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Advice for Convincing Organization to Create a Scrum Master Role?

Last post 08:47 pm July 10, 2018 by Ratnakumar Umavenkata Lekkala
4 replies
Shelly Bishop
12:57 pm July 10, 2018

Working for an organization that is fairly new in it's Agile Journey.  We have 3 - 5 teams practicing Scrum fully (not just borrowing some terminology / ceremonies).  In each of these teams, the former PM is now the SM.  I'm trying to provide justification to the company on why we should create a new role for Scrum Master and not just use the PMs.  We might need to just update the PM role to reflect some SM details, but I see that as a compromise / interim step.

So, looking for good input on (1) differences between the people that make good PMs versus SMs, and (2) and good key differences between the roles.  I have a lot of information compiled already and fully understand the emotional difference between the two roles.  Would love to hear any input from all of you.

 

Thanks!

Curtis Slough
04:23 pm July 10, 2018

If the old PM's are now the SM's, who do you have in place as the Product Owner?

Ian Mitchell
07:01 pm July 10, 2018

We have 3 - 5 teams practicing Scrum fully (not just borrowing some terminology / ceremonies).  In each of these teams, the former PM is now the SM.  I'm trying to provide justification to the company on why we should create a new role for Scrum Master and not just use the PMs. 

Are you sure that Scrum is being practiced fully right now? What transparency do you have over this?

It sounds as though some terminology is in fact just being borrowed, such as calling a PM a Scrum Master, and that you have some sort of driver for wanting to revise this implementation.

Timothy Baffa
08:23 pm July 10, 2018

Being a reformed Project Manager, the main difference as I see it is that a Project Manager is comfortable being the point person on everything going on with the project.   They like working in a command-control environment, and like activities like chasing and micro-managing.   This runs counter to a Scrum Master, whose main purpose is to serve the Development Team, Product Owner, and organization on their Agile journeys.

 

I like the analogy of a Project Manager as a Head Coach who is a task-master, and a Scrum Master as a personal trainer.

Ratnakumar Umavenkata Lekkala
08:47 pm July 10, 2018

If the old PM's are now the SM's, who do you have in place as the Product Owner?

+ 1 Curtis !

Exactly. Ask them to get certified if they want to be SMs. That will hopefully rewire their mindset for some real Scrum and realize the need for a SM. I recommend for the team members to get certified as PSDs as well. May organization things they can adapt scrum without any of the three roles ! how ?!! 

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