What Is A Scrum Master? Everything You Need To Know

Editorial Note: They earn a commission from partner links on Forbes Advisor. Commissions do not affect their editors' opinions or evaluations.

A Scrum Master is a team leader responsible for ensuring the team implements Scrum in theory and practice. Scrum is one of the most popular forms of Agile, a project management methodology created for software development. The Scrum Master is responsible for serving as a leader for the Scrum team and larger organization, according to the Scrum Guide.

Featured Partners

Free version available

Yes

Starting price

From $8 monthly per user

Integrations

Zoom, LinkedIn, Adobe, Salesforce and more

Free version available

Yes, for one user and two editors (for 30 days)

Starting price

$7 per user per month

Integrations

Google Drive, Slack, Tableau, Miro, Zapier and more

Free version available

Yes, for unlimited members

Starting price

From $5 monthly per user

Integrations

Slack, Microsoft Outlook, HubSpot, Salesforce, Timely, Google Drive and more

In a Scrum practice, the team is composed of the Scrum Master, the product owner and the development team. The project owner is responsible for maximizing the end goal’s value, while the Scrum Master’s job is to ensure the team stays on track.

Melissa Boggs, Certified Enterprise Coach and former Co-CEO of Scrum Alliance, spoke to Forbes Advisor and explained that the Scrum Master’s role is to “help the team understand the value of Scrum and how Scrum can best serve the team, for the team to serve the customer.” The Scrum Master focuses on the team’s continuous improvement by introducing and using Scrum principles and practices, Boggs added.

Additionally, their responsibilities include making sure the Scrum events take place and are positive and productive. They also help ensure Scrum is implemented by the team in a productive way and lead the team to adopt Scrum.

A Scrum Master can be either a dedicated position or a temporary role one of the team members takes on during a project. While some teams and organizations require a full-time Scrum Master, others who are further along and more mature in their Agile journey may elect someone on the team for the role, Boggs said. How the Scrum Master fits into the overall team “depends on the goals of the organization, the maturity of the teams and the capabilities of the Scrum Master,” she added.

An effective Scrum Master will understand Scrum, the value of all its elements, their team and how to marry all of them in an emergent way, Boggs said. They will be effective leaders who understand the team’s needs and keep the team on track with their goals.

This means a Scrum Master is continuously learning and creating opportunities for the team to develop their skills. “They are excellent communicators, coaches and creators,” Boggs said. A Scrum Master must be able to integrate both the long-term and short-term strategy while managing the team. “They are able to see the big picture, but they also help the team to decompose the big picture into smaller, incremental chunks of value,” she added. An effective Scrum Master also helps the team create feedback loops and connections with their customers.

According to Boggs, curiosity and openness are two essential qualities for an exceptional Scrum Master. Effective leadership requires patience, focus and understanding that developing a high-performing team is a long-term game. “They are able to see the big picture, but they also help the team to decompose the big picture into smaller, incremental chunks of value,” she added.

There are various certifying bodies in the Scrum space, but two of the most well-respected are Scrum Alliance and Scrum.org. Boggs recommends that certification seekers spend time evaluating the certification and business models of the organizations before choosing one to invest in. Some differentiators to look out for during research are the price, reputation and community.

There are a variety of backgrounds that could prepare someone for the role of a Scrum Master. “We see everyone from QA Managers to engineers to school teachers that make excellent Scrum Masters,” Boggs said. It is common to see former project managers working in a Scrum Master role, she added.

While a project manager keeps track of different aspects of the team, the Scrum Master is focused specifically on the team and ensuring they are effective and achieve the project goals.

“The Scrum Master is not focused on time, scope and budget, but rather building and supporting an environment where a team can iteratively and incrementally build products and Improve their system,” Boggs said. “The Scrum Master is accountable for ensuring that the team has everything they need to be effective and that any impediments are removed from their path. They do not control what, how or when the products or projects are completed; those responsibilities are differently distributed in the Scrum framework between the team and the product owner.”

Scrum is often confused with a project management methodology in general. Instead, it is a “framework for developing and sustaining complex products,” according to the Scrum Guide. Scrum relies heavily on the idea of empirical process control and recognizes the complexity and uncertainty that is involved in product development.

Related: What Is A Scrum Board?

The specific way the Scrum Master integrates into the overall team is unique to each company. It is not uncommon for the Scrum Master to report to either the engineering organization or an Agile organization, according to Melissa Boggs, Certified Enterprise Coach and former Co-CEO of Scrum Alliance.

A project manager is different from a Scrum Master. While a project manager keeps track of different aspects of the team, including budget, resources and timelines, the Scrum Master is specifically focused on the team and ensuring it is effective and achieves the project goals.

An effective Scrum Master is knowledgeable and trained in Scrum. One way to gain the necessary skills is through certification. While there are many certifying bodies, the two most well-known and respected are Scrum Alliance and Scrum.org. Scrum Masters have a range of backgrounds and experiences, including software development, QA management or team leadership.

An effective Scrum Master will understand Scrum, the value of all its elements, their team and how to marry all of them in an emergent way, said Melissa Boggs, Certified Enterprise Coach and former Co-CEO of Scrum Alliance. A Scrum Master will be able to see the project’s big picture but can break it down into practical and shorter-term goals for the team.

There are several scrum master certifications that you can obtain. Some of the most common includeCertified ScrumMaster (CSM), Certified Scrum Product Owner (CSPO), Certified Scrum Professional (CSP) and Certified Scrum Developer (CSD), which are offered by the Scrum Alliance; Professional Scrum Master I (PSM I) and Professional Scrum Product Owner I (PSPO I), which are administered by Scrum.org; and SAFe Scrum Master (SSM), which is offered by Scaled Agile. There are also more advanced certifications that you can obtain, including Advanced Certified ScrumMaster (ACSM), Certified Scrum Professional ScrumMaster (CSP-SM), Advanced Certified Scrum Product Owner (ACSPO), Certified Scrum Professional Product Owner (CSP-PO), Professional Scrum Master II (PSM II), Professional Scrum Master III (PSM III), Professional Scrum Product Owner II (PSPO II), Professional Scrum Product Owner III (PSPO III), Advanced Certified Scrum Developer (ACSD) and Certified Scrum Professional (CSP).

Best Scrum Software for Project Management in 2023

Scrum is one of the most popular agile methodologies, so many teams naturally want a project management software that has features to support a Scrum approach. In this software guide, we’ve rounded up eight of the best product management platforms that can be used by Scrum teams. They compare their pricing, features and more to help you decide which Scrum project management software is the best for your team.

Jump to:

Besides affordable pricing, you want to make sure that your project management software has certain key features. Here are some of the features to look out for when comparing Scrum project management software:

Owned by Atlassian, Jira remains one of the best project management solutions for IT teams on the market today. Its issue tracking features makes it easy to log bugs and assign them to members of your team. It offers multiple project views and templates to support agile methodologies, including Scrum. Jira also integrates with over 500 other tools and offers more than 3,000 extensions, so you can take the platform’s functionality to the next level.

For more information, read the full Jira review.

SEE: The 9 best agile project management software for 2023

While a relative newcomer to the project management space — it only launched in 2017 — ClickUp has quickly made a name for itself thanks to its combination of affordable prices and excellent project management features. With paid plans starting at only $5 per person (billed annually) this is a great choice for Scrum teams of all sizes who want the most popular project management tools without breaking the bank.

For more information, read the full ClickUp review.

Wrike is one of the most full-featured project management solutions on the market. While it can be overwhelming for small teams, Wrike is an excellent choice for power users who are looking to manage a portfolio of complicated Scrum projects and want more niche functions such as risk predictions. Those willing to master the advanced learning curve will find it a powerful solution with a high degree of customizability.

A free trial is available for each of the following plans:

For more information, read the full Wrike review.

Whiteboards are a key element of Scrum project management and agile methodologies, but they’ve been difficult to replicate in a digital space — until Lucidspark. This virtual whiteboard replicates the experience of posting sticky notes and freehanding drawings on a board in a physical meeting. Because it’s designed specifically for brainstorming and ideating, Lucidspark will work best when used in conjunction with a dedicated project management solution such as the other products listed in this article.

A free trial is available.

SEE: 6 best mind mapping software for project management in 2023

Basecamp is a project management solution that was designed with freelancers, startups and other small teams in mind. It offers a unique flat rate pricing option that will appeal to many businesses looking to standardize their project management budget. Basecamp has a friendly, simple interface that will appeal to teams looking to get started with Scrum project management.

For more information, read the full Basecamp review.

Purchased by Atlassian in 2017, Trello originally gained traction for its intuitive Kanban boards but has since developed into a full-fledged project management tool. Its simple, visual approach makes it a good choice for people who are new to Scrum and/or project management. Its free plan supports unlimited users, so the whole team can try it out before you decide if you want to upgrade to a paid plan.

For more information, read the full Trello review.

Asana is another project and task management tool that is a good choice for Scrum beginners. Asana is best suited for simple and straightforward Scrum projects that don’t require very complex project management. This is because the platform lacks certain features, such as native time tracking and complex dependencies, that more robust alternatives have.

For more information, read the full Asana review.

Most project management platforms offer prebuilt templates to make it easier and faster to create a new project. However, not all of them offer a wide range of templates that are specific to agile and Scrum methodologies. Check each platform to see if it offers templates that will be useful for your specific project management methodology.

Scrum methodology involves very specific workflows, and these should be reflected in whatever project management software you choose. The workflows should also be customizable to fit the individual needs and timelines of your team, especially if you’re managing complex projects over a long period of time.

Switching to email, Slack or Team every time your team needs to discuss a task wastes time and splits the conversation across multiple platforms. The best project management software keeps everything in one platform with collaboration tools such as comments, notifications and messaging.

Automation helps teams reduce repetitive, manual tasks so they can focus on getting more valuable work done. Automation rules can do things such as assigning all tasks in a certain section to one person or setting up a workflow when a new task is added to a project. Each platform approaches automation in a slightly different way, so make sure your top choices use automation in a way that works for your team.

Most project management platforms offer some integration, but this can vary widely from a couple dozen apps to hundreds of other software solutions. It’s always a good idea to check each app in your software stack to make sure that your chosen project management system will integrate with all of them. Otherwise, you’ll have to use an outside solution such as Zapier or build a custom integration using an open API.

Before you select a new Scrum project management software, consider your current project management solutions and how they succeed or fall short of your requirements. Once you identify the shortcomings, you can look for a new project management solution that solves them.

Take advantage of free trials and forever-free accounts so that you can test drive the software for yourself. Most of the platforms listed in this guide offer both of these options, so make the most of them before committing to a paid plan. If you have questions about a platform’s capabilities, scheduling a live demo with the sales team may be more efficient than trying to poke around on your own. Also, seek out reviews from other users who are currently using the software to see what they have to say.

If you still aren’t 100% committed after the trial period and demo, consider paying for a month-to-month subscription rather than signing up for an annual plan. Although this may be a little more expensive up front, it might save you from signing up for an entire year of a service that ultimately doesn’t work for you.

The entire team should be involved in choosing a project management software. Ask the people who are using the software on a daily basis what their need-to-have and nice-to-have features are. Involving them in the process will also make them more motivated to use whatever new Scrum project management software you ultimately choose.

We reviewed this project management software based on a number of criteria, including pricing, ease of use, user interface design, and the difficulty of the learning curve. They also weighed additional features such as automation, project views, templates, and time tracking. They evaluated these platforms by consulting users reviews and product documentation.

Drug Information Specialists

All pharmacists provide some level of drug information, whether to other clinicians or to patients. In fact, a recent survey found that 96.4% of 491 hospitals have staff pharmacists who routinely answer drug information questions,[1] and a separate survey of colleges of pharmacy showed that 89% of first professional pharmacy degree programs require at least one didactic course in drug information.[2] While most pharmacists are equipped with knowledge regarding the practice of drug information, the ever-expanding list of pharmaceuticals, as well as the overwhelming amount of clinical data, makes it difficult for practitioners to stay current with recent developments. This also results in the need for more advanced problem-solving skills in order to answer the more complex questions that challenge practitioners today.

Drug information specialists are pharmacists whose primary responsibility is the provision of drug information. As with any specialty, formalized training beyond that received in pharmacy school is not required; however, this focused training does Improve the practitioner's clinical credibility and ability to compete with others for employment opportunities. These two intangible attributes may also be obtained with time and experience.

The American Society of Health-System Pharmacists (ASHP) provides residency accreditation in drug information. There are currently 31 ASHP-accredited drug information specialty residencies located throughout the United States. These residency programs are housed in community, academic, and industrial settings and offer a variety of learning opportunities. Although there are additional drug information residency programs that are not ASHP accredited, the standards and objectives for such accreditation may be used to describe the clinical skills set of the drug information specialist which go beyond the minimum standards required of all pharmacists.[3]

Most drug information residency programs provide the resident with 12 months of directed, postgraduate practical experience in the provision of comprehensive drug information. During this 12-month period, the resident is exposed to various aspects of drug information practice that range in scope and complexity, with the ultimate goal of training the resident to become a competent drug information specialist. Many of the competencies required of a drug information resident are specific to executive issues, such as the development and management of a drug information center, but there are many more competencies that construct the foundation of a drug information specialist's clinical practice. Drug information specialists must be up-to-date with relevant drug-related literature in order to provide the most current information. They are often tasked as a pharmacy representative to pharmacy and therapeutics (P&T) committees. Responsibilities may include preparing medication-use policies and procedures, improving a health system's adverse-drug-reaction reporting and medication-use evaluation programs, and creating and distributing newsletters containing pertinent medication-use information. The drug information specialist must have advanced literature search and test skills to develop drug monographs. Additional responsibilities often include developing patient safety initiatives, ensuring compliance with Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations's standards, and appropriately utilizing drug-contracting opportunities to decrease drug expenditures. Drug information specialists may also work in pharmacy informatics.

As previously mentioned, drug information specialists work in a variety of settings, each with its own unique scope of practice. Academic drug information centers staffed by drug information specialists offer pharmacy students practical experience in utilizing available medical media and developing literature-search strategies. Of 88 colleges of pharmacy surveyed, 20% require a drug information practice experience and 70% offer the experience as an elective.[2] These centers are often located within colleges of pharmacy or university hospitals. Most offer their services to a limited range of health care professionals, such as those within certain facilities or within the region or state. Others offer their services to community pharmacists and patients. Many health maintenance organizations (HMOs) and group purchasing organizations (GPOs) have contractual relationships with academic drug information centers, which in turn offer their services to the respective members of the organizations. In addition, HMOs, GPOs, and pharmacy benefit management companies (PBMs) have internal drug information departments that assist their members on a grander scale by providing many of the items utilized by P&T committees in making medication-use decisions. Many PBMs also provide consumer-based drug information via the Internet that is prepared by drug information specialists.

Proprietary and generic drug manufacturers are staffed with pharmacists who provide drug information specifically for the drugs manufactured by the respective companies. Although there is some information they cannot legally share and all information received should be critically evaluated, they do maintain a database of clinical studies, both published and unpublished, that provides hard-to-find information. These drug information specialists are available to health care professionals and the public and should be contacted if a patient has an unexpected adverse drug reaction. In addition, drug information specialists have practical knowledge of clinical trial design and often provide valuable insight as medical writers and in governmental agencies analyzing drug efficacy and safety claims.

Drug information specialists are trained to provide clear, concise, and accurate drug information in a variety of settings. Not only do they provide quality service, but pharmacist-provided drug information, adverse-drug-reaction monitoring, and formulary management have been associated with significant reductions in the total cost of care in hospital settings, as well as reductions in patient deaths.[4] The presence of a drug information center providing these services in 232 hospitals reduced total cost of care per hospital by $5,226,128.22 (p = 0.003), including a $391,604.94 reduction in drug costs per hospital, and was associated with a total of 10,463 fewer deaths.[4] Disappointingly, an online survey of health care professionals showed that only 1% of respondents contact a drug information center when the need arises.[5] Another recent survey found that only 5.9% of 491 hospitals have a staff position dedicated to the provision of drug information and 4.1% have a formal drug information center.[1] Granted, contacting a drug information specialist may not be the fastest way to obtain drug information in an emergency situation; nonetheless, this underutilization raises several questions.

Today, the Internet provides a plethora of information for both health care professionals and their patients. Many practitioners probably use the Internet when seeking answers to questions. However, at least one study judged significantly more responses obtained from a drug information center as accurate when compared with those received from a Usenet newsgroup (p = 0.001).[6] Also, there is no quality control for these types of newsgroup services and other similar medical information sources housed on the Internet, and practitioners may be jeopardizing their own credibility when using these resources. Another source of information is facility-housed references, including print and electronic products. Electronic drug information products are becoming increasingly popular. A recent survey showed that 60.4% of 491 hospitals subscribed to some sort of electronic product.[1] Two interesting surveys on drug information references have been conducted.[7,8] In one survey, 40.9% of 22 respondents said they were not satisfied with the drug information resources to which their pharmacy currently subscribed.[7] In another survey, 38% of 71 respondents said they used a drug information reference at least 10 times a day, and another 35.2% used such a reference 3-5 times daily.[8] This discrepancy shows that practitioners regularly use some sort of drug information reference, even though they are not always satisfied with the information obtained.

With so many pharmacists retrieving information from drug information references, the underutilization of drug information specialists as a resource cannot be attributed to a lack in the number of questions that need to be answered. Perhaps practitioners do not know how to find drug information specialists. Industry-based specialists can be contacted via the manufacturer's Web site, and the Physicians' Desk Reference provides a listing of contact information for drug manufacturers.[9] Drug Topics's Red Book contains a list of academic drug information centers, and many colleges of pharmacy provide these services to the pharmacies in their respective states.[10] It is also worth contacting HMOs or GPOs, where applicable, to learn about the services they provide.

Drug information specialists are a valuable resource available to support appropriate drug use and Improve quality of patient care. New practitioners are urged to take advantage of the expertise of drug information specialists, either within or outside of their own institutions.