Author: Natalie Warnert

Can Companies be Servant Leaders?

Wikipedia states that servant leadership is both a leadership philosophy and set of leadership practices. Traditional leadership generally involves the accumulation and exercise of power by one at the “top of the pyramid.” By comparison, the servant-leader shares power, puts the needs of others first and helps people develop and perform as highly as possible.

When we refer to servant leadership in Scrum it is at the team level. A ScrumMaster is the servant leader for the Scrum team. They do all the steps the definition above refers to and more. This is all great for the Scrum team, but what about everyone else, the ScrumMasters included? Who is their servant leader? Can companies step in and supplement for this role?


February 19, 2013 4

Why making things “easier” makes them harder: The argument against modifying Scrum

I’m sure many ScrumMasters implementing have heard this or similar: we’re not like other teams; we do things differently; Scrum won’t work in our organization. The result is usually: “let’s modify Scrum so the adjustment is easier on the team/organization/processes.” Sound familiar? Well I’m going to call that bluff.


January 30, 2013 2

Scrum Integration with Waterfall Teams

Scrum works very well within its own construct, but when dependencies arise with teams that practice Waterfall, it can be tough to get the work you need on the docket in a timely fashion. Here are a few pieces of simple advice to make integration go more smoothly.


January 30, 2013 0

Confessions of a New ScrumMaster

So, you just got out of your CSM class, overflowing with your newfound Scrum knowledge and renewed faith in software development practices. You’re ecstatic to share your new view of the world and show how Agile can benefit your organization, and you can’t wait to get started. But, in your first Agile project, you meet resistance, opposition, and worst of all, modified Scrum practices. What’s a ScrumMaster to do?


January 8, 2013 2