In this episode we will focus on the scope of a scrum master role. The reason for having a good conversation about it, is the fact that many times not everyone understands or does not want to understand that scope. Specifically in bigger organisations or organisations where a mixture of different frameworks and methodologies is used, people can really get confused. So let’s talk about it, and let us try to remove some of the confusion.
The scrum guide is quite clear about the accountability of a scrum master. Mind the word accountability, because it is not prescribed how you actually should fulfil that accountability, and it does not remove any of the responsibilities that lie with e.g. product owners and team members. The scrum master serves the team, the product owner and the organisation. So if you only focus on the team, you will not serve the product owner or the organisation, so the fulfilment of the scrum master accountability is not complete.
Most scrum masters I know, know how to serve the team. So in this post I will not focus too much on that part. Additionally they at least have a clue how to serve the product owner as well. Note here that serving the product owner does not mean that the full focus should be on the product owner’s work only. The scrum guide describes “helping the Scrum Team understand the need for clear and concise Product Backlog items” as a good example of that service. So by helping the team to understand things, you actually serve the product owner to achieve more mutual understanding and with that more effective collaboration.
So let’s focus on the last “serve”-part: the scrum master serves the organisation. Actually you can serve the organisation in several ways, which may include “leading, training, and coaching the organization in its Scrum adoption, planning and advising Scrum implementations within the organization, helping employees and stakeholders understand and enact an empirical approach for complex work and removing barriers between stakeholders and Scrum Teams. “ (and yes, I copied this from the Scrum Guide).
Read the last paragraph again carefully. Now you know that serving an organisation is an essential part of the scrum masters job. So if you are working in an scaled environment, using an framework that is based on layering, that additional layering of the organisation does not exclude this serving part. At least where Scrum should still be part of it. So for me this is an essential part that I cannot , should not and will not neglect.
In practice, we typically run into a glass roof here. Many companies that try to become a bit more agile, typically come from an hierarchy-oriented era. And (real) change is hard. So changing towards an agile mindset takes many, many years to achieve. Even though roles have changed (formally), the behaviours and mindset needed, are not automatically following that change. So by calling someone a lead, who was previously the department manager, does not automatically change attitude and behaviour. We as agilists know that, the new leads typically don’t know (at least in the beginning) and most times need time and support to be able to change.
Of course we agilists (coaches and scrum masters) can offer some help here. It is however not easy to change from “telling people what to do” to “listening to people what to do” and getting feedback on your behaviour during that process. Since in many organisation those people still have more or less hierarchical power, it is not easy to stand up and politely show them the way. It is still our job to evoke change where needed and not keep things as they are, simply because people feel more comfortable doing so.
I have run into many of these situations throughout the years. And it is hard to have the right conversation, if you are reporting to the people you are serving. Self-preservation is of course an important thing if your income relies on that. It helps if people are honest enough to see their own limitations if you are doing your job. Unfortunately that is not always the case. Anyways it is best to have a good conversation about that as well, so people know and understand what to expect. In my past, those have been the assignments where I have been most effective as well.
How do you serve your organization?
