Scrum Master - the Unicorn role
We all have read the definition of the Scrum master role in the Scrum guide. However different organisations implement the role differently. Few companies have a "pure" Scrum master position. Others implement it as a "hatted" or "mixed" role, where the responsibilities are added to people who already have other duties and creating position titled as "Agile BA/SM".
While there is no right or wrong answer, we will look at a few different definitions, also looking at a few job advertisements - and then have a group activity discussing what the participants about how think the Scrum master could serve more effectively their organsation in their particular context.
Maybe in their context Scrum masters both coach agile values to their team(s) and are also responsible for delivery. Maybe they think that the SM should be both a BA and a SM - what would be the trade-offs then? Can a Scrum Master help the organisation with capability improvement (beyond their assigned team)? While there is no silver bullet to solve these issues, we will think together how we can answer these questions and what are the risks we should be aware of.
Outline/Structure of the Workshop
- Introduction (~3 mins)
- Definitions in Scrum Guide (~2 mins)
- Looking at a few SM job advertisements that emphasize similar / different skills compared to the frameworks - also asking the audience (~10 mins)
- Introducing the group activity and the intent (e.g. trade-offs of having multiple hats, not to double down on misunderstandings, e.g. SM is just a facilitator) (~2 mins)
- Group activity - How the Scrum masters could serve more effectively (in your context)?
- 1-2-4-All (1-2-4 bit is ~10 mins)
- Playback for team (60-90 seconds / team , depending on number of teams) (~10 mins)
- Some closing thoughts based on the outcome of the discussion and my own experience (~3 mins)
Learning Outcome
- Hopefully some great ideas on how SMs can help their organisations to improve, rather than just be a great facilitator.
And some thoughts on my last slide:
- There is no silver bullet on how a Scrum master role gets implemented at a particular organisation
- Get a “good enough” role definition and be aware of the risks (e.g. wearing multiple hats)
- Roles evolve, so you might want to review the definitions (including the title of the position)
- Forming, storming and norming will happen anyway (e.g. if you put the highest performing SM into a new team) -> #NoResources (1 SM != 1 SM)
Target Audience
Scrum Masters, Agile Delivery Leads, Agile Coaches
Prerequisites for Attendees
Put aside any judgment that you have and bring an open mind.
Links
https://www.seek.com.au/scrum-master-jobs
for some inspiration on what other organisations think about the SM role
schedule Submitted 4 months ago
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