The Sprint Goal is an objective set for the Sprint that can be met through the implementation of Product Backlog. It provides guidance to the Scrum Team on why it is building the Increment. It is created during the Sprint Planning meeting. The Sprint Goal gives the Scrum Team some flexibility regarding the functionality implemented within the Sprint. The selected Product Backlog items deliver one coherent function, which can be the Sprint Goal. The Sprint Goal can be any other coherence that causes the Scrum Team to work together rather than on separate initiatives.
As the Scrum Team works, it keeps the Sprint Goal in mind. In order to satisfy the Sprint Goal, it implements functionality and technology. If the work turns out to be different than the Scrum Team expected, they collaborate with the Product Owner to negotiate the scope of Sprint Backlog within the Sprint.
The Developers of Scrum Team uses the Daily Scrum to inspect progress toward the Sprint Goal and to inspect how progress is trending toward completing the work in the Sprint Backlog. The Daily Scrum optimizes the probability that the Scrum Team will meet the Sprint Goal. Every day, the Scrum Team should understand how it intends to work together as a self-organizing team to accomplish the Sprint Goal and create the anticipated Increment by the end of the Sprint.
At any point in time in a Sprint, the total work remaining in the Sprint Backlog can be summed. The Scrum Team tracks this total work remaining at least for every Daily Scrum to project the likelihood of achieving the Sprint Goal. By tracking the remaining work throughout the Sprint, the Scrum Team can manage its progress.
Examples of Sprint Goal could be
- Develop prototype to test the payment gateway interface
- Test the shopping cart plugins provided by 3 vendors and select one shopping cart
- Implement login functionality
The Sprint Goal is not too specific and also not too high level. What this means is that we don’t represent the entire scope in the sprint goal. For example, too specific a Sprint Goal could be “Implement correct login, wrong login and forget password functionality”. Such a specific Sprint Goal may not give any flexibility to the Scrum team. Then The goal becomes the scope.