Scrum: definition, roles and methods

Scrum is an agile project management method that is particularly widespread in software development because iterative sprints enable step-by-step improvements. It is also increasingly being used in other industries. It is particularly suitable for teams that strive for an enormous customer focus and are responsible for the rapid development of products and their continuous improvement.

If you are a member of a product, development or software development team or work with such a team, you have probably heard of Scrum and may be wondering: What is Scrum and how does this method work?

In short: Scrum is a suitable framework for teams that want to develop and improve products quickly. The introduction of such processes can help to solve complex problems together. But even if you don't work in a product, development or software development team, you can still benefit from this method. This article explains the Scrum method in more detail and explains everything you need to know about it.

Definition - What is Scrum?

Scrum is a project management method that is particularly suitable for teams that want to develop products quickly and continuously improve them. Scrum provides a guideline with values, roles and principles that the team can use as a guide. At the heart of Scrum are the so-called sprints. These can vary in length, usually between one and four weeks.

In addition to the sprints, there are four important events:

Sprint planning: At the start of a sprint, the team jointly determines which tasks will be worked on. It evaluates the priorities in the product backlog and estimates the effort required for each task. The aim is to set a realistic sprint target and plan the work so that it can be completed.
Daily stand-ups: As the name suggests, the dailies or daily scrums are 15-minute meetings that are held once a day. The purpose is to share updates, plan activities for the day and identify obstacles - so-called impediments - that could block progress
Sprint retrospectives: These regular meetings take place at the end of a sprint. The team looks back on the previous sprint and reflects together on what went well and what did not. The structured approach helps the team to identify and solve problems at an early stage and to continuously improve both the work process and the product.
Sprint review: The sprint review always takes place at the end of a sprint. The key results are presented, reviewed and adjusted if necessary. This ensures transparency with regard to the current product increment and the product backlog is adjusted accordingly.

History of the Scrum method

1995: Jeff Sutherland and Ken Schwaber presented Scrum for the first time at the OOPSLA conference (Object-Oriented Programming, Systems, Languages & Applications).

2001: Both contributed to the creation of the Agile Manifesto, a fundamental document that defined the principles and values of agile methods.

2002: Founding of the Scrum Alliance, an organization that offers training and certification for Scrum.

2010: Publication of the first official Scrum Guide, which defines the rules and principles of Scrum.

The Scrum Guide has been regularly updated since 2010. For example, the term "Development Team" has been removed over the years.

The basics of Scrum

The roles within Scrum

Product Owner: Is responsible for the product backlog and the backlog entries, knows the requirements for the product or project and keeps the team up to date. Good product owners create clarity about priorities and decide when something is ready for delivery. Tasks include: Developing and communicating the product goal, creating and clarifying backlog items, prioritizing the backlog and ensuring transparency. A certification such as the "Professional Scrum Product Owner" deepens and formalizes these skills.

Scrum Master: The Scrum Master coaches, organizes and facilitates. Their main task is to support the Scrum team, remove obstacles and ensure that Scrum is applied correctly. At the same time, he supports the Product Owner in defining product goals and backlog management as well as the organization in Scrum implementation. This requires a deeper understanding of the method, which can be acquired through training and further education.

Scrum team: The Scrum team consists of the development team, the Scrum Master and the Product Owner, who work closely together to achieve the project goal. The team consists of all people who have tasks to complete, not just the developers. While the stakeholders are not part of the scrum team, they play an important role, especially in the sprint review, where they provide feedback. The team's tasks include the creation of the sprint plans, the daily adjustments in the Daily Scrum, the implementation of the backlog tasks and continuous improvement through retrospectives. Stakeholder feedback is integrated into the development process.

Overview of the basic principles of Scrum

The basic principles of Scrum are essentially based on three pillars: transparency, inspection and adaptation. These principles ensure that all aspects of the Scrum process are visible to everyone involved, are regularly reviewed and are adapted as necessary. The principles are as follows:

Transparency: All aspects of the process must be visible and understandable for everyone. This means that the team maintains clear and open communication and that all work steps, progress and problems are accessible to everyone involved.
Inspection: Regular reviews of progress and adjustments to the plan in order to meet current requirements. This is done through formal events such as the sprint review and the sprint retrospective.
Adaptation: Based on the knowledge gained, processes are constantly adapted and improved. In this way, the team remains flexible and is prepared to constantly improve the way it works.

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The Scrum values

In addition, the team is guided by the five core Scrum values - commitment, courage, focus, openness and respect - which promote smooth collaboration and ensure that the focus is on achieving the project goals. The team is informed about these values and ensures that they are adhered to in their daily work.

Commitment: Scrum teams work together as a unit, with each member actively involved in sprint planning. Unrealistic tasks and schedules are avoided through shared commitment and openness.
Courage: Innovation requires courage and confidence in one's own abilities. However, courage can also be shown in the ability to turn down unrealistic requests. Project managers who encourage honest discussions and approach challenges transparently motivate team members and make customer satisfaction and project success more likely.
Focus: In order to deliver high-quality sprints on time, it is necessary to focus on the important tasks in order to reliably achieve the project goals. The team achieves this by working with Scrum.
Openness: Honest communication and openness in the Scrum team is essential for the success of the project. Transparent communication promotes the sharing of successes, questioning setbacks and discussing them reduces errors.
Respect: Different opinions and diversity in the team are valuable. Respect is shown by valuing individual differences and opinions. Teams that respect and feel supported have a more positive attitude and are more likely to share their ideas, which can lead to better results.

The Scrum artifacts

Scrum artefacts are specific documents and tools used in the Scrum framework to manage and visualize the progress and requirements of a project. The three most important Scrum artifacts are

Product backlog: A list of all product requirements, including features, functions, improvements and bug fixes that future sprints should implement. As the responsible person, the product owner maintains and prioritizes the product backlog to ensure that the team is working on the most valuable tasks.
Sprint backlog: A list of tasks that the Scrum team wants to implement during a sprint. It is created during the sprint planning meeting and serves as a plan for the sprint. The sprint backlog is continuously updated to track progress and make adjustments. This keeps the team focused and organized.
Product increment: The result of a sprint, which includes all implemented tasks and functions that meet the criteria "finished", is called a product increment. It must be in a usable state and meet the requirements of the product backlog. At the end of each sprint, a new, potentially deliverable increment of the product should be available, which enables continuous improvement and expansion.

The Scrum process and its events
Scrum events can be imagined as precisely timed stops on a train journey. These events are limited in time (time box) and offer the opportunity to check the project artifacts like tickets and constantly adapt them to the destination. This creates transparency and minimizes the need for additional stops. Just like a train that always stops at the same stations, fixed routines reduce the entire project. The team knows exactly when and where it will come together to check its own course and direction of travel.

The steps before the sprint

Product vision
The product owner works with stakeholders to define a clear vision and long-term goals for the product. Stakeholder input is important for this. In other words, requirements, wishes and problems. This gives the team a direction and a framework for the work.

Creating the product backlog
The product owner begins by collecting brief descriptions of the product's functionalities in the backlog. These are then later prioritized and sequenced, ideally from the customer's perspective.

The sprint

Duration: Usually two weeks, maximum 30 days.
Goal: Focus on completing the task packages from the backlog defined in the sprint planning meeting.
Process: During the sprint, the team works on the tasks from the backlog that were defined in the sprint planning meeting. Although the sprint goals should remain stable, the tasks in the sprint backlog may change if the team determines that adjustments are necessary. It is important that the sprint goals remain as unchanged as possible in order to maintain the team's focus.
Participants: The entire Scrum team.

Sprint Planning

Duration: Eight hours for a sprint of 30 days and four hours for a sprint of two weeks.
Objective: To define the work to be carried out in the sprint.
Process: The product owner describes the goal of the sprint and names the relevant backlog elements. The development team plans the tasks to achieve the sprint goal. The result is a sprint plan that describes the sprint goal and the way to achieve it.
Participants: The entire Scrum team. The sprint plan is created on the basis of the product backlog and the team's available capacity.

Daily Scrum

Duration: Maximum 15 minutes per day.
Goal: Review progress towards the sprint goal and adjust the sprint backlog if necessary.
Process: The developers discuss the current progress of the work and identify possible obstacles.
Participants: Development team.

Sprint Review

Duration: Maximum four hours.
Objective: To review the work results and determine future adjustments to the product backlog based on the feedback.
Process: The Scrum team presents the work results to the most important stakeholders and discusses progress towards the product goal.
Participants: Scrum team and stakeholders.

Sprint retrospective

Duration: Maximum three hours.
Objective: Reflection on the previous sprint and identification of opportunities for improvement for the next sprint.
Process: The Scrum team discusses what went well and where there is room for improvement in order to achieve continuous improvements in the Scrum process.
Participants: The entire Scrum team.

Advantages and challenges of Scrum

The Scrum method offers numerous benefits, including improved collaboration and a culture of open communication. Regular meetings, such as the Daily Scrum, promote the exchange of information and work coordination, which leads to increased transparency and trust within the team. Clear roles and responsibilities help to avoid misunderstandings and increase efficiency.

Scrum also enables flexible and fast reactions to changes through the use of short, iterative sprints. This allows teams to regularly review and adapt their work, enabling early feedback and necessary adjustments.

However, teams also face challenges such as resistance to change and misunderstandings about the distribution of roles. Insufficient training can lead to the Scrum principles not being implemented correctly. Regular training and the support of experienced Scrum Masters are essential to overcome these challenges and take full advantage of Scrum.

5 tips for the introduction of Scrum

Provide training: Invest in Scrum training and certifications to ensure the team understands and can self-direct the principles and practices of Scrum.

Start a pilot project: Start with a small, manageable project to gain initial experience and make adjustments.

Involve management: Ensure that management or stakeholders support and actively promote the introduction of Scrum.

Regular retrospectives: Use sprint retrospectives to continuously collect feedback and implement improvements.

Promote transparency: Ensure open communication and visible progress through regular meetings and a well-maintained product backlog.

Scrum outlook and trends

Several trends are emerging for the future of Scrum that will be relevant by 2030:

On the one hand, an increasing integration of artificial intelligence (AI) into Scrum processes is expected in order to improve decision-making and efficiency. For example, analysing historical data and user feedback to optimize the prioritization of backlog items. It is also conceivable that new backlog items will be generated based on market analyses, user behavior and trends.
On the other hand, digital tools are becoming increasingly important, especially for remote teams, to facilitate collaboration and communication.
The use of Scrum could also extend beyond software development to other areas such as marketing and product management.

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FAQ: Scrum

How long does a typical sprint take?

A sprint normally lasts two to four weeks. However, the exact length can vary depending on the project and team requirements. It is important that the sprint length remains constant once it has been determined.

Who are the key players in a scrum team?

A Scrum team typically consists of the Product Owner, the Scrum Master and the developers, referred to as "developers" in the Scrum Guide. The product owner is responsible for defining the product vision and prioritizing the backlog. The Scrum Master supports the team in using Scrum processes effectively. The developers are responsible for executing the tasks.

What is a product backlog?

The product backlog is an organized list of all requirements for the product, including features, functions, technical work and bug fixes. The product owner is responsible for managing the product backlog to ensure that the most valuable work is done first.

What happens in a Daily Scrum?

The Daily Scrum is a daily, 15-minute meeting for the development team to discuss progress and plan the working day. Here, each team member shares what has been achieved since the last meeting, what needs to be done next and whether there are any obstacles.

How does the Sprint Retrospective differ from the Sprint Review?

The sprint review is used to present the work of the previous sprint to stakeholders and receive feedback. The sprint retrospective is a meeting just for the team to discuss processes and identify ways to improve the way we work.

Can non-software teams use Scrum?

Yes, Scrum can be applied beyond software development in various industries and projects. Any team working on projects that benefit from rapid customization and iterative delivery can use Scrum.

What are some common challenges when implementing Scrum?

Challenges include resistance to change, insufficient understanding of Scrum principles, the lack of a dedicated Product Owner or Scrum Master and the difficulty of getting all team members to the same level of commitment.

How can a company start implementing Scrum?

Companies should start with training for management and team members to create a basic understanding of Scrum. Pilot projects can then be launched to gain experience and gradually adapt the processes.

What future trends could influence Scrum?

Not only is it expected that we will see a growing integration of artificial intelligence and automation in Scrum processes in the future, but it is also predicted that Scrum will be increasingly used in non-software areas. In addition, remote working will lead to greater use of digital tools that support collaboration and transparency in Scrum teams.