SSM Supporting Team Events Practice Question
A Scrum Master observes that during Iteration Planning, the team consistently commits to more work than they can complete, leading to unfinished stories at the end of the Iteration. Which action should the Scrum Master take to improve the team's planning?
⚠ Common exam trap
The trap here is thinking that the Product Owner or Scrum Master should dictate the amount of work, rather than the team using data to self-manage its commitment.
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
✓
Use the team's historical velocity and capacity as input, and facilitate a discussion to adjust the plan until it is realistic.
Overcommitment during Iteration Planning often stems from unrealistic forecasting. The Scrum Master should facilitate the use of historical velocity and capacity to help the team create a realistic plan. This builds the team's ability to forecast and own its commitments, rather than relying on external directives or structural changes that mask the problem.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
Instruct the Product Owner to assign fewer stories to the team for the next Iteration.
Why it's wrong here
The Product Owner prioritizes the backlog but does not assign work; the team pulls what it can complete. Dictating fewer stories removes the team's ownership of its plan and does not teach them how to forecast. This approach may temporarily reduce overcommitment but fails to build the team's capability to plan effectively.
- ✓
Use the team's historical velocity and capacity as input, and facilitate a discussion to adjust the plan until it is realistic.
Why this is correct
Using historical velocity and capacity helps the team ground their commitments in data. Facilitating a discussion to adjust the plan ensures the team owns the plan and learns to forecast realistically. This addresses the root cause of overcommitment while building the team's planning skills, aligning with the Scrum Master's role as a facilitator and coach.
- ✗
Extend the Iteration length so the team has more time to finish the committed work.
Why it's wrong here
Changing the Iteration length to accommodate overcommitment masks the planning problem and disrupts the cadence. SAFe emphasizes a consistent Iteration cadence for predictability. The issue is not the time available but the team's ability to forecast accurately. Extending the Iteration is a short-term fix that avoids addressing the underlying planning behavior.
- ✗
Add a buffer of unplanned work to the Iteration backlog to absorb any overcommitment.
Why it's wrong here
Adding a buffer of unplanned work does not address the root cause and can reduce transparency. It may encourage continued overcommitment because the team expects a safety net. The Scrum Master should help the team improve its forecasting using data and reflection, not introduce hidden capacity that obscures the real issue.
About these practice questions
This SSM question is part of Courseiva's 385-question bank — original exam-style content with full explanations and wrong-answer analysis, never real exam questions or exam dumps. Learn why practice questions differ from exam dumps →
JA
Written and reviewed by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
Last reviewed September 2026 · checked against the official Scaled Agile exam blueprint
This SSM practice question is part of Courseiva's free Scaled Agile certification practice question bank. Courseiva provides original exam-style practice questions with explanations, topic-based practice, mock exams, readiness tracking, and study analytics to help learners prepare for the SSM exam.