What is the relationship between sprint capacity and WIP?

• A. Committing to work that fits sprint capacity/velocity limits WIP
• B. WIP should be minimized regardless of capacity
• C. WIP is unlimited regardless of capacity
• D. Capacity has no impact on WIP

Answer: (A)

Capturing work within sprint capacity is what governs how much is in progress. The amount of work you commit to in an iteration should fit the team's capacity and velocity, so the number of items actively being worked on stays within what can realistically be completed. When you plan to match WIP to available capacity, you reduce the risk of unfinished work, context switching, and delays, and you improve predictability of delivery.

If you push more work into a sprint than the team can handle, WIP balloons and the team struggles to finish items, leading to more rework and lower throughput. Conversely, WIP is not unlimited and capacity does matter, and minimizing WIP without regard to capacity wastes potential work.