Scrum Master and Risk Management

[Hennadii Omelchenko]

Hi,

Recently I've been told that a really good scrum master among other things should be responsible for Risk Management. So far I haven't been able to get an answer on what exactly Risk Management meant there (other than, well, you know what risk management is, don't you).

Scrum Guide doesn't say much about risks generally. That is my question is: should SM be responsible for risk management, and what that meant in the context of Scrum?

[Mark Levison]

Isn't nearly everything we do in a Scrum a tool to help manage risks?

Cheers

Mark

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[Markus Gaertner]

What are the risks that that really good Scrum Master should be taken care of?

Best

Markus

Scaling Agile as if you meant it: http://www.scaledprinciples.org

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Dipl.-Inform. Markus Gaertner
Author of ATDD by Example - A Practical Guide to Acceptance Test-Driven Development

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[Hennadii Omelchenko]

Well, scrum framework helps control risks, but my question was rather about risk management is a responsibility of a SM

пʼятниця, 24 квітня 2015 р. 23:26:39 UTC+3 користувач Mark Levison написав:

[Hennadii Omelchenko]

Markus,

That is exactly my question :)

пʼятниця, 24 квітня 2015 р. 23:32:33 UTC+3 користувач Markus Gärtner написав:

[Mark Levison]

On Fri, Apr 24, 2015 at 4:33 PM, Hennadii Omelchenko <hennadii....@gmail.com> wrote:

Well, scrum framework helps control risks, but my question was rather about risk management is a responsibility of a SM

I agree someone should think about risks. I don't know that traditional risk management has much value in an Agile world. So I don't value risk management as a responsibility. Instead I encourage organizations to reflect on the move toward running experiments aka Lean Startup.

Cheers

Mark ​

 

[Ron Jeffries]

Just some thoughts …

http://ronjeffries.com/xprog/blog/risk-is-the-water-in-which-the-agile-fish-swims/

R

On Apr 24, 2015, at 4:15 PM, Hennadii Omelchenko <hennadii....@gmail.com> wrote:

Recently I've been told that a really good scrum master among other things should be responsible for Risk Management. So far I haven't been able to get an answer on what exactly Risk Management meant there (other than, well, you know what risk management is, don't you).

Scrum Guide doesn't say much about risks generally. That is my question is: should SM be responsible for risk management, and what that meant in the context of Scrum?

Ron Jeffries

ronjeffries.com

If it is more than you need, it is waste. -- Andy Seidl

[Hennadii Omelchenko]

Ma

If I understand correctly, some risks have a pretty clear define role to be responsible for them. Like risks about product scope are to be managed by PO, implementation risks (including schedule prob) - by Development team. 

Not sure, but maybe in some orgnazations or some coaches teach that these risks should be managed by SM? Though I still have to see how SM can manage those withing Scrum framework.

 

пʼятниця, 24 квітня 2015 р. 23:40:10 UTC+3 користувач Mark Levison написав:

[Hennadii Omelchenko]

Ron,

Thanks for the link, though I think I've seen it before. Just to make myself clearer, the question is not about Agile (or Scrum) and Risk management (which has been explained in many sources very well), but only about what a SM is supposed to 'risk manage'.

пʼятниця, 24 квітня 2015 р. 23:49:27 UTC+3 користувач Ron Jeffries написав:

[Wouter Lagerweij]

Hi Hennadii,

No, the scrum master is not responsible for risk managment.

There. that's just as simple a statement as the one you received to the contrary:-)

But seriously, how could a scrum master ever have that particular responsibility? Or anyone, really. It's like giving my wife the responsibility for safety management while I peel the potatoes with a sharp knife. If I have to be constantly reminded not to cut my own fingers, I might not be too well suited for the job (here's hoping she sees this and agrees:-)

As others have said, the process should manage risk, but more importantly it should be spread out over the whole team. There's all kind of different risks, at all levels. The PO needs to prioritise correctly, otherwise we run the risk of spending effort that won't give us enough return on our investment. Any developer needs to manage risk by taking appropriate measures to ensure his code works (also known as 'testing'), but also needs to consider longer term risk by making sure the code is readable and well-factored. Management should take care that there is a clear purpose/vision so that the team can remain motivated, and we don't run the risk of too many leaving. Architects should make sure that we don't focus too much on managing risks, allowing innovation during development.

Well, something like that.

So what kind of risks should a scrum master manage? Perhaps the risk of continuous improvement not happening? Are there retros, and is something done with the outcomes? Or the risk that the team is not getting enough knowledge on possible ways to improve? Or the risk that problems within the team aren't coming to the surface, either due to fear of management or problematic team dynamics?

Those types of risk are certainly things that the scrum master would work on.

Risk management is simply people doing their jobs. You can't just shove it off onto someone else's plate.

Wouter

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[Ron Jeffries]

Hennadii,

On Apr 24, 2015, at 4:59 PM, Hennadii Omelchenko <hennadii....@gmail.com> wrote:

Thanks for the link, though I think I've seen it before. Just to make myself clearer, the question is not about Agile (or Scrum) and Risk management (which has been explained in many sources very well), but only about what a SM is supposed to 'risk manage'.

The ScrumMaster seems to have two responsibilities: First, to help the team maintain the team’s chosen process, and second, to see that impediments to effective and efficient work, as identified by the team, get removed.

I see no valid evidence in the Scrum Literature that supports the idea that the ScrumMaster is a manager of anything, much less manager of risk. When we think of the ScrumMaster’s power … there is none, other than the power to speak. 

The Product Owner has full accountability for ensuring the best possible result from the product investment. It follows that the PO is accountable for suitable risk management. 

Any stakeholder, or person on the team can identify risk, and it is the PO’s job to get that risk properly assessed and dealt with. The PO does that by putting work on the Product Backlog. (It is possible — some people recommend — that ScrumMaster impediment removing activities go on the backlog. This aids transparency and accountability, at the cost of somewhat obfuscating the main point, which is the product.)

The Power of “What to do” resides with the PO. The power of “How to do it” resides with the team, as does the responsibility to do it. That’s all there is to do: decide what to do, decide how to do it, do it. Those topics cover all the decisions regarding risk and all the effort that goes into resolving it. 

Ron Jeffries

ronjeffries.com

In times of stress, I like to turn to the wisdom of my Portuguese waitress,
who said: "Olá, meu nome é Marisol e eu serei sua garçonete."