Hello folks! Recently I attend the CSD course and we discuss there about the role and functions of the real Scrum Master.
In this post, I will present some points of this discussion, especially the concepts of the good the bad and the ugly Scrum Master.
In many projects, the role of Scrum Master is relegated to the background, with less importance than the others roles. A major difficulty to implement Scrum in an organization is to convince everyone of the importance of the role of Scrum Master, since the functions of the Product Owner and Development Team are clear to all but the Scrum Master, as guardian of the process appear to be a "waste" resource. So, in many companies the Scrum Master accumulates roles, either as PO, either as staff or both.
When the Scrum Master performs only the function of SM it is called Scrum Master.
When the Scrum Master accumulates the team function, it is called Good Scrum Master.
When the Scrum Master accumulates the PO functions it is called Bad Scrum Master
Finally, when the Scrum Master collects all the papers (PO, SM and Dev Team) it is called Ugly Scrum Master.
As expected, each type of Scrum Master has its negatives and positives points. Below, I will comment on each.
To be the Scrum Master – It's the best of all worlds for teams that are starting with Scrum. Due to the fact that he was not involved with any other paper, the Scrum Master becomes a neutral person to get really worry about and defend the process. On the other hand, if the Scrum Master possess some technical skill, that skill will be in the background, but for the eyes of management, this person seems to be underutilized.
To be the Good Scrum Master – With the evolution of team it is possible to the SM the accumulation of these two roles (Dev Team and SM). In this case the SM has the ability of to do work with the team and balance the health of the team. In addition the Good Scrum Master gives the perception of a efficient management. On the other hand, in this situation other members of the Development Team may feel inhibited to give their opinions, and the work of SM may be sacrified on the project as he need to remove so many impediments during the sprint.
To be the Bad Scrum Master – If Scrum Master accumulates either the PO role this is not so bad. Positive point of this approach is the perception of a central management. This perception gives the impression that the organization is saving resources. Otherwise both jobs require a lot of dedication, which eventually can produce a work of poor quality, as focus the decision in only one person, sacrificing customers and the development team.
To be the Ugly Scrum Master – If you fit this profile, please change the scenery while there is time. In this case there is no point positive, only negative. To be in two roles is already complicated, to be in three is impossible. A project in this case is doomed to failure.
So accumulation of papers should be avoided as much as possible. However, as often this is not possible, the most important is to know the real need of the accumulation of papers and being aware of the advantages and disadvantages of such a decision.
And you, what kind of Scrum Master you are? The Good, the Bad or The Ugly?
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Muito bom seu post! adorei as denominações haha