The Optimal Scrum Team
How to design a successful Scrum Team
What is the Scrum team, and what elements does it consist of? Who has which competencies and tasks? And how do you design a successful Scrum team? We have the answers to all those questions for you.
In Scrum, all participants are collectively referred to as the Scrum Team. The Scrum Team is made up of the people who actually work according to the principles of Scrum – other stakeholders are not considered a part of the Scrum Team. There is also no classic project management figure in the traditional sense, because the team is meant to be self-organized.
The working parts of a Scrum Team are made up of three different roles.
Different Roles
1. The Product Owner
2. The Scrum Master
3. The Developers
The clear division of roles in Scrum is important for the success of the project and should be consistently adhered to. Each individual must understand his or her role and fulfill the associated tasks and responsibilities in order to successfully deliver the next working increment and improve the overall product.
To set up an efficient Scrum team, it is essential to recognize the different skillset each role should be equipped with and assign the right people.
The Product Owner should be a convincing team player and gain the trust of team members as well as customers. Reliability, oversight, and expertise are required to respond appropriately to product-related issues and unexpected situations and to make correct decisions.
The Scrum Master, as the name suggests, must have a perfect command of the Scrum method and possess both practical and theoretical knowledge. Empathy and interpersonal skills are also essential. The Scrum Master is at the team’s side throughout the process and provides support in all matters related to Scrum and often beyond. He should receive respect and acceptance from both the Developers and the Product Owner. However, it is recommended not to select him from the already existing team.
The Developers should consist of competent, knowledgeable people who all give their best to the project and are therefore indispensable. At the same time, they should be able to substitute for each other in case of failures.
How does a Scrum team form?
This question is especially relevant for teams that have no previous experience with Scrum. On the one hand, every developer has probably felt the desire to be able to decide independently how and when something is best implemented. On the other hand, it is fascinating to observe what happens when this self-responsibility is actually transferred to the employees.
There is an adjustment period, the duration of which varies from individual to individual. Breaking away from the patterns of "command and control" is not only difficult for managers. In this phase, the Scrum Master plays a central role. He has to create the conditions for all participants to act in their respective roles and responsibilities, but also to act actively where required by Scrum.
Step by step, the Scrum team recognizes its possibilities and the responsibility associated with them. The process of self-organization begins: tasks are distributed, decisions are made jointly and responsibility is assumed. Everyone sees themselves as part of a team and understands that individuality and teamwork are not mutually exclusive. A creative atmosphere develops, and good and efficient solutions are found. The team wants to prove to the Product Owner that it can keep promises, reach goals and deliver excellent quality without pressure from above. And on the side, it’s a lot of fun for everyone involved, because there are numerous opportunities for self-affirmation and recognition.
Self-organized Scrum team
The outstanding feature of a Scrum team is self-organization. After the product owner has set the course with the product backlog, it’s up to the Scrum team to organize the implementation. No one, not even the Scrum Master, will dictate how the requirements should be implemented.
The Scrum team selects the appropriate tools, monitors the progress of the work, reflects on the advantages and disadvantages of its work and independently takes measures for improvement. This requires adherence to a value system, as described here.
The Scrum team must be well-rehearsed in order to develop its full potential. Each team member must know what tasks he or she has to complete and trust that his or her colleagues will pursue the same aspiration.
However, self-organization reaches its limits with inexperienced Scrum teams. The Project Management Institute’s (PMI) PMBOK Guide emphasizes in Chapter X3.3.3 that "junior teams working on highly adaptive projects need coaching and guidance before they can achieve this level of ownership."
Group size
Self-organization also involves selecting the right group size and composition of the team. A group size of five to nine members has proven to be workable.
The Scrum team needs to be large enough to handle the work within a sprint, yet small enough to share information smoothly. Members should come from a variety of disciplines, depending on the sprint and project goals. For example, team members may come from areas such as software development, architecture, product development, security, design or editorial.
Work environment
A shared office for all team members is ideal. This allows a quick exchange to take place. Ideally, the Product Owner also works in the same room so that questions about the design of the product core can be clarified quickly.
More and more companies are relying on mobile working. Even if the Scrum team works in a home office, the primary goal is to maintain the flow of information and avoid misunderstandings in communication.
Soft skills
Scrum team members should be team players, well-organized, able to deal with conflicts, flexible, creative and have good communication skills.
In addition to the Scrum team, there are other participants called stakeholders. However, these do not work according to Scrum and are therefore not part of the Scrum team. Examples might include the IT Lead, someone from a business department or Accounting.