PSK I · Scrum.org · Flow metrics and Service Level Expectations · Bank updated 2026-11-04
PSK I practice questions: Flow metrics and Service Level Expectations
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These 5 questions come from the Flow metrics and Service Level Expectations section of our PSK I bank (20 questions on this area). Every question is original, with the correct answer explained and linked to the source it is drawn from.
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1/5 · Flow metrics and Service Level Expectations
A Scrum Team is writing the Service Level Expectation for its workflow and wants it to have the two-part form the Kanban Guide for Scrum Teams describes. Which statement qualifies?
Aitems will be finished within 6 days of being started
B85% of items will be finished in 6 days or less
Cthe team will finish 12 items per Sprint
Ditems spend 6 days in progress on average
Answer: B. An SLE forecasts how long it should take a given item to flow from start to finish. It has two parts: a range of possible outcomes and a probability associated with that range. Only the statement combining a percentage with a time range has both parts.
Source: The Kanban Guide for Scrum Teams (2018), Scrum.org, Daniel Vacanti, Yuval Yeret, CC BY-SA 4.0, KanbanGuideST2018-p4, p. 4
Source: Kanban Guide for Scrum Teams (2018) and Scrum Guide 2020
2/5 · Flow metrics and Service Level Expectations · hard
A stakeholder shows the Scrum Team a cumulative flow diagram built from the last six Sprints and asks the Product Owner to treat the projected completion date as a firm promise so the Sprint Review can be shortened. How should the Scrum Team respond?
Ause it as a forecast and still hold the Sprint Review
Btreat the date as firm but keep a shortened Sprint Review
Cset the chart aside and forecast from estimates instead
Dreplace the Sprint Review with a flow metrics report
Answer: A. The Scrum Guide notes that practices such as burn-downs, burn-ups or cumulative flows are proven useful but do not replace the importance of empiricism: in complex environments what will happen is unknown, and only what has already happened may be used for forward-looking decisions. Failure to operate events as prescribed results in lost opportunities to inspect and adapt. The chart stays an input to the forecast.
Source: The 2020 Scrum Guide, Ken Schwaber and Jeff Sutherland, CC BY-SA 4.0, ScrumGuide2020-p8, ScrumGuide2020-p9, p. 7-8
Source: Kanban Guide for Scrum Teams (2018) and Scrum Guide 2020
3/5 · Flow metrics and Service Level Expectations · hard
A team enforces its limit on items in progress strictly, yet several items sit idle for days and nobody notices until the Sprint Review. What else does the team need in order to establish flow?
Alowering the limit further each Sprint until nothing waits
Bhaving the Scrum Master assign each idle item to a Developer
Cresponding quickly to blocked, queued and slow-moving items
Dhaving the Product Owner reorder items in progress each day
Answer: C. The Kanban Guide says that limiting WIP is necessary to achieve flow but not sufficient. The third practice is active management of work items in progress, which includes ensuring items are not left to age unnecessarily and responding quickly to blocked or queued items and those exceeding the expected Cycle Time. Tighter limits, outside assignment or reordering do not provide this.
Source: The Kanban Guide for Scrum Teams, Scrum.org and ProKanban.org, January 2021, CC BY-SA 4.0, Active Management of Work Items in Progress, p. 6
Source: Kanban Guide for Scrum Teams (2018) and Scrum Guide 2020
4/5 · Flow metrics and Service Level Expectations
During a flow review a Developer proposes to calculate Work Item Age for every item the team has touched, including those completed last Sprint. To which items does the Kanban Guide for Scrum Teams say this metric applies?
Aitems finished during the current Sprint
Bitems that are started and not yet finished
Citems in the Product Backlog, measured from their creation
Ditems due to be pulled at the next Sprint Planning
Answer: B. Work Item Age is the amount of time between when a work item started and the current time. The Kanban Guide for Scrum Teams says it applies only to items still in progress. Finished items are measured by Cycle Time, and items not yet started have no age.
Source: The Kanban Guide for Scrum Teams, Scrum.org and ProKanban.org, January 2021, CC BY-SA 4.0, The Basic Metrics of Flow, p. 4
Source: Kanban Guide for Scrum Teams (2018) and Scrum Guide 2020
5/5 · Flow metrics and Service Level Expectations · easy
A team new to Kanban wants to track flow. Its Scrum Master suggests scheduling a separate weekly flow meeting. What does the Kanban Guide for Scrum Teams say about events?
Aa separate meeting is needed for flow metrics, held beside the Daily Scrum
Bno extra events are required, and existing events can use flow metrics
Cthe Daily Scrum is replaced by a board review run by the Scrum Master
Dthe Sprint Retrospective is replaced by a weekly flow review
Answer: B. Kanban in a Scrum context does not require any additional events to those in the Scrum Guide. Using a flow-based perspective and metrics inside the existing events strengthens Scrum's empirical approach. The Daily Scrum keeps its goal while focusing on where flow is lacking, and the Retrospective adds inspection of flow metrics.
Source: The Kanban Guide for Scrum Teams, Scrum.org and ProKanban.org, January 2021, CC BY-SA 4.0, Flow-Based Events, p. 7
Source: Kanban Guide for Scrum Teams (2018) and Scrum Guide 2020
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