Certified SAFe® Scrum Master 5.0 (SSM) Interview Questions

Preparing for a Certified SAFe® Scrum Master interview requires a good understanding of the SAFe framework and Scrum principles, as well as practical experience in applying them in an Agile environment. Here are some tips to help you prepare better for the interview

1. Review the SAFe® Scrum Master 5.0 (SSM) certification exam study guide provided by Scaled Agile, Inc. This guide provides a detailed breakdown of the exam objectives and the knowledge areas you need to master.
2. Familiarize yourself with the SAFe framework and its principles, as well as the Scrum methodology. Read the official SAFe® Scrum Master (SSM) courseware and attend a training course if possible.
3. Practice applying the Scrum methodology in an Agile environment. This will help you to better understand the challenges that arise during Agile projects and how to address them.
4. Prepare to answer questions related to your experience as a Scrum Master. Be ready to give examples of how you have managed Agile projects and dealt with challenges that have arisen.
5. Familiarize yourself with Agile concepts such as Lean-Agile leadership, team and program Kanban, Agile Release Trains (ARTs), and Continuous Delivery Pipeline.
6. Practice using Agile terminology and be able to explain it clearly. Make sure you are comfortable with Agile terms like User Stories, Sprint, Velocity, and Retrospective.
7. Be prepared to discuss your knowledge of Agile tools and techniques such as Agile metrics, Agile estimation, Agile testing, and Agile project management tools.
8. Demonstrate your passion for Agile by discussing any Agile-related books, podcasts, or other resources that you have read or listened to.
9. Finally, practice your communication skills. As a Scrum Master, you will be working closely with team members, stakeholders, and management, so it is important to be able to communicate effectively and confidently.

By following these tips, you will be well-prepared to ace your SAFe® Scrum Master 5.0 (SSM) interview and demonstrate your expertise in Agile methodologies and the SAFe framework.

We’ve compiled a list of questions and answers to help you prepare for the Certified SAFe® Scrum Master 5.0 (SSM) interview.

Certified SAFe® Scrum Master Interview Advanced Interview Questions

Q1. Your team is experiencing a lot of conflict during sprint retrospectives. How would you handle this situation as a SAFe Scrum Master?

Answer: As a SAFe Scrum Master, I would create a safe and non-judgmental environment for the team to share their thoughts and feelings. I would facilitate the retrospective meeting and encourage the team to focus on the problem rather than the person. I would coach the team to practice active listening and respect each other’s opinions. I would also encourage the team to identify and prioritize actionable items to address the conflicts and work towards continuous improvement.

Q2. Your team is new to SAFe and struggling to understand the Agile principles and the SAFe framework. How would you help them learn and adapt to SAFe?

Answer: As a SAFe Scrum Master, I would provide training and coaching to the team to help them understand the Agile principles and the SAFe framework. I would also facilitate the team’s participation in Agile ceremonies such as daily stand-ups, sprint planning, and retrospectives. I would encourage the team to collaborate and share their knowledge and experience. Additionally, I would work with the team to identify any areas of improvement and continuously adapt to the SAFe framework.

Q3. Your team is experiencing a lot of technical debt, which is affecting their ability to deliver on their sprint goals. How would you work with the team and stakeholders to address this issue?

Answer: As a SAFe Scrum Master, I would work with the team and stakeholders to prioritize technical debt and create a plan to address it. I would coach the team to practice continuous integration and delivery to prevent further accumulation of technical debt. I would also encourage the team to identify and address the root causes of technical debt. I would work with stakeholders to understand the tradeoffs between delivering new features and addressing technical debt and communicate the impact of technical debt on the team’s ability to deliver value.

Q4. You are working with a team that is distributed across different time zones and locations. How would you facilitate effective communication and collaboration as a SAFe Scrum Master?

Answer: As a SAFe Scrum Master, I would use technology tools such as video conferencing, messaging, and collaboration platforms to facilitate effective communication and collaboration. I would establish clear communication protocols and guidelines to ensure everyone is aware of meeting times and expectations. I would also encourage the team to use Agile practices such as daily stand-ups, sprint reviews, and retrospectives to maintain team alignment and focus on continuous improvement. I would also work with the team to identify and address any cultural or language barriers that may affect communication and collaboration.

Q5. How does the Scrum Master support the team and the organization in SAFe?

Answer: Scrum Master is a critical role in the Scaled Agile Framework (SAFe). They play a vital role in supporting the team and the organization to achieve their goals and objectives. Here are a few ways in which the Scrum Master supports the team and the organization in SAFe:

1. Facilitation: The Scrum Master is responsible for facilitating Scrum ceremonies such as Sprint Planning, Daily Stand-ups, Sprint Review, and Sprint Retrospective. These ceremonies help the team to stay on track and ensure they are delivering value continuously.
2. Coaching: The Scrum Master acts as a coach to the team and helps them understand the Scrum framework, its values, and principles. They also help the team to identify areas for improvement and work together to implement changes.
3. Removing roadblocks: The Scrum Master acts as a servant leader and helps the team to remove any obstacles or roadblocks that are hindering their progress. They help the team to navigate through any challenges and ensure that they are working in an environment that enables them to deliver their best work.
4. Encouraging collaboration: The Scrum Master promotes collaboration within the team and helps to build trust and strong relationships between team members. They encourage open communication and help to break down any silos that may exist within the team.
5. Promoting continuous improvement: The Scrum Master is always looking for ways to improve the process and help the team to become more efficient and effective. They are always looking for ways to improve the Scrum framework and help the team to achieve their goals.

In conclusion, the Scrum Master plays a critical role in supporting the team and the organization in SAFe. They are responsible for facilitating the Scrum ceremonies, coaching the team, removing roadblocks, encouraging collaboration, and promoting continuous improvement. The Scrum Master helps the team to deliver value continuously and achieve their goals and objectives.

Q6. Can you explain the differences between Scrum and SAFe?

Answer: Scrum is an Agile framework for managing and completing complex projects. It is designed to help teams deliver products in a flexible and efficient manner by emphasizing collaboration, flexibility, and customer satisfaction. Scrum consists of a set of practices and principles that guide teams in the development and delivery of software.

SAFe (Scaled Agile Framework) is an extension of the Scrum framework designed to help organizations successfully implement Agile practices on a larger scale, across multiple teams and departments. SAFe provides a structure and guidance for scaling Agile beyond individual teams to support the needs of larger organizations.

The main differences between Scrum and SAFe are:

1. Scale: Scrum is primarily focused on individual teams, whereas SAFe is designed to support the needs of large organizations and multiple teams working together.
2. Structure: Scrum provides a set of practices and principles, whereas SAFe provides a more comprehensive framework that includes specific processes, roles, and ceremonies.
3. Integration: Scrum does not provide guidance on how to integrate multiple Scrum teams, whereas SAFe includes guidance on how to coordinate and integrate the efforts of multiple Agile teams.
4. Processes: Scrum has a set of defined processes, such as Sprint Planning, Daily Scrum, Sprint Review, and Sprint Retrospective, whereas SAFe includes additional processes such as Solution Intent, Portfolio Kanban, and System Demos.
5. Roles: In Scrum, the main roles are the Product Owner, Development Team, and Scrum Master, whereas SAFe includes additional roles such as the Release Train Engineer and Solution Train Engineer.

In summary, Scrum is a framework for individual teams to deliver software in an Agile manner, whereas SAFe provides a structure for scaling Agile practices across multiple teams and departments within a larger organization.

Q7. How does the Scrum Master ensure Scrum values and principles are being followed in the SAFe environment?

Answer: The Scrum Master plays a crucial role in ensuring that Scrum values and principles are being followed in the SAFe environment. Here are some of the ways the Scrum Master can do this:

1. Lead by Example: The Scrum Master must lead by example and exhibit the values and principles of Scrum themselves. This sets the tone for the rest of the team and reinforces the importance of following Scrum.
2. Facilitate Scrum Meetings: The Scrum Master should facilitate all Scrum meetings, including Daily Standups, Sprint Retrospectives, and Sprint Planning. During these meetings, they can remind the team of the values and principles of Scrum and ensure they are being followed.
3. Coach the Team: The Scrum Master should coach the team on Scrum values and principles and help them understand how to apply them in their work. This includes providing guidance on the importance of transparency, collaboration, and continuous improvement.
4. Encourage Collaboration: The Scrum Master should encourage collaboration and teamwork among the team members. They should create an environment where everyone feels comfortable sharing their opinions and ideas and where team members feel empowered to contribute to the success of the project.
5. Promote Empowerment: The Scrum Master should promote empowerment among the team members by giving them the freedom to make decisions and take ownership of their work. This helps to foster a sense of ownership and pride in the work, and encourages the team to apply Scrum values and principles in their work.
6. Address Issues: If the Scrum Master notices any issues with the team’s adherence to Scrum values and principles, they should address them promptly and work with the team to find a solution. This could include coaching the team, facilitating discussions, or seeking outside help if necessary.

In conclusion, the Scrum Master is responsible for ensuring that Scrum values and principles are being followed in the SAFe environment. They can do this by leading by example, facilitating Scrum meetings, coaching the team, encouraging collaboration, promoting empowerment, and addressing any issues that arise.

Q8. You are the Scrum Master of a SAFe Agile Release Train (ART). The team is having trouble meeting their sprint goals due to frequent interruptions and changing priorities from stakeholders. How would you address this issue?

Answer: As a SAFe Scrum Master, I would work with the Product Owner to clarify the priorities and requirements from the stakeholders. I would facilitate a discussion with the stakeholders to understand their needs and create a prioritized backlog. I would also coach the team to practice timeboxing and focus on completing the high priority items first. Additionally, I would work with the team to identify and address any root causes of interruptions and distractions.

Q9. How should a Scrum Master handle conflicts within the team in a SAFe environment?

Answer: The Scrum Master plays a crucial role in managing conflicts within the team in a SAFe environment. Handling conflicts is a key aspect of the Scrum Master’s role in promoting a healthy and productive team environment. Here are some steps the Scrum Master can follow to handle conflicts within the team:

1. Facilitate communication: Encourage open and honest communication among team members to help them understand each other’s perspectives and resolve conflicts.
2. Promote collaboration: Encourage team members to work together and find mutually beneficial solutions to conflicts.
3. Empower the team: Provide the team with the autonomy to resolve conflicts on their own, while still being available to offer support and guidance.
4. Use Scrum practices: Utilize Scrum practices such as retrospectives and sprint reviews to address conflicts and continuously improve team processes.
5. Mediate disputes: Act as a mediator to help resolve disputes between team members. This may involve facilitating a discussion to help team members find common ground and reach a resolution.
6. Escalate when necessary: If conflicts cannot be resolved at the team level, the Scrum Master may need to escalate the issue to the appropriate stakeholders, such as the Product Owner or management.

In conclusion, the Scrum Master must foster a culture of collaboration, trust, and open communication within the team to effectively handle conflicts in a SAFe environment.

Q10. Can you describe the relationship between the Scrum Master, Product Owner, and Development Team in SAFe?

In SAFe, the Scrum Master, Product Owner, and Development Team work together to deliver value to the customer. The Scrum Master is responsible for facilitating the Scrum process and removing any obstacles that may impede the team’s progress. The Product Owner is responsible for defining and prioritizing the backlog, ensuring that the team is working on the highest value items. The Development Team is responsible for delivering working software that meets the needs of the customer.

The Scrum Master and the Product Owner collaborate to ensure that the team has a clear understanding of the priorities and goals, and that the team is able to deliver value effectively. The Development Team works with the Scrum Master and Product Owner to identify and overcome any challenges they may encounter, and to continuously improve their processes and practices.

In SAFe, the Scrum Master, Product Owner, and Development Team also work with other stakeholders, such as the stakeholders in other Scrum Teams, Portfolio management, and Architecture, to ensure that the work of the team aligns with the larger objectives of the organization. The Scrum Master and the Product Owner also work with each other to ensure that the team’s backlog is aligned with the overall strategy and goals of the organization.

Overall, the Scrum Master, Product Owner, and Development Team form a close-knit partnership, working together to deliver value to the customer, continuously improve their processes, and align their work with the larger objectives of the organization.

Q11. How does the Scrum Master ensure the team’s progress and deliverables align with the larger SAFe objectives?

The Scrum Master plays a crucial role in ensuring that the team’s progress and deliverables align with the larger SAFe objectives. Here’s how:

1. Facilitating Scrum events: The Scrum Master facilitates all Scrum events such as Sprint Planning, Daily Scrum, Sprint Review, and Sprint Retrospective to ensure that the team is aligned with the larger SAFe objectives.
2. Collaborating with stakeholders: The Scrum Master works closely with stakeholders, such as product owners, customers, and enterprise architects, to ensure that the team is aware of the larger SAFe objectives and is working towards them.
3. Encouraging continuous improvement: The Scrum Master helps the team to continuously improve their processes, practices, and tools to align better with the larger SAFe objectives.
4. Removing roadblocks: The Scrum Master identifies and removes any roadblocks that may prevent the team from aligning with the larger SAFe objectives and helps them to remain focused on delivering value.
5. Promoting cross-team collaboration: The Scrum Master encourages cross-team collaboration and helps teams to align their efforts with the larger SAFe objectives.
6. Aligning with Agile values and principles: The Scrum Master helps the team to align with Agile values and principles, which are integral to SAFe, and ensures that they are reflected in the team’s actions and decisions.
7. Monitoring and reporting progress: The Scrum Master monitors the team’s progress and provides regular reports to stakeholders to ensure that the team’s progress and deliverables align with the larger SAFe objectives.

Q12. Can you walk us through a typical sprint in a SAFe environment, including the roles and responsibilities of the Scrum Master?

A typical sprint in a SAFe environment follows the Scrum methodology and is a time-boxed event of 1-4 weeks where the Development Team creates a deliverable increment of usable functionality. The Scrum Master plays a crucial role in facilitating the sprint process and ensuring the team follows the Scrum values and principles. Here is a step-by-step explanation of a typical sprint:

1. Sprint Planning: The Scrum Master, along with the Product Owner and Development Team, holds a sprint planning meeting to define the sprint goal and plan the sprint backlog.
2. Daily Scrum: The Scrum Master facilitates the daily Scrum, where the Development Team aligns on their progress and plans for the day.
3. Sprint Development: The Development Team works on completing the sprint backlog items, while the Scrum Master coaches and supports them in following the Scrum framework and identifying any obstacles that need to be addressed.
4. Sprint Review: The Scrum Master facilitates the sprint review, where the Development Team demonstrates the functionality they have delivered and receives feedback from stakeholders.
5. Sprint Retrospective: The Scrum Master facilitates the sprint retrospective, where the Development Team reflects on the sprint and identifies areas for improvement for the next sprint.

Throughout the sprint, the Scrum Master also serves as a mediator between the Development Team, Product Owner, and stakeholders, ensuring everyone is aligned and working together effectively. Additionally, the Scrum Master is responsible for removing any obstacles that the Development Team may encounter, enabling them to focus on delivering the sprint backlog items.

Q13. What is the purpose of Scrum in the SAFe framework?

The purpose of Scrum in the SAFe (Scaled Agile Framework) is to provide a flexible, iterative and incremental approach to software development that allows teams to deliver value to customers continuously. In SAFe, Scrum is used as a method to implement Agile practices at scale, where multiple Scrum teams work together to deliver a larger solution. Scrum helps to ensure that the team is able to deliver high-quality, working software incrementally and respond to changing customer requirements effectively. The key objectives of using Scrum within SAFe include:

• Encouraging collaboration and teamwork among members of the Scrum team.
• Promoting transparency, accountability, and continuous improvement through regular Scrum events such as sprint retrospectives.
• Allowing teams to break down work into smaller, manageable chunks and delivering value to the customer in short sprints.
• Improving the predictability and reliability of delivery through the use of sprints and incremental delivery.

Overall, Scrum in the SAFe framework helps teams to deliver high-quality software solutions effectively and efficiently, while also providing a structure that promotes continuous improvement and collaboration.

Q14. Can you describe the role of a Scrum Master in SAFe?

A Scrum Master in SAFe plays a crucial role in ensuring the successful implementation of the Agile and Scrum methodology within the framework. The Scrum Master is responsible for facilitating the Scrum process and ensuring that the team adheres to Scrum values, principles, and practices.

In SAFe, the Scrum Master helps the team to establish a shared understanding of the Scrum framework, encourages continuous improvement, and helps the team to identify and remove any obstacles that are blocking their progress. The Scrum Master also ensures that the team is equipped with the necessary tools and resources to carry out their work efficiently.

In addition, the Scrum Master plays a key role in promoting collaboration and communication between all stakeholders in the SAFe environment, including the Development Team, Product Owner, and other Scrum Masters. The Scrum Master works closely with the Product Owner to ensure that the backlog is prioritized and that the team is working on the most important items first. The Scrum Master also plays an important role in ensuring the team’s progress is aligned with the larger SAFe objectives. They attend the Scrum of Scrums (SoS) meeting and ensure that the team’s progress is communicated effectively to other Scrum Masters and stakeholders.

Overall, the role of a Scrum Master in SAFe is to facilitate the Scrum process, promote continuous improvement, and help the team to achieve their goals within the larger SAFe framework.

Certified SAFe® Scrum Master Interview Basic Interview Questions

1. Explain Agile.

Agile is a method of thinking, a movement, and a mentality that stresses communication, cooperation, intrinsic motivation, empowerment, inventive approaches, flow, and value creation while building a product.

2. What is the distinction between Agile and the SAFe Framework?

Agile is a mindset, a philosophy, or, more accurately, a way of thinking, as well as a set of principles for actions that keep a software development team organized and efficient. It is a broad term that encompasses a variety of frameworks such as Scrum, Kanban, and others. SAFe, on the other hand, is an acronym for the Scaled Agile Framework, which is a large-scale enterprise agile framework.

3. List some popular agile frameworks you’ve used in the past.

When asked this type of question, if you haven’t used any frameworks, just name a few that you may have heard of. Other agile-based frameworks include:

• Kanban
• Test-Driven Development
• Feature Driven Development
• Extreme programming
• Crystal
• Lean Software Development

4. What agile frameworks are there for large-scale enterprise projects?

Among the most popular large-scale agile frameworks are:

• Agile Framework for Scalability (SAFe)
• Agile Delivery with Discipline (DAD)
• Large-Scale Scrum (LeSS)
• Scaled Scrum
• The Spotify Model

5. What exactly is a Scaled Agile Framework?

Scaled Agile Framework (SAFe), developed by Dean Leffingwell, is an enterprise-scale development framework that combines existing lean and agile principles into a templated framework for large-scale projects. It is founded on three fundamental bodies of knowledge:

• Development That Is Agile
• Product Development Using Lean Principles
• Consideration of Systems

6. What precisely is an Agile Release Train (ART)?

An Agile Release Train (ART) is a long-lived, self-organizing team of Agile Teams that, with the help of other stakeholders, incrementally plans, develops, and delivers a continuous flow of incremental value releases in a Value Stream.

7. What exactly is Program Increment (PI)?

An Agile Release Train (ART) delivers incremental value in the form of working, tested software and systems during a Program Increment. There is a Program Increment for ARTs, just as there is an iteration for the agile team. PIs typically last 8 to 12 weeks. PI is composed of four development iterations and one Innovation and Planning (IP) iteration.

8. Name the four levels of the most recent SAFe version.

SAFe’s most recent version has four levels, which are as follows:

• Team Level
• Program Level
• Value Stream Level
• Portfolio Level

9. What are the various SAFe configurations?

SAFe supports a wide range of development environments through four different configurations, which are as follows:

• Essential SAFe
• Large Solution SAFe
• Portfolio SAFe
• Full SAFe

10. Are the core values and principles of safe lean based on agile or safe lean?

The Scaled Agile Framework (9SAFe) is founded on Lean and Agile principles. SAFe supports four Core Values, which are as follows:

• Alignment is required to keep up with rapid change and competitive forces.
• Built-in quality – Ensures that every component of the product meets or exceeds quality standards.
• Transparency – In order to achieve the best results, transparency and trust within the organisation are essential.
• Program Execution – SAFe prioritises working systems and business outcomes.

11. What is the role of the Release Train Engineer?

The Release Train Engineer is a servant leader and the Agile Train’s chief scrum master. The RTE optimizes the flow of value through the program by utilizing various mechanisms such as Program Kanban, Inspect & Adapt workshops, and PI planning.

12. What is SAFe Iteration Review?

Iteration Review is a cadence-based event in which each team inspects the increment at the end of each iteration to assess progress and then adjusts the team backlog based on feedback received during the meeting. During the iteration review meeting, all work completed during the iteration is reviewed.

13. What exactly is the distinction between a Capability and a Feature?

A feature is a service provided by the system that addresses the needs of stakeholders. Each feature is built around two core ideas: a benefit hypothesis and acceptance criteria. It is sized appropriately and prepared for delivery by a single Agile Release Train (ART) in a Program Increment (PI). Capabilities are similar to features in that they describe higher-level solution behaviors, but they frequently require multiple ARTs to implement. They are size and segmented into multiple features to facilitate implementation in a single PI.

14. Which frameworks, other than Scrum, can be used at the team level?

Scrum is commonly use at the team level, but it is not the only practice follow in SAFe. SAFe teams can choose the agile framework that works best for them and their project. Kanban, Extreme Programming (XP), Scrum, or Scrum + XP are all options (ScrumXP).

15. Describe the Kanban team. What distinguishes them from other teams?

Team Kanban is a method that assists teams in facilitating the flow of value by visualizing workflow, setting WIP (Work In Process) limits, measuring throughput, and continuously improving their process. They are use in SAFe at the Portfolio, Large Solution, Program, and Team levels. Kanban, unlike other frameworks, is describe as a pull system. Instead of having scope “pushed” on them, teams “pull” work when they know they have the capacity for it.

16. What exactly are stories?

Stories are short descriptions in the user’s language of a small piece of the desired functionality and feature. They are the primary artifacts use in Agile to define system behavior.

17. What is the distinction between User and Enabler Stories?

User Stories provide the functionality to the end user directly, whereas enabler stories provide visibility to work items required to support exploration, architecture, infrastructure, and compliance. Teams may also be require to create technical functionality in order to implement a variety of different user stories or to support other system components. Those are examples of enabler stories.

18. When should the Scaled Agile Framework be used?

SAFe (Scaled Agile Framework) can be used when:

• The team wants to use an agile approach consistently across larger, multi-team programs and portfolios.
• Multiple teams are already implementing Agile, but they are frequently met with roadblocks, delays, and failures.
• Teams prefer to work autonomously and in a decentralized decision-making environment.
• There is a need to scale Agile across the organization, but no one knows what new roles will be require or what existing roles will need to change and how.
• An organization wants to improve its product development lead time and learn how other companies have scaled Agile with SAFe.

19. What exactly is a scrum of scrums?

Assume there is an ongoing project with seven teams working on it. Each team has seven members and is responsible for leading its own scrum meetings. They must, however, organize a separate scrum meeting in order to coordinate and communicate with different teams. This gathering is known as the scrum of scrums. Each team’s responsible person attends the meeting to discuss their work and progress.

20. In SAFe, who are the suppliers? What exactly do they do?

As you are aware, the goal of Lean-Agile principles is to provide value to customers in the shortest possible time and with the highest possible quality. To accomplish this, they contract with Suppliers to develop and deliver components and subsystems. These suppliers have one-of-a-kind and distinctively competent skills, as well as expertise in their technology. They are crucial in SAFe and can have a significant impact on the lead time and value delivery of the Enterprise’s Value Streams. To achieve the best results, suppliers become an extension of the enterprise’s culture and ethos, and they are true partners.

21. In Certified SAFe® Scrum Master 5.0 (SSM), what is Architectural Runway?

The Architectural Runway is made up of existing code, components, and technical infrastructure that are require to support the implementation of prioritized, near-term features without excessive redesign and delay. It facilitates the continuous flow of value and provides the technical foundation required for developing business initiatives and implementing new features.

22.What are the benefits of using the Scaled Agile Framework (SAFe)?

The following are the benefits of using SAFe:

• Provides access to a relatively lightweight framework that increases software development efficiency while maintaining the centralized decision-making required at the enterprise level.
• Assists teams in remaining aligned with business goals and achieving greater transparency.
• Aids cross-functional teams in more effective collaboration.
• Ideally suited for large organizations
• focuses on people rather than technology

23. What is the last step in the Continuous Delivery Pipeline?

Release on Demand is the final component of the Continuous Delivery Pipeline. It is the ability to make value available to customers all at once or on an ad hoc basis, based on market and business needs.

24. What is the purpose of a Solution Demo?

Customers and other stakeholders are shown the results of the combine development efforts of multiple Agile Release Trains (ARTs) as well as the contributions of Suppliers during a solution demo. It is an extremely important meeting for the support train, providing an opportunity for objective evaluation and feedback. Also, it a time to congratulate and encourage the team on their recent PI efforts.

25. In SAFe, what are Product Managers in charge of?

The Product Manager has program-level content authority and is in charge of the Program Vision and the Program Backlog. The primary responsibilities of the Product Manager in the context of a single Agile Release Train are listed below.

• Recognize customer needs and take part in the validation of proposed solutions.
• Has the responsibility of comprehending and supporting portfolio work.
• Create and communicate the programme vision to development teams, as well as define the roadmap
• Manage the flow of work through the Kanban system and into the programme backlog.
• Participate in PI meetings and workshops on Inspec & Adapt.

26. What distinguishes the Solution Train from the Agile Release Train?

The Solution Train is an organizational construct use to build very large and complex solutions that necessitate the coordination of multiple Agile Release Trains (ARTs) as well as support from Supplier contributors. It uses the solution vision, backlogs, and roadmap, as well as an aligned program increment, to align all of these ARTs with a shared mission. The solution train adds roles, events, and artifacts required to coordinate the construction of some of the world’s largest and most important systems and solutions. Failure of such solutions, or even a subsystem, has unacceptably high economic and societal costs.

27. What are the System Architect/responsibilities?

Individuals and teams with technical responsibility for the overall architectural and engineering design of the system and solution are known as SAFe System Architects/Engineers. Among their responsibilities are the following:

• Participate in the solution’s planning and high-level design, as well as the exploration of alternative solutions.
• Subsystems and their interfaces must be define.
• Responsibilities should be assign to subsystems.
• Recognize solution deployment and communicate requirements to other teams
• Establish high-level Solution Intent in collaboration with customers, stakeholders, and suppliers.
• To validate the economic impact of design decisions, work within the economic framework.

28. What role does decentralised decision making play in Certified SAFe® Scrum Master 5.0 (SSM)?

The primary goal of decentralized decision-making is to deliver value in the shortest amount of time possible. Waiting for decision approval from higher authorities introduces a delay and can reduce decision fidelity due to a lack of local context, as well as changes in fact patterns that occur during the wait time. Decentralized decision-making reduces delays, improves the flow of product development, and allows for faster feedback and more innovative solutions.

29. What are the drawbacks of implementing Certified SAFe® Scrum Master 5.0 (SSM)?

Although SAFe has many advantages, it also has some disadvantages, such as:

• SAFe adopts a top-down approach rather than a team-based approach.
• Heavily emphasizes the use of its specific practices and rules, leaving little room for organization-wide customization.
• SAFe’s additional layers of oversight, administration, and coordination resemble the waterfall approach that many teams are attempting to abandon.

30. What are a System Team’s responsibilities?

A System Team is a type of Agile Team that works on the Agile Release Train (ART). They help to build and maintain the Agile development environment infrastructure, which includes continuous integration, build environments, testing platforms, and testing automation frameworks, as well as integrating code from Agile Teams. The System team’s primary responsibilities include:

• Creating a development infrastructure that allows for high ART velocity.
• Teams participate in various meetings to define integration and test backlog items, as well as run solution-level integration scripts.
• End-to-end and solution performance testing should be carried out.
• Integrate and demonstrate progress during the system and solution demo.