Some of the reasons for using Scrum

Ever since the '90s, different lightweight methods and frameworks are used to ease and shorten the software development lifecycles; nowadays, one of the most popular and utilized Agile frameworks is Scrum. It is a framework that helps to develop, deliver, and sustain very complex products. 

Scrum is used in different industries outside technology. Education, health care, marketing, production, et cetera have incorporated Scrum in their project cycles. There are a few reasons why Scrum is embraced this much.

Firstly, the Scrum team is composed of a minimum of three and a maximum of nine members. The advantage of having a small working team is that it creates possibilities for more productive interactions, flexibility, and an adaptive environment.

Moreover, the other influential factor of Scrum's popularity is its designated roles. As a framework, it has only three roles, Product Owner, Scrum Master, and Development Team. Explaining shortly, the Product Owner is the person who is in charge of understanding clients' needs and then translate those into requirements. On the other hand, the Scrum Master is the person who is the guardian of the Scrum's values, as well as the Development team. The Development team, as a self-managing and cross-functional team, implements the work needed to be done. One of the advantages of having only three roles while implementing a project is that it provides less complexity in communication among teammates, clients, and stakeholders. In a report, Red Hat claimed that the reason they shifted to Scrum from Waterfall is that the increase in demands for the product created complexity and ineffective communication among the staff, multinational teams, and clients. 

Another important reason for using Scrum is the time limitation of the developing phases. Scrum applies Sprints, which time-boxes the development lifecycles. The maximum length of the Sprint is one month. Usually, the companies that use Scrum apply two weeks Sprint. This approach empowers the possibility for the predictability of the product. The Scrum team can inspect and adapt the product based on the feedback of the stakeholders, clients, and markets. In a survey conducted by the Scrum Alliance, 85% of the organizations chose Scrum because of its immediate relation to bringing value to their customers and improving work-life quality. By having this approach, when implementing projects, it creates a valuable chance for the future of the product, limitations of the unnecessary costs, and significant improvements in quality and value bringing to the development cycles. 

Lastly, Scrum has prescribed and time-boxed events to avoid unnecessary meetings and create consistency in teams while completing the tasks. Before jumping into the developing phase, it is essential to plan. Sprint Planning is the first event that happens. It is a time-boxed event of eight hours for one month Sprint. The other Scrum's event is Daily Scrum, a fifteen-minute time-boxed daily activity. During the Daily, the development team gets together and discusses their progress. This meeting fosters accountability and improves communication among teammates, which usually results in fast-paced sprints. After the end of the Sprint, two events happen in sequence. The first one is the Sprint Review, a four-hour meeting for a one-month Sprint, in which the work developed throughout the Sprint is revealed to the stakeholders. This meeting is not a status meeting but an informal one. The last one is the Sprint Retrospective, a three-hour session for one month Sprint. The Scrum team gather together to reflect on what went well and what did not.  

To conclude, Scrum is now being used more than 94% in various industries' development lifecycles. Because of its straightforward implementation, clear differentiation of roles, and specific events, Scrum has become the first Agile framework to be considered when implementing complex projects.

References

?Scrum Guide, 2017: https://www.scrumguides.org/scrum-guide-2017.html