Surely if you work in technology fields, in software, product or engineering development teams, you have heard or worked under the Scrum methodology.

But if you do not know what this methodology is about or you have not heard this term, it does not matter, stay to read this article where we will tell you about Scrum, at the end of reading you will learn about a new topic that will surely make positive contributions to your work method or, if you already know it, it will bring you new concepts and ideas to improve your way of working.

Scrum is a methodology for project management where a fast result is needed in fast changing environments. In this article we will explain what it is, what are the roles of the team participants and some of its benefits.

What is Scrum?

The Scrum methodology aims to address difficult projects, developed in dynamic and versatile environments, in a flexible way. This methodology is based on fragmented and regular deliveries of the final product, based on the value offered to customers.. In other words, Scrum is used to improve the collaborative work of a team.

Likewise Scrum helps teams to educate and organize themselves based on experience, and invites reflection on triumphs and disappointments or failures. This is carried out under a compendium of tools and resources that, when put into practice, allow teams to organize themselves more quickly and agilely.

What are the Scrum roles?

It is necessary to be clear about the main roles of this methodology in order to understand how it works.

1. Product Owner or product manager:

Is the person who represents the voice of the customer by connecting to the customer's needs, focuses on conveying the customer's point of view to his team and takes responsibility for understanding what the customer wants, his motivations and what he requires.

On the other hand, the Product Owner is responsible for maximizing the value of the productby representing and expressing the voice of the client for the duration of the project, resulting from the work of the team.

How this task is performed can vary between organizations, Scrum teams, and individuals.

Functions of the Product Owner:

• Explicitly develop and communicate the product's objective.

• Know the market and customer behaviors with a broad vision of the business.

• To be the representative of all stakeholders to achieve a good definition of product objectives and expected results.

• Create and clearly communicate the elements of the Product Backlog (the Product Backlog has the features, requirements and activities associated with the deliverables to achieve the project objective).

• Ensure that the product portfolio is transparent, visible and understandable to the team.

• Ensure that there is a clear prioritization of objectives.

Characteristics of a Product Owner:

• Knowledgeable about the business
• Excellent communication skills
• Knowledge of Scrum methodology
• Negotiation skills
• Decisive
• Proactive
• Accessible
• Achievement oriented.

• Scrum Master:

The Scrum Master is the person in charge of leading the different Scrum events.. It should also promote daily update meetings and organize the sprint planning, review and analysis meetings, as well as the punctual fulfillment of the start and end time of these meetings.

Another of its responsibilities is to help the team to understand and follow the Scrum theory. He is also responsible for the effectiveness of the Scrum Team.

The Scrum Master acts as a Scrum Team coach, stimulating and motivating the team to build the product in the time frame they have set for themselves.. They also support the team by creating a collaborative environment for the project objectives to be achieved.

Functions of the Scrum Master:

• Train team members.

• Help the team focus on creating product enhancements or developments that can deliver high value to customers.

• Eliminate all impediments or blocks to the progress of the Scrum team.

• Ensure that all Scrum events take place and are positive, productive, and stay within the specified time frame.

• Development Team:

The Development Team consists of the professionals who perform the work of delivering a product increment that can potentially be deployed in production at the end of each Sprint.

On the other hand, Development Team members must be self-organizing and collaborative to achieve the Scrum goal of continuous improvement.

Responsibilities of the Development Team:

• Have an understanding of the requirements.
• Estimate User Stories by Product Owner.
• Produce high quality deliverables.
• Develop the list of defined Sprint Backlog tasks.
• Develop the Sprint Backlog and the Sprint Burndown Chart.
• Identify different opportunities for improvement.
• Identify potential risks and implement the necessary actions to mitigate them.
• Participate in the Sprint retrospective.

Scrum is a methodology that has many more elements than its roles, but we will talk about this in another of our blog posts.

For now we can name you some benefits of this methodology:

• Promotes the teamworkfocusing all efforts on achieving a common goal.
• Promotes the self-discipline and self-managementThis has a positive impact on responsibility.
• Promotes the communication between the different members of the team.
• Stakeholders have a greater control and transparency on the project, allowing for better organization.
• The customer can track closer to what happens, without having to wait for a final result that does not convince you.
• With the goals intermediates risks are minimized.
• Allows you to reduce development time of product.
• It generates the adaptability and flexibility in the face of a changing environment and changing requirements.

What did you think of this article? Did you find it useful? Do you want to know more about the Scrum methodology? Leave us your opinion. 

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