Scrum Master (Remote)

Years Experience: 2-5

Education: Bachelors in business information systems, Computer Science or related Field, or an equivalent combination of education and work experience.

List 3-5 hard requirements for the role:
o Previous history in software development
o Engaging, proactive personality with high EQ
o Ability to mentally connect tactical actions to strategic directions

SM & Agile basics
o Experience running a Scrum Team and working in a large corporate environment that is doing some version of Agile, but a lot of waterfall too
o Flexible in approach, not dogmatic about Agile implementation

High EQ
o Ability to read and respond to people and situations
o Able to work with strong personalities, both not getting pushed around and also not getting in arguments.
o Strong communication skills. Able to clearly and succinctly communicate an idea

Medical Device or similar high-regulated field ; aeronautics, fin tech, etc.

List any preferred requirements that would stand out on a resume:
o History of software delivery in a regulated field (medical, financial, aeronautical, transportation, etc.)

Project Manager or Software Developer experience
Years' of experience required:
o 2+ as a SM,
o Previous years as a PM or Dev would help

Required education level/certifications:
o Scrum Master, Agile certifications
o Looking for someone solidly grounded in Agile & Scrum Master basics, with a focus on proactive engagement and delivery. This position also requires a high EQ to build relationships and navigate an org that wants our help but is burned out on the word "Agile". Success here is proactively supporting teams and communicating internally and externally, solving problems with incremental improvements at the Team and org level, all without vocally waving the "Agile" flag too loudly.

Core Soft Skills and Observable Behaviors for Scrum Masters
TLDR
1. Communication is tailored, concise, and transparent
2. Take responsibility for the problem space, propose solutions or the solution space
3. Bias towards action and experimentation
4. Build relationships. Everything valuable takes multiple people.
5. Receive feedback openly. Roll with the changes.
Leadership and Presence
Executive Presence & Communication
Projects gravitas (expertise) and leadership appropriately while also remaining curious and humble.
Demonstrates confidence and clarity in written and spoken communication.
Engages actively and meaningfully in conversations

Examples of Observable Behaviors
1. Gets to the point quickly. Structures thoughts in a logical, concise, easy-to-follow manner in speaking and writing, successfully bringing people along. Builds straw-men to focus conversations, including conclusions arrived at, and suggestions for paths forward.
2. Practices active listening to improve mutual understanding and align on actions. Asks clarifying questions or propose alternate solutions that move conversations towards actionable items. Avoids revisiting (freshly) closed topics.
3. Understands the needs and motivations of others, including their role in the org and the context, and tailors communication to be relevant.
4. Speaks positively about others, assuming they are doing their best, even in challenging situations like team, organizational or cultural blockers.
5. Comes to meetings prepared and keeps camera on and discussions focused. Documents conversations & decisions appropriately. Communicates a clear goal and agenda when facilitating meetings.

Problem Solving and Extreme Ownership
Lives by the principle of extreme ownership; owns the problem space so they can turn it into an opportunity space.
Takes full responsibility for actions and outcomes.
Reads situations, usefully identifies problems and develops proportional, implementable solutions

Examples of Observable Behaviors
1. Understands and takes responsibility for successes and failures, and the problem space, transparently communicating actions tried and lessons learned.
2. Focuses on solutions or solution space rather than complaints, ensuring that challenges are seen as learning opportunities: speaking to what went wrong, analysis of why, and proposing experiments to try next time.
3. Proactively identifies team and process issues, communicating them concisely to confirm assumptions, collaborate on solutions and generate buy-in
4. Develops solutions in collaboration with stakeholders that are proportional to the problem, ensuring practical implementation.
Team and Stakeholder Management

Bridge and Translator Between Team and Stakeholders
Acts as a liaison between the team and stakeholders.
Examples of Observable Behaviors
1. Provides proactive, timely, and transparent communication both into the team and the larger organization.
2. Clearly communicates what the team owns, what they do not, and where they need help.
3. Frames communications in ways that concisely convey information, drives action and buy-in, and removes blame.

Relationship Building
Builds relationships by showing up authentically and vulnerably, building coalitions to move the org towards Agile ways of working.
Examples of Observable Behaviors
1. Spends time building relationship capital. e.g. through non-work conversations
2. Knows and has strong working relationships one ring out from the Core Team, with the people who interface with the team regularly; e.g. Managers, PM's, GSM, etc.
3. Operates with full transparency by sharing challenges openly, seeking rapid feedback, and addressing issues constructively to build trust and strengthen connections.
4. Seen as a collaborator that drives actions by building individual rapport and group coalitions. Treats resistance as an invitation to get curious on motivations and opportunity to build relationships while upholding Agile principals.

Personal Effectiveness
Drive Change with a Focus on Action
Focused on actively experimenting and taking action to maximize learning and value delivery.
Acts as a change agent in the org, in addition to the basic SM duties of supporting a team
Examples of Observable Behaviors
1. Guides discussions toward action and experimentation to maximize learning and value delivery, even without full consensus.
2. Supports team decisions and commits to collective action, even when personally in disagreement.
3. Produces concise, relevant deliverables or straw-man that includes recommendations and suggestions on paths forward. Iterates quickly for frequent feedback. Reaches out early and proactively to achieve alignment and clarity on deliverable criteria.
4. Proactively embraces changes in scope or direction with a positive attitude, quickly adjusting plans and strategies.
5. Quickly synthesizes main ideas, balancing detail and big picture to keep discussions usefully focused on the desired outcome. Comfortable starting work with ambiguity and generalities.
6. Focuses on Agile outcomes (fast delivery, experimentation, iterative learning), not outputs (ceremonies, story pointing, etc.).

Behavioral Flexibility & Emotional Intelligence
Shows up effectively, creating space for everyone's full humanity.
Notices and speaks to explicit and implicit signals
Examples of Observable Behaviors
1. Seeks and responds to (explicit & implicit) feedback and proposes adjustments to (explicit & implicit) working agreements.
2. Reads emotional cues, verbal and non-verbal, adjusting leadership and communication style as needed. e.g. coaching, collaborative task master/minder, listening, encouraging, etc.
3. Leads with assertiveness and humility by asking questions and co-creating solutions, pulling insights from the team rather than imposing expertise.
4. Effectively adapts Agile principles to the given situation and team

Required Skills & Experience:

• 2 5 years of proven experience as a Scrum Master.
• Strong background in software development and agile practices (e.g., Kafka, Agile methodology).
• Excellent communication, facilitation, and leadership skills to guide cross-functional teams.
• Ability to foster collaboration, drive continuous improvement, and ensure adherence to agile principles.
• Change Management is nice to have

Certifications (Mandatory)

Certified Scrum Master (CSM) or equivalent Agile certification

Interview - Virtual - probably 2 rounds