SAFe-Agilist Product Development Flow Practice Question
Which of the following is a key characteristic of a 'Pull' system in Lean product development?
⚠ Common exam trap
Candidates confuse 'pull' systems with 'resource utilization.' They incorrectly assume that keeping people busy at 100% capacity is a goal of a pull system, rather than responding to actual demand.
Answer choices
Why each option matters
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
Starting new tasks based on capacity availability.
A pull system is characterized by work being started only when there is available capacity, rather than being pushed onto the team based on arbitrary schedules. This ensures that the team is not overwhelmed and that work is completed before new tasks are initiated. It is critical for maintaining stable flow and ensuring that the most important items move through the system as quickly as possible without getting stuck in congested queues.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
Pushing work to the team based on a master schedule.
Why it's wrong here
Push systems rely on schedules that often ignore the current workload or capacity of the teams. This leads to overburdening, multitasking, and long queues, which are antithetical to Lean principles and severely degrade the ability of the ART to deliver value predictably and efficiently over time.
- ✓
Starting new tasks based on capacity availability.
Why this is correct
In a pull system, teams only pick up new work when they have the capacity to process it. This prevents the buildup of work-in-progress, minimizes wait times for the end customer, and keeps the team focused on finishing one task before moving to the next, optimizing the flow.
- ✗
Prioritizing tasks based on the longest duration.
Why it's wrong here
Prioritizing by duration is the opposite of the WSJF approach, which emphasizes delivering high-value work quickly. Focusing on long-duration tasks often results in blocking the flow of smaller, high-value items, which increases the total cost of delay and limits the overall economic output of the team.
- ✗
Maintaining 100% utilization at all times.
Why it's wrong here
100% utilization is a common trap that leads to severe bottlenecks and increased cycle times. In a pull system, maintaining some slack capacity is essential to handle unexpected issues and ensure that the flow of work is not interrupted by minor impediments, making the process more resilient.
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Last reviewed September 2026 · checked against the official Scaled Agile exam blueprint
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