Several weeks ago, I wrote about what to look for in a good Scrum Master, and today, I’d like to have a similar discussion about the team. More specifically, let’s talk about what makes for a high-performing team. It’s a common term, and it conjures up different images for different people. If someone were to […]
Is Mine a High-Performing Team? Read More »
I often compare Scrum to the frame of a house. We can look at the frame to know the size and shape of our rooms and how the house joins together. However, it’s up to us to figure out what color to paint the walls and where to place the couch. The saying goes, “Scrum
Scrum Is Easy. People Are Hard. Read More »
When a Scrum Master joins a team, there’s so much to do. It’s daunting and sometimes a bit overwhelming. We have so many questions! Where’s the team need our help? Are they entrenched in how they operate or open to change? How do they interact with each other? How receptive are they to me, their
Scrum Master for a New Team? Here’s What to Do. Read More »
In my previous blog post, I talked about how I believe a Scrum Master should be trying to put him or herself out of a job. Put another way, we should master the art of actively doing nothing. Some agreed; some didn’t. Some thought the language was too strong. Others thought it was just right. However,
Mastering the Art of Actively Doing Nothing Read More »
Much of the role of the Scrum Master is intangible. We don’t write elegant code, we don’t craft beautiful designs, and we better not be creating Gantt charts. Instead, we’re masters at soft skills, but how can such a thing be quantified? And if not quantified, how can I know if I’m a good Scrum
Am I a Good Scrum Master? Read More »
I was happy to hear that many of you enjoyed the Product Owner tips I offered in my previous blog post so I thought I’d jot down a couple more today. If you’d like to read my previous Product Owner tips, you can find it here. So let’s get to it. Ruthlessly Prioritize I
When Prioritization and Customer Empathy Aren’t Enough Read More »
Product Owners have a tough job. They’re required to take a swarm of opinions and coalesce those opinions into a single, unified vision. Undoubtedly, some stakeholders won’t agree with that vision, and they must invest time and energy in soothing the disgruntled. Further, if a Product Owner is thinking too far forward, the team gets restless
Product Owner Tips for an Effective Backlog Read More »
In my last blog post, I promised to offer up some tricks and tweaks to help facilitate the daily scrum. Today, I intend to deliver on that promise. Before reading on, I encourage you to read Mastering the Daily Scrum. As a reminder, we previously discussed how to improve and focus our stand up; however, something
Tools to Facilitate the Daily Scrum Read More »
5,000. That’s the number of daily scrums, or stand ups, I’ve been a part of in my career. There’s not a lot of things I’ve done 5,000 times so I wanted to share with you what I’ve learned. First, let’s remind ourselves why we’re there. Why have the meeting at all? Why every day? I like
Mastering the Daily Scrum Read More »
The job of the Scrum Master can be a challenging one. It can be made tougher when people describe the role as a “referee.” Making such a comparison implies that the Scrum Master isn’t a member of the team. Worse yet, some describe us as keepers of process, which conflicts with how we value individuals
Viewing the Scrum Master as a Team Member Read More »
