A Scrum team committed to delivering a capability in the first release, but operational issues have stopped the developer from delivering key features and the technical lead has resigned. How should the project manager have the Scrum team proceed to recover?

The correct approach is to review constraints in the ongoing sprint planning and evaluate options for the release plan. In Scrum, the team continuously inspects and adapts. Significant operational issues and the loss of a key team member are major constraints that directly impact the team's ability to meet its commitments. The team should collaboratively assess the impact on the current sprint and, more importantly, the overall release plan, then adjust expectations and scope accordingly with stakeholders. Stopping the sprint entirely is a drastic measure, usually reserved for situations where the sprint goal becomes obsolete. While replanning is necessary, stopping the sprint might cause more disruption than necessary. Referring to a resource management plan is too rigid for an agile environment; agile requires adaptive responses. Continuing with current sprint plans despite major impediments is unrealistic and will likely lead to failure and demotivation.