Who can be involved in the refinement of Product Backlog items?

The involvement of the Development Team members and the Product Owner in the refinement of Product Backlog items is essential within the Scrum framework. The Product Owner is responsible for clearly expressing Product Backlog items and ensuring the backlog is prioritized according to stakeholder needs and business value. However, the successful refinement of these items requires collaboration with the Development Team to ensure that the items are well understood, estimated, and feasible to implement.

This collaborative process allows the Development Team to provide input on technical considerations, clarify requirements, and estimate the effort needed for backlog items, fostering a shared understanding of the work to be done. By engaging both the Product Owner and Development Team, the refinement process becomes a holistic activity that benefits from diverse perspectives, ultimately leading to higher-quality backlog items that align with the team's capabilities and the product’s vision.

In contrast, other roles and individuals, such as Project Managers, Scrum Masters, and external stakeholders, may have valuable insights, but they are not directly involved in the actual refinement of the Product Backlog. The Scrum framework emphasizes self-managing teams, and therefore, the core contributors to this process are the members of the Development Team alongside the Product Owner.