What is Scrum?

Scrum is a widespread framework that aims to help teams to work together. With the help of Scrum, teams can Learn from experiences, organize working on problems, Mirror their achievements and losses, Provide deliverables efficiently, Use time and money effectively, Incorporate feedback from clients and customers regularly and Focus on the efforts of individual team members.

Who is a Scrum Master?

A scrum master is the scrum team leader and takes control of managing the project, guiding the team and the product owner, and confirming that team members follow agile values and practices. A scrum master facilitates communication and collaboration between the business, the product owner, the team, and other individuals, who work behind the scenes and is not involved in product ideation or strategy. 

The Scrum Master is accountable for establishing Scrum, and they do this by supporting everyone in understanding Scrum theory and practice, both within the Scrum Team and the organization. The Scrum Master is responsible for the Scrum Team's efficacy, and they do this by enabling the Scrum Team to improve its practices within the Scrum framework. Scrum Masters are authentic leaders who benefit the Scrum Team and the larger organization.

Tasks and responsibilities of a Scrum Master

The role of a Scrum Master is to utilize Agile project management to victor a project, teams, and team members. Depending on where you work, you may find yourself taking on the role of a facilitator, coach, or project manager. Your duties will often vary from day today. 

• Assuring that the team includes agile practices into their work
• Conducting daily scrum meetings to help the team reach an agreement on What work they did yesterday, what they intend to do on that day and the problems they faced
• Ensuring there's a friendly relationship between the product owner and the team, as well as with other components outside the team
• A scrum master also ensures that the unit progresses, working on the proper tasks, clearing any barriers they might be facing, and protecting them from distractions.

Scrum Master skills

Scrum Masters usually have a set of workplace skills in common. Whether you're just getting initiated or advancing within your career, making these skills will assign you to lead your team to the best of your ability.

• Problem-solving skills help you navigate complex projects.
• Adaptability allows you to make modifications as necessary to achieve the best possible outcome.
• Motivational skills authorize you to bring out the best in your team to enhance productivity.
• Communication skills allow you to cooperate effectively with team members and stakeholders. 
• Organization skills help you handle multiple tasks, meetings, resources, and priorities.
•  With agile project management methodology skills, you can guarantee that your teams follow specific processes to complete and release projects and products in stages for customer input at every stage.
• Software development and management skills are essential when working on software projects and products. To create better software, you'll need to know the goals, structure, expectations, processes, requirements, planning, and monitoring.
• Business analysis skills help you focus on how to continuously enhance a product to meet customer, stakeholder, and company needs. 

 

Why seek a career as a Scrum Master?

As a Scrum Master, you can play an essential role in a company's conquest. You may also have the chance to develop products that influence the world around you by making people's lives better. You'll have an opportunity to encourage a positive working environment for team members in a company and ensure the most successful outcome of a product or project.

A Scrum Master is not a project manager or a project leader but a "servant leader" committed to supporting the team to succeed within the Scrum framework. A Scrum Master has many responsibilities, including supporting teamwork and guarding the team against distractions that can derail productivity. There are also a lot of advantages to being a CSM, such as expanding your career opportunities and engaging with other Scrum experts.

 

Qualities of a Scrum Master

Scrum and Agile Training

You must clearly understand the terms, phrases, systems, and terminologies that ought to be understood to incorporate the methodologies safely. A certified scrum master certification would also help understand the different scrum practices that need to be followed.

Technical Familiarity

A scrum master would have to help software development teams build programs that keep roadblocks at a minimum and require understanding the technical terms and processes involved—an experience of tools like Jira and Asana that would be hugely beneficial to the scrum master.  

Coaching Abilities

Strong instruction skills can help a scrum master teach inexperienced teams how Scrum works. A scrum master must know what to do and demonstrate to everyone how's and why's, and also plays the role of a coach to facilitate the members to enhance their strengths and weaknesses. They work with each member to improve the potential of the team. 

Handling Conflicts

If the team's conflict cannot be regulated among themselves, a scrum master resolves them to ensure they don't hinder the team's progress. A scrum master should be a skilled negotiator and facilitator to help. They must have the right interpersonal skills to address these disagreements and find a satisfactory solution for everyone involved. 

Leadership

A scrum master must be able to act as part of the team and keep the team's needs before that of the individual. They need to be part of the team and part of the team. 

 

Scrum Master Requirements 

Educational requirements

Most businesses select candidates with a bachelor's degree in IT, business administration, or a related field. Acquiring a college degree can also allow opportunities to gain on-the-job experience.

Scrum Certification

Making an industry credential is another beautiful way to validate your knowledge of the Scrum framework to potential employers. Among the most famous options for Scrum masters are the Certified ScrumMaster (CSM) from the Scrum Alliance. As you qualify for the certification exam, you can start to build practical skills to help you successfully lead teams.

Evolving a Scrum Master will unlock doors to multiple careers, companies, and industries. Many people who start as Scrum masters advance to become Scrum Coaches, product owners, or project managers.

The exam typically focuses on the principal Scrum regulations and techniques, including project management, team building, sprints, release planning, progress reporting, and scalability. However, some exams may also include queries about the philosophy, history, and evolution of the Scrum framework.

Take and pass the exam.

The actual exam will vary negligibly, relying on your certification program. It will be a multiple-choice test with a 60–85% pass mark. The exam is usually about an hour long, and you should understand whether or not you passed it within minutes of finishing it. Once you give, you'll acquire a PDF document of your Scrum master certification by email and officially become a Scrum master.  

Renew certifications every two years

Scrum master certifications generally expire every two years, so to stay a recognized Scrum master, you'll need to pay a payment to revive your certificate. 

CSM Course by Edtia

Edtia's Certified ScrumMaster Certification Training course equips an overview of the Scrum framework for Agile Project Management that qualifies you to become a Certified ScrumMaster. 

If you have any questions, let us know in the comment section about how to become a scrum master, and our subject experts will get back to you.