In my career I’ve seen many Scrum teams to make releases at the end of a sprint, and effectively turning the Sprint Review into a “go/no-go” moment. This creates a predictable but rigid cycle: if a feature isn’t ready by Sprint’s end, the next opportunity is two or more weeks away.

Here are three reasons why this pattern persists:

1. Incomplete Scrum Adoption

Incomplete Scrum adoption often plays a key role.

Teams may have learned the basic ceremonies and artifacts but are missing the deeper agile mindset. They haven’t fully adopted CI/CD practices or fast feedback loops.

Without this understanding, each sprint is a mini “waterfall” stage.

2. Waterfall Mindset

A lingering waterfall mindset also reinforces this approach.

Leaders and stakeholders often expect formal sign-offs, mirroring old project milestones. Out of habit or a desire for predictability, teams use the Sprint Review as their only moment for stakeholder sign-off. As a result, stakeholders often see features for the first time at the Review.

The Sprint Review is not used for feedback about the progress and further direction, but for sign-off.

3. Stakeholders Not Integrated

Stakeholders aren’t always integrated into the agile process.

Even if they’re not official team members, their insights guide the product’s direction. Without agile guidance, stakeholders often fail to see how crucial ongoing feedback is. And if they don’t buy in to regular participation, the Sprint Review becomes the only touchpoint.

As a result, the product may fall short of what stakeholders truly need.

Conclusion

Recognizing these issues is the first step toward agile releases that can happen anytime. Investing in Scrum adoption, agile mindsets, and integrated stakeholders, will lead to frequent feedback, faster progress, and greater stakeholder satisfaction.