5 1/2 Arguments for Scrum.
Agile project management is nothing new. And it spreads like wildfire. More and more employees and applicants attach great importance to more freedom, personal responsibility and natural development. That's the reason why many companies want to get out of outdated hierarchy structures. Enter: Scrum. We have been working with Scrum for years and have had very good experiences with it.
Why Scrum can be a Booster for your Company.
1. Creativity.
"Living Scrum” increases the creativity of each individual. It makes your employees imaginative and inventive and encourages lateral thinking.
2. Responsibility and Courage.
In Scrum, each role has its own freedom of decision. No one can hide. Employees automatically take on more responsibility and have to show courage. And it lets each of them grow naturally.
3. Respect and Openness.
In Scrum, respect and openness is essential. As soon as all team members have internalized it and live these values, the cohesion and community feeling in the team improves. A pleasant working atmosphere is created, full of trust and constructive cooperation.
4. Risks & Costs.
Agile project management minimizes risks and costs. Scrum was developed exactly for this purpose. It creates very high transparency and leaves out everything superfluous.
5. Productivity.
It's only logical that efficiency increases when only the useful things are done, right? You can learn how Scrum works from its inventors: Guide to Scrum - The Rules of the Game.
What it means to live Scrum and why it sometimes goes wrong.
It sounds so simple and straightforward. And many a company considers introducing agile project management according to Scrum. It doesn't take long to find the right people for the roles of Scrum Master, Product Owner, the development team, and stakeholders. But why does the introduction of Scrum fail in some companies?
Reason 1: Suitability of the Project for Scrum.
One main problem can be that the project is not suitable for agile project management, but the decision makers have decided in favor of Scrum because of its "in” status.
It shouldn't be along the lines of, "The other companies are implementing Scrum on their projects, that's why we're doing it." It would be much wiser to have an experienced project manager/agile coach check whether Scrum is suitable for the project.
Reason 2: Employee Readiness to implement Scrum.
Scrum is more than just implementing the rules and attending Scrum events. Only if all stakeholders are willing to live Scrum can they enjoy the benefits of agile project management. What does this mean? Living Scrum does not only mean naming the Scrum values: courage, focus, commitment, openness, respect. It is crucial to acknowledge them as the basis of Scrum.
Here are two Examples:
If there is a lack of respect for others in the retrospective, not every member of the team will dare to openly introduce suggestions for improvement. Then, valuable ideas have already been irrevocably lost. If involved employees of the company are not open to the introduction of Scrum and to adapting to the process from the outset, then it is said that we work according to Scrum, but in reality only the terminology is used. And nothing has changed...
How did we convince our employees to work with Scrum? We didn't have to. Scrum is very common in software development - they wanted to try it out on their own. And curiosity turned into strong Scrum teams working hand-in-hand with the customer. If you have the thought to introduce agile project management at your company, we can only recommend it. It is easiest if you are first supported by an experienced Scrum Master and later train your own employees to become Scrum Masters.
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