Why a CEO should think like a Scrum Master

Abstract

Purpose – One approach for CEOs seeking to improve the effectiveness of their company’s innovation initiatives is to imitate the role that a “Scrum Master” has in high speed software development projects. Fundamentally, a Scrum Master is in the business of speeding up the rate of innovation in a software project. Design/methodology/approach – By championing Agile methodology, CEOs can focus innovation initiatives upon developing what customers prioritize and value. Pushing the organization to involve customers, and in some cases suppliers, increases the value added and value creation of the project. Findings – When a CEO practices acting like a Scrum Master, he or she does so by pursuing four goals: Keeping innovation work cycles or “Sprints” short. Focusing upon value creation and customer involvement throughout the development process. Removing barriers to development that prevent the software programmers from doing their job. Attempting to shelter developers from counterproductive interventions by external managers. Practical implications – By championing Agile teams, the CEO can communicate his or her expectation that innovations will be tested on clients and be available as a “court of last resort” to cut through the barriers and delays that prevent a development team from moving forward.” Originality/value – This article is unconventional in that it suggests that CEOs need to be particularly aware of how their actions in support of Agile teams can build medium and long term organizational capabilities. Top management oversight of Agile teams can strengthen strategic relationships with internal stakeholders, customers and suppliers.

Exploration of the initiation and process of business model innovation of successful Chinese ICT enterprises

“…Regular meetings and a less hierarchal structure are important features in agile approaches to business model innovation. This is emphasised in team management approaches such as Agile which has been refined in the software industry and is now used more widely (Davidson and Klemme, 2016). Various methodologies based on the ideology of Agile include Scrum, in which development phases (or sprints) are undertaken by scrum teams.…”

“…lean start up approaches are agile methods for business model innovation (Ghezzi and Cavallo, 2018). Established firms that struggle to maintain a transitory competitive advantage whilst undergoing continuous innovation are often at a disadvantage to many newer firms who adopt newer forms of team management such as Agile (Davidson and Klemme, 2016). The ideology of Agile includes, work is focused on meeting customer needs and thus customer interaction is central; a product owner focuses attention on the customers' needs; work is undertaken by self-organising teams that utilise the skills of those undertaking the work; and work is undertaken iteratively and progress towards meeting the customer needs is assessed at each stage (Denning, 2015).…”

“…The ability to anticipate and react quickly to sudden changes in the environment has been referred to as strategic agility (Li et al , 2009). Agility can be considered in terms of the ability to develop products, features, services, solutions and business models in rapid response to customer, market and technology changes (Davidson and Klemme, 2016). The ability to react to customer feedback and adapt (or pivot) business models as required is highlighted in the lean start-up literature.…”

Improving research labs’ performance through project management guidelines: a case study analysis

“…In the agile management line, there is a paradigm shift because there is no schedule management, but the concept of predefined deadline or Timeboxed, coupled with the concept of continuous deliveries, conducted through iterations (Davidson and Klemme, 2016; PMI, 2017b).…”

The Role of the Scrum Master in an Industry based University Course

“…Scrum is the most popular agile method in industrial settings (Digital.ai, 2020). As the Scrum Master (SM) is integral to the Scrum method (Deemer et al, 2012;Schwaber and Sutherland, 2015), several studies have focused on the role of the SM (Bass, 2014;Bolloju et al, 2018;Cowan, 2011;Davidson and Klemme, 2016;Matturro et al, 2015;Noll et al, 2017;Waugh, 2018;Yi, 2011;Shastri et al, 2021) in industrial settings. However, research on the SM role in university contexts is limited (Bolloju et al, 2018;Hans, 2017).…”