Scrum Values

Scrum is a wildly popular agile project management framework that enables teams to embrace flexibility, collaboration, and continuous improvement. However, implementing scrum is more than organizing various ceremonies or following scrum rules and principles. It is deeply rooted in a set of five scrum values that shape the culture and behavior of the scrum team. 

These scrum values provide practical guidelines on how teams interact, make decisions, and overcome complexities. By following these values teams can create a cohesive work environment, build trust, promote responsibility, and increase collaboration.  

Keep reading to explore scrum values, their purpose, and how they can promote team productivity and efficiency. 

So let’s get started!

What are the 5 Scrum Values?

The five Scrum values are Commitment, Courage, Focus, Openness, and Respect. These values serve as the code of ethics that guides the work, actions, and behavior of the scrum teams. Scrum teams use these values throughout the project life cycle to implement the scrum framework. Each value serves a different purpose and contributes uniquely to the team’s success. 

Let’s explore each of these values in detail:

Commitment

Teams need dedication and accountability to achieve the product and sprint goals successfully. This can only be possible when each team member is committed to the assigned work and takes full responsibility for achieving the poject goals with the team. In other words, this scrum value ensures that team members commit to supporting each other in completing the work, achieving the product goals, and overcoming challenges throughout the project lifecycle. 

Focus

In scrum values, focus means team members are focused on the tasks assigned to them and their alignment with product goals, vision, and customer needs. This means the team members should work on high-priority tasks first and avoid distractions as much as possible. 

For instance, if a scrum team is working on a mobile application their focus should be on designing and developing the Android or iOS application rather than working on the tasks related to the web application. In a nutshell, focus means creating value, working on the most important work items, and getting them done. 

Courage

Teams need courage to achieve big goals, embrace challenges, and take risks to innovate. Courage comes in many forms; it can be as small as saying “No” to unrealistic deadlines and as big as proposing a complete shift in the team’s technical approach. In scrum teams, courage allows team members to participate in discussions, raise concerns during retrospectives, and address issues during sprint reviews. It promotes an open and transparent work environment for the scrum team and drives it toward continuous improvement. 

Openness

Openness means creating a work environment where everyone can speak freely without fearing judgment. It encourages team members to share their ideas honestly and listen to others’ opinions with empathy and respect. When a scrum team embraces openness, they create a culture where everyone feels respected and valued. As a result, team members communicate transparently and work collectively to evaluate setbacks, eliminate blockers, and improve the team’s efficiency.

Additionally, openness plays a critical role in scrum ceremonies such as daily standup sprint planning, reviews, and retrospectives. For instance, openness allows the team members to voice their issues and ask other team members for help during the daily scrum. While in sprint retrospective it enables the team to reflect on mistakes and work toward continuous improvement. 

Respect

When working in a team, it is inevitable to encounter contrasting ideas, opinions, and perspectives. In such situations, respect becomes a critical value that enables the scrum team to work harmoniously and resolve conflicts smoothly. When team members value each other’s contributions, perspectives, and unique abilities, they create an open, collaborative, and supportive working environment. When the team feels respected they are more likely to share ideas freely,  leading to better problem-solving and creativity. 

Benefits of Scrum Values

The scrum values serve as the foundation of a successful scrum team. When teams embrace these values they can improve in various ways such as:

Collaboration and Cohesion

Scrum values such as courage, openness, and respect foster collaboration and cohesion, where team members feel empowered, valued, and supported. They share their ideas freely and actively participate in problem-solving. When teams work cohesively, they become a unified force that shares a common goal and works toward it. They make better decisions and focus on the team’s success rather than individual achievements. 

Better Communication 

When scrum teams respect each other’s opinions and ideas, it bridges the team’s communication gap and promotes transparency. Open communication ensures everyone understands their roles and what is expected from them. It also fosters a culture of regular feedback and helps to identify issues at the early stages. 

Adaptability and Flexibility

Scrum values like courage enable the teams to adapt to changes quickly as project requirements and industry trends evolve. With courage, teams can embrace changes with confidence instead of resisting them. Additionally, they can challenge old methods, explore better alternatives, and change priorities at any time during the project lifecycle. 

Increased Focus and Productivity

Focus and commitment to work can increase the team’s velocity and work quality. When team members are less distracted, they can spend more time completing the important work items and achieving goals. As a result, they can quickly deliver high-quality increments, leading to high customer satisfaction.

Continuous improvement

When team members embrace commitment, courage, and openness, they promote a culture of continuous improvement. For instance, when teams reflect on their process during retrospectives and identify the areas of improvement with courage, they can improve their workflow and team’s efficiency. This helps the team continuously evolve and adapt, becoming more efficient and productive over time. 

Difference between Scrum Values and Scrum Principles

Scrum principles and values play a critical role in successfully implementing the scrum framework.

Scrum values are beliefs that define the behavior and attitude of the scrum team members to create a collaborative and productive working environment. On the other hand, scrum principles are rules and guidelines in the scrum guide that allow the team members to embrace the scrum values. 

In other words, Scrum values shape the team’s culture and principles guide the approach to using Scrum practice. Together they lay a foundation for a productive scrum team and successful agile project management. 

FAQs

Why are Scrum Values important?

Scrum values are essential in the scrum framework because they shape the behavior and culture of the scrum team. With these values, teams can enhance collaboration, transparency, respect, cohesion, efficiency, and overall success of the project.  

Who is responsible for implementing scrum values in the scrum team?

Generally, the Scrum master is responsible for implementing and reinforcing the scrum values in the scrum team. However, every team member equally shares the responsibility to uphold these values in their interactions, decisions, and work processes. 

How does Scrum Slate enhance my team’s adherence to Scrum values?

Agile project management tools like Scrum Slate provide a wide array of tools, resources, and support to promote openness, transparency, and commitment among team members. 

Teams can use Kanban boards to get a clear view of the work in progress, identify bottlenecks, and promote accountability among team members. Additionally, features like priority and estimate, enable the team to categorize the tasks based on effort and urgency, allowing them to work on the quick wins first. 

Can Scrum values be applied outside of Scrum teams?

Certainly, Scrum values can be applied in any work environment apart from the Scrum framework. The ultimate purpose of these values is to promote better communication, accountability, and teamwork, which is essential in any work setting.

What happens if a team doesn’t follow Scrum values?

If the Scrum team ignores the Scrum values, they may experience poor collaboration, communication, missed deadlines, and disengagement in the team. Without respect, courage, and openness, team members may avoid participating in discussions leading to poor communication, collaboration, and problem-solving.