SSM Introducing Scrum in SAFe Practice Question
When a team struggles to meet their Definition of Done (DoD) because of external infrastructure dependencies, what should the Scrum Master do?
⚠ Common exam trap
Candidates often suggest 'adjusting the Definition of Done' to make it easier, which undermines the team's commitment to quality and the integrity of the increment.
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
✓
Escalate the dependency to the RTE to find a systemic solution.
The Scrum Master's role is to ensure the team can succeed and maintain quality. If external factors prevent the team from meeting their DoD, the Scrum Master must escalate the issue to the Release Train Engineer to seek help. Ignoring the issue or lowering the standard compromises the team's quality and the integrity of the integrated system increment.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
Adjust the Definition of Done to exclude those infrastructure items.
Why it's wrong here
Lowering the bar for quality to accommodate infrastructure issues creates technical debt and undermines the reliability of the system. The DoD must remain strict to ensure quality. The team should fix the root cause, not weaken the standard, as lower standards lead to higher long-term maintenance costs and instability.
- ✓
Escalate the dependency to the RTE to find a systemic solution.
Why this is correct
When an impediment is outside the team’s control, the Scrum Master must escalate it. The RTE is responsible for systemic issues across the ART. By escalating, the Scrum Master ensures the blocker is visible to leadership, who can allocate the resources or priority needed to resolve the dependency for the entire train.
- ✗
Ask the team to work overtime to manually handle the infrastructure needs.
Why it's wrong here
Overtime is a short-term, unsustainable fix that does not address the underlying infrastructure dependency. It leads to burnout and does not resolve the bottleneck. The Scrum Master should focus on systemic solutions that improve the team’s capability to deliver without heroic, unsustainable efforts or constant manual intervention.
- ✗
Ignore the DoD and focus only on completing the user stories.
Why it's wrong here
The Definition of Done is the agreement on what 'finished' means. Ignoring it means delivering unfinished, potentially broken work. This creates 'hidden' technical debt that will eventually cause the entire system to fail. Maintaining the DoD is non-negotiable for ensuring the quality and reliability of the final, integrated solution.
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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.