Syllabus-Style Breakdown of Agile Topics

For the PMP exam (as per PMI’s Exam Content Outline, ECO 2021 update), Agile is integrated across all three domains rather than treated as a separate subject. The exam now has about 50% Predictive (Waterfall) and 50% Agile/Hybrid questions. So you need to cover Agile well.

Here’s a syllabus-style breakdown of Agile topics you should prepare for the PMP exam:

---

🔹 1. Agile Basics

• Agile Manifesto values and principles

• Agile mindset vs. predictive mindset

• Servant leadership

• Iterative, incremental, and adaptive life cycles

• When to use Agile vs. predictive vs. hybrid

---

🔹 2. Agile Frameworks & Practices

• Scrum

  • Roles: Product Owner, Scrum Master, Developers

  • Events: Sprint, Sprint Planning, Daily Scrum, Sprint Review, Sprint Retrospective

  • Artifacts: Product Backlog, Sprint Backlog, Increment

• Kanban

  • Visual boards, WIP limits, cycle time, throughput

• Lean principles

• Extreme Programming (XP) (pair programming, TDD, CI/CD basics)

• Crystal, DSDM, SAFe (just high-level awareness, not deep)

---

🔹 3. Agile Roles & Teams

• Self-organizing, cross-functional teams

• Role of the Agile project manager (facilitator, servant leader)

• Stakeholder engagement in Agile projects

• Building trust and psychological safety

---

🔹 4. Agile Planning & Estimation

• User stories and story mapping

• Product roadmap

• Release planning

• Sprint planning

• Relative estimation: story points, planning poker, T-shirt sizing

• Velocity tracking and forecasting

---

🔹 5. Agile Metrics & Reporting

• Burndown charts

• Burnup charts

• Cumulative flow diagrams (CFD)

• Lead time and cycle time

• Value delivery tracking

---

🔹 6. Agile Practices for Value Delivery

• Backlog refinement (grooming)

• Prioritization techniques (MoSCoW, WSJF, Kano model)

• MVP (Minimum Viable Product)

• Incremental delivery of value

---

🔹 7. Agile Risk & Quality

• Managing risks in Agile (frequent feedback, small batches)

• Definition of Done (DoD) vs. Acceptance Criteria

• Continuous integration & continuous testing

• Adaptive risk management

---

🔹 8. Agile Communication & Collaboration

• Information radiators (task boards, charts)

• Daily standups

• Retrospectives (continuous improvement)

• Servant leadership communication style

• Collaboration tools (virtual boards, chat, etc.)

---

🔹 9. Agile in Hybrid Environment

• Blending Agile with predictive approaches

• Governance and compliance in hybrid

• Stakeholder communication in mixed models

• Tailoring approaches

---

🔹 10. Reference Guides

• Agile Practice Guide (PMI + Agile Alliance) → Core study material for Agile part of PMP

• PMBOK 6th & 7th editions → Agile is embedded throughout

• Andrew Ramdayal, Ricardo Vargas, and PrepCast Agile material (optional study aids)

---

👉 Tip for Exam:

• Expect situational questions (e.g., “As a project manager in an Agile team, what should you do when stakeholders demand scope changes in the middle of a sprint?”).

• Memorization is less important than applying Agile principles to scenarios.