A newly appointed Scrum Master finds that the Developers wait each morning to be told which item to pick up, because the previous Scrum Master assigned the work. They decide to keep assigning tasks "until the team is ready to do it themselves". What is wrong with that plan?
Professional Scrum Master I, objective 1. Understanding and applying the Scrum framework medium
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The options
Correct It withholds respect and prevents self-management — Scrum Teams internally decide who does what, when and how
Correct. Self-management is not a reward a team earns; it is how a Scrum Team is defined. Continuing to assign work keeps the team in the state the Scrum Master is supposed to be coaching it out of.
Not correct Nothing is wrong — a new team needs direction, and the Scrum Master is accountable for the Scrum Team's effectiveness
Wrong, and it misreads a real accountability. The Scrum Master is accountable for the team's effectiveness, discharged by enabling the team to improve its own practices — not by making the team's decisions on its behalf.
Not correct It is wrong only because assigning work belongs to the Product Owner
Wrong. The Product Owner orders the Product Backlog and decides what is most valuable. Nobody outside the Developers tells them how to turn Product Backlog items into Increments.
Not correct It is wrong because a Scrum Master must never attend the Daily Scrum
Wrong; there is no such rule. The Daily Scrum is an event for the Developers, and if the Scrum Master is actively working on Sprint Backlog items they take part as a Developer.
Why
Respect in Scrum has a concrete consequence rather than a sentimental one: team members are capable, independent people, so the team decides internally who does what, when and how. The Scrum Master's route to a more effective team is coaching in self-management and cross-functionality — the fastest way to keep a team dependent is to keep making its decisions while waiting for it to become independent.
Where this comes from
- Cited
- Scrum Guide section Scrum Team
- What it says
- They are also self-managing, meaning they internally decide who does what, when, and how.
Practise this
Reading one question is not practice. The trainer will draw a set from objective 1 and space the ones you get wrong.
Practise Professional Scrum Master I
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