Hello!
It’s me again, Kevin, your friendly neighborhood Scrum Master, back so soon for another blog. 🙂
In following the Scrum framework, you do work in increments called Sprints. I think it is still a common misconception that the Scrum Master is considered as the “Lord of the Sprint”. This is as wrong as thinking Bilbo should have killed Gollum in the cave when he had the chance.
[Tweet “For you see, the Scrum Master is more like Gandalf. The guide of the team.”]For you see, the Scrum Master is more like Gandalf. The guide of the team. He acts just like a coach would for a basketball/baseball/football (pick your sport) team. This becomes more apparent when the Scrum Master is not equipped to be the technical lead for the team. In software projects you always have that one person who is the tech expert, the one who can solve all the problems and make decisions on all things technical. In a Scrum Team, it is not always the case where the Scrum Master is able to do this. I am not the go-to person for technical expertise in the projects I am involved in with Chromedia. That’s ok. I am not supposed to be that guy. I have the senior lead developers to support the team. I am just here to guide them. To make sure that requirements are being done according to their importance. To make sure that the team properly gives estimates. To ensure that the backlog is well-maintained by the Product Owner. To see to it that in my absence, just like how Gandalf would leave Frodo and the others to fend for themselves, that the team is capable of seeing the Sprint to its end and deliver a potentially shippable product.
Here in Chromedia, the Scrum Master doesn’t lord over the sprints. You can be sure that the team is very much capable of completing the work by themselves. There is no worry that when I am gone, the team will falter and lose their way. The Scrum Master doesn’t do all the work. The team is the one with that power. Each individual is guided to contribute the very best that they can for the project. As a Scrum Master that is my quest, to guide the team to bring out their full potential and deliver a kick-ass product.
Here in Chromedia, the Lord of the Sprint is the Product itself.
