Five most asked questions by Certified Scrum Master training participants

What are the KPIs for a Scrum Master?

This is the million dollar question, isn’t it? The Scrum Master’s responsibility should be to focus on themes rather than specific KPIs. These themes include:

1. Scrum Team: Coaching the team to enhance effectiveness.
2. Product Owner: Supporting the Product Owner in improving their role.
3. Organisation: Leading efforts to help the organisation adopt Agile and Scrum, including addressing organisational impediments.

Is a Scrum Master a full-time role? What else does a Scrum Master do other than facilitate Scrum events?

Many organisations undervalue the role of the Scrum Master, limiting them to administrative tasks like managing Jira tickets and setting up meetings, often due to a misunderstanding of their true responsibilities. In challenging environments, Scrum Masters should focus on the core principles of Scrum – iterative and incremental development, transparency, inspection, adaptation, and the Agile values and principles. By embodying the Scrum values (Courage, Focus, Commitment, Respect, and Openness), Scrum Masters can make a significant impact on their teams and organisations.

To ensure effectiveness, Scrum Masters should consider:

• Whether the Scrum Team is focused on outcomes rather than just outputs.
• If the Product Owner has a clear Product Goal.
• Whether the team consistently achieves their Sprint Goals.
• Actively working on organisational changes to support the Scrum Team.
• Helping the team become more self-managed.
• Enabling the team to handle conflict independently.
• Encouraging openness to new processes and techniques.
• Addressing recurring issues identified in retrospectives.
• Removing impediments quickly, ideally within 24 hours.
• Ensuring a full and correct implementation of Scrum practices.
• Supporting cross-functional teams and filling skill gaps.
• Assisting the Product Owner in prioritisation and stakeholder management.
• Onboarding new team members to Scrum.
• Promoting Scrum adoption across the organisation.

Are Business Analysts part of the Scrum Team?

The Scrum Team is cross-functional, meaning it has all the necessary skills to create value. If business analysis is required to deliver that value, then consequently, Business Analysts are part of the Scrum Team.

According to the Scrum Guide 2020, the Scrum Team handles all product-related activities. If business analysis is one of those activities, Business Analysts are included in the team.

It’s important to understand that within a Scrum Team, business analysis is a skill, just like development, and testing. Not all skills require functions or roles. In Scrum, “Developers” refers to anyone committed to creating any aspect of a usable product increment each Sprint, not just software developers. So, if your product needs business analysis, then the Scrum Team either needs a Business Analyst or someone with that skill.

How does the Scrum Master manage capacity and workload for the Scrum Team?

In short, it’s not a Scrum Master’s responsibility to manage capacity nor workload for the Scrum Team.

Capacity and workload management is a collaborative effort that involves the whole Scrum Team rather than it being managed by a single person.

The Developers assess their capacity during Sprint Planning. They consider their availability, skills, and the complexity of the tasks at hand to determine how much work they can realistically commit to for the upcoming Sprint.

The Scrum Master facilitates the planning process, ensuring that the team doesn’t overcommit and that impediments to capacity are identified and addressed. The Scrum Master may also help the team understand and manage factors that could affect capacity, such as team changes, holidays, or other obligations.

While the Product Owner doesn’t directly manage capacity, they provide input on priorities and stakeholder expectations. In doing so, they help the team balance capacity with the most valuable work.

Overall, capacity management in Scrum is a shared responsibility that requires transparent communication and collaboration among all team members.

How can the Scrum Team create a good Sprint Goal if they are working on multiple products and systems?

Creating a good Sprint Goal is essential for guiding the Scrum Team’s work. The Sprint Goal, defined in the first part of Sprint Planning, helps the team focus on why the Sprint is valuable to stakeholders.

Having multiple Sprint Goals can lead to sub-teams, reduced collaboration, and a lack of transparency.  This makes it harder to focus on delivering value. A clear Sprint Goal aligns the team, promotes engagement, and ensures that the team is working on value-driven outcomes rather than just outputs.

The Sprint Goal should be measurable and achievable. When dealing with multiple systems or products, find common themes by asking “Why” five times (Five Whys technique) to identify the core focus. Themes could include new customer acquisition, customer retention, or operational improvements. This helps the team stay aligned and focused throughout the Sprint.

Webinar: Ask the Scrum Trainer 

Do you have other Scrum-related questions and challenges that you would like answered by an expert Scrum Trainer? Join us on the 28th of August 2024 for an enlightening webinar where we’ll dive deep into the most pressing questions surrounding the Scrum Master role. Led by our expert Agile coach and trainer, Regina Martins, this session will unravel the complexities and misconceptions often associated with this crucial position in Agile teams.

Drawing from real-world experiences, your host will provide practical insights that you can immediately apply to enhance your Scrum adoption. Whether you’re a seasoned Scrum Master looking to refine your skills or an organization aiming to optimize your Agile processes, this webinar offers valuable knowledge for all.

Don’t miss this chance to ask the questions you’re sitting on, and ultimately elevate your understanding of the Scrum Master role and its impact on Agile success. Register now to secure your spot!

Date: Wednesday, 28 August 2024

Time: 16:00 -17:00 CEST | 16:00 -17:00 SAST | 09:00 – 10:00 CDT | 14:00-15:00 GMT

REGISTER HERE