A scrum master is an expert facilitator who steers the IT product development team. She is not the boss, but a peer in a group set apart by her expertise. She acts as a coach while guiding the team to its best possible performance.
If you are an aspiring scrum master looking to update your resume, you are at the right place. Resume Now career experts can help you create a unique resume to show your skills and credentials. Let’s start with three different resume formats.
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Job duties of a scrum master
The most vital responsibility of a scrum master is to empower the product development team as a high-performing and self-organizing group. They should be constantly available to help everybody work in an efficient, agile environment. As facilitators, scrum masters allow the team to remove any flaws or setbacks while developing the scrum product.
The primary duties of a scrum master include:
Helping the scrum team to learn scrum processes under agile methodology.
Implementing agile software development while using scrum framework.
Leading the scrum meetings and guiding the scrum team for adapting agile practices to better the team as a whole.
Resolving blocking issues by taking input from the scrum product owner for the execution of sprints.
Facilitating daily sprints to maximize productivity.
Preparing product backlogs for the sprints and discussing them with team members at the end of each sprint cycle.
Communicating with product owner.
Encouraging collaboration between scrum team and product owner.
Scrum master median salaries
According to PayScale, an American compensation software and data company, a Certified ScrumMaster (CSM) average base salary is $92,431. Pay varies based on the experience of the candidate.
Top skills for scrum master
Most organizations opting for an agile approach to their product development often hire a scrum master, and demand for these skilled workers is on the rise. Here are top skills that will help you succeed as a professional scrum master:
- Mentoring skills: Scrum masters must act as excellent mentors for their teams. You should ensure that the scrum team is following scrum principles and training. As an advisor, you should also know how to assist a team efficiently to implement a framework and deliver the best possible product under an agile environment.
- Multidirectional collaborative skills: A scrum master is a bridge between a product owner and their team members. Your ability to convey a product owner’s message and goals to the team plays a vital role in delivering a product. So, at the business level, you should create a developmental and supportive environment free from conflicts. This will allow you to identify risks beforehand as well as the desired project completion date and quality. You will also define financial feasibility after calculating the approximate costs of specific project scope. Software like Asana, Jira, and Mavenlink will help you anticipate needs and predict resources that your company may require for successful project completion.
- Ability to anticipate resources and administration budget: must know the required resources and the financial feasibility of executing your plans in an agile environment. Using software such as Nutcache will help you track budget and deploy changes, like establishing key performance indicators (KPIs), to measure the progress and team performance.
Educational requirements for scrum master
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Degree
There is no specified formal education requirement for a scrum master. Still, most candidates earn a bachelor’s degree in information technology, computer science, computer technology, computer engineering, or a comparable field to become a potential candidate. Bloomberg University, Florida Atlantic University, and Southern New Hampshire University all offer well-regarded programs where you can learn about scrum principles.
A nonprofit association, Scrum Alliance, is one of the recognized organizations to provide scrum training and certification. They offer a Certified ScrumMaster (CSM) course by Scrum Alliance designed for grasping the basics of scrum. They also provide other certification courses such as Certified Scrum Trainer (CST), Certified Scrum Developer (CSD), Certified Scrum Product Owner (CSPO).
Scrum.org, a global scrum organization, offers Professional Scrum Master (PSM) certifications at three levels: Professional Scrum Master I (PSM I), Professional Scrum Master II (PSM II), and Professional Scrum Master III (PSM III). PSM I is for anyone who wishes to learn the scrum framework and its application. PSM II is an industry-recognized advanced level of scrum mastery certification course. PSM III is only for those candidates who have passed PSM I and PSM II earlier. It shows the distinguishing level of scrum mastery involving complex scrum practices.
Scrum master resume-writing tips
Grabbing the attention of an employer is only possible when you write an effective resume. Your resume must match the requirements the employer is looking for. Here are a few handy tips to make your resume more appealing:
- Write a summary statement with a clear goal: Employers need to understand your goals and how you can help them to achieve their targets. If your goal prospects match those of employers, work productivity increases. Write in that you are passionate about preparing scrum teams.
- Show a detailed insight into your work history: Elaborate on your previous experiences to let employers know what you can do. Mention your sprint responsibilities to show what exactly you have done in the past. And write to the point about forecasting, handling agile practices, and identifying sprint risks.
- List skills on fundamental scrum principles: The six main principles of adaptability, self-organization, value-based prioritization, collaboration, timeboxing, and iterative development are a must for a scrum master. You must mention your expertise in handling scrum teams and daily sprint cycles under the agile environment.
- Illustrate your coaching and mentoring skills: Describe details of daily scrum meetings. Similarly, write about your mentoring sessions while working for scrum artifacts like product and sprint backlogs.
FAQ
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What are the job prospects for new scrum masters?
The latest report by Scrum.org reveals positive prospects, with 10% of jobs in 87 different countries all over the globe, including the United States and Germany, going to new scrum experts and 35% of them to those with less than two years of experience.
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Who can become an aspiring scrum master?
Candidates working as project managers, business analysts, or people with managerial experience can become scrum masters. You need to have complex skills involving team dynamics, agile practices, and coaching skills. Knowing business-specific industry standards to facilitate the process of development will be an edge over other candidates.