So you're growing in your role as an entry-level scrum master. Congratulations! As you look to grow your career, what steps should you take to put yourself on the path to moving up to a senior-level scrum master and beyond? First, let’s look at how the advanced roles differ from an entry-level scrum master.
A senior scrum master may be a manager over junior and mid-level scrum masters and not do the day-to-day scrum master work; or he or she might still perform many of the same duties as an entry level scrum master, including facilitating the Agile process, with the difference being the senior level will likely be handling many more teams.
As you gain experience as a scrum master, you’ll find that the tasks become more natural and efficient, meaning you can handle more teams. You’ll also likely be mentoring and managing junior level scrum masters and serving as a role model. Junior-level scrum masters don’t have much experience in responding to problems and will require help from the senior scrum masters.
Some of the problems senior scrum masters have to solve include internal resistance to Agile, which can be common. Another problem is managing dependencies between teams. For example, multiple teams might be working on individual components of a large software system. They each behave as an individual team using Agile processes. What they build and how the software works needs to integrate correctly with the products the other teams are creating. With enough experience, a senior scrum master can manage and navigate this process comfortably with minimal conflict.
Finally, a senior scrum master might work with others in management to find ways to improve the entire Agile practice used within the organization. This requires extensive knowledge of the Agile process that typically comes with additional training and experience.
The Career Stages of a Scrum Master
Let’s look at the different career stages of a scrum master, and then we’ll look at the steps you need to take to move through these. It is important to note that not all organizations have these specific titles, but the work is generally tied to years of experience.
Junior Level Scrum Master: This is where you start with no experience, with the training that led to your current position.
Mid-level Scrum Master: After you’ve gained about three or four years of experience, you’ll have a good solid understanding of the field and will be ready to take on more responsibilities. You’ll be comfortable working as a scrum master, and will find you’ll have fewer questions and fewer surprises from when you first started.
Lead Scrum Master: You can achieve this level typically at around five to seven years of experience. At this level, you’ll have learned a great deal about the technology used by Agile processes, as well as the technology the developers are using. You aren’t an expert in coding, but by now you’ve learned about the entire process and can easily drop into a team’s project and get up and running in no time.
Senior-level Scrum Master: After about seven or eight years in the business, you’re ready to move to the top of the organization’s scrum team. You’ll typically be the manager over all of the scrum masters. You may or may not be actively working as a scrum master; you might only be managing other scrum masters. (Be careful! This is sometimes a management level position and is more about meetings and management rather than actually doing the scrum master work. Some people don’t want to reach this level.)
Scrum Coach or independent consultant: This level may be within reach around eight to 10 years of experience. It might seem that after about four or five you have the profession down, but like most professions, in order to become an independent consultant and coach, you need at least eight years of experience in order to have “seen it all.” Only after you’ve been in a profession after nearly a decade are you truly ready to respond to the variety of problems one might encounter. Remember, at this level you really don’t have anyone you can call on; you are the one people call on. But at this level you can either oversee the Scrum masters in a large organization and coach them; or you can become a consultant and have many clients who need their scrum masters trained and coached.
Grow Your Scrum Master Career
As continue to grow your career as a scrum master, here are some steps to take:
Gain Experience
The most important step in advancing within a scrum master role is to gain experience. It’s easy to assume the first year you know everything you need to know, but as you continue working, you’ll encounter situations you didn’t anticipate and you’ll learn from these as you go. This is on-the-job training. Treat it as practice in mastering your skillset.
Here are some tips:
Be open minded to everything that might come your way, recognizing that there’s always more to learn.
Listen to the senior scrum masters; or, if your organization is small, listen to others outside the organization.
Watch those around you in other roles, and learn about their jobs and how your work impacts and collaborates with their jobs.
After a project is completed, ask if you can work with a different team, and learn about other personalities and positions.The goal is for your knowledge and experience to become as broad and complete as possible.
Take Courses and Get Certified
In addition to on-the-job training, you should consider taking training courses in advanced Agile and scrum topics. Scrum continues to evolve as new technology fits into projects. Plan to stay on top of the latest and greatest ideas in scrum. And learn about the technology your team is using to build their software. Don’t plan to become an expert there. For example, there’s no reason to master a programming language when you could be devoting that time to learning more about Agile and scrum.
Most courses you’ll find today are online; some may be taught with a live instructor, whereas some may be “asynchronous,” meaning you’ll watch videos of lectures and read material at your own pace. Compare the online courses and see which ones cover new material that you aren’t as familiar with. There are many different pricing models; do serious comparisons between the less expensive and more expensive courses. Sometimes the less expensive ones are as good, sometimes not. Check the usual online training sites, as well as universities and community colleges.
Also, pay close attention to those that offer certifications. While the ones that don’t might teach the same material, getting an official certification can help greatly with your resume and advancement.
As for specific certifications, look for names like Certified Scrum Master and Advanced Certified Scrum Master. Check the Scrum Alliance website for ideas. But don’t just focus on scrum: Look for certifications in related fields such as Agile or project management in general.
Keep Learning the Newest Tools
New tools are always popping up. This includes new software as well as new features to existing software. Most Agile and scrum tools are created using Agile methods, meaning they’ll likely be continually delivering updates and improvements. Stay on top of these updates and learn as much as you can about them.
Consider Getting a Master’s Degree
This is by no means required, and you’re not likely to find a master’s degree program specifically in scrum. However, there are related fields, such as a Master’s of Business Administration (MBA).
Larger corporations often tie pay grades to level of education, which means you’ll get a pay raise if you have a Master’s degree. Many such corporations also help pay for your education, provided you stay with the company a year or two after completion.
What’s Beyond a Senior-Level Scrum Master?
Sometimes people gain 10 years or more experience and want to move up and outside of being a scrum master. Here are some positions you can pursue after moving up and out of the scrum master position:
Product Owner: This is a higher-level position that helps oversee the entire project, starting with defining the vision and strategy based on the specific needs of the stakeholders and customers.
Director: There are many positions known as director; some are Director of Software Development, or Director of Project Management, or Technology Director. These are typically management positions, where you’re overseeing the team and hostsing meetings.
Project Management Officer (PMO): This role isn’t very common, but more organizations are starting to include it. The PMO will lead up the overall project management of an organization and help establish methodologies and frameworks for development.
Chief Technology Officer (CTO): This person oversees all of the technologies within a company (typically, software developers, IT staff members, and others working in technology). This role can differ between organizations; some CTOs are visionaries and work closely with upper management to brainstorm ideas for products. Others are technical people who keep watch over all of the technology used within an organization.
Chief Executive Officer (CEO): The CEO is the top person within the organization. This person is usually more business-oriented than the CTO. However, if a Scrum Master obtains an MBA degree, he or she might eventually set their sites on a CEO position.
The scrum master is a great career path for people who want to work in technology, but don’t want to be the ones writing code and building the software. Scrum masters excel in communication and management, while still keeping some understanding of technology. They love to work with other people and believe heavily in teamwork. They tend to be optimists, focusing on the end goal while being flexible as requirements change over time. This can be an exciting profession, and there’s much more beyond the entry level scrum master work.
