“New” Scrum Master in an “old” team
The challenge
Have you ever felt, as Scrum Master that you have to try more than other team members to be part of a team? Have you ever felt that every team member can express his/her opinion on something, but you have to be more careful regarding what you say and what you propose?
How are you going to bring what you have to bring within the team without people thinking that you are forcing them to do things because of your role?
My story
I was a “new” Scrum Master in many “old” teams. Teams that were working together for a long time! Teams that were friends, teams that would prefer having things the way they were, without moving a step forward. I was part of teams who did not believe in Scrum. Teams that did not care about frameworks and processes.
But change is hard…
I was also part of dream teams. I was working with people who learned to be more self-organized, who cared about the quality of the product, who wanted to build the right thing,
who cared about each other…
I was always trying to create again dream teams, with the same approach I used in the previous ones.
Reality
But you know what? Every team is different. But you always have to help people become their best selves within the team. Because scrum is all about the team! It is all about people working together for a common goal!
You have to listen to what people say. You have to try to understand what each team needs and then propose things.
As a “new” Scrum Master you have to follow the team and after a while, you can be part of the team as anyone else!
Proposal
So, don’t be afraid to express what you feel! Don’t be afraid to express yourself, to express your fears. But let the team speak, listen, ask, explain, and if you can, ask again and again to make sure that you have a clear view of what it is going on!
Final thoughts
It is still difficult for me to be a “new” Scrum Master in an “old” team, but I know that giving my best will make people move forward!
