Question 1

What is a burndown chart?

Accepted Answer

A line graph plotting remaining work against time, comparing an ideal, straight-line pace of completion against a team’s actual, real progress across a sprint or project.

Question 2

Who invented the burndown chart?

Accepted Answer

It is widely credited to Ken Schwaber, who is cited as having invented it at Fidelity Investments around 2000, and it became the default visibility artifact for Scrum teams.

Question 3

Is a burndown chart still required in Scrum?

Accepted Answer

No. The Scrum Guide’s 2020 update removed it as a formally required artifact, referring only to generic “trends,” so teams that use it now do so by choice.

Question 4

Why can a smooth, steadily descending burndown chart still be misleading?

Accepted Answer

Because it can mask work marked “done” under pressure without meeting the real definition of done, a large story sitting near-complete for days before closing suddenly, or hidden quality issues the chart cannot represent.

Question 5

What is “the cliff” pattern in a burndown chart?

Accepted Answer

A shape where the line stays flat and high for most of the sprint, then drops sharply near the end, typically meaning work was quietly finishing all along but only got marked complete at the last moment.

Question 6

What does an upward movement in a burndown chart mean?

Accepted Answer

It signals scope creep, new work being added to the sprint mid-stream, and it is worth an explicit conversation rather than letting it pass unnoticed.

Question 7

What is the “read the gap, not the dot” rule?

Accepted Answer

A guideline that a single day’s position above or below the ideal line means little, while three or more consecutive days above it is a genuine signal worth investigating.

Question 8

What is the difference between a burndown chart and a burnup chart?

Accepted Answer

A burndown chart shows remaining work decreasing, but scope changes can look identical to falling behind. A burnup chart tracks completed work rising alongside a separate scope line, making scope changes explicit.

Question 9

When should you use a burnup chart instead of a burndown chart?

Accepted Answer

For releases, cross-team programs, or any context where scope is likely to shift, since a burnup chart makes the moving scope visible rather than blending it into ordinary progress.

Question 10

Should a burndown chart be used to evaluate individual team members?

Accepted Answer

No. It is meant as a team-level health signal, not a performance metric for specific individuals, and using it that way corrupts the honesty the tool depends on.

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