Growing Scrum Masters

Scrum Alliance was formed by the cocreators of Scrum, Jeff Sutherland and Ken Schwaber, and later the Scrum.Org was founded by Ken Schwaber. Both are internationally recognized certification bodies and both do a great job at creating courses that prepare people for the world of #scrum.

The CSM or Certified Scrum Master course is an internationally recognized course for aspiring or novice scrum masters. It aims to prepare them for the #scrummaster accountability and teach them the basics necessary to succeed in the role. In this short video, John McFadyen explains what you will learn on the CSM course.

Curious about the impact an Advanced Certified Scrum Master (ACSM) course will have on your earning potential? John McFadyen takes some time out to explain how the course will benefit you.  

Very few companies will increase your salary based on your attendance of a course, regardless of how long that course takes.  

What companies do reward is increased competence, capability and creativity within the working environment. In other words, the greater the impact you have on your organisation the greater the rewards you will receive.  

We are absolutely in love with the Advanced Certified Scrum Master course and believe it offers a host of benefits to each delegate but it will take time for you to integrate the new tools, techniques, and learning from the course into your daily practice.  

The Advanced Certified Scrum Master course was designed by the Scrum Alliance to act as a bridge between the Certified Scrum Master (CSM) course and the Certified Scrum Professional Scrum Master (CSP-SM) course.  

The thinking behind the course is that as you pass through your apprenticeship as a Scrum Master, you would need an assist after about a year of working in the field to help you upskill in a number of areas relevant to a professional Scrum Master.  

One of those areas is coaching and facilitation.  

As you progress in your career as a Scrum Master, you will naturally find that you are coaching more people, within and outside of your scrum team, in Scrum.  

You will be actively helping people to find great answers to complex problems and you will be helping a team of professionals to create products, services and features that truly delight customers.  

To do that effectively, you need to be coaching and facilitating at a professional level.  

The Certified Scrum Master course does not teach you how to do that, you would actively need to invest in a coaching and facilitation course or the Advanced Certified Scrum Master to upskill at the next level.

The ACSM also validates your skillset as an advanced Scrum Master and then provides you with the tools, models, techniques and insights you will need to continue your journey as a professional Scrum Master.  

These include service to the team, service to the product owner, and service beyond the team. It also includes understanding organisational change and scaling Scrum.  

As you master these elements, and actively practice what you have learned in the Advanced Certified Scrum Master course, you are naturally going to be creating and adding more value to the Scrum Team as well as the organisation.  

As you master the coaching and facilitation elements, you are naturally going to have a greater impact on the organisation as well as on the teams you directly work with.  

That impact translates into better products and services being created in less time than it would ordinarily take. In some cases, it translates into competitive advantage for the team and organisation.  

At this point, you will be earmarked for promotion or salary increases due to the impact you are having on the team and the organisation.  

So, in summary, the Advanced Certified Scrum Master course will not earn you a promotion in and of itself, but it does play a significant role in how you grow as a scrum master and the kind of impact you can have within your organisation, which in turn will lead to promotions and increases.  

If you are looking to advance your career, visit our Advanced Certified Scrum Master course page on https://www.agilecentre.com/courses/scrum-master/advanced-certified-scrummaster/

To get an idea of career progression, visit our Certified Scrum Professional Scrum Master course page on https://www.agilecentre.com/courses/scrum-master/certified-scrum-professional-scrum-master/

It depends on your current skills, experience and mindset.  

If you find that you have mastered the basics of Scrum and are actively looking for more advanced knowledge, tools, and techniques to overcome the challenges you face within a working environment then you're going to find the course challenging but enjoyable.  

In the Certified Scrum Master (CSM) course, you are taught by a Certified Scrum Trainer and your primary goal is to learn about scrum, the role of a scrum master in a scrum team, and how to be a scrum master.  

There are discussions and simulations but for the most part, you are being taught and all you need to do to pass the examination is learn.  

The Advanced Certified Scrum Master course validates your skills and capabilities in addition to teaching you new skills, tools and techniques.  

In the A-CSM, you are required to participate and lead. You are required to demonstrate that you are a competent and capable Scrum Master.  

There are a lot of discussions and simulations around the more advanced elements of scrum and you will be sharing your challenges and war stories with others. You will also be learning from others and gaining insights into how they have overcome challenges.  

That's why it is important that you have experience as a Scrum Master working in a scrum team.  

If you don't have that experience, you won't have a context for what you are learning nor will you be able to participate in these discussions.  

The ACSM digs deeper into Agile theory and provides a context for why these lightweight frameworks have proven so popular over the past two decades. It also provides insights into which kind of applications best work for Agile and Scrum.  

Agile is a great answer but it isn't the answer to every question. That's why you need to understand the context and best case application.  You will also learn more about coaching and facilitation. Two very important parts of a Scrum Master's arsenal. As you progress in your career, you are naturally going to facilitate events and coach members of your team. The ACSM course will teach you how to do that more effectively and provide you with tools, techniques, and models that will help you become a great Agile coach and facilitator.

You will also practice some of these techniques and tools in simulations throughout the course to help embed the knowledge and start your journey as an Agile coach.  

Scrum Masters coach people across the organisation to find compelling answers to the problems we face. Advanced Scrum Masters will use coaching as a tool to help people within the scrum team and outside of the scrum team to overcome obstacles and create the most valuable products, services and features they are capable of.  

These concepts and skillsets aren't difficult, they simply require that you are invested and make an effort to practice. For most people, these elements are immediately actionable and once you start the habit of practicing these skills, they become easier over time.  

The Advanced Certified Scrum Master course also works through service to the Scrum Team, service to the Product Owner, Scaling scrum and organisational change.  

Again, these are difficult concepts that will challenge you. If you have battled with any of these elements in your working environment, you are going to be super pleased to discover the answers to your challenges and will find the experience relatively straightforward to understand and adopt.

Part 8 in our #agilecoach #interviewquestions where John McFadyen answers common interview questions that we found on the web.  

So, you're about to be hired as an in-house #agilecoach or as an external consultant and you are asked why the organisation should consider #agile as their preferred method of #productdevelopment. What do you say?  

Why should organisations adopt #agile or #scrum when there are heaps of #projectmanagement frameworks they could consider?  In this short video, John McFadyen walks us through how he would approach this question in an interview and how best to answer it?  

If you like the idea of becoming an #agilecoach and value mentored, coach-driven skills development, visit our Growing Agile Coaches section on https://www.johnmcfadyen.com  

If you like the idea of becoming a #scrummaster, visit our Certified Scrum Master course page on https://www.johnmcfadyen.com/training/certified-scrummaster/  

If you are already a scrum master and want to upskill, validate and certify your professional skills, visit our Advanced Certified Scrum Master and Certified Scrum Professional Scrum Master course pages on https://www.johnmcfadyen.com/training/certified-scrummaster/  

#agile #agilecoach #agilecoaching #scrummaster #scrum #agileprojectmanagement #agileproductdevelopment #coaching #johnmcfadyen #agilecentre

Part 7 in our #agilecoach #interviewquestions series where John McFadyen answers common interview questions for #agile #coaches that we found on the web.  

So, you're an #agilecoach and you are working with several teams across the organisation. Each stage of #productdevelopment may be different for each of the teams you serve, so how do you manage that?  

How do you stay on top of what each team are doing and when they deliver their #increment? It is kind of a trick question because an #agilecoach is not responsible for delivery, they are responsible for creating an environment where #scrum or #agile teams can excel.  

If you like the idea of becoming an #agilecoach and value mentored, coach-driven skills development, visit our Growing Agile Coaches section on https://www.johnmcfadyen.com 

If you like the idea of becoming a #scrummaster, visit our Certified Scrum Master course page on https://www.johnmcfadyen.com/training/certified-scrummaster/ 

If you are already a scrum master and want to upskill, validate and certify your professional skills, visit our Advanced Certified Scrum Master and Certified Scrum Professional Scrum Master course pages on https://www.johnmcfadyen.com/training/certified-scrummaster/ 

#agile #agilecoach #agilecoaching #scrummaster #scrum #agileprojectmanagement #agileproductdevelopment #coaching #johnmcfadyen #agilecentre

Part 6 in our series of #agilecoach #interviewquestions. John McFadyen takes some time out to walk you through how he would answer these questions as an experienced #agile #coach.  

So, in this scenario, you are asked how you would help an individual who recently joined the team. As a #scrummaster or #agilecoach, it is your responsibility to create an environment where individuals and teams can excel.  

How do you help them integrate into the #agile team and become a creative, collaborative and productive member of that team? 

How would you help them find their feet, especially if they have never worked on a #scrum team or within an #agile team environment?  

Here's some pointers from John on how you can approach the problem and how you can proactively help that new team member. 

If you like the idea of becoming an agile coach and value mentored, coach-driven skills development in your journey to mastery, visit our Growing Agile Coaches section of https://www.johnmcfadyen.com  

If you like the idea of becoming a scrum master, visit our Certified Scrum Master course page on https://www.johnmcfadyen.com/training  

If you are already a scrum master and want to upskill, validate and certify your professional skills, visit our Advanced Certified Scrum Master and Certified Scrum Professional Scrum Master course pages on https://www.johnmcfadyen.com/training/  

#agile #agileprojectmanagement #agileproductdevelopment #agilemethodology #scrum #scrummaster #scrumteam #certifiedscrummaster #scrumalliance

Part 5 in our series of #agilecoach #interviewquestions where John McFadyen answers some of the most common questions asked of aspiring agile coaches in an #interview.  

Sometimes, as a #scrummaster or #agilecoach, you walk into an environment where everyone embraces #scrum and actively lives the #agile values and principles.  

If that's you, great, you will love your working environment and quickly embed yourself as a powerful #coach and #facilitator that helps create an #agile environment where the team can succeed.  

At other times, you walk into a company that is just beginning their journey with #scrum and #agileframeworks, and you find that individuals on the team or within the organisation fiercely resist the #scrumframework or #agileframework you are going to be working with.  

What do you do? How does an #agilecoach or #scrummaster deal with a team who resist the #agilemethodology?  In this short video, John McFadyen answers that question for you.  

John has worked on some of the highest performing #scrum teams in the world as both a scrum master and agile coach. He has also worked at the coalface of some of the UK and Europe's largest, most complex #agiletransformations so he's learned a thing or two about teams that resist change.  

If you like the idea of becoming an agile coach and value mentored, coach-driven skills development in your journey to mastery, visit our Growing Agile Coaches section of https://www.johnmcfadyen.com 

If you like the idea of becoming a scrum master, visit our Certified Scrum Master course page on https://www.johnmcfadyen.com/training/certified-scrummaster/ 

If you are already a scrum master and want to upskill, validate and certify your professional skills, visit our Advanced Certified Scrum Master and Certified Scrum Professional Scrum Master course pages on https://www.johnmcfadyen.com/training/ 

#agile #agileprojectmanagement #agileproductdevelopment #agilemethodology #scrum #scrummaster #scrumteam #certifiedscrummaster #scrumalliance

Part 4 of our #agilecoach #interviewquestions series where John McFadyen answers some of the most common #interview questions asked of aspiring agile coaches.  

John is not a fan of the concept of #agiletransformation because it implies some kind of off-the-shelf #agile solution that companies simply adopt overnight.  There are pre-packaged #agileframeworks that promise #agility in a box but it is very rare that these kinds of transformations succeed.  

Nevertheless, you're in an #interview and you need to answer the question. Fret not, we've got your back, in this short video John McFadyen answers the question 'what is the hardest part of managing an #agile transformation?'  

If you like the idea of becoming an #agilecoach and value mentored, coach-driven skills development, visit our Growing Agile Coaches section on https://www.johnmcfadyen.com  

If you like the idea of becoming a #scrummaster, visit our Certified Scrum Master course page on https://www.johnmcfadyen.com/training/certified-scrummaster/  

If you are already a scrum master and want to upskill, validate and certify your professional skills, visit our Advanced Certified Scrum Master and Certified Scrum Professional Scrum Master course pages on https://www.johnmcfadyen.com/training/certified-scrummaster/  

#agile #agilecoach #agilecoaching #scrummaster #scrum #agileprojectmanagement #agileproductdevelopment #coaching #johnmcfadyen #agilecentre

Part 3 of our #agilecoach #interviewquestions series where John McFadyen answers #agile coach interview questions we found on the internet.  

This question drew a bit of scorn from John as #agilecoaches and #scrummasters are not responsible for managing changing requirements in the middle of #productdevelopment.  

That is on the #productowner and #developers.  

That said, the #scrummaster or #agilecoach can play a powerful role in helping the #scrumteam navigate troubled waters through a combination of #teaching, #facilitating and #coaching.  

In this short video, John answers the question 'how does an agile coach manage changing requirements in the middle of product development?'  We think you'll love his answer and maybe even use it as your own in your next #agilecoach interview.  

If you are interested in becoming an agile coach and would value mentored, coach-driven skills development in your journey, visit https://www.johnmcfadyen.com to explore the Growing Agile Coaches mentorship and coaching program.  

If you like the idea of becoming a scrum master, visit our Certified Scrum Master course page on https://www.johnmcfadyen.com/training/certified-scrummaster/ 

If you are already a scrum master and want to upskill, certify and validate your professional skills, visit our Advanced Certified Scrum Master and Certified Scrum Professional Scrum Master course pages on https://www.johnmcfadyen.com/training/ Connect with John on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/johnmcfadyen/ 

#agile #agilecoach #agileprojectmanagement #agiledevelopment #agileproductdevelopment #scrummaster #scrum #scrumalliance #agilecoachacademy #coaching #onlinelearning