3 Steps to Become a Scrum Master
Agile and scrum are trending topics. Here you are, a successful project manager, and you want to learn more about scrum. You may even want to become a scrum master. The career transition from project manager to scrum master may seem simple, but it’s not as straightforward as you may think.
Scrum master has a very different role from that of project manager. The agile mindset is a paradigm shift from that of project manager too. To gain a better understanding of just how different, I recommend you read my earlier post: The Difference Between Scrum Master and Project Manager.
When readers contact me and ask me to advise them on how to best transition, I suggest the following:
- Learn about scrum from the Scrum Alliance
- Study and become a Certified Scrum Master (CSM)
- Get a job on an agile team
1. Learn about Scrum from the Scrum Alliance
Many of us organically became project managers through the course of our careers. We learned how to manage projects by working on projects and, eventually, we were promoted to leading projects ourselves. I personally never took a course on project management until the marketplace demanded that project managers have PMP certification.
However, scrum is a specific agile framework that is drastically different from the way you are used to managing traditional projects. If you want to be a scrum master, you need to read about it and study the concepts until they become an integral part of how you think about organizing projects.
The Scrum Alliance is a well-recognized authority on framework. Lucky for us, the Scrum Alliance has a wonderful website with lots of fabulous information.
Start here: http://www.scrumalliance.org/why-scrum
Reading about scrum is a great start, but I recommend you also learn about scrum from someone who already is a scrum master. If your company is transitioning to scrum, you may have the opportunity to learn from an agile coach. Take every advantage of that precious resource. If you are pursuing agile on your own, take a class. Ask for recommendations from friends and colleagues. Classroom learning combined with live exercises help reinforce the agile concepts you’ve been reading about.
2. Study and Become a Certified Scrum Master (CSM)
Just like with traditional project management where you need to become a certified PMP, if you want to be taken seriously, you need to become a CSM. Lucky for us, the CSM exam is straight-forward and much easier than the PMP exam. So, there is no reason not to get certified.
Start here: http://www.scrumalliance.org/certifications/practitioners/certified-scrummaster-csm
3. Get a Job on an Agile Team
If your company is not transitioning to agile, you will have to look outside your company for your first scrum master position. You may ask yourself: How can I get a job as a scrum master if I have no scrum master experience?
You may be able to land a scrum master gig based on your mad interview skills and CSM alone. Then again, you may not. If you are serious about becoming a scrum master, you may need to start as a different member of an agile team.
Depending on your background and what jobs you performed before you became a project manager, you may have a better chance at landing a Product Owner or Business Analyst or Tech Lead gig. Take a serious look at your career history and refactor several versions of your resume.
Take your agile friends and colleagues to coffee. Ask them what companies look for in agile applicants, before you apply anywhere. Then, apply for all agile positions you qualify for. The more you interview, the better you get at answering questions.
Land that first agile gig, whatever it is, and learn how it’s done in the real world.
Then, after that first project is finished, change teams or change jobs. Agile is practiced differently in different organizations, self-organizing teams and all. So, to be the best scrum master you can be, get a broader perspective.
Never stop learning.
Expand your mind.
Change your life.
Cynthia Kahn
Cynthia Kahn
CynthiaK@gsd.guru 503.799.5500
Contact Us