3.8 Product Goal Anti-Patterns

What Are Common Anti-Patterns of Product Goals?

Three common Product Goal anti-patterns are:

1. Having no Product Goal or retrofitting backlog items under a fake one
2. The Product Owner dictating goals without team input
3. Failing to inspect or adapt the goal during Sprint Reviews

These practices undermine Scrum’s intent and lead to “cargo-cult” behaviors.

Works Consulted

In addition to any sources cited above, the following works informed my thinking:(1)

1.

Wolpers S. Your Unfit Product Goal and the Product Goal Canvas — Making Your Scrum Work (28) [Internet]. 2022 [cited 2025 Sep 4]. Available from: https://www.scrum.org/resources/blog/your-unfit-product-goal-and-product-goal-canvas-making-your-scrum-work-28