We envision a world where agile expertise is widely available to people in all countries, languages and industries. From operations to innovation and new product development to leadership. Our mission is to help agile practitioners achieve mastery in their chosen field. Our mission is to help companies thrive with agility. How does this inform our approach to Scrum?

One obvious difference will be in communication. If you ask people in your organization questions like “why are we doing this agile transformation” or “What does it mean for the company to make this change,” do you get a clear, convincing answer? We strive for clarity of purpose and clarity in communication.

Focus is a core value of Scrum; focusing on the business justification for applying Scrum is a key element of our approach. So many descriptions of Scrum and agility focus on the how of Scrum that it’s easy to lose sight of the why. This is the first difference. As Scrum Ambassadors we focus on the why behind the how, so you can build on it and adapt it to suit your needs.

The Essence of Scrum

Scrum is a simple, team-based framework for solving complex problems, like creating great products or taking an organization to the next level. The essence of Scrum can be applied at any level of your organization:

• Cadence – Inspect and adapt at frequent, regular intervals.
• Ownership – Solve the whole problem in a small team, from idea to done.
• Sooner – Help the team and the organization improve and collaborate to deliver value sooner.
• Tangible Results – Produce in cadence something you can use, sell, or test in real life 
• Alignment – Speak to one specific person for decisions about the product
• Leadership – Lead by providing guidance and support, and know when to stay out of the way.

Companies and leadership usually want alignment from their organizations and tangible results, sooner. Scrum makes this possible. 

The Heart of Scrum

The heart of Scrum can be found in its values: Focus, Commitment, Courage, Openness and Respect.  When you look at how high-performance teams work together, you often find the Scrum values in operation. With Scrum you create a context where you can live your values.  We emphasize how to create productive environments, both within a team and between a team and its stakeholders.

The Map of Scrum

Like all reputable players, we start with the current Scrum Guide as our reference implementation to define Scrum. The difference in our approach can be seen in the role of agreements and behaviors. We have come to believe that agreement is a powerful tool for improvement and change.

Even the decision to use Scrum is an agreement. Working agreements are the basis for further improvement. The Sprint Contract makes clear to everyone what the expectations are in a sprint, both on the members of the Scrum team and on the rest of the organization. The Sprint Contract  introduces the concept of “failing gracefully” so responding to adversity is easier.

Behavior is closely tied to values. Dialog, in particular powerful questions and deep listening, is key to effective collaboration. A culture of responsibility ensures that people can care about results. Transparency and fast feedback represent faster, more effective approaches to lead people than the traditional approaches based on command and control.   

How we teach Scrum

Our understanding of the big picture informs how we teach Scrum.  Our learning objectives are derived from the map of Scrum. Our approach to collaboration with a customer is designed to help you produce more value faster. And we are experimenting. We are not afraid to try new things and do more of what works and less of what doesn’t. In a future article, we will take a closer look at how we engage with an organization.