SSM Introducing Scrum in SAFe Practice Question
What is the primary role of the Scrum Master in the ART's Scrum of Scrums?
⚠ Common exam trap
Candidates often mistake this for a status reporting meeting where the Scrum Master reports progress to the Release Train Engineer, rather than focusing on cross-team dependencies and shared impediments.
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
✓
Sharing impediments and dependencies that affect the team's ability to deliver.
The Scrum Master is the representative of the team in the Scrum of Scrums. They should focus on identifying blockers and dependencies that impact the team's ability to meet the PI objectives. By sharing these openly and collaborating with other Scrum Masters, they ensure that issues are escalated or resolved before they become train-wide impediments that delay the entire release schedule.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
Reporting on each team member's daily attendance and hours worked.
Why it's wrong here
Focusing on attendance and hours is administrative micromanagement that does not contribute to the goals of the Scrum of Scrums. This information is irrelevant to cross-team coordination. Time-tracking belongs in HR systems, not in a synchronization meeting meant to resolve systemic impediments to the ART's progress.
- ✓
Sharing impediments and dependencies that affect the team's ability to deliver.
Why this is correct
Sharing impediments is the core function of the meeting. In a SAFe ART, teams are interdependent. By surfacing these issues, the Scrum Master triggers the necessary coordination across the train. This proactive sharing is essential for keeping the ART synchronized and ensuring that work flows smoothly towards the release goal.
- ✗
Assigning tasks to other teams to ensure the program gets done on time.
Why it's wrong here
Scrum Masters do not have the authority to assign work to other teams. Each team is self-managing. If a Scrum Master tries to assign tasks across teams, they create confusion and resentment, breaking the autonomy that allows Agile teams to function effectively. Coordination must happen through negotiation, not top-down tasking.
- ✗
Acting as the lead architect for all solution components.
Why it's wrong here
The Scrum Master is not the lead architect. If they attempt to take on this role, they will be unable to focus on the team's process and impediment removal. Architectural decisions belong to the System Architects and the technical teams, and should be governed by the ART's architectural runway, not by the SM.
Visual reference
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.