SSM Introducing Scrum in SAFe Practice Question
Exhibit
LOG_ENTRY: [ERROR] Iteration 3 completed with 45 points; Iteration 4 started with 60 points of planned capacity. [WARN] Team velocity averages 42 points. [INFO] Iteration 4 planning reflects high inter-team dependency on Team B.
Refer to the exhibit. As a Scrum Master, how should you address the situation described in the log?
⚠ Common exam trap
Candidates frequently suggest working overtime or adding resources to meet inflated plans, ignoring the fundamental Agile rule of planning based on historical velocity.
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 a re-planning session to adjust the plan based on velocity.
The team is over-committing, as evidenced by the gap between their average velocity (42) and their planned capacity (60). The Scrum Master must guide the team to use historical data for realistic planning. This is important because over-committing leads to burnout, technical debt, and missed commitments, which destabilize the entire ART's predictability and value delivery for the PI.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
Encourage the team to work overtime to meet the 60-point commitment.
Why it's wrong here
Forcing overtime is a sign of poor planning and is unsustainable in an Agile environment. It leads to lower quality and burnout. The Scrum Master should facilitate a discussion to re-plan based on historical velocity, ensuring the commitment is realistic and sustainable, which maintains the team's long-term health and focus.
- ✓
Facilitate a re-planning session to adjust the plan based on velocity.
Why this is correct
Using historical velocity as a basis for planning is a core SAFe practice for improving predictability. Re-planning ensures the team commits to what they can realistically accomplish, reducing the risk of failure and helping the team maintain a sustainable pace while meeting their commitments to the rest of the ART.
- ✗
Assign the extra 18 points of work to Team B to balance the load.
Why it's wrong here
Simply shifting work to another team without verifying their capacity or the nature of the dependency is dangerous. The Scrum Master needs to facilitate a conversation between teams to manage the dependency properly. Arbitrary assignment ignores the collaborative nature of SAFe and will likely cause issues for the other team.
- ✗
Ignore the velocity discrepancy as it is common for teams to overestimate.
Why it's wrong here
Overestimating is a systemic issue that threatens the reliability of the ART's plan. By ignoring it, the Scrum Master fails their responsibility to help the team improve their planning effectiveness. Consistent over-commitment prevents the ART from delivering a reliable system increment and undermines the trust stakeholders place in the train.
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.