Scrum Roles – Agile Software Development

Who are you? The three Scrum Roles explained

A scrum team has a slightly different composition than a traditional waterfall project, with three specific functions. To better understand the basics of Agile, it’s worth talking a little about roles and responsibilities within the Scrum team. I will also tell you a little about the problems that can happen in this structure.

The Scrum Team three roles include, The Product Owner, Scrum Master and Development Team, are sufficient to deliver high value-added software according to the framework. Let’s see, in common lines, how this works.

Product Owner, the owner of the backlog

The project begins with the Product Owner: he or she is the person who knows the business and the end user’s need. With this knowledge, the PO can prioritise the needs of the user and decide what else adds value to the company. That is, this is the person who orders the product.

The Product Owner can even decide the product developed is sufficient to meet the needs and finish the project. Incidentally, this is one of the hallmarks of Scrum. Since we opted for the essential features to the business first, it is not uncommon to finalise the project with fewer items than initially envisioned.

After all, some studies point out that most of the features are seldom or never used.

The Product Owner separates a wish list, called the Product Backlog, which contains everything he initially thinks he needs to serve the business and the end user. This list should be prioritised based on the value that each item can add to the business.

Once complete, it is up to the PO to write the user stories, which detail each item in the wish list a little more. It is also up to him to take care of the project budget, ensuring that the investment yields an expected return as soon as possible.

The Product Owner supports the Development Team by answering questions about business rules. It’s crucial to the success of the project. On the other hand, the Development Team has someone available and accessible to answer the product owners questions.

Scrum Master, the proactive coach

The next role to play is the Scrum Master. He or she acts as servant leader and coach, to both the Product Owner and the Development Team. When the organisation begins to adopt Scrum, it is common for either the Technical Leader or perhaps a Project Manager to assume this role.

Be cautious of old vices: the former technical leader will tend to give technical solutions to the development team, just as the former project manager will have a strong inclination to commit to deadlines that must be met at any cost and to direct the team members, telling who does what. A good Scrum Master is there to help the team practice self-organisation.

The Scrum Master knows the process; he can instruct the Product Owner concerning Scrum practices. It guides the PO throughout the project. In the same way, it should guide the Development Team to achieve that team sprint goal. It is up to the SM to eliminate any team of impediment that hinders the progress of the team, seeking to help the team to improve its productivity.

Mike Cohn once wrote about the six attributes of a good Scrum Master:

• Responsible for the adoption of Scrum practices and not for the success of the project;
• Humble to the point of putting the interests of the team above their own;
• Collaborative because he or she helps to create a collaborative environment among team members;
• Committed to the purpose of the project and to the resolution of impediments that prevent the team from reaching its objectives;
• Influential, both inside and outside the team, to carry out their duties to build the team and to eliminate impediments;
• Understand the knowledge necessary for the team to achieve its goals.
• Knowledge in facilitation techniques and Team Growing are differential of any Scrum Master.

Development Team

The Development Team is composed of those who create the product increment. Scrum does not define titles, so all its members are mostly developers, regardless of their function within the framework. The concept of the multidisciplinary team: all members can perform any task that is necessary for the project. However, it is common to observe teams that have members with specific functions.

The size of the team varies according to the project. Some people defend the idea that a team has 5 to 9 members. In particular, I believe the team should be small enough to stay agile and big enough to deliver the expected value to the product. It is a somewhat subjective interpretation, but it gives more freedom to the organisation of the team.

Another exciting feature is that the team is self-organising, that is, who decides who does what, what the roles of each member are and what is not Sprint is the team! This is key to creating a collaborative environment within the team. Seeing sense and actively participating in decisions, team members become much more motivated to commit to the expected results.

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