## Is It Necessary to Complete All Product Backlog Items to Achieve the Product Goal? No, the Product Goal can be achieved without completing every item in the Product Backlog. The backlog may contain a mix of items—some directly supporting the current Product Goal, some unrelated (perhaps tied to future goals or technical improvements), and some based on earlier assumptions that are no longer valid. As the team learns and adapts, the Product Goal itself may evolve. In that process, previously relevant PBIs may become obsolete or unnecessary. Additionally, some items that were initially thought essential might prove irrelevant once the team discovers more efficient paths to delivering the desired outcome. What matters most is whether sufficient value has been delivered to satisfy the Product Goal—not whether every item has been checked off the list. >[!metaphor] Treating backlog completion as the goal is like judging a movie’s success by whether every scene made the final cut; what matters is whether the story resonates, not whether every shot survived the editing room. </br> In Scrum, it’s the value delivered toward the Product Goal that counts, not whether every task was burned down along the way. ## Works Consulted 1. [Scrum Guide 2020 Update - Introducing the Product Goal](https://www.scrum.org/resources/blog/scrum-guide-2020-update-introducing-product-goal) | Scrum.org | Accessed 13 Jul. 2025. ## Connections follows:: [[1.2 Backlog Items Are Hypotheses, Not Promises]] topics:: [[Product Backlog Item]], [[Product Goal]], [[Adaptive Planning]] ![[Footer]]