Who is referred to as the chief product visionary?

The Product Owner is referred to as the chief product visionary because this role is fundamentally responsible for maximizing the value of the product resulting from the work of the Scrum Team. The Product Owner represents the stakeholders and the customers, ensuring that their needs and desires align with the development efforts.

This responsibility involves creating a clear vision of what the product should achieve and communicating that vision to the team. The Product Owner is tasked with maintaining the product backlog, ensuring that it is well-defined and prioritized according to the strategic direction of the product. This requires a deep understanding of both the market and the users, which is essential for effective decision-making about what features and improvements should be pursued.

In contrast, the other roles mentioned do not carry the same level of responsibility for product vision. The Project Manager typically focuses on project execution and resource management. The Scrum Master facilitates the Scrum process and helps the team adhere to Scrum practices, while the Lead Developer might oversee technical aspects of product development but does not have the overall responsibility for the product's direction or value maximization. Thus, the Product Owner clearly fulfills the role of chief product visionary in a Scrum context.