Giving back: Considerations for a new Scrum Master

I remember it well, as if it were yesterday. The day, many years ago, when I was told I was to be the new Scrum Master for a team in the organisation I worked for. Yikes.

I did not know what to expect. I certainly did not know what being a Scrum Master entailed, or what a good way to proceed in those early days and weeks might be.

Maybe you are in a similar situation. Maybe you had more say than I did about starting down the Scrum Master path. Either way, this post gives back some personal thoughts and suggestions for anyone starting a similar journey. Things I know now that would have helped me then. They are in no particular order.

1. Read the Scrum Guide. I know I said no particular order, but I had to begin with this one. I will hold my hand up: it took me some time to realise the document existed. Take the time to read it, and keep coming back to it. Scrum is a lightweight framework and is purposefully incomplete. It does not tell you exactly how to use Scrum in your context, because everyone's context is different, but it does tell you the mandatory elements of the framework.
2. Introduce yourself to the Scrum Values. Being unaware of the Scrum Guide, I had no idea there were five core values underpinning the framework. Focus, openness, commitment, courage and respect build trust, take you towards Professional Scrum, and are the foundation empiricism needs to thrive.
3. Get to grips with empiricism. Understand early what it really means, why it matters so much, and how the elements of Scrum support it.
4. Know what is being inspected and adapted. There are five events in Scrum. Other than the Sprint itself, which is the container for the rest, every event is an opportunity to inspect and adapt something. Be clear about what each event inspects and adapts. If you are, you have a much better chance of coaching and guiding your team to significantly better outcomes.
5. Listen to and observe your new team. Watch, listen, observe and understand where they are right now. Respect their current approaches and working arrangements.
6. Don't be afraid to ask for help. Seek out other Scrum Masters in your company, reach out to colleagues, check the Scrum.org forums, and go to meetups.
7. Help establish a team charter. Does your new team have a charter or working agreements? If not, you can help them start thinking about bringing transparency to how they would like to work with each other.
8. Build an empowered, self-managing team. Think about what you can do as a Scrum Master to foster an environment where the Scrum Team becomes more empowered and self-manages around its work.
9. Use the resources on Scrum.org. The Scrum Master learning path has a rich array of blogs, videos, webcasts, white papers and a whole lot more.
10. Explore Liberating Structures. Over time there is an expectation that you are an awesome facilitator. That is not limited to the Scrum events, which you can facilitate if needed, but extends to other meetings, such as helping your Product Owner with a challenging conversation with key stakeholders. Liberating Structures are a set of microstructures designed to help collaboration and conversation while making sure every voice is heard.
11. Watch the Your Daily Scrum series on YouTube. Created by fellow Professional Scrum Trainers Ryan Ripley and Todd Miller as part of Agile for Humans. There are a lot of great questions being answered, so take your pick.
12. Think about formal training. Enrol on a Professional Scrum Master course with Scrum.org. Professional Scrum is extremely important, and as a Scrum Master you should have an excellent understanding of what it means and your role in supporting it.
13. Move towards flow metrics. Anyone who knows me would be hugely disappointed if I did not mention flow metrics. I would plant this seed with every Scrum Master, new or experienced. Using flow metrics as part of your Scrum implementation is hugely powerful and beneficial.

If you find yourself where I was all those years ago, I hope the above gives you something to consider and helps you establish a path forward.

I am clearly biased, but being a Scrum Master is a fantastic opportunity. No two days feel the same, and you will frequently need to take different stances, or combinations of stances, depending on the situation. Expect to be continually learning and continually helping others improve.

Let me know what is missing and what else you would add for a new Scrum Master.

If you would like to join a Professional Scrum Master class, reach out to me at paulralton@bagile.co.uk or take a look at the course page. We run both public and private courses.