Do we really need a ScrumMaster? As organizations get on to the Scrum bandwagon there is a cacophony of advice on what is the role of a ScrumMaster and how to best leverage this position within “our organization” Regardless of the strategy the question still remains, how do we fill the new positions of ScrumMaster?
As more and more organizations are moving towards Agile and Scrum there is a lot of confusion on the ScrumMaster Role and responsibility. I am sure you would have heard the term Agile Scrum Project Manager or Scrum Manager. These are a symptom of lack of understanding of the process. The waterfall hangover is the main culprit
WIP Limit Coauthor of Agile Manifesto and creator of Adaptive Software Development, Jim Highsmith, characterized Agility as the ability to balance flexibility and stability. “Agility is the ability to both create and respond to change in order to profit in a turbulent business environment”. Mike Cohen, in his book Agile Estimation and Planning, describes change as
Self-organizing and self-managing is a core concept for Scrum, which means that there is no manager (project or functional manager) overseeing the day to day work of the team. Absence of the functional manager leads to some confusion on conducting the least favorite task for almost all employees—the dreaded “Annual Review”. So, how do you
Here is a quick reference on the meetings, attendees and artificats in a Scrum Cycle. Meetings Attendees Goals Artifacts Sprint Planning Develepment Team, ScrumMaster, Product Owner possibly SME’s Sprint Backlog Sprint Backlog and Sprint Goal Daily Stand-up/ Daily Scrum Development Team, Product Owner (at the invitation of the Dev team), ScrumMaster Status update on the
Scrum with Distributed Teams and Outsourcing Outsourcing is a very popular and profitable way of augmenting the work force. It worked with relative level of success using waterfall methodology, however the out-sourcing model fails in a Scrum implementation. Why is that? One of the core tenets of Scrum is a co-located, self-organizing and self-managing teams.
What does a Scrum Master do during the Sprint? After the Sprint Planning meeting an ideal development team will leverage self-organization and self-management to deliver the sprint backlog. If the team is highly motivated and understands scrum well, then what does the scrum master during the sprint? I have broken it down to three sections
Checklist a simple but powerful tool to mitigate risks In 1935, when B-17 “The Flying Fortress” was being tested, the final aircraft evaluations were done at the Wright-Paterson Airbase close to Dayton Ohio. The B-17 took off and seconds after take-off the aircraft stalled and dropped to the ground bursting into flames. Initially it was
Ground Rules for Scrum Teams A scrum team is expected to be a self-organizing and self-managing, this means the absence of a manager. Self-Governance of the team to deliver work they have committed during the sprint planning becomes smoother if these ground rules (team agreements) are in place. Effective Scrum Teams Agreements become very important
The chart lays out the overall chart for the roles and responsibilities of a ScrumMaster. Leveraging Servant Leadership style of management, the ScrumMaster’s core responsibilities also include: Development Team Understand and practice the elements of the Scrum framework correctly Understand and practice Self-Managing and Self-Organizing team Practice mutual responsibility Actively participate in the Scrum meetings