Is Scrum Master a full time role?

It is not uncommon in a Scrum Master training classes to encounter questions such as “Is being a Scrum Master a full time role?”, or “How much time does a Scum Master contribute towards his role?”, or “Can a person from the development team multitask as a Scrum Master?”
New Scrum Masters might be apprehensive about the role that they might play as future Scrum Masters. However, certified Scrum Masters need to truly understand the responsibilities of a Scrum Master to realize the vital role played by them. The success of a Scrum project rests equally on the shoulders of the Product Owner, the Scrum Master, and the Development team. While the Product Owner and the Development team have their clearly established roles and responsibilities, it might seem that a Scrum Master performs only support roles such as coordinating meetings, removing impediments that are plaguing the team, or shielding the team from interference from the Product Owner.  This might make the Scrum Master seem like a glorified nanny.
Even organizations too sometimes view the Scrum Master role as a part time role. There can be several reasons why Scrum Masters are part time roles. The organization might be short of human resources to have a dedicated Scrum Master or the organization does not consider the Scrum Master’s role worthy of a full time role.
There is an obvious conflict if a developer also performs the role of a Scrum Master. This takes away the objectivity that is required in a Scrum Master while dealing with issues related to the Product Owner or even internal conflicts.
So, let’s focus on the issue where the role of Scrum Master is not considered substantial enough to be a full time role. Sprints in Scrum, unlike stages in waterfall, are intensive periods of activity where development takes place. Any impediments that are not resolved immediately can have an effect on the success or failure of a sprint. The Scrum Master not only resolves impediments as and when they arrive, but also has keen foresight to spot potential issues and create an environment that can help avoid any issues to occur.
The Scrum Master undoubtedly assumes the role of a leader. He coaches and mentors team members both at an individual and a group level to get the best out of the team. He also ensures the team collaborates smoothly and the team delivers what they committed to.
It might seem that a Scrum Master’s responsibilities are vague and general. However, most of the Scrum Master’s responsibilities are performed behind the scenes that require a strong understanding of multiple dimensions such as people, domain, and business requirements.

This content is borrowed from www.scrumstudy.com (Original URL: http://www.scrumstudy.com/blog/is-scrum-master-a-full-time-role/ )

Ways To SCRUM

 Ways To SCRUM

Scrum is flexible, transparent and iterative, making it very different from complex traditional project management methodologies. In this article, we will look at the various areas in which Scrum differs from other methods.

Organization structure and definition of roles and associated responsibilities are some of the areas where Scrum differs in a major way from traditional project management methods.

In traditional project management methods, the organization structure is hierarchical and authority for all aspects of the project is delegated from higher level to lower (e.g., project sponsor delegates authority to project manager and the project manager delegates authority to team managers or members). Traditional project management methods emphasize on individual accountability for project responsibilities rather than group ownership or accountability. Any deviation from the delegated authority is looked at as a sign of issues and may be escalated to the higher level in the organization hierarchy. It is usually the project manager who is responsible for successful completion of the project and he/she takes decisions on various aspects of the project, including initiating, planning, estimating, executing, monitoring and controlling and closing.

The emphasis in Scrum is on self-organization and self-motivation where the team assumes greater responsibility in making a project successful. This also ensures that there is team buy-in and shared ownership. This, in turn, results in team motivation leading to an optimization of team efficiencies. Product Owner, Scrum Master, and the Scrum Team work very closely with relevant Stakeholder(s) for refining requirements as they go through the Develop Epic(s), Create Prioritized Product Backlog, and Create User Stories processes. This ensures that there is no scope for isolated planning in Scrum. Team experience and expertise in product development are used to assess the inputs needed to plan, estimate and execute project work. And collaboration among Scrum Core Team members ensures that the project is carried out in an innovative and creative environment that is conducive to growth and team harmony.

 Acknowledgement: The content is borrowed from www.SCRUMstudy.comwww.SCRUMstudy.com (original blog url: http://www.scrumstudy.com/blog/scrumstudy-scrumvideo-on-the-differences-between-scrum-and-traditional-project-management/)