SSM Introducing Scrum in SAFe Practice Question
In SAFe, what is the primary role of the Scrum Master regarding the Program Board?
⚠ Common exam trap
Many candidates believe the Scrum Master owns the entire Program Board for the whole ART, forgetting that their primary responsibility is strictly managing their own team's dependencies.
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
✓
Ensuring team dependencies are identified, visualized, and tracked.
The Scrum Master ensures that their team's dependencies are clearly visualized and tracked on the Program Board. They facilitate the communication needed to resolve these dependencies, which is critical for program-level coordination. This role is important because the Program Board is the primary tool for managing cross-team synchronization; if dependencies are not tracked, the entire train's ability to meet PI objectives is severely compromised.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
Updating the entire Program Board for all teams in the ART.
Why it's wrong here
The Scrum Master is only responsible for their specific team's dependencies and contributions to the Program Board. Updating the entire board is the responsibility of the RTE or the ART as a collective group. Taking on responsibilities for other teams creates confusion and wastes the Scrum Master's time.
- ✓
Ensuring team dependencies are identified, visualized, and tracked.
Why this is correct
The Scrum Master must make sure their team's dependencies are visible to others on the Program Board. This transparency is key to cross-team coordination. Without it, other teams won't know when to expect deliverables, leading to blocked work, missed deadlines, and a failure to achieve the PI objectives.
- ✗
Delegating the management of dependencies to the Product Owner.
Why it's wrong here
While the Product Owner handles the backlog, the Scrum Master facilitates the cross-team coordination needed to resolve dependencies. If the Scrum Master delegates this entirely, they miss the opportunity to coach the team on cross-team collaboration, which is a key responsibility for a servant leader in SAFe.
- ✗
Removing the Program Board if it becomes too complex to manage.
Why it's wrong here
The Program Board is a critical SAFe artifact that should not be removed. If it is complex, that is a sign that the ART needs to simplify their planning or improve their cross-team communication, not that the tool itself is the problem. Removing it would hide critical issues from view.
Visual reference
About these practice questions
Courseiva writes every SSM question from scratch — 385 in total, each with an explanation and a wrong-answer breakdown. None are copied from real exams or 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.