Making Your Scrum Events More Effective

The purpose, timebox and participants of each of the Scrum events are well defined. However, we sometimes see Scrum Teams fall into antipatterns that diminish their value.

Common antipatterns include:

• Events that consistently exceed their timebox - This can happen when participants lose  sight of the purpose of the event. Often teams deviate into additional conversations, rather than sticking to the purpose of the meeting and scheduling another meeting to create solutions to issues uncovered during the event.
• Not all team members are “heard” - When team members do not feel comfortable providing their thoughts, the team will not benefit from their skills and experience, and the value of the event is diminished.
• The Scrum Master drives the discussion and team members direct their comments to the Scrum Master - Each of the Scrum events has a distinct purpose, they are all designed for the participants to work together to inspect and adapt their progress toward the Product or Sprint Goal. The Scrum Master’s role is to help the team achieve the purpose of each event.
• The Scrum events turn into status meetings - None of the events are status meetings, they are all intended to help the team progress toward the Product or Sprint Goal.
• The team decides to eliminate some events because they feel that Scrum is meeting heavy - Every Scrum event has a purpose and every team member is accountable for making each event productive.  Continuous improvement helps the team become more effective and purposeful over time. If the team finds that they are conducting Sprint Planning, Sprint Reviews and Sprint Retrospectives too frequently and are receiving limited value, it may be time to consider extending the length of the Sprint. This should be done with caution since a basic tenet of Scrum is the frequent opportunities for inspection and adaptation.
• Team members wait until the next event instead of taking action right away - Scrum events are predetermined opportunities for inspection and adaptation. However, if the team discovers the need for adaptation, they should execute the change as soon as they practically can.
• The Scrum Master always facilitates the events - The Scrum Events can be facilitated by any team member, no one has the official responsibility to be the meeting facilitator. That said, individuals who chose to be Scrum Masters often chose to develop their facilitation skills and may be called upon to lead certain events. 
• Scrum Team members refuse to call or attend non-Event meetings during the Sprint - Scrum teams will often have to collaborate on problems and challenges that arise during their work. Having separate meetings, each focused on a specific challenge, helps the team brainstorm and align on optimal solutions. 
• The Developers only participate in the Daily Scrum and play a passive role in other events - Developers have specialized skills, knowledge and experience that is needed for all Scrum Events to meet their purpose. Value is always added through the Developers participation. 

Tips for Strong Scrum Events

Breaking the antipatterns listed above help create strong and effective Scrum events. Consider the following tips:

• Make sure everyone has a voice
• Make sure everyone is aligned; encourage everyone to ask questions 
• Make sure any follow up discussions are addressed
• Make sure information radiators are updated
• Make sure meeting stays true to its purpose
• Make sure meetings are valuable for all of the participants
• Make sure impediments are identified and addressed
• Make sure everything is transparent
• Make sure every team member has what they need