Deep Scrum - The self-organized Scrum Team...

The Scrum Team – People often confuse this term with the Development Team. The development team is part of the Scrum. The Scrum Team includes all 3 roles prescribed for Scrum. The Scrum Guide refers that “The Scrum Team consists of a Product Owner, the Development Team, and a Scrum Master.”

Scrum Guide also tells us that the Scrum Teams should be self-organizing and cross-functional.

We will discuss what it means by “self-organizing” in this article.

Does the "Self-organized" team don’t need a Scrum Master and a Product Owner? Are these roles redundant?

No – Definitely each role has a purpose to play and there is no question of redundancy. The Self-organized team knows “how” to do things. They don’t need someone to “push” the task every time. The teams are shifting from “Command and control” to “thinking and doing” mode. The development team in fact is becoming a part of the larger family; they know their responsibilities. We can think of it as when you are a kid, your parents wake you up, dress you up, prepare you for school etc., but when you grow, you take care of most of your work at home. Still, your parents help you in other parts of your life.

The Development Team needs a Product Owner to tell them “what” is required and remove any impediments. They also need a Scrum Master that helps in facilitating, coaching, guiding the team. The Scrum Master ensures re-iterating the Scrum principles, help in focusing so that the team is not deviating and removes any impediments if the team cannot sort themselves. The Scrum Master has a role to groom the team as a mature and self-organized team. With maturity, they get better things to do.

Do you see what it really means a "self-organized" team?...