Free Practice Questions for PeopleCert DevOps-Foundation Exam

Lean tools and practicesare foundational to DevOps because they help organizations systematically identify and eliminate waste, optimize value delivery, and continuously improve processes.

Lean thinkingfocuses on value stream mapping, reducing delays, bottlenecks, over-processing, handoffs, rework, and unnecessary tasks—core to making DevOps successful.

Option D, “They help identify waste and assist in the creation of improvement practices,” perfectly captures this focus.

Extract-style reference:

“Lean enables teams to identify value and non-value-added activities and to use continuous improvement techniques such as Kaizen, value stream mapping, and removing waste.”

—DevOps Handbook

PeopleCert DevOps Foundation v3.6: Lean tools like Value Stream Mapping, 5S, and Kaizen are cited as critical enablers for optimizing the flow and improving IT and business alignment.

Businesses are drawn to DevOps because it improves agility, responsiveness, and quality.

A: The growth of IoT requires scalable, automated, and reliable delivery processes.

B: Fast, intelligent decision-making is needed to respond to market changes.

D: The shift toward valuing customer outcomes over products is central to modern service delivery.

However,Cis a misconception. While automation is a key DevOps practice, the goal isstrategic automation—automating where it adds measurable value, improves quality, or accelerates delivery. “Automate all the things” without consideration can waste resources, increase complexity, and reduce adaptability.

ChatOpsis the practice of conducting operational work directly through chat platforms (e.g., Slack, Microsoft Teams) integrated with automation and tooling. In this case:

Teams from multiple locations are collaborating in real-time via Slack.

They are running commands and queries directly from the chat to the delivery and monitoring systems.

This allows shared visibility, immediate context, and rapid action during incident resolution.

WhileA(Swarming) describes a collaborative incident response, it does not specifically imply integration with chat-based tools.C(Incident Management) is the overall process, andD(IT Support) is a function, but neither capture the specific ChatOps approach.

Thus,B – ChatOpsis the most accurate answer here.

When work is delayed due to resource availability or local optimizations causing global degradation, the issue relates toThe First Way—maximizing flow from left to right.

Organizations should analyze and remove bottlenecks in the delivery pipeline (e.g., in testing).

Extract-style reference:

“Optimizing the flow of work requires eliminating bottlenecks, delays, and handoffs that slow the movement of changes from development to operations.”

—The Phoenix Project

DevOps Foundation courseware discusses value stream mapping and the First Way as critical tools for diagnosing and correcting such issues.

ChatOpsis the integration of chat platforms with tools and workflows, allowing teams to manage operations and incidents directly through chat.

Using anAPI (Application Programming Interface)is the correct, scalable way to transfer incident-related data automatically from chat clients to ITSM (IT Service Management) tools, preserving traceability and reducing manual errors.

Why not manual cut/paste?

Manual processes are error-prone and slow; DevOps aims for automation and integration.

Extract-style reference:

“APIs enable seamless transfer of information between ChatOps platforms and ITSM tools, supporting automation, accuracy, and auditability in incident management.”

—DevOps Handbook;ChatOps: Managing Operations and Collaboration in the Cloud, Jason Hand

PeopleCert DevOps Foundation v3.6:Promotes APIs for integration, automation, and collaboration.

TheThomas-Kilmann Conflict Mode Instrument (TKI)is a psychometric tool that measures an individual’s behavior in conflict situations—specifically, how they handle disagreement with colleagues.

It classifies responses into five modes: Competing, Collaborating, Compromising, Avoiding, and Accommodating.

Why not the others?

Kubler Ross Change Curve:Describes emotional responses to change, not conflict styles.

Westrum’s Typology:Categorizes organizational culture (pathological, bureaucratic, generative) but doesn’t measure individual behavior.

Value Stream Mapping:A process improvement tool, not a behavioral assessment.

Reference/Extract:

“The Thomas-Kilmann instrument helps teams understand how individuals approach conflict and collaboration, enabling better resolution strategies—a key aspect of high-performing DevOps teams.”

—DevOps Handbook; PeopleCert DevOps Foundation v3.6 Section 3.7

Command(authoritarianism) is not a crucial ingredient for leading digital transformation.

The key ingredients:

Collaboration

Curiosity

Courage

DevOps leadership is about empowering teams, experimenting, and driving change,notcommand-and-control.

Extract-style reference:

“Digital transformation leaders embrace collaboration, curiosity, and courage, fostering an environment where experimentation and learning drive change.”

—Accelerate,DevOps Handbook

PeopleCert DevOps Foundation v3.6:Advocates servant and transformational leadership, not command/control.

Automationbrings multiple key benefits in DevOps:

Higher quality:Automated tests and deployments catch errors earlier, reduce human error, and ensure consistency.

Faster recovery:Automated monitoring and remediation help restore services quickly after incidents.

Other options either decrease quality, increase errors, or make releases less predictable—contradicting DevOps goals.

Extract-style reference:

“Automation reduces errors, increases quality, accelerates lead time, and shortens recovery by ensuring repeatable, reliable processes.”

—DevOps Handbook

PeopleCert DevOps Foundation v3.6:Automation is a pillar of DevOps, referenced throughout the syllabus as a key driver for speed and reliability.

DevOps shifts the focus fromactivity-based metrics(outputs) toimpact-based metrics(outcomes and value). Measuring outcomes means assessing whether work delivers the intended business or customer benefit.

Outputslike lines of code, number of deployments, or velocity measure activity but not whether value is being delivered. PeopleCert emphasizes that outcomes should align with business objectives—such as improved customer satisfaction, revenue growth, or reduced failure rates.

Therefore,B—Outcomes and value—is preferred for guiding meaningful improvements.