SAFe is a powerful framework used by organisations to scale agile practices. The scrum master plays a key role in leading agile transformation and helps the teams stay aligned to the framework. They play the role of the servant leader and help the teams in managing impediments and empower teams to deliver quality work. The SAFe scrum master should be able to ace complex projects. Here are a few necessary skills that every Scrum Master should have in a scaled agile environment:
Skills needed by a scrum master to thrive in agile environments
Deep understanding of the SAFe framework
The SAFe framework in the organisation is implemented at multiple levels, from teams to the portfolio. The scrum master should have a good understanding of how these levels connect with each other. They should master various responsibilities under SAFe, like agile release trains, PI planning, and other core elements of SAFe. As a scrum master in scaled environments may have to work with the teams that use scrum and Kanban frameworks, they should be proficient in conducting scrum events and managing Kanban boards.
Advanced facilitation skills
The scrum master needs strong facilitation skills to guide the teams in delivering the project. These facilitation skills go beyond conducting ceremonies and stand-up meetings. The skills can help the scrum master build trust among the team and make them productive. With the advanced facilitation skills, the Scrum Master can guide the teams through productive conversations during impediments in sprints and prioritising conflicts during project development. The advanced facilitation skills of the scrum master will help to shape the conversations that lead to clear decisions when the teams are empowered with autonomy to execute delivery.
Managing conflicts
Managing conflicts between individuals or teams is another necessary skill of the scrum master in the SAFe environments. The job of the scrum master is not to prevent conflict in the scaled environment but to surface it constructively and turn conflicts into opportunities for learning. The conflict resolution skill of the scrum master can turn diverse viewpoints among the cross-functional team into effective collaboration and build teams that can deliver successful project deliveries even under stress.
Organisational Skills
A clear structure in the project process is important to manage collaboration and communication between the teams at higher levels. The scrum master should let the teams do their best work through careful planning and organisation. Effective organisation skills help the scrum master prioritise the tasks by weighing their importance to make sure that teams always work on priority tasks. These organising skills also help the scrum masters keep track of multiple aspects of the team’s progress and aid the teams to perform at maximum potential.
Build self-managing teams.
The scrum master should encourage teams to take ownership of their work for sustainable delivery in project progress. The scrum master should be skilled enough to study and understand the different working styles of the team members and their resistance. This knowledge about the team helps the scrum master guide them to take accountability for their work. By encouraging teams to take accountability for their work, the scrum master can make the teams self-organising and manage the internal conflicts effectively. The self-managing teams will be able to manage the project delivery without any interference from external management.
Manage dependencies
The skilled scrum master should always see the teams beyond tasks and understand how internal dependencies between the teams impact delivery. The system thinking skills of the scrum master will then map value streams and facilitate conversations to improve the broader system. The scrum masters with effective system thinking skills can drive the change in the organisation successfully. The scrum master will be able to reduce the team’s effort on low-value features and create a shared understanding between the teams. By reducing product delivery cycles, the scrum master can help the team to deliver value frequently while staying focused on customer needs.
Problem-solving skills
The Scrum Master in the scaled environment should be able to help the team identify and resolve problems. The scrum master should help the teams achieve their sprint goals by deriving tailored solutions that work best for the team. Also, it is equally important to facilitate discussion between the teams to help them resolve the conflicts on their own. Effective problem-solving skills of the Scrum Master will make the teams productive and deliver better results across the organisation.
Continuous learning
The scrum masters should stay relevant to the changing trends by adopting a culture of continuous learning in their careers. You can invest your time in SAFe Scrum Master training to enhance their knowledge about the framework while scaling in agile environments.
Servant leadership
The scrum master should be an effective servant leader in the scaled environments. They should empower teams by encouraging them to manage the tasks on their own and helping them to make mindful decisions. Being a servant leader, the scrum master should guide the teams in changing working styles to improve their productivity. A good servant leader also creates a safe space for the employees to experiment and learn from their mistakes. A skilled scrum master, as a servant leader, will focus on the team’s growth by encouraging knowledge sharing and streamlining their workflows.
Conclusion
Organisations are moving to agile to gain the competitive edge in the market. The scrum has advanced skills to thrive in the scaled environments. The advanced skills will help the scrum master guide the team to deliver customer-centric products and build high-performing teams that can shape the future of the organisation.