A department head asks the Scrum Master for a weekly report showing which Developer completed which task, and asks them to chase anyone who is behind. How should the Scrum Master handle the request?
Professional Scrum Master I, objective 1. Understanding and applying the Scrum framework hard
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The options
Correct Decline the individual-tracking role, and work with the department head on the need behind it — coaching the organisation in an empirical approach is itself a Scrum Master accountability
Correct. The request usually hides a real need for predictability, which Scrum answers with a Done Increment every Sprint rather than with per-person task records. Serving the organisation means teaching that, not supplying the report.
Not correct Comply — the Scrum Master is accountable for the Scrum Team's effectiveness, so tracking who is behind is squarely within scope
Wrong, and it misreads a genuine accountability. Effectiveness is pursued by enabling the Scrum Team to improve its practices within the Scrum framework, which is a different activity from supervising individuals.
Not correct Pass the request to the Product Owner, since reporting on progress belongs to them
Wrong. The Product Owner is accountable for maximising value, and progress toward the Product Goal is discussed at the Sprint Review. Neither of those is a per-person task report.
Not correct Comply, but have the Developers write the report themselves so that the Scrum Master is not managing them
Wrong. Who types it is not the issue. The report creates individual accountability for tasks inside a team that Scrum makes accountable together, and the Developers writing it changes nothing about that.
Why
A Scrum Master serves three parties — the Scrum Team, the Product Owner and the organisation — and the organisational half is the one candidates forget: leading, training and coaching the organisation in its Scrum adoption, helping employees and stakeholders enact an empirical approach, and removing barriers between stakeholders and Scrum Teams. Note what is not on any of those lists: managing people, allocating work, or reporting on individuals.
Where this comes from
- Cited
- Scrum Guide section Scrum Master
- What it says
- Scrum Masters are true leaders who serve the Scrum Team and the larger organization.
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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