The process of prioritizing the Product Backlog involves evaluating User Stories based on specific criteria to determine their order. Key factors for this evaluation include the business value they generate (A), their dependencies on other stories (B), and the associated risks or opportunities for innovation (C). A User Story that is very difficult to understand, estimate its value, or determine the effort required for its creation is not considered "Ready." According to the DEEP (Detailed appropriately, Estimated, Emergent, Prioritized) criteria for a healthy backlog, items must be estimable. Such an ill-defined story is excluded from the active prioritization process until it undergoes further refinement to gain clarity.

A. User Stories that generate value for the customer. This is incorrect because maximizing customer value is the primary goal of the Product Owner and a fundamental criterion for prioritization.

B. User Stories that are dependent on others for completion. This is incorrect because dependencies are a crucial factor in ordering the backlog to ensure a logical and efficient workflow.

C. User Stories that are innovative and may or may not be successfully created. This is incorrect because evaluating risk versus potential reward is a key responsibility of the Product Owner during prioritization.

1. VMEdu Inc. (2017). A Guide to the Scrum Body of Knowledge (SBOK® Guide) (3rd ed.).

Section 3.4

"Prioritization

" p. 61: This section explicitly states the factors used for prioritization: "The Product Owner prioritizes the User Stories based on a combination of business value

risk or uncertainty

and dependencies." This directly confirms that options A

B

and C describe stories that are evaluated.

Section 3.3

"Prioritized Product Backlog

" p. 59: This section introduces the DEEP criteria for a good backlog. It specifies that User Stories must be "Estimated." A story that is "very difficult to determine its value

create and/or deliver" (Option D) fails this criterion and is therefore not ready for prioritization.

2. Sutherland

J.

& Schwaber

K. (2020). The Scrum Guide. Scrum.org.

Product Backlog Section

p. 12: "Product Backlog items that can be done by the Scrum Team within one Sprint are deemed ready for selection in a Sprint Planning event. They usually acquire this degree of transparency after refining activities." This supports the reasoning that a story which is difficult to understand or create (as in option D) is not "ready" and thus would be excluded from prioritization for near-term Sprints until it is refined.