What Do Scrum Masters Do All Day?
Introspections for Agile People
Oh, it’s on! Coming in 2022 (MVP) with additional chapters to be added on a regular basis!
So, I’m writing a book. If you’ve been following along, you know that I’ve been a contributing editor at Serious Scrum since late 2018. In that time, I’ve shared stories (and rants) with folks in this amazing international community, spoke on the topic of Scrum Masters during Agile 2019 & Agile Midwest 2019, and learned a ton along the way. I figured it was time to put everything together in a book. Though final tweaks, and edits are underway, peep my book site on Leanpub for more notifications.
Back in the day, when I was coming up as a Scrum Master, and still had that fresh, out-of-the-box smell, I wished that somebody would’ve walked me through the ins-and-outs of the role. I didn’t know how to run effective Sprint Reviews, or Sprint Planning sessions, and I sure as hell didn’t know how to keep them from being so freakishly boring.
The Scrum Master role is such an experiential one, and the nuances can sometimes be shrouded in mystery. There’s a slew of materials online that attempt to speak to the role, but it’s easy to get lost in the over-saturation of conflicting information. When you ask someone “What does a Scrum Master do?,” the myriad of responses only reinforce the widespread, often nebulous interpretations. It’s a bowl of steaming-hot misconception soup. So, let’s fix that.
Ultimately this book is for me, or rather the neophyte version of myself from years ago. Whenever Marty McFly finally lets me borrow his time-traveling DeLorean, I’ll plop this book into my hands. Until then, if this can provide someone with insight, perspective, or help others to think differently about the Scrum Master role, I’ll consider it gravy. By the time you’re done reading this book, hopefully you can finally answer the question “What Do Scrum Masters Do All Day?”
