The correct answer is the Scrum Team.
But why?
The Scrum Guide clearly says that
“the Developers are accountable for instilling quality by adhering to a Definition of Done.” (The 2020 Scrum Guide)
Thus, the Scrum Guide is clear that the Developers are accountable for instilling quality into an Increment. However, the question is about who is responsible for quality.
First, accountability is not the same as responsibility.
– Accountability is about “who should a stakeholder hold accountable if an issue arises?”
– Responsibility is about “who performs a given task?”
Second, and most important for this question, what is quality? Is quality only about “instilling” quality?
No!
Quality is a subjective attribute of a product. It might mean (a) “fitness for use” or (b) “conformance to requirements.” (To learn more about quality, check ISO 9001: https://asq.org/quality-resources/quality-glossary/)
If we consider quality as being (a), in which aspect of Scrum is the “fitness for use” described? The Product Backlog.
Who is accountable for managing the Product Backlog? The Product Owner. Thus, the Product Owner is accountable (or responsible) for quality.
If we consider quality as being (b), in which aspect of Scrum is the “conformance to requirements” described? I believe that there are two aspects here.
The Product Backlog, since the level of conformance of the Increment, depends on the quality of the description of the Product Backlog items. And who is accountable for the Product Backlog? Again, the Product Owner.
And also the Definition of Done. Who is responsible for creating the Definition of Done? The Scrum Team!
Further, conformance to requirements is what we call product verification.
And the Scrum Guide clearly states that the Scrum Team is responsible for product verification:
“The Scrum Team is responsible for all product-related activities from stakeholder collaboration, verification, maintenance, operation, experimentation, research and development, and anything else that might be required”.(The 2020 Scrum Guide)
Of course, only having an adequate Product Backlog and Definition of Done is not enough; you need the Developers to instill quality into the Increment by conforming to the Definition of Done!
Thus, the correct answer to the question is The Scrum Team.
TLDR: Key Takeaways
To wrap up, let me reframe the question for you from a more practical perspective.
“Who should the stakeholders talk to in the Scrum Team if they notice a decrease in quality in a product?”
Are the Developers the only ones “to blame”? No, because they did not make any product decisions by themselves.
Can they make quality decisions, such as changing the Definition of Done, themselves? No, creating the Definition of Done or refining it (for instance, during Sprint Retrospective events) are accountabilities shared by the Scrum Team.
I hope this article clarifies why the Scrum Team shares the accountability (and responsibility) for quality.
Learn More
You can learn more about effectively applying Scrum by taking my Complete Agile Scrum Master Certification course at Udemy.
