How to Become a New Scrum Master in an Existing Team? Case Study

I am going to tell you a real story of how to join an existing team as a new Scrum Master. It happened to me 2 sprints ago. But I think that recent thoughts enriched with reflection, will allow those who are facing such a situation or have just passed through it to draw informative conclusions.

The action is happening in the organization I have been working for for some time. The time of employee reshuffles came in early June and, to everyone’s surprise, it also included the Scrum Masters transfers between the teams. So far, I supported one team that was focused on the development of functionalities in the financial part of the product. I was offered to support as a Scrum Master a second team working on the Product’s financial part as well. The teams work in scaled scrum and each of them works with a different (proxy) Product Owner led by the Chief Product Owner.

The team I was about to join had been working together for a while and I knew they were in tune. Below, I share my action plan for the smoothest and painless step-by-step entry into a new situation.

Action Item #1: Collect information

I started by arranging a conversation with the current Scrum Master about his experiences and feelings about working with the entire team, its members, work style, work rhythm, team dynamics, relationships, potential problems and conflicts. It’s good to be aware of this, but don’t fall into the trap of locking yourself inside someone else’s image. Form your own opinion, be open, free from prejudices and stay positive.

Action Item #2: Observation

In the sprint preceding the change, I was invited by the current Scrum Master to observe scrum events. The team was already aware of the change of the Scrum Master, so by joining the Backlog Refinement I introduced myself and openly said why I am here. Transparency should guide us constantly and invariably. It builds trust. During the meeting, we can observe to a limited extent: relationship dynamics, openness and level of commitment, the level of team’s independence and their knowledge of scrum.

Action Item #3: Retrospective as a Guest

Even before I officially joined the team, the current Scrum Master suggested that I lead the Retrospective ending his last Sprint in the team. My first thought was “I don’t want to do that! I’m not ready! I do not know them!” But after a moment of reflection, I thought that I am such an experienced Scrum Master that I can cope even in such a precarious situation. The current Scrum Master also participated in the meeting as a team member. I used the 4L board (Liked, Learned, Lacked, Longed for) and asked the team not to forget to express their appreciation to others and to the Scrum Master, for whom this was the last meeting with the team. I think it was a very nice and symbolic end to their joint work and the opening of a new stage.

Action Item #4: Taking over the Facilitation of Scrum Events

At the end of the previous Sprint, I had sent out new invitations to all regular team meetings and, starting with the Sprint Planning, I became the Scrum Master. Facilitating the first meeting was a challenge — the team is still wary of the new person, team members do not contribute more than necessary, most of them do not turn on their cameras, which makes facilitation more difficult. Moreover, if the Product Backlog turns out to be poorly prepared and the team has difficulties with planning the sprint — we cannot do anything about it, and we could not prevent this situation. You have to take into account that the outcome of such a meeting will not be the best. I think you have to take it easy and get as much out of it as you can without blaming yourself. The next planning will be better.

Action Item #5: First daily

Daily is a meeting for developers, but the Scrum Master has to ensure that it takes place and secure a daily loop of inspection and adaptation. On the first daily I showed up early with my webcam on and began a small talk with the first person present, including others while joining. This relaxed the atmosphere immediately.

I knew that the previous Scrum Master always shared the screen with the Sprint backlog for the team. I believe that a Scrum Master should make the team independent and not play the role of a secretary. At the beginning of the meeting, I said that I would not do this and asked a volunteer to share a screen with the team. This has become a practice over time.

Action Item #6: Getting to know with the team

The so-called the Scrum Master’s Exposé. How to do it properly? I recommend Michał’s great article “Scrum Master’s Exposé, or how not to start working with a team”. That’s how I did it, but unfortunately in my opinion it was a complete disaster. Why? Because only half of the team showed up! This was a complete surprise to me as I chose the date and time very carefully — I made sure everyone had a free calendar slot, it was not lunchtime and within working hours. After all, only 3 out of 6 showed up. It didn’t upset me because I had already planned …

Action Item #7: 1to1 Meetings

30-minute individual meetings with all team members is something I always do when I start working with a new team or a new person joins the team (I also try to repeat such meetings every 3 months). Why?

• to establish a relationship
• to give possibility to get to know me, which will contribute with gaining trust
• to allow open conversation, which is sometimes difficult in a group
• to try to sense what the other person is like — their character, temperament, level of introversion / extroversion, needs, values.

This time I used the following scheme:

• I said a few words about myself
• I asked for a short introduction, including where he/she lives — the team works remotely and is scattered around the world. It was important for me from the point of view of different time zones and taking it into account
• I asked what he/she likes about working with the team
• I asked what he/she dislikes about working with the team or the work in general, what he/she would like to change. As a result, some interesting issues came up to be raised in the Retrospective, which I encouraged the team members to do.

Action Item #8: 1to1 meeting with Product Owner

One of my 1to1 meetings with team members was with the Product Owner. I prepared it a bit differently — I sent topics that I would like to talk about:

• cooperation with the team — positive and negative aspects
• fields for improvement
• expectations towards the cooperation between PO and SM.

Thanks to this meeting and open conversation, we managed to establish a very good relationship. It is important for the Product Owner to know that I intend to support him/her, help him/her cope with difficulties, develop the team towards more effective cooperation, better understanding of scrum and ultimately bringing more value to users. And the most important message I can give is “I’m here to help you and you can count on me. Don’t hesitate to write or call if you need me.” And it works! During this short time of our cooperation, I have managed to help the Product Owner many times with smaller and bigger difficulties. I can see that we build trust, honesty, openness (also to feedback) and the feeling of playing in one team, which is a huge capital for the future success of the scrum team.

Action Item #9: Retrospective

For the second Retrospective I was going to use the Start/Stop/Continue board, but we didn’t have time for it! We started with an open-ended question “How was your work in this Sprint?” and my intention was that everyone had a say. Individual statements turned into a lively discussion with the active participation of the Product Owner. We agreed on a few improvements that we started to implement in the Planning. After the meeting, I got feedback from the Product Owner — “I really like the Retro this morning! It was really helpful. Very interactive and very honest as well. This is very important to let the team express themselves.” I couldn’t agree more.

Finally, a few general pieces of advice that you should do at the beginning of cooperation with a new team:

Pro Tip #1: Quick wins

Try to score by making some improvements to your team in the first few days of working together. You will be perceived as effective, energetic and proactive if you quickly implement a number of small solutions that do not require much time and effort, which, however, will translate into an increase in the comfort of work.

Pro Tip #2: Show that you are helpful

Be open to the team’s needs and problems. It doesn’t have to be big — arrange a meeting at the time that suits the team, solve problems with missing tasks in the working time log system, help in obtaining support from another team in case of dependency. Show the team that when they have a problem, it is important to you and you react quickly.

Pro Tip #3: Ask

Show the human side of yourself, show that you also have weaknesses and gaps in knowledge. If something is unclear to you — ask for an explanation. The team will be glad to help you and explain the specifics of their work. People feel good about helping others and feeling their gratitude.

Pro Tip #4: Use the simplest solutions

At the beginning, there is no point in reaching for complicated and difficult to implement methods. It’s better to stick to the classics, which are easier to accept for people resistant to scrum or wary of novelty, who like their beaten paths. By making improvements with small steps, you will get more people (initially opposed) to support them. More advanced techniques will come later.

Pro Tip #5: Always keep your webcam turned on

Always turn on the webcam, even if you are notoriously the only one doing it. This will make the team trust you faster. In communication the words are only one of the components, the others are facial expressions, gestures, and attention paid to the interlocutor (among others). You can see it all in the webcam even when muted. There is a chance that more and more people will accompany you switching on their cameras over time, if you encourage it.

If you are about to join a new team, I hope that my experience will help you. And if you’ve been through it yourself, share your thoughts in the comments — your knowledge can help others.