SSM Introducing Scrum in SAFe Practice Question
A Scrum team in a SAFe ART has completed two iterations but has not held a Retrospective because the Scrum Master believes the team is too busy delivering features. Team members report they keep repeating the same impediments. What is the most appropriate action for the Scrum Master?
⚠ Common exam trap
The trap here is believing that delivery pressure justifies skipping the Retrospective, when the Retrospective is precisely what helps the team remove the impediments slowing delivery.
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
✓
Facilitate the Iteration Retrospective so the team can identify and address the recurring impediments.
The Iteration Retrospective is where the team inspects how it worked and identifies improvements, making it the right venue to address recurring impediments. The Scrum Master serves the team by facilitating this event and protecting it from being dropped due to delivery pressure. Skipping it allows the same problems to persist iteration after iteration.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
Replace the Retrospective with a monthly review of the team's velocity metrics.
Why it's wrong here
Velocity metrics alone do not surface the systemic causes of recurring impediments. The Retrospective is the team's dedicated inspect-and-adapt event for process and interactions. Substituting a metrics review removes the team's opportunity to identify and act on root causes, so the same impediments would likely continue.
- ✗
Add an extra Daily Stand-up each afternoon to discuss the impediments until they are resolved.
Why it's wrong here
Adding another Daily Stand-up increases meeting load without providing the structured reflection that a Retrospective offers. The Daily Stand-up is for coordinating the next 24 hours, not for deep root-cause analysis. The team needs the Retrospective's dedicated inspect-and-adapt format to break the cycle of repeated impediments.
- ✗
Escalate the recurring impediments to the Release Train Engineer and wait for the ART to resolve them.
Why it's wrong here
Some impediments may need escalation, but the team should first use its Retrospective to understand and address what it can control. Skipping the Retrospective and delegating all improvement to the RTE removes team ownership and does not teach the team to solve its own problems, which is central to Scrum.
- ✓
Facilitate the Iteration Retrospective so the team can identify and address the recurring impediments.
Why this is correct
The Iteration Retrospective is the event where the team inspects its process and interactions and identifies improvements. Holding it directly addresses the repeated impediments by giving the team a structured way to find root causes and act. The Scrum Master should protect this time rather than let delivery pressure eliminate it.
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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.