Which of the following is a key activity in the Initiate phase?

• A. Sprint Review
• B. Deploying to Production
• C. Daily Standup
• D. Defining success

Answer: (D)

In the Initiate phase, the emphasis is on establishing how success will be measured and agreed upon by stakeholders before any detailed planning or building begins. Defining success means setting clear, measurable objectives, acceptance criteria, and desired outcomes that will guide later decisions, scope, and prioritization. This creates a shared understanding of what “done” looks like and how progress will be evaluated, which is essential before moving into planning and execution.

Sprint Review, Deploying to Production, and Daily Standup belong to later stages of work: the Sprint Review happens at the end of a sprint to inspect Increment and gather feedback; deploying to production is a release activity that occurs after development and testing; daily standups are daily coordination rituals during execution. They are not responsible for establishing the initial success criteria that steer the project from the very start.