PMI Disciplined Agile Foundations (DAF)

Which of the following best describes the primary purpose of the Disciplined Agile (DA) toolkit?

• ATo prescribe a single agile methodology for all teams
• BTo provide a process-decision framework that helps teams choose and evolve their Way of W…
• CTo replace Scrum and Kanban with a unified enterprise framework
• DTo document best practices from waterfall project management

The Disciplined Agile mindset is expressed through principles, promises, and guidelines. Which of the following is a DA PRINCIPLE?

• AFulfill your team's Way of Working
• BExperiment and measure
• CContext counts
• DOptimize end-to-end flow

A DA practitioner promises to 'apply the DA mindset.' What does this commitment primarily mean in practice?

• AFollow the DA toolkit's prescribed lifecycle without deviation
• BAdopt the principles, promises, and guidelines as a foundation for decision-making
• CEarn all Disciplined Agile certifications before contributing to team decisions
• DUse only PMI-approved tools and software in the delivery process

Which of the eight DA principles most directly supports the idea that teams should not blindly copy practices from another team without considering their own situation?

• ADelight customers
• BBe awesome
• CContext counts
• DOptimize flow

In Disciplined Agile, what are the four layers of the DA toolkit?

• AFoundation, Disciplined DevOps, Value Streams, Disciplined Agile Enterprise
• BScrum, Kanban, SAFe, Lean Startup
• CMindset, Delivery, Governance, Portfolio
• DTeam, Program, Large Solution, Portfolio

The Foundation layer of the DA toolkit includes which of the following?

• AEnterprise portfolio management and business agility transformation
• BDevOps pipeline automation and release orchestration
• CThe DA mindset, roles, and team-level delivery lifecycles
• DValue stream mapping and cross-team coordination practices

A DA team is choosing a delivery lifecycle. They work on a mature product with steady demand and want to reduce batch size and improve flow without fixed-length sprints. Which DA lifecycle is most appropriate?

• AAgile (Scrum-based) lifecycle
• BLean (Kanban-based) lifecycle
• CExploratory (Lean Startup) lifecycle
• DProgram lifecycle

Which DA lifecycle is most appropriate for a startup team building a completely new product where the solution is highly uncertain and requires rapid experimentation?

• AContinuous Delivery: Agile lifecycle
• BProgram lifecycle
• CLean (Kanban-based) lifecycle
• DExploratory lifecycle

The DA Agile (Scrum-based) lifecycle has three phases. What are they?

• ADiscovery, Development, Deployment
• BInception, Construction, Transition
• CInitiation, Iteration, Release
• DPlanning, Execution, Closure

In Disciplined Agile, what is the role of the Team Lead?

• ADefines the product vision and prioritizes the work backlog
• BMakes all architectural decisions for the team
• CActs as a servant leader, facilitating the team's process and removing impediments
• DRepresents stakeholder interests and approves all deliverables

Which DA role is primarily responsible for prioritizing the work backlog and representing customer needs?

• ATeam Lead
• BArchitecture Owner
• CProduct Owner
• DStakeholder

In DA, who is responsible for guiding the team's architectural decisions and ensuring technical integrity of the solution?

• ATeam Lead
• BArchitecture Owner
• CProduct Owner
• DSenior Team Member

A DA team is struggling with repeated architectural debt and inconsistent technical decisions. The Team Lead is coaching the team but has no strong technical background. What is the most appropriate DA response?

• AReplace the Team Lead with a more technical person
• BHave the Product Owner take responsibility for technical decisions
• CEnsure an Architecture Owner role is filled with someone who can guide technical strategy
• DHire an external consultant to document all architectural standards

What does 'Way of Working' (WoW) mean in Disciplined Agile?

• AThe specific software tools mandated by PMI for agile teams
• BThe unique set of practices, methods, and processes a team adopts for their context
• CA standardized sprint ceremony schedule all DA teams must follow
• DThe governance reporting structure for executive stakeholders

What is Guided Continuous Improvement (GCI) in Disciplined Agile?

• AA PMI-mandated audit process for certifying team maturity
• BA structured approach using quick-start guides and proven patterns to help teams improve…
• CAn automated pipeline that deploys code improvements without human approval
• DA quarterly planning ceremony where teams set improvement goals

In the DA toolkit, what is a 'process goal'?

• AA specific KPI target that teams must hit each sprint
• BA high-level outcome that a team should strive to achieve, with multiple decision points…
• CA mandatory process gate that must be passed before moving to the next lifecycle phase
• DA PMI-certified standard process for software development teams

A DA goal diagram for 'Develop Test Strategy' shows multiple options at each decision point. What does this structure communicate to the team?

• AThe team must use all the options listed to achieve the goal
• BThe topmost option is always the recommended best practice for any team
• CThere are multiple valid approaches; teams should choose based on their context and exper…
• DThe options represent a sequential process the team must follow in order

Which of the following BEST describes the DA principle 'Delight customers'?

• ADeliver software on time regardless of quality
• BFocus on satisfying and exceeding customer expectations by delivering genuine value conti…
• CConduct formal customer satisfaction surveys at the end of each release
• DReduce customer-reported defects to zero before any release

A team using a Scrum-based DA lifecycle finishes their sprint and has working software but has not yet deployed it to production. According to DA, what phase does deployment correspond to in the lifecycle?

• AInception
• BConstruction
• CTransition
• DRelease Gate

What is the main distinction between the Continuous Delivery: Agile lifecycle and the Agile (Scrum-based) lifecycle in DA?

• AContinuous Delivery requires more team members and a dedicated DevOps engineer
• BAgile is for software teams while Continuous Delivery is for non-IT teams
• CContinuous Delivery produces incremental releases continuously without discrete project p…
• DScrum-based lifecycle is newer and supersedes the Continuous Delivery lifecycle

In Disciplined Agile, the DA mindset view can be explored through which three lenses?

• APrinciples, Promises, and Guidelines
• BStrategy, Tactics, and Operations
• CValues, Practices, and Metrics
• DFrameworks, Methods, and Tools

A team is new to agile. According to DA's GCI approach, what is the best starting point for choosing a Way of Working?

• ADesign a custom WoW from scratch based on the team's preferences
• BUse a DA quick-start configuration as an initial WoW, then evolve through experimentation
• CAdopt SAFe as the default enterprise framework and scale down
• DAsk each team member to follow their previous employer's agile process

Which of the following BEST describes the DA FLEX layer of the toolkit?

• AThe layer that addresses individual practitioner flexibility in work hours
• BA value stream layer that coordinates how teams interact with business functions and supp…
• CThe foundational layer covering core agile and lean principles
• DA DevOps layer for continuous integration and deployment automation

A DA practitioner says 'enterprise awareness' is an important DA principle. What does this mean for a delivery team?

• AThe team must get executive approval for every sprint deliverable
• BThe team should consider how their work and decisions impact the broader organization bey…
• CThe team must align with the enterprise's waterfall project plan
• DIndividual team members must attend all enterprise-level meetings

According to Disciplined Agile, which statement about the Agile Manifesto is most accurate?

• AThe Agile Manifesto prescribes specific practices that all agile teams must use
• BThe Agile Manifesto provides four values and twelve principles that form the philosophica…
• CThe Agile Manifesto was created by PMI to define the DA framework
• DThe Agile Manifesto is outdated and replaced by the DA mindset

In Scrum, who is responsible for managing and prioritizing the Product Backlog?

• AScrum Master
• BDevelopment Team
• CProduct Owner
• DStakeholder Committee

What are the three official Scrum events (ceremonies) that occur within every Sprint?

• ASprint Planning, Daily Scrum, Sprint Review, Sprint Retrospective
• BDaily Standup, Backlog Refinement, Release Planning
• CInception Meeting, Construction Review, Transition Ceremony
• DKick-off, Mid-sprint Check, Release Gate

A Kanban team wants to improve their process. Their current cycle time for feature delivery is 12 days. They notice that items often wait in a 'Ready for Development' column for 4 days. According to lean and Kanban thinking, what should the team do first?

• AAdd more developers to reduce the wait time
• BInvestigate and reduce the wait time in the 'Ready for Development' stage as a form of wa…
• CIncrease sprint length to 4 weeks to give more time per feature
• DReplace Kanban with Scrum to improve throughput

What is the purpose of Work In Progress (WIP) limits in Kanban?

• ATo limit the number of team members allowed to work each day
• BTo cap the number of items actively being worked on at any stage, improving flow and expo…
• CTo set a maximum number of features that can be released per quarter
• DTo restrict stakeholders from adding new requests during a sprint

In lean thinking, what is value stream mapping used for?

• ADocumenting the financial value of each product feature for budgeting
• BVisualizing the end-to-end flow of work from customer request to delivery to identify was…
• CCreating a map of customer segments and their buying behavior
• DPlanning the release roadmap for the next 12 months

Which of the following is NOT one of the seven types of waste (Muda) originally identified in Lean/Toyota Production System thinking?

• AOverproduction
• BWaiting
• CDefects
• DRetrospection

A team's Sprint Review shows working software but stakeholders are dissatisfied because the delivered features don't solve their actual business problem. Which DA practice would most directly prevent this in future sprints?

• AHold more frequent daily standups
• BEngage stakeholders continuously throughout the sprint, not just at the Sprint Review
• CAdd more detailed documentation before starting each feature
• DExtend sprint length to allow more development time

The DA principle 'Pragmatism' means that DA practitioners should:

• AAlways follow industry best practices regardless of their team's context
• BChoose practical, working approaches over theoretically ideal but impractical ones
• CMinimize the use of frameworks and rely only on common sense
• DDocument all decisions thoroughly before taking any action

What does it mean for a DA team to 'improve continuously' as a DA promise?

• AHold a formal improvement meeting once per year
• BRegularly inspect and adapt the team's Way of Working through retrospectives and experime…
• CEnsure all team members earn one new certification per year
• DSubmit improvement suggestions to PMI for official approval

Which of the following correctly describes Extreme Programming (XP) technical practices that DA incorporates?

• ADaily Scrum, Sprint Planning, Sprint Review, Sprint Retrospective
• BTest-Driven Development, Pair Programming, Continuous Integration, Refactoring
• CValue Stream Mapping, Kanban Boards, WIP Limits, Pull Systems
• DSAFe PI Planning, ART Sync, Inspect and Adapt Workshop

A team has adopted the Scrum-based DA lifecycle. During their retrospective, they realize they have no clear architecture vision and are making inconsistent technology choices. Which DA role or practice should the team activate to address this?

• AAppoint a dedicated Project Manager to govern technology decisions
• BHave the Product Owner review all code before merging
• CActivate the Architecture Owner role to guide technical strategy and establish an initial…
• DEscalate all technology decisions to the executive sponsor

According to the DA toolkit, what is the Program lifecycle used for?

• AA single team managing a large software product with many features
• BCoordinating the work of multiple teams (a team of teams) to deliver a complex solution
• CTracking program-level financial metrics and budget reporting
• DGoverning the portfolio of projects across an enterprise

A DA practitioner says they follow the guideline 'Focus on outcomes, not outputs.' What does this mean in practice?

• ATrack only the number of features delivered, not business impact
• BMeasure success by the value and results delivered to customers and the business, not jus…
• CIgnore team velocity and focus only on revenue metrics
• DDeliver the maximum number of user stories per sprint

Which statement best describes how Disciplined Agile relates to Scrum?

• ADA replaces Scrum with a superior framework
• BDA incorporates Scrum as one of several options within its toolkit, extending it with add…
• CDA is a subset of Scrum designed for larger teams
• DDA and Scrum are completely independent frameworks with no relationship

A team has high WIP and is constantly context-switching. Features take weeks to complete but the team is always busy. What lean concept explains why adding more work makes delivery slower?

• AVelocity decay
• BLittle's Law — cycle time increases proportionally as WIP increases, given a stable throu…
• CParkinson's Law — work expands to fill the time available
• DBrooks's Law — adding people to a late project makes it later

In DA, the 'Be Mindful' principle means that practitioners should:

• APractice daily meditation before team meetings
• BMake conscious, deliberate choices about their WoW rather than blindly following habits o…
• CDocument every decision in writing to create an audit trail
• DAsk management for permission before changing any team practice

What is the DA Team Canvas and how is it used?

• AA visual project plan used to track feature delivery dates
• BA diagnostic tool that helps teams understand their current context and identify WoW impr…
• CA budget planning template for agile projects
• DA stakeholder communication plan template

According to DA, who is classified as a 'Stakeholder' and what is their role on a DA team?

• AAnyone who signs the project charter
• BAny person affected by the work of the team, who provides guidance, feedback, and resourc…
• COnly the executive sponsor who funds the project
• DExternal customers who purchase the final product

A team member says 'DA is built on the shoulders of many frameworks — we can borrow from all of them.' Which DA principle best captures this philosophy?

• ABe awesome
• BOptimize flow
• CChoice is good
• DDelight customers

A DA team realizes mid-sprint that an important stakeholder has not been involved and their requirements have been misunderstood. The DA guideline most relevant to preventing this in future is:

• ARight-size practices
• BExperiment and measure
• CCollaborate proactively
• DPlan for learning