100+ Free KSD Practice Questions

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When KSD says 'design the cadences,' what is the actual design decision being made?

Choosing video conferencing tools

Buying calendar software

Choosing the room

Selecting which cadences to run, at what frequency, with which participants and agenda, fitting the current state of the service — and committing to evolve them over time

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Key Facts: KSD Exam

2-Day

Course Length

Kanban University

No Exam

Assessment Format

Credential on course completion

KMP I

Pathway Role

Part 1 of Kanban Management Professional

Lifetime

Credential Validity

No renewal required

100

Free Practice Questions

OpenExamPrep

KSD (KMP I) is Kanban University's second credential — a 2-day Accredited Kanban Trainer course (or 16-hour virtual) covering the full STATIK design process (sources of dissatisfaction, demand and capability, workflow modeling, classes of service, board design), the four classes of service (Standard, Fixed Date, Expedite, Intangible), Service Level Expectations as percentile + duration, per-class capacity allocation, explicit policies, board design (commitment point, doing/done, swim lanes, WIP limits), Kanban University cadences (Daily Kanban, Replenishment, Service Delivery Review, Operations, Risk, Strategy), Little's Law, Theory of Constraints, CFDs, and percentile-based forecasting. No centrally proctored exam — credential is awarded on course completion. Combined with KSI, KSD earns the Kanban Management Professional (KMP) credential. Our free 100-question practice bank covers each of these areas with detailed explanations.

Sample KSD Practice Questions

Try these sample questions to test your KSD exam readiness. Each question includes a detailed explanation. Start the interactive quiz above for the full 100+ question experience with AI tutoring.

1What does the acronym STATIK stand for, and what is its purpose in the KSD course?

A.Systematic Tools for Agile Team Iteration and Kanban — a tool inventory

B.Systems Thinking Approach to Introducing Kanban — a structured, iterative method for designing a Kanban system that fits the existing service

C.Standard Template And Toolkit for Implementing Kanban — a board template library

D.Strategic Transition And Transformation Initiative for Kanban — a top-down change program

Explanation: STATIK (Systems Thinking Approach to Introducing Kanban) is the central design technique taught in the KSD course. It is a structured, iterative workshop that surfaces sources of dissatisfaction, analyses demand and capability, models the workflow, identifies classes of service, and designs a kanban system fit for purpose. It is not a tool, a template, or a top-down transformation program.

2Which step of STATIK is normally performed FIRST in the workshop sequence taught in KSD?

A.Design the kanban system

B.Identify sources of dissatisfaction (internal and external)

C.Set WIP limits per column

D.Define classes of service

Explanation: STATIK begins by identifying sources of dissatisfaction — both internal (staff frustration, rework, overtime) and external (customer complaints, missed dates, quality issues). Starting with dissatisfaction grounds the design in real motivation for change, which Kanban relies on instead of mandated transformation.

3In STATIK, what is the practical difference between INTERNAL and EXTERNAL sources of dissatisfaction?

A.Internal sources are technical bugs; external sources are HR complaints

B.Internal sources come from people inside the service (overtime, rework, conflict); external sources come from customers and stakeholders (missed dates, quality, predictability)

C.Internal sources are board issues; external sources are policy issues

D.There is no meaningful distinction — they are treated identically

Explanation: KSD teaches the distinction so the design team gathers both perspectives. Internal dissatisfaction reveals friction and motivation inside the service (overtime, context switching, blocked work, rework, frustration). External dissatisfaction reveals what customers and upstream/downstream stakeholders need (missed deadlines, poor predictability, defects). A balanced view prevents designing a board that pleases the team but not customers, or vice versa.

4After identifying sources of dissatisfaction, what is the next analytical step in STATIK?

A.Design the board

B.Analyze demand (sources, types, arrival patterns) and analyze system capability

C.Conduct a retrospective

D.Pick classes of service

Explanation: Once dissatisfaction is understood, STATIK turns to analysing demand (what work arrives, from whom, in what mix, at what rate) and capability (how the system currently handles that work — lead times, throughput, predictability). Demand-and-capability analysis grounds later design choices in data rather than opinion.

5In KSD, demand analysis typically classifies work into 'work item types.' Which set is a TYPICAL output of this analysis?

A.Backend, Frontend, Database

B.Feature, Defect, Change Request, Technical Debt, Maintenance (or similar service-meaningful categories)

C.Small, Medium, Large t-shirt sizes

D.Sprint 1, Sprint 2, Sprint 3

Explanation: Work item types in STATIK describe the kinds of demand the service receives that matter for policy, sizing, or routing — e.g., Feature, Defect, Change Request, Technical Debt, Maintenance. They are not technology layers, not sizes, and not time-boxes; those are different dimensions used elsewhere on the board.

6What is 'demand sampling' as discussed in the KSD course?

A.Asking customers a survey question once a year

B.Looking back over a representative time window (e.g., 4-12 weeks) and counting the actual work items the service received, by type, source, and arrival timing

C.Forecasting next quarter's demand from sales pipeline only

D.Estimating future demand from manager opinion

Explanation: Demand sampling means examining a representative historical window of actual arrivals and counting work by type, source, and arrival pattern (steady, bursty, seasonal). It is empirical, based on real items the service handled, not on surveys, sales projections, or opinions. This grounds the design in observed demand.

7Which set of metrics is MOST relevant to a system-capability analysis in KSD?

A.Story points completed, velocity, sprint burndown

B.Lead time, cycle time, throughput, delivery rate, and blocked-time / aging WIP

C.Net Promoter Score, ARPU, churn

D.Headcount, salary, tenure

Explanation: Capability is measured by flow metrics: lead time (customer-perceived), cycle time (work-in-process), throughput / delivery rate (completed per period), and supporting indicators like blocked time and aging WIP. These describe what the system actually delivers and how predictably. Velocity and story points are Scrum-flavoured, NPS is customer satisfaction, headcount is staffing.

8In KSD, what is 'fitness for purpose'?

A.The exam-readiness of a Kanban trainer

B.The degree to which a service meets the customers' fitness criteria — the metrics customers actually care about, such as on-time delivery percentage, lead time, and quality

C.A measure of board aesthetics

D.A synonym for definition of done

Explanation: Fitness for purpose is David J. Anderson's framing: customers do not judge a service by velocity or output volume — they judge it by their own fitness criteria (e.g., 'delivered within 30 days,' 'fewer than 2% defects'). KSD teaches design teams to derive metrics and SLEs from those customer-defined fitness criteria.

9Which STATIK step explicitly models the activities that work items traverse from request to delivery?

A.Identify sources of dissatisfaction

B.Model the workflow (or 'analyze workflow')

C.Design classes of service

D.Roll out the change to the organization

Explanation: After demand and capability are understood, STATIK models the workflow — the actual sequence (or parallel set) of activities a work item passes through from arrival to delivery. This is the basis for board columns, queues, and entry/exit policies later in the design.

10In KSD workflow modeling, why is it important to identify QUEUES (waiting states) separately from ACTIVE states (work being done)?

A.Queues are decorative and only exist to fill space on the board

B.Queues are typically where most lead time accumulates; making them visible reveals where to focus flow improvements and where WIP limits matter most

C.Queues should always be removed from the board

D.Queues replace WIP limits entirely

Explanation: Knowledge-work lead time is dominated by waiting, not by active work. Separating queues from active states on the board makes waiting visible — which is where most flow improvement leverage lives. WIP limits on queues prevent overload, and explicit pull policies between queue and active states define when work moves.

About the KSD Exam

Kanban System Design (KSD) — also known as Kanban Management Professional Part I (KMP I) — is Kanban University's second credential in its development path, sitting between TKP and KSI. KSD is a 2-day in-person course (or 16-hour virtual course) led by an Accredited Kanban Trainer (AKT). There is no centrally proctored multiple-choice exam — the credential is awarded on course completion, and some trainers administer Kanban University's optional knowledge assessment. The course covers the full STATIK process (Systems Thinking Approach to Introducing Kanban — sources of dissatisfaction, demand and capability analysis, workflow modeling, classes of service, board design, socialization), the four canonical classes of service (Standard, Fixed Date, Expedite, Intangible), Service Level Expectations expressed as percentile + duration, per-class capacity allocation, explicit policies and pull policies, board design (columns, lanes, queues, commitment point, doing/done splits), Kanban University's cadences (Daily Kanban, Replenishment, Service Delivery Review, Operations Review, Risk Review, Strategy Review), Little's Law and Theory of Constraints applied to knowledge work, cumulative flow diagrams, lead-time distributions, and percentile-based forecasting. Combined with KSI, KSD earns the Kanban Management Professional (KMP) credential. This practice bank reinforces those concepts with 100 KSD-style questions and explanations.

Questions

100 scored questions

Time Limit

2-day course (no centrally proctored exam)

Passing Score

Course completion

Exam Fee

$1,200-$1,800 (course fee) (Kanban University)

KSD Exam Content Outline

~25%

STATIK — Systems Thinking Approach to Introducing Kanban

Sources of dissatisfaction, demand and capability analysis, workflow modeling, classes of service, board design, and socialization.

~25%

Classes of service, SLEs, and capacity allocation

Four canonical classes (Standard, Fixed Date, Expedite, Intangible), Service Level Expectations, per-class WIP, and capacity allocation.

~20%

Board design, explicit policies, and pull system

Columns, lanes, queues, commitment point, doing/done splits, swim lanes, WIP limits, definition of done, pull and work-item-type policies.

~15%

Cadences and feedback loops

Daily Kanban, Replenishment, Service Delivery Review, Operations Review, Risk Review, and Strategy Review.

~15%

Metrics, flow, and forecasting

Lead time vs. cycle time, throughput, blocked time, aging WIP, CFDs, lead-time distributions, Monte Carlo and percentile-based forecasting, Little's Law, and Theory of Constraints.

How to Pass the KSD Exam

What You Need to Know

Passing score: Course completion
Exam length: 100 questions
Time limit: 2-day course (no centrally proctored exam)
Exam fee: $1,200-$1,800 (course fee)

Keys to Passing

Complete 500+ practice questions
Score 80%+ consistently before scheduling
Focus on highest-weighted sections
Use our AI tutor for tough concepts

KSD Study Tips from Top Performers

1Walk through the STATIK steps in order until you can recite them: sources of dissatisfaction (internal and external), demand and capability analysis, workflow modeling, classes of service, board design, socialization

2Know the four classes of service cold and the cost-of-delay shape of each: Standard (gradual CoD), Fixed Date (cliff at the date), Expedite (high immediate CoD, WIP cap of 1), Intangible (low immediate CoD but accruing later)

3Be fluent in SLE as 'percentile + duration' — e.g., '85% of standard items finish within 14 days' — never as an average or a story-point target

4Know Kanban University's cadence layers: Daily Kanban (tactical) → Replenishment → Service Delivery Review → Operations Review → Risk Review → Strategy Review

5Read 'Kanban' by David J. Anderson OR 'Kanban from the Inside' by Mike Burrows — Kanban University requires one of these before the KSD course

6Practice Little's Law calculations both ways (Cycle Time = WIP / Throughput) and interpret CFDs (widening In Progress band = WIP rising faster than completion)

Frequently Asked Questions

Is there a written exam for KSD?

No centrally proctored written exam. Kanban University awards the KSD credential on completion of an Accredited Kanban Trainer (AKT) course — a 2-day in-person workshop or 16-hour virtual course. Some AKTs administer Kanban University's optional knowledge assessment (a multiple-choice knowledge check), but the credential itself is awarded by the AKT on course completion. Our 100-question practice bank exists to help you internalize the KSD body of knowledge, especially STATIK, classes of service, and board design.

Is KSD the same as KMP I?

Yes. KSD (Kanban System Design) is also known as KMP I (Kanban Management Professional Part I). Completing KSD plus KSI (Kanban Systems Improvement, KMP II) earns the Kanban Management Professional (KMP) credential.

What does KSD cover that TKP does not?

TKP introduces the Kanban Method (principles, practices, basic WIP and cadences). KSD goes deeper into design: the full STATIK process (sources of dissatisfaction, demand and capability analysis, workflow modeling, board design, socialization), classes of service in policy depth, SLEs as percentile + duration, explicit pull and work-item-type policies, lead-time distributions, percentile-based forecasting, and the full set of Kanban University cadences.

How long is the KSD course?

The KSD course is two days in person (or 16 hours virtually, typically spread over multiple sessions). It is interactive — STATIK design exercises, a kanban simulation, group work, and policy-design workshops. Required pre-reading is 'Kanban' by David J. Anderson or 'Kanban from the Inside' by Mike Burrows.

Are there prerequisites for KSD?

There is no formal experience prerequisite, but Kanban University requires participants to read either 'Kanban' by David J. Anderson or 'Kanban from the Inside' by Mike Burrows before attending. TKP is not a prerequisite for KSD but is often taken first.

How much does KSD cost?

Course fees vary by Accredited Kanban Trainer and region — typical pricing ranges from about $1,200 to $1,800 USD, with lower prices in some regions. Fees usually include the course, materials, Kanban University membership, and the credential.

Does KSD expire?

No. The KSD credential is awarded for life with no renewal fee and no continuing-education requirement. The next credential in the path (KSI / KMP II) is a separate accredited course; completing both earns the KMP credential.

KSD vs. KSI — what is the difference?

KSD (KMP I) focuses on DESIGNING a kanban system using STATIK. KSI (KMP II) focuses on EVOLVING an existing system using flow analytics, the Kanban Maturity Model, and improvement experiments. Both are 2-day AKT-led courses; together they earn the Kanban Management Professional (KMP) credential.