone votes, the cards are revealed, and the estimates are then discussed. This technique encourages open and honest discussions about the tasks at hand, known as user stories, and helps avoid the influence of the other participants.

The primary goal of Planning Poker is to assign story points to the user stories. Story points are a unit of measure for expressing an estimate of the overall effort that will be required to fully implement a piece of work. These points are used to determine the difficulty, complexity, or amount of time a task might take to complete, but they are not directly correlated to a specific time frame. The process helps ensure that estimates are done independently and that team members can discuss and reconcile differences in understanding.

Here’s why A is correct in the context of Planning Poker:

Consensus-based Estimating: In Planning Poker, team members discuss and estimate the effort needed for user stories to reach a consensus. The main purpose is to assign a story point value to each story, which represents the complexity and effort required.

Discussion and Clarification: The process involves discussing the stories for a better understanding and clarifying any ambiguities, which leads to more accurate estimations.

Individual Assessments Leading to Group Consensus: Each team member provides an estimate based on their understanding, which leads to a group discussion. The final estimate is agreed upon through discussion and consensus, ensuring that everyone is on the same page.