You're a Scrum Master. How do you make sure your team is always on track?

“Always on track” sounds like a project management concept, not an agile one. Agile was invented because adaptability is critical to make great software. If you need predictability and certainty you probably shouldn’t build software.

Ensuring that your team is always on track is one of the core responsibilities of a Scrum Master, -Continous Coaching and mentoring -Facilitating the Scrum events for the team -Supporting the removal of impediments -Using data and metrics to evaluate their performance -Ensuring regular retrospective to identify way forward

As a global leader in Agile methodologies, I leverage Scrum artifacts not merely as tools but as strategic assets to foster transparency, drive innovation, and ensure alignment with business objectives. By continuously refining the product and sprint backlogs, and rigorously adhering to the definition of done, I empower my teams to deliver exceptional value rapidly. This approach not only keeps the team on track but also positions us to dynamically respond to market changes and stakeholder feedback, solidifying our competitive edge in technology.

Agile teams are self organizing team ,a scrum master only needs to provide guidance and mentor the team towards achieving great results , you need to employ Agile tools/dashboards that the team can always update to track performance , you also need to make the best use of your Agile ceremonies to track your teams activities and work done in alignment with the product vision and goals . Above all give your team the chance to make their own decisions on how they want to deliver and support them by removing all impediments that can cause delay.

I do not believe that being 'always on track' is feasible, nor the purpose and value of the agile methodology. Does being always on track mean delivering value driven solutions to our clients and getting positive feedback? Or aligning with deadlines regardless of what we're delivering and how? However, when it comes to helping the team stay on track and utilizing Scrum artifacts for that purpose, I would help the team (devs and PO) keep the backlog clean and prioritized, guide the team to define outcome oriented goals that would help them focus and have a clear understanding of what we're delivering and why, and then help them sync daily to regroup, remove impediments, align and help each other achieve that goal, and stay on track.

One of the greatest techniques for a Scrum Master to help a team mature is to actually NOT facilitate the events. Especially, the daily scrum. If in person, an easy trick is to simply stand behind the team as they face your board. Or tell them you will be late and to start without you. The team should learn the daily scrum is for them, not reporting status to you as the Scrum Master. Facilitating the retrospective is perhaps an important job for the Scrum Master, however I tend to disagree with the time-boxing. A retro should last as long as it needs to, so schedule it toward the end of the day, and allow at least 1.5hrs of time, preferably more just in case. A Scrum master facilitating retro should be about encouraging participation.

Sprint planning is where the team collaboratively defines and commits to the sprint goals and tasks. Make sure that the tasks are well-understood and appropriately sized. Daily Scrum to provide a forum for team members to discuss progress, challenges, and plans for the day. Use this opportunity to identify any blockers and help remove them. Sprint review to gather feedback from stakeholders and ensure that the team is delivering value. Helps in course correction if needed and keeps the team focused on delivering high-quality work. Retrospective meetings to reflect on what went well, what could be improved, and actions to take in the next sprint. Encourage open communication and a blame-free environment to foster continuous improvement.

Scrum ceremonies are various meetings that help foster collaboration. - The sprint planning goal; is to define what can be delivered in the sprint and how that work will be achieved. - The daily stand-up; is a short, daily meeting to discuss progress and identify blockers. - Sprint Retrospective: is a recurring meeting dedicated to discussing what went well and what can be improved in a sprint. This helps to promote continuous improvement. - Sprint Demos: This is where the development team shows completed functionality to stakeholders, discusses user stories, provides feedback on the product, and a demo of the actual increase.

Facilitating Scrum events is crucial for empowering the development team. When done correctly, it fosters collaboration and transparency, enhancing team members' capabilities. However, these events should not become mere routine ceremonies. Each gathering must be purposeful, summoned only when it adds tangible value to the project. Striking a balance between adhering to the framework's rigor and being flexible to adapt to the team's and project's needs is paramount. Ultimately, the effectiveness of Scrum events lies in their ability to efficiently drive value delivery and create a team feeling.

Team should share the ownership of the goal and execution. Letting team members to rotate the facilitation role while scrum master observe and coach, will help them understand the purpose of the ceremonies & how to run them effectively to get the desired outcome from those ceremonies. You can only learn well, when you actually do it.

As a Scrum master,track the metrics data, like burndown cumulative graphs and velocity, to ensure the team is on track to meet project timelines. Discussing the burndown chart & cumulative graph on a regular basis with the team will help them know if they are progressing as planned and if any adjustments need to be made to stay on track. Use the daily scrum as a feedback loop to address any obstacles or challenges that may arise during the sprint.

As a Scrum Master, I ensure the team stays on track by fostering clear communication, effective planning, and continuous improvement. This involves setting clear goals, facilitating sprint planning and daily stand-up meetings, and monitoring progress using visual tools. I actively identify and remove impediments, encourage collaboration and open communication, and provide coaching and mentoring to help the team develop their skills. I lead by example, celebrate achievements, and prioritize work-life balance to sustain motivation and productivity.

Yes, usually by the 3rd sprint you would have stablise or observe the sprint velocity. Sprint review should get suffice feedback.

Gathering and tracing metrics is important for a Scrum Team, however, and that's a big one, they should be tracked by the team and for the team only, to monitor its own performance and continuously improve their way of working as they feel is adequate. While "the team" includes the Scrum Master and the Product Owner, since the developers are the ones creating the product, this should be mostly owned by them. The reality is often the opposite: The team's performance is observed from the outside, leading to unhealthy and intransparent dynamics sometimes referred to as "observer effect". As Scrum Masters, it is our job to help the team find ways to understand their own progress and take appropriate action together if deviations are found.

In my experience Burn-down charts help a lot to understand the progress of a team. That said, the team does need to feel they own it and it is not just another tool "from" the Scrum Master or Management to "control the team". This is a fine line and the sooner the team has ownership of it, the more committed they will feel to be on track. Retrospectives and even planning sessions help to get the feedback about what happened and what should happen for the team to perform.

Having an understanding of directive and non-directive coaching in this context is vital. If you’re always trying to tell teams what you think will help them perform but you’re not absorbing what’s truly going on then you’re unlikely to be effective in this domain. I was often told we have two ears and one mouth for a reason, so listen to the team more than you speak and don’t be afraid to use techniques such as powerful questions to truly understand the context you’re working in. Sometimes people will want guidance, but more of the time they’ll either want help finding their own answers or someone with enough capacity to unblock a problem they’re too busy to focus on. Empower people when possible, and spend the rest of the time unblocking!

- Conducting regular sprint planning meetings to define and prioritize tasks. - Facilitating daily stand-up meetings to review progress and identify any obstacles. - Removing impediments that hinder progress or block the team’s workflow. - Encouraging collaboration and communication within the team. - Monitoring sprint progress and adjusting plans as needed during sprint reviews. - Promoting a culture of transparency and accountability within the team. - Continuously improving the team’s processes through retrospectives and feedback loops.

In the last 5 years, I am working as individual company in consulting and teaching of agile methodologies, and I can't stress enough the importance of building self-managing teams! Agile works best when people is free to give their best contribution, and "securing that the team is on track" is best measured in terms of customer satisfaction and by empirically assessing the value that the team is creating. To do so, it's crucial that the team is able to collaborate in crafting valuable goals that represent real value for customer, as well as commit on their achievement at each and every iteration. In my experience, creating a self-managing team is the most impactful result that we scrum master can achieve

This is where you can make a bigger difference. Working with teams, facilitating ceremonies, knowing the status of each member's task, you always have the knowledge of what's going on in time and where's the issue. Work with the team to resolve impediments, be it issues, dependencies or risks in a timely manner so the team completing tasks on time and not lagging behind. Get them timely help.

Coach and empower your team by providing support, removing obstacles, and fostering a culture of collaboration and continuous improvement. Encourage self-organization and accountability within the team, and help them develop the skills and confidence to deliver high-quality work. By fostering an environment where the team feels safe to experiment and learn from failures, they are more likely to find innovative solutions and remain engaged and motivated, thus staying on track.

Reflect and improve yourself by seeking feedback from your team and peers, attending training and workshops, and staying up-to-date with the latest Agile practices and techniques. By continuously learning and growing, you can better support your team and keep them on track. Seeking feedback, pursuing educational opportunities, and staying abreast of industry best practices enables you to bring fresh perspectives and improved methods to your team.

Feedback feedback and more feedback..transparency,openness can ensure teams are on track..we need to build a culture on these values.. it's only then the team will be open enough to share the right progress

The retro and sprint review are two such ceremonies where reflecting on what was delivered and collaborating with the dev team and stakeholders to review how and where improvements can be adopted. It's okay to experiment with ideas to see if it can add value. If ideas are not successful, lessons can be learnt with the correct questions with the peer group - fail fast: learn fast.

There is no perfect solution to guarantee that the team will be on track all the time. There are ways a scrum master can help the team to succeed and reduce the gaps between plan and actuals. The strength of Scum is to inspect and adapt. Managing stakeholder communication and transparency help the team to navigate the project phases smoothly. Planning for small and incremental delivery ensures the team stays closer to reality.

Here’s a simple 3 step process: - Agree on the goal to be achieved - Provide whatever is needed by the team - Move out of their way and keep others at bay That’s good enough.

Team being always on the right thing is not your concern. Always improving and working better together is what you should be focusing on.

As a scrum master, I see myself as a coach who helps the team stay on track. Here's what that entails: Clear Communication: I ensure everyone's on the same page through regular meetings and transparent progress tracking. Focused Sprints: We collaboratively set achievable goals and break down tasks during sprint planning. Problem-Solving: I help the team identify and overcome obstacles that slow them down. Constant Improvement: We reflect on each sprint to learn and adapt, making our process smoother over time. Team Ownership: I empower the team to take charge by fostering trust and accountability. By guiding the team and removing roadblocks, I enable them to deliver value effectively.

- observe and explore in detail in daily standup - Set periodical 1on1 with members/relevant stakeholders - Follow up strictly scrum events / artifacts with agile scrum management know-how as burn up, burn down, capacity, focus point, velocity, Blockers and anything else - Jump into detail the tickets/issues having the signal risks if any - Diversity listening all team members if they like to raise concerns/comments - Agile Communication skill is very important here