A scrum master is a professional or facilitator who handles an agile team by incorporating the scrum framework. In simple terms, a scrum master is an expert who brings scrum practices and values into use to enable seamless project delivery.
Upon digging deeper, we realize that a Scrum Master is responsible for establishing Scrum, a delicate and agile framework for self-driven teams that work on complex products by accomplishing their tasks in sprints.
Scrum is an agile team collaboration framework that the software developers use to structure their work.
How to become a Scrum Master?
To become a Scrum Master, a prerequisite is to complete a Scrum certification training course, such as the CSM - Certified Scrum Master or the PSM - Professional Scrum Master, and to qualify for the corresponding examination.
Scrum Theory
The Scrum theory is an iterative approach to handling complicated projects by adapting to new changes and developments (be it new knowledge or latest technology) to deliver value-added services to customers, in the shortest time possible.
The theory of Scrum traces back to the philosophy of empiricism, which validates only the knowledge based on experience to be true. This theory mentions that the foundation of these decisions is observation and not on any random narration.
Scrum Values
The Scrum Guide encompasses the 5 Scrum Values, which are:
- Courage
- Focus
- Commitment
- Respect
- Openness
All five Scrum values are paramount to successfully implementing Scrum methodology in projects. Additionally, these values uphold the idea of holistic development of individuals by maintaining transparency in teams and quality in deliverables.
Scrum Team
As the name clarifies, a Scrum Team is a team of professionals that manages and executes projects using the Scrum methodology of the Agile framework. One can define a scrum team as a small, integrated, autonomous group that collaboratively delivers product additions and revisions using the scrum framework.
A scrum framework comprises a Product Owner, Scrum Master, and Developers (the Development Team), where everyone involved in the project works towards one goal - Product Creation.
Scrum Events
There are five Scrum Events (or Scrum Ceremonies) aligned with the Scrum Guide, namely:
- Sprint - All the short projects performed within the Scrum framework are a Sprint
- Sprint Planning - This is a Scrum occasion where the entire team holds a meeting on the product backlog (often called the Sprint Backlog) and other tasks to close them in the next sprint session (also known as the Sprint Goal).
- Daily Scrum - Also called the Daily standup, this is a short, designated 15-minute meeting that the scrum developers host to track project progress and to strategize for the upcoming 24 hours.
- Sprint Review - As the term defines, Sprint Review is more like a review session or meeting held at the end of every sprint to discuss the previous work done and the scope.
- Sprint Retrospective - The last event in the Sprint is the Sprint Retrospective, where the Scrum Team inspects and reflects on the ongoing work process and practices.
Scrum Artifacts
There are 3 Scrum artifacts are Product Backlog, Sprint Backlog, and Product Increment.
- Product Backlog: This includes a list of new features, enhancements, bug fixes, tasks, and work commitments necessary to build a product. This is based on compiled sources, including customer behavior, competitor analysis, market structure, and business prospects.
- Sprint Backlog: A subset of product backlog tasks and a list of tasks developed for a single sprint, during the upcoming product increment session
- Product Increment: In Scrum, the sum of all the completed Product Backlog items in a sprint, in addition to the work done in previous sprints, is the product increment.
7 Key Responsibilities of a Scrum Master
- Resolve issues in the project
- Train team members as a coach by creating sprint rhythms and retrospectives
- Help the team deliver value service by fostering continuous learning
- Empower and guard the team from external restraints
- Enable effective communication between groups
- Lead the scrum team with new strategies and ideas
- Prioritize end goals over individual outputs
Top Skills required of a Scrum master
To become a successful scrum master, it is crucial to have a set of technical skills. This includes specific lessons and guiding principles that one can learn from certifications, training, and other online resources.
We have enlisted the crucial skills below:
- In-depth understanding of Scrum and Agile principles
- Ability to train and navigate the team through challenges
- Extensive knowledge of project management
- Extraordinary facilitation skills to resolve issues
- Solid experience in handling the technical aspects of a project
Besides these, there are a bunch of soft skills that are also crucial for a scrum master. Those are:
- Being a facilitator for the team and leading it
- Analytical thinking and troubleshooting
- Leadership and time management
- Managerial skills
- Versatility and flexibility
5 Ways to Earn Trust as a Scrum Master
To structure a scrum team, the company onboards different individuals pursuing different backgrounds and experiences. This makes the whole team well-integrated and dynamic, working towards one shared goal - product creation and delivery.
Here, as a scrum master, one has to build trust within the team and also vice versa. This will strike the perfect balance between their reliability and understanding of your know-how and your comprehension of their abilities. But how exactly can a scrum master earn the trust of the people around him?
They can do it with:
- Language proficiency
- Team supervision
- Showing respect to others
- Creating opportunities
- Encouraging the scrum team
Scrum Master career path
The career pathway of a scrum master is often compared to that of an athlete, owing to its focus on one dedicated team initially. Eventually, as the scrum master overcomes challenges and resolves issues of the projects and the team, he embraces the position of a mentor or an instructor.
Often called the coach, who mastered working in the Agile framework, the mentor looks after his team of Scrum Masters. The other two job profiles that a scrum master takes up in his career are those of a manager or the product owner. As a manager, the scrum master delegates responsibilities to the team and takes up the managerial role.
When the scrum master takes the role of a product owner, they participate in the product built by the team to know more about it. Since the scrum master stays in proximity to the creative team, they often turn out to be exceptional as product owners.
Is Scrum Master a Full-Time Job?
Yes, the role of a scrum master is full-time, as they handle a diverse range of responsibilities across various sectors and industries. Right from supervising the team to guiding it with the right principles wherever required; facilitating discussions and decisions, and offering collaborative support to reach end goals - a scrum master has multiple roles to dodge.
But, at present, not every scrum master works full-time as someone managing scrum projects. Today, with new organization policies and, well-established hierarchy of project managers and agile experts, the role of a scrum master can be easily navigated with quick, short-term attendance.
Who Chooses the Team's Scrum Master?
Ideally, the team only chooses an individual as their scrum master by observing their abilities, knowledge, and exposure. In most cases, it is also the organization’s decision, as the onboarding is done based on the open positions and profiles created. So, the primary scrum master is mostly chosen by the company, and eventually, the experienced teams get to handpick individuals for the scrum master role, depending on their requirements.
Should Teams Rotate the Scrum Master Role?
Revolving the roles of Scrum Master is a collective, strategic decision on the part of the company and also the team. As this often turns out to be an unsafe decision for the team, it is not fully recommended by the company.
But studies suggest, rotating the scrum master’s role is beneficial as it brings in the collective involvement of multiple members of the team, thereby fostering new ideas and shared responsibilities.
Who needs a Scrum master?
A Scrum master is an integral part of any team that follows the agile methodology of work to manage projects. But to realize who actually needs a scrum master, one should be informed about their work priorities and how they can handle them. This will help them know how having a Scum master can help them.
Any company or team would need a scrum master who wants:
- The Scrum framework to be adopted in their teams
- To eliminate the possible project issues from happening
- To set up seamless communication channels between team members
- To encourage team collaboration and participation
- To benefit from the exposure and expertise of a scrum master
- To address complex projects and recurring issues
Benefits of employing a Scrum master
There are multiple advantages of hiring a scrum master. They empower the Agile teams and also ensure free-flowing operations within a group. If you are about to employ a scrum master for your company, comprehend the multiple benefits they would bring in for your teams and the organization at large, as mentioned below:
- Guide the team on principles and practices
- Expedite agile processes and facilitate productive sessions
- On-time delivery of featured products
- Address hindrances and resolve issues
- Drive organizational change to meet goals
- Encourage brainstorming and collaboration
- Work as a servant leader
Certifications for Scrum masters
For individuals interested in the crucial Scrum certifications, it is essential to be aware of the following certificates. Individuals willing to pursue Scrum Master certification, including PSM (Professional Scrum Master I, II, and III) from Scrum.org, Certified ScrumMaster (CSM), Advanced Certified ScrumMaster (ACSM), and Certified Scrum Professional ScrumMaster (CSP - SM) from Scrum Alliance, would be beneficial. Other certifications that could be equally relevant for this profile could be SAFe Scrum Master (SSM) and SAFe Advanced Scrum Master (SASM).
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