Job ads for Scrum Master positions reveal great insight into an organization’s progress on becoming agile. I analyzed more than 50 job ads for Scrum Master positions to gain these. Learn more about what makes job ads such a treasure trove with the following 22 Scrum Master anti-patterns derived from job ads.
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Probably, you are considering a position as a Scrum Master in a particular organization. I suggest that before going all-in (the application process), you should consider analyzing the job description for Scrum Master anti-patterns first.
Usually, the organization’s people management department will create the job advertisement’s final text and post it to the chosen job sites. Hopefully, and depending on their process and level of collaboration (and agile mindset) in the organization, the team for which the new position was advertised may have participated in creating the job ad. This certainly avoids promoting the wrong description to prospective candidates.
However, too often, advertisements may read like a copy and paste from positions that an organization’s people management department believes to be similar to that of a Scrum Master (for example, a project manager). Sometimes, the people management department copies from other Scrum Master job ads that they believe correctly reflect the organization’s requirements. So, don’t be too surprised to see a job advertisement that reads like a list of Scrum Master anti-patterns.
This is often the case when an organization’s people management does not have a lot of experience in hiring agile practitioners because they are in the early stages of the agile transition. Therefore, an unusual job description does not imply that the organization is not trying to become agile; it may just mean that the people management department has not yet caught up with the new reality. Such an advertisement can help raise the topic and benefit during the job interview.
However, be aware that if an organization that claims to be agile is using this kind of advertisement despite being well underway on its agile transition, it then raises a red flag: miscommunication in the hiring process may indicate deeper issues or problems at the organizational level. It could be as critical as someone at the management level, to whom the new Scrum Master would likely report, having no clue what becoming agile implies.
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Let’s have a look at some examples of Scrum Master anti-patterns from more than 50 job descriptions that should raise a red flag:
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Imagine, the job ad of the organization of your interest is a best-of of Scrum Master anti-patterns. Should you, in this case, immediately drop your interest in becoming a member of that organization? I don’t think so. An extensive list of red flags can be beneficial, too.
For example, the people management department might merely be misaligned with the Scrum Team in question as the organization is still in the early day of its agile transformation. That sounds like an attractive opportunity for me.
On the other hand, the organization might merely try to attract talented people by sugar-coating the otherwise command & control management style with some glitzy agile wording. Continuing the application process under these conditions might indeed be a waste of your time. A short phone call or interview will bring clarity.
What other Scrum Master anti-patterns from job ads have you noticed? Please share your findings with us in the comments.
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