HKSM
Regulations
Mandatory rules issued by federal, state, local, or industry authorities that a program or portfolio is required to follow. When these rules change, the Scrum Guidance Body should update its guidance so teams stay compliant.
Key Points
- Regulations come from government levels (federal, state, local) and industry bodies.
- Compliance is not optional; it can shape scope, priorities, and the Definition of Done.
- Failure to comply can trigger penalties, audits, rework, or delivery delays.
- The Scrum Guidance Body should revise recommendations, policies, and templates when rules change.
Example
A portfolio delivering healthcare products must meet a newly updated privacy law. The PMO works with the Scrum Guidance Body to revise guidance, adds privacy-related acceptance criteria to user stories, updates the Definition of Done for encryption and access logging, creates compliance tasks in team backlogs, and schedules training so all teams align before the effective date.
PMP Example Question
Legal informs the program manager that a new industry regulation will take effect next quarter. What should the program manager do to ensure agile teams comply?
- Wait until the next planning cycle and address issues if they arise.
- Update Scrum Guidance Body recommendations and embed the regulation into the Definition of Done, acceptance criteria, and backlog items across teams.
- Ask each Product Owner to add a generic "stay compliant" user story.
- Defer action until an audit identifies concrete gaps.
Correct Answer: B - Update guidance and integrate compliance into agile practices
Explanation: Regulations are mandatory. The best response is to update organizational guidance and incorporate specific compliance criteria into teams' workflows and backlogs so compliance is built in, not inspected in later.
