What Agile Velocity Means To Your Agile Team?

If we want to define Agile Velocity, then it can be simply defined as the method of measuring the efficiency of the agile team. For majority of the purposes, this definition serves well however at some places, it creates confusion regarding which one to consider while measuring the team’s velocity.

This Confusion Is Because There Are Two Ways To Define Agile Velocity:

• Agile Velocity measures the functionality a team delivers in the sprint
• Agile Velocity measures the team’s ability to convert ideas into functionality

Both may sound the same but underneath both are different.

An Example:

When you swim, you measure how much you travelled. This shows your velocity. This means if you travelled 2 kilometers while swimming, your velocity is 2 kilometers per hour. 

But, let’s say the water in the sea was flowing at the speed of one kilometer per hour against you while you were in. So, here, we can say that your velocity is to swim 3 kilometers per hour. So, here the confusion occurs: Is your velocity 2 km or 3km per hour?

As per the first definition, its 2 and as per the second definition, its 3; this remains false if we compare Agile Velocity as per the second definition where functionality is measured. 

Here, no new functionality is delivered. So, no points are earned. It depends on what velocity definition you are considering, whether you take it as an idea to transform ideas into functionality or whether you see how much they deliver within the given sprint. 

For most of the teams, both of the definitions yield the similar value. The difference lies in the values for those teams that are involved in bug fixing or doing large amounts of refactoring.

Which one is Better?

None of the both differences is always better as compared to the other. Both are equal on their own. What you are using for your team depends on the purpose of measuring the velocity and what you expect your team to do in the future.

If you wish to have the same future as it is today, then the first method of Agile Velocity is right for you. This means it will only show you the time your team spends in the bug fixes. Then velocity, for you, will be a means to measure the progress.

On the other hand, if you wish to have a different future as compared to the present, then for you, second velocity definition will apply where you will measure the team’s ability to convert ideas into the functionality. The velocity in your team will depend on how many ideas are actually transformed.

In a nutshell:

From this entire discussion, note that you must be clear with the team about the definition of Agile Velocity. Explain them what velocity means to you. So, whenever they recall the term “velocity”, they know what it means to you.

This will help them to perform accordingly and it will also make it easy for you to measure the team’s progress as you have now already set the performance measurement parameters.

The Role Of A Scrum Master After Taking Scrum Master Advanced Training

All those belonging to the industry are very well aware of the term “Scrum Master” as well as their responsibilities. There are different hard and soft skills required to become a Scrum Master.  However, there’s still a question: What’s the role of a Scrum Master Advanced Training?

How’s the entire work day of a Scrum Master is like? How does their day change while engaging with more teams?  Let’s take a look in the working day of a Scrum Master.

The Day Of A Scrum Master:

After taking the Scrum Master Advanced Training from any of the well-known institutes such as Lean Agile Training, you might be wondering what work these Scrum Masters actually do.  The answer to this question is here.

Responsibility of A Scrum Master:

Mr. SM was a Scrum Master in a well-known organization. His daily routine consisted of delivering value by removing hassles. This makes the progress systematic.  Experts in the industry define Scrum Masters as “an individual who believes in power and abilities of the people as well as its team”.

The entire work is to boost the team and prepare them for their long term success.  Hence, the main task of Scrum Masters like Mr. SM is to work the entire day with the teams, take them to a treat, etc. It is training with fun.

Some Other Examples Of How They Lead The Team Is:

Ensuring that the process is accurate for the team to work:   Good workers need systems like Scrum to enhance their efficiency.  Scrum masters work together with the team to find a proper solution for the problem in Certified Scrum Toronto.

This doesn’t mean that the final answer must be Scrum. To mix it up; instead of waiting for a planned Sprint Review or a team creating an experiment driven learning.

Team Protection:  Scrum Masters become masters after successfully completing the Scrum Master Advanced Training and then they protect the team by protecting stakeholders and make them understand the new way of working.  The agile is completely different.  Team empowerment is present and there’s no need of any manager to delegate the tasks.  Here, project planning is extremely different.

The reason is focus shifts from the plan to the result.  Instead of interacting with team members, the leaders work directly with the Project Owners to prioritize the project.  This change in shift takes time.

It is Scrum Master’s task to keep on educating stakeholders to elevate the new terrain.

 Arranging Scrum Ceremonies:  Like Mr. SM, there are many Scrum Masters who arrange for a timely meeting known as Scrum Ceremonies for their team members to make them aware of the project goals and ensure that the team is working on the track.

The scrum master must be prepared for the meeting by having the foresight to identify the potential issues that are to be discussed in the meeting. They must also be aware of the activities to be conducted for the team to address the current issues then offering them the guidance to find an appropriate solution.

Here, we have discussed just a few tasks that a Scrum Master has to do. Hence, if you take the Scrum Master Advanced Training, make sure first you understand the role of a Scrum Master properly and then dig deep into the field only if you feel you can wholeheartedly carry out the job.

Professional Scrum Master: (PSM I) evaluation is also available for anyone who wants to confirm the depth of the knowledge of the picturesque framework and its application. Those who pass the evaluation will receive industry-approved PSM I Scrum Master Advanced Training and certification, which will show their original level of Scrum Mastery.

It is not necessary to take a course and if you think that you already have a high level scrumptious knowledge, how to understand the scrum guide and how to apply the scrum within the chronic teams, you have the option of taking a straight PSM is. However, such courses are available that help you prepare for evaluation and gain a strong understanding of the scrum. Depending on your role, either the 2-day Professional Scrum Foundation or the Professional Scrum Master Advanced Training and Course is highly recommended.

Prepare for Assessment

Assessment is difficult; Preparation is necessary to achieve the passing score. Reading the scrum guide and taking an open assessment alone is not usually sufficient and we recommend reviewing the content below:

• Assessments include topics of many focus areas defined by professional focus competencies.
• Many questions ask you to think or interpret meaning from the scrum guide and how you implement the scrum within a scrum team.
• The PSM I suggest reading lists the focus areas that can be selected during the assessment in Scrum Master Advanced Training.
• There are several additional resources to help you prepare for the PSM I assessment in the Scrum Master Learning Path.
• Find a list of existing business Agile Scrum Master Certification holders here or see a breakdown on how many people hold the certificate.
• Stay tuned with us for more such informative blogs about Scrum and Agile.

Tips to Become the Scrum Master Your Team

As a scram master, do you ever feel like you are not doing all this for your team? Are you doing the basics of the job, yet do you think you can do more?

This is a very important question. Each of us has blind spots which prevent us from seeing some things which we can do to better our teams.

In my work with great Scrum Master Advanced Training, and people who may not be great yet, but are working to get there, I have identified eight things that often remind people to become a Scrum Masters. The teams which require are required.

Keep Calm First:

Embrace the effectiveness of all important pausing, the ability to silence. When you are tempted to speak, then wait for others in that awkward situation for others who follows a complex question or thought provocative comment. You do not need all the answers.

And when you are calming yourself mentally, remember to actively listen. Before the team member speaks, oppose the temptation to make a mental answer. Instead, while someone else is talking, give your thoughts to your thoughts. When they are finished, think before answering. There is nothing wrong in keeping quiet while deciding how to respond.

Believe me when I say that to become a fully autonomously, self-organizing team, your team needs your silent comments, so your silence is more than that.

Feed Your Inner Responsibility To Junkie

However, a Scram does not take responsibility for the success of the Master Project - but this fee remains with the team - a scrum takes the responsibility of the team to adopt and practice the scheme.

I often compare the Scrum Master Advanced Training and the Scrum Master role of an orchestra conductor. Both should provide real time guidance and leadership to the talented collection of those people who come together to make something which none of them can make alone.

Or as the Boston Pope's conductor Keith Lockhart says, "People believe that when you become a conductor, you join a Napoleon cheese - you want to stand on that big box and erase your power. I am not a power junkie, I'm a responsible person. "

So to make your team a scram master according to your team's needs, the second suggestion is that you feed junk to your inner responsibility. Your responsibility is to make team members best. And one part of doing this is to become the best you can be.

Master In The Art Of Checking

Third, the Scrum Masters should be aware of what is happening with the team without crossing the line in the micromanagement. To do this, they should be able to check without feeling it that they are checking.

While checking and checking may seem similar, they are actually quite different. Scrum Master Advanced Training and Scrum Masters who do not just ask about progress; they provide real support in removing any obstruction or distraction that is interrupting that progress. They avoid incriminating persons at all costs. And, perhaps, most importantly, they ensure that the problem is given to the team to give full autonomy to the team.

Investigating is very different. When you check a person, you look like a plan - did the programmer finish the changes last night as he had said? Did the tester automate the tests as promised or run it manually "once more"?

Checking about status-type information is being investigated. No problem. But to further include the offer to help in the removal of any obstacle from progress, to include the offer.

To be a scrum master like your team, need and practice to check the art of unchecked.

Show To The Team

When their teams look good, the Scrum Masters look good. As such, they do whatever they need to help the team achieve their goals. And when the team achieves something extraordinary, great screen masters ensure that all people in the organization pay attention in Scrum Master Advanced Training.

Good Scrum Masters also help their teams celebrate their success. There is no need to do festivities on a large scale. You do not need to play Rolling Stones in your retrospective. (But if you do, please invite me, please.)

Food is always a great way to celebrate. I brought bagel, homemade cookies (yes, I can cook), or everyone's personal favorite morning drink. The afternoon time is very good to go together in movies. I once bowled a team, which was an explosion because the street showed the speed of each ball. We paid more attention to the fact that the number of pins knocked on.

You helped the team to achieve their success. And it is very important but they have achieved it. Make sure that they and others - recognize that fact and respect it.

Agile Scrum Master Certification - How to have Agile Mindset?

An Agile Mindset is “Only Feedback, no Failure”. Mindset, in general terms, is a set of assumptions, perceived notions, methods, etc. The main aim is to adopt or accept these behaviors, methods or tools in Agile Scrum Master Certification.

It is a way of thinking about things that have something common in life. Basically, these things make up the agile mindset:

• Positive Attitude
• Goal of Team Success
• Pragmatism
• Willingness to fail
• Thirst for Knowledge

Whenever testing in Agile, if you fail at anything, consider it as a lesson, make corrections accordingly and correct yourself every time. For the team, it is necessary to have collective agile mindset.

There are people in the industry who even after having done Agile Scrum Master Certification take the work with positive attitude. They provide suggestions that can help to overcome obstacles.

These experts ask questions what’s in the best interests of the business. Some of the often come up with innovative solutions for certain problems. Their realistic and practical attitudes always help the team to succeed.

People having positive approach towards everything can only work effectively in the Agile team. So, as a Agile team member or an Agile Coach; you must have these qualities in you and your team members:

Positive Attitude of Agile Scrum Master Certification:

There are many challenges in an Agile Project. Human beings make mistakes and everything doesn’t go well as intended. The main thing here is how team members deal with these situations.

As you get the issues, you can deal with them in a timely manner with a positive attitude. At times, when you find something negative, you can find opportunity within that for further improvement.

The team must always be able to recognize the problems and take potential risks, then come up with suggestions for solutions. For people new to Agile, Self management is difficult. Here, positive attitude is important. Some of the things they try won’t work but one must not leave hope.

Thirst for Knowledge of Agile Scrum Master Certification:

When you learn Agile or go for Agile Scrum Master Certification, all you need is to constantly learn and adapt. One must gain as much information as possible to deliver a quality product. Never assume that whatever you do is the only the best for clients.

Day in day out business requirements vary and technologies keep on updating, this is why professionals have to keep themselves updated with the changes. Agile professionals are always challenged to think outside the box.

Every team member working with Agile and Scrum must have the thirst to get new knowledge about both the software's. They must attend meetups, read technical articles, etc and find some new sources for the ideas.

When you start any plan, implement the tests, learn about the product, and then make informed decisions about what to explore next.

Team Success of Agile Scrum Master Certification:

Successful accomplishment of Agile project depends entirely on the success of the team. Hence, success of a team is equally important. Here, it’s not about individual success or heroic behavior.

It is important for the team to succeed rather than for the individual to complete the tasks. Team members must be ready to move outside of their comfort zone to help the team. Efforts of every team member will lead to the successful completion of the project.

Team members must be willing to train each other in the areas they are not confident at. People are less likely to work on an important task if they are not expert in that area. Team members must take the time to train other members who are less familiar with the coding.

In a nutshell:

After completing the Agile Scrum Master Certification Course successfully, you must be ready to support the agile team in every best possible manner. Whether you get appointed as an Agile team member or as an Agile Project Manager, your main aim is to complete the Agile project within stipulated time frame.