Many organizations in the industry have enjoyed seeing the transformation from waterfall to agile for a ton of traditional projects. Now that there are a ton of companies that follow the ‘agile-ish’ way, there has been a high demand for Scrum Masters.
Let’s get deep into understanding why having a Scrum Master on the team is necessary for the success of a project in the agile world.
Implementing agile methodologies in a decent mid-sized organization is a challenge and a Scrum Master is the only one who can ensure everything runs smoothly. There are times when the roles of a Project Manager and a Scrum Master are bound to overlap but the most important thing to note here is that both the roles differ from each other to a great extent.
A certified scrum master(CSM) helps the team perform better. I would like you to think of Scrum Master as a cheerleader for all the teams that ensures scrum principles are followed in the projects. CSM certification is taken by professionals who are most likely looking for a shift in their career path from technical to management roles.
In 2018, Glassdoor research included Scrum Master in their list of highest paying jobs ranking at number twenty with a median salary of $98,239.
LinkedIn also included Scrum Master in its 2019 Most Promising Jobs list.
Pre-requisites for CSM Certification:
None.
There are no prerequisites to get certified as a Scrum Master. This is one of the reasons why many professionals pick Scrum Master certification as their first choice.
The exam for CSM by Scrum Alliance is an easy one which consists of 35 questions in 1 hour. The pass rate is 69% and the test also has an option to pause and resume it later.
Skill Set:
The scrum master addresses all facets of the agile development process and serves the business at large. A scrum master ensures that team members follow all the agile practices. They lead the daily standups and sprint planning meetings that require effective planning. He or she facilitates communication and collaboration between these elements. They coach the entire team on agile principles and cause changes that increase the productivity of the team.
The skills needed are as follows:
Pros of having a Scrum Master:
I have worked with teams that had a Scrum Master and didn’t have one. When you work in a team that consists of Product Owners, Developers, QA and project managers, having one person to facilitate all discussions proves to be beneficial.
Scrum Master
A lot of time is saved when you have a Scrum Master in the team to tackle impediments, follow up on status and ensure the project timeline is not affected.
Scrum Master deliverables
Deliverables are timely if the team communicates exceptionally well and a scrum master is to thank for working behind the scenes. Scrum masters are often termed as guardians of the scrum framework but many understand that it is not possible to be fully agile. A good scrum master evolves and adjusts according to the culture of the company and trains others on ways to achieve better results with the scrum methodology.
Scrum masters should work towards bridging the gap between product owners, developers and test engineers. In order to reap maximum benefits from the scrum framework, a team has to have a strong scrum master as the ring leader.
What not to do as a scrum master?
A scrum master cannot micro manage and over control the project or the team. A good scrum master is an asset only when they are able to steer a self organizing team in a better direction. There has to be a line drawn between the actual responsibilities of a scrum master and project management.
Tips for a Scrum Master
Now you know all about what goes into being a good scrum master. If you are already a scrum master, you know what not to do and if you are thinking of being one, you know what to do next.
Get your certification and become a great scrum master that contributes towards the overall success of a project and a company at large.
AUTHOR: Sheekha Singh – SheCanCode Blog Squad
