Scrum Master - No Knowledge, No Experience and No Graduation
Hello everyone. I´m gonna tell you my path so far. Nothing new here, just to find some guidance on my next steps to be more close of my goal.
I´m from Portugal and I have a graduation in Industrial Production Engineering and been working in moulds industry for over 20 years. My cousin is a Business Principal Consultant and I´ve heard about Scrum, for the first time, with him.
I felt curiosity and start to read about Srum and found here the material (Scrum Guide) to be even more excited to learn more. I took the certification after taking the classes. Then I´ve been searching for a role of Scrum Master but is not easy.
The reasons that I find for not being chosen is due the fact that I have no experience (in my industry is hard to promote Scrum because the old mentality), no graduation in Computer Engineering or a background of developer. Even that is no obligation that the role of a Srum Master need to have technical knowledge.
So, I´ve been in contact with some Scrum Masters through Linkedin to speak with them to have some advices for what i have to do. I know there is no point for me to taking more certifications because that´s not the companies are looking for (at least here in Portugal).
Some of the Srum Masters have replied to me and told me to try implement the Srum where I work (besides the industry it self, where I work there is no trust in the colleagues and in the CEO. - That´s why I want to change where I work and the area) or to take some programming course (Outsystems) to enter the IT area and then try the place of Scrum Master.
For the answres they gave me I will choose to take the Programming course (Outsystems) because I can take the course at home and have a friend that working with this language. He is willing to help with my doubts (and it will be many, kkkk) and then to talk to his CEO to put me in as Junior Developer.
I felt the need to write this post to help some people that have no idea about this IT ground and try to give some lights to them. And are in the same situation like me.
I will start this course this week and let see what is going to happen in near future. What do you think about this choices that I´ve made? Or do you have another advice?
Till then, stay safe and good work for all of you.
Best regards,
Eduardo Cruz
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Getting into agile and scrum master without experience is hard. You can try attending user groups and conferences with the purpose of learning but more importantly to meet people and network. Networking = jobs, certifications = resumes.
Hi Eduardo,
Congratulations for wanting to go the Agile way. In addition to what Suscheck has advised, you should try and get certified which shows potential employers that you understand the fundamentals of Scrum as a framework, everything adds up.
The catch in your situation might be your transferable skills. Please keep positive.
Hey Eduardo,
Thanks for sharing your journey with us, it's always great to hear about people who are striving to reach their goals. I think it's fantastic that you have taken the initiative to learn more about Scrum and have even obtained certification in it. It's understandable that finding a role as a Scrum Master may be difficult without prior experience or a background in computer engineering, but I think your decision to take a programming course (Outsystems) is a great way to bridge that gap and gain some valuable experience in the IT industry.
Implementing Scrum in your current workplace is also a great suggestion, and it's commendable that you are willing to take on that challenge despite the lack of trust in your colleagues and CEO. It's always inspiring to see someone take action to create positive change in their environment.
As for advice, I would say to keep an open mind and continue to learn as much as you can. Don't be afraid to take on new challenges and explore different paths to reach your goals. It sounds like you have a good plan in place, so I wish you all the best in your programming course and future endeavors.
Take care and stay safe!
Best regards,
The experience is most essential thing, but to get experience you need to remember the good proverb that thousand miles journey starts with a one step.
It is quite ironic that the framework based on empiricism is not getting more and more formal and its market relies entirely on certifications, but things erode...
I am practicing Scrum in various environment for little less than a decade, and it so happens that for a past 7 years I was successfully serving and leading the team in the start up Organization which has grown into successful business with, hopefully, my help.
After re entering the market in 2023 I was surprised how formal and structured it has become, and how strong are dependencies on certification, formal courses and pre defined software like Jira(which I used myself, but only as B secondary tool).
I have even considered to get some certifications myself(never bothered before), the first PSM I will be obtained(hopefully) this month(test itself requires quiet an extreme concentration because of tricky questions) , and then most likely Product owner and Scale Scrum certificates, but even with low fees I have a hard thoughts about the money I need to invest into passing the test-its not much but still why should I spend price of good dinner or night out for its sake?
But apparently this is a direction we should walk