Job Description We are seeking an experienced Scrum Master to lead our agile development teams. The ideal candidate will have a strong background in Scrum methodologies, excellent facilitation skills, and the ability to foster a culture of continuous improvement and collaboration. Responsibilities - Lead and facilitate all Scrum ceremonies, including sprint planning, daily stand-ups, sprint reviews, and retrospectives - Guide the product owner and development team in writing effective user stories and creating well-structured epics - Assist in grouping user stories and epics into cohesive releases, ensuring alignment with product roadmap and business goals - Coach the development team in agile best practices, fostering self-organization and cross-functionality - Remove impediments and shield the team from external distractions to maintain focus on sprint goals - Facilitate backlog refinement sessions, ensuring the product backlog is well-groomed and prioritized - Track and communicate team velocity, sprint burndown, and other relevant metrics to stakeholders - Collaborate with product owners to maintain a healthy product backlog and ensure timely delivery of features - Implement and improve agile processes, adapting them as necessary to fit the team's needs - Mentor team members in time management techniques to improve productivity and work-life balance - Facilitate effective communication between the development team and other departments or stakeholders - Organize and lead sprint planning sessions, ensuring proper estimation and capacity planning - Conduct lessons learned sessions and drive continuous improvement initiatives - Assist in release planning and coordination, ensuring smooth delivery of product increments - Promote a culture of transparency, inspection, and adaptation within the team and organization - Collaborate closely with QA Analysts and Testing Managers to ensure quality assurance processes are seamlessly integrated into the Scrum framework - Facilitate communication between development teams and QA to promote a culture of quality and continuous testing - Assist in incorporating testing activities into sprint planning and backlog refinement, ensuring adequate time for quality assurance - Work with Testing Managers to align testing strategies with sprint goals and release plans - Support the integration of automated testing processes into the CI/CD pipeline - Help balance the workload between development and QA activities within sprints - Encourage and facilitate test-driven development (TDD) and behavior-driven development (BDD) practices - Assist in planning and executing user acceptance testing (UAT) within the sprint cycle - Facilitate discussions on quality metrics and help teams incorporate these into their definition of done - Support QA Analysts in participating effectively in all Scrum ceremonies - Help resolve conflicts or bottlenecks between development and QA teams - Promote early and continuous testing practices throughout the development lifecycle Qualifications - Bachelor’s degree in computer science, Business Administration, or related field; Master's degree is a plus - Minimum of 3 years experience as a Scrum Master; additional experience is highly valued - Certified Scrum Master (CSM) or Professional Scrum Master (PSM) certification required; advanced certifications (e.g., CSP-SM, PSM II) are a plus - Strong knowledge of Scrum framework and agile methodologies - Experience in writing user stories, creating epics, and managing product backlogs - Proficiency in agile project management tools (e.g., Jira, Trello, Azure DevOps) - Excellent facilitation, coaching, and conflict resolution skills - Strong analytical and problem-solving abilities - Outstanding communication and interpersonal skills - Experience with scaled agile frameworks (e.g., SAFe, LeSS) is beneficial - Familiarity with software development practices and tools is preferred - Knowledge of lean principles and kanban methodologies is a plus - Experience working with QA Analysts and Testing Managers in an agile environment - Understanding of software testing methodologies and best practices - Familiarity with test management tools and their integration with agile project management software - Knowledge of continuous integration and continuous delivery (CI/CD) practices, particularly as they relate to testing - Experience in facilitating the adoption of test automation within agile teams - Understanding of different testing types (e.g., unit, integration, system, acceptance) and how they fit into the agile process Key Competencies - Leadership and team motivation - Time management and organizational skills - Conflict resolution and negotiation - Active listening and effective communication - Adaptability and flexibility - Continuous improvement mindset - Stakeholder management - Analytical thinking and problem-solving - Empathy and emotional intelligence - Quality advocacy and promotion of testing best practices What We Offer - Opportunity to work with cross-functional teams on challenging projects - Collaborative and innovative work environment - Professional development and growth opportunities - Chance to shape and improve agile practices within the organization - Exposure to cutting-edge technologies and development methodologies - Opportunity to work at the intersection of agile development and quality assurance, driving best practices in both areas If you are passionate about Scrum and Agile software development, have a track record of successfully leading agile teams, excel at integrating quality assurance into the development process, and are ready to drive continuous improvement in a dynamic environment, we would like to have you on our team!