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Scrum Inc. Services

 

 

 

 

 

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

• Introduction

• Summary of Scrum Transformation Services

• General Terms and Conditions

 

 

 

 

 

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Introduction

Scrum is an Agile organizational framework that allows any team, business unit,

department, or enterprise to maximize output while improving product quality. It

does this by keeping teams focused on the greatest sources of value creation,

eliminating unnecessary overhead activities, and empowering team members to

achieve their collective potential. Organizations using Scrum have realized both

revenue growth and cost reduction by completing more work with the same or even

less effort than traditional management approaches. Successful Scrum organizations

are also generally regarded as more satisfying places to work, while delighting

customers more than their competitors. A successful Scrum adoption will result in a

profound transformation of the organization, and requires senior leadership, middle

managers, and workers to commit to adopt its use. This change will be felt at the

team level, but will ultimately affect all layers of the organization. Properly

implemented, Scrum increases the speed of development, aligns individual and

corporate objectives and supports shareholder value creation.

Founded by Scrum co-creator Jeff Sutherland, Scrum Inc. provides a comprehensive

portfolio of solutions for companies seeking high-impact results through Scrum

development. Services include training on Scrum concepts, execution and

management; coaching and consulting support of enterprise-level Scrum

implementation; and publications that advance the frontier of Agile thinking.

All services may be customized to meet our client’s unique requirements. We

welcome further discussion of how to tailor our services to best meet your needs.

Thank you in advance for your consideration.

Scrum Transformation Services

Scrum is designed to add energy, focus, clarity, and transparency to project

development planning and implementation. Properly implemented, Scrum will:

• Increase speed of development and reduce time to market

• Align individual and corporate objectives

• Break down organizational silos

• Create a culture driven by performance

• Support shareholder value creation

• Achieve stable and consistent communication of performance at all levels

• Enhance individual development and quality of life

Achieving these goals requires developing an Agile mindset at all levels of the

organization. Based on our initial discussion, we propose the following high-level plan

for a combination of services to support a complete agile transformation. Each

service may be selected individually or in combination with others. Alternative

service configurations are presented, where applicable.

 

 

 

 

 

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Part I – Scrum Strategic Consulting

Clients may wish to engage in high-level discussion about whether Agile methods can

improve its delivery of products and services, and if so how Scrum can support its

broader corporate strategic goals, and what that means for the way it codifies and

implements its Scrum.

Scrum Inc. offers strategic consulting from some of the leading thinkers in Agile

Strategy for companies needing assistance adapting Scrum to meet new or novel

applications, or where there is a strong emphasis on customization and linking

Scrum methods to business goals and strategy. Engagement length and description

can vary widely, (including on-site and remote support) and is usually defined ahead

of time in response to a company’s specific needs.

Part II – Scrum Team Training

A critical part of a successful Scrum transformation is broader training of the teams

to ensure that they share a common foundation of understanding, and know not just

WHAT they are doing, but WHY as well.

Scrum Inc. offers private classes for groups of 15 or more students from the same

company. These classes are taught on-site at the customer’s location, and can

incorporate actual company data and issues to illustrate the course material with

highly relevant examples.

Target Audience: Scrum Inc. provides training focused on the Scrum Master,

Product Owner or team members. All our classes are comprehensive, highly

participatory and use hands-on exercises to convey the key material. Each class

focuses on the different aspects of Scrum that are particularly relevant to each role

of the participants.

Certified vs. Non-Certified: Certified classes cover all of the curriculum required

by the Scrum Alliance to take their “Certified Scrum Master” or “Certified Product

Owner” test. After completing the class, all participants will receive an email

invitation to take the certification exam. The cost of certification is included in the

course price.

Non-Certified classes can cover the same curriculum as a certified class, but have the

advantage of being more flexible to spend time on topics and issues that are

particularly relevant to a given set of teams. Non-certified classes are also easier to

schedule and less expensive than certified classes. They are a great option for

companies that are not focused on whether employees receive a credential from the

training.

Course Agenda: All Scrum Inc. courses provide everything you need to begin

leading or participating in a Scrum team. Participants learn:

 

 

 

 

 

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• What is Scrum? Team roles, tools and time constructs

• How to set up Scrum teams and begin work in the most effective way

• How to create, prioritize, and estimate user stories for the product backlog

• The role of management in a company powered by self-organizing teams

• How to help both new and experienced teams be more successful

A combination of group exercises, facilitated discussions, case studies, tool examples

and open Q&A are used to illustrate the principles being taught. The courses use a

flexible curriculum that allows the team to help guide its own learning experience.

For people in a specific Scrum role, such as the Scrum Master, and people supporting

Scrum Teams who want to improve quality and productivity using Scrum, the two-

day courses focus on “expert practice” for both hard and soft skills.

The course structure uses Scrum to organize the class. During the course, feedback

is gathered from participants to tune the course for maximum value. We rely heavily

on class participation to amplify relevant conversation, exploration, and discovery.

Further, we encourage actionable commitments to extend value beyond the

classroom. All participants in Certified classes will be eligible to receive the Scrum

Alliance’s Certified Scrum Master or Certified Scrum Product Owner designation.

Build Party (Optional Module): Use Scrum to build a car in 60-minute sprints.

Guided by professional coaches, it’s an inspirational experience that leaves

participants confident about conquering their work using Scrum. Because attendees

apply the Scrum framework and eXteme Manufacturing to solve complex problems,

build parties are a terrific way to win buy-in about agile practices.

Build Parties are perfect for introducing agile to organizations or to help practiced

teams re-launch. No Agile experience or automotive background is necessary. The

build party can be completed in as few as 3, 60-minute sprints.

We kick off each build party by having the attendees self-organize into 4 to 5 person

scrum teams, complete with a Scrum Master and Product Owner. Teams then swarm

on the backlog to complete as many stories as possible, with quality. Each sprint the

teams get a chance to review their work with the facilitators while using scaled

Scrum to address impediments, demonstrate their work, and refine the

backlog. When the Party ends, teams have built a car and had fun.

Part III – Leadership Workshop

Leadership is critical to a Scrum implementation. Whether a transition to a fully

Scrum organization, or just leveraging the work of specific teams, an engaged

management team generates tremendous productivity.

Our Leadership Workshop is designed to familiarize participants with Scrum

terminology and philosophy, outline Scrum tools and metrics to ensure full

transparency of the process, and define roles clearly. Particular focus is given to

how leadership teams can maintain and enhance their traditional goals of building

 

 

 

 

 

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shared vision, maintaining transparency on progress, and driving accountability using

Scrum's constructs and tools.

The workshop also emphasizes the important role of management in ensuring a

successful Scrum implementation by supporting infrastructure needed for success

and removing impediments that are beyond the team's ability to address. The

workshop includes an explicit discussion of what leaders should and should not

expect from a Scrum team at different phases of implementation.

All concepts are presented from a management perspective, including a module on

linking Scrum and Agile to the company's strategic goals to drive competitive

advantage. The workshop will use the leadership team's unique company goals and

pain points to motivate and illustrate Scrum, allowing them to address pressing

corporate issues in the context of the workshop.

Scrum Inc. offers both half-day and full-day workshops. Half-day workshops can

cover the key topics that leadership needs to know to succeed with Scrum, and

allows time for discussion and to answer questions. Leadership teams can use the

second half of a full-day workshop for one of several different purposes: 1) to dig

deeper into advanced topics that are of particular concern to them, such as

distributed teams or Scrum metrics and how they support visibility; 2) as a “hands

on” session to start working on known issues that leadership is facing; or 3) to plan

next steps for rolling out Scrum and transforming the organization.

Part IV – Team Launch Support

Once trained, the first tasks of a newly-launched Scrum team are to create and

prioritize its product backlog, and start the regular sprint cadence. Over the years,

we have found that teams that are supported through these initial steps develop

better internal practices that allow them to accelerate faster than unsupported teams.

By the end of two facilitated days, the pilot team(s) should have an initial backlog

sufficiently defined that they can use it to guide their ongoing work. They will also

have been through the key sprint planning meeting and daily standup with an

experienced professional.

Part V – Scrum Implementation Coaching

Targeted coaching support can dramatically improve both the speed and outcome of

implementing these changes. Over the years, we have found that teams that are

supported through these initial steps develop better internal practices that allow

them to accelerate faster than unsupported teams.

Typically, coaching comes in one of two different flavors:

1. A coach works intensively with one or more teams through several complete

Sprints to help build experience and a solid “muscle memory” from having

been through the full Scrum process in a facilitated environment

 

 

 

 

 

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2. A coach serves as a “thought partner” to the Scrum Master or Product Owner

for several teams. They can provide an experienced perspective on decisions

and challenges that the Scrum Master/Product Owner may be wrestling with,

and usually make periodic in-person visits to monitor progress and suggest

course corrections, as needed.

Clients can choose either flavor, or combine them to provide holistic support that

tapers over time until the teams are completely managing their own process.

Scrum Inc. provides as needed on-site support specifically with helping companies

launch or expand a Scrum implementation. The focus is on the mechanics of

successfully executing the Scrum process, with a goal of helping teams run their own

Scrum without external support as rapidly as practical.

Part VI – Scrum Capability Assessment

The Scrum Inc. Capability Assessment is a rapid, structured, tailored, yet minimally-

disruptive way to identify a company’s current Agile strengths and weaknesses, and

define a path toward ongoing improvement. The assessment looks at your

company’s Scrum practices from top to bottom and assesses the capabilities of the

teams actually doing the work. The results reveal where your Scrum is strong, and

what practices are holding you back. Specific subjects addressed in the assessment

include: 1) execution of the Scrum framework; 2) effectiveness of the product

backlog and Product Owner function; 3) rigor of continuous improvement processes;

4) team dynamics; and 5) workspace and tooling. Additional modules of the

assessment evaluate the strength of team engineering (XP) and workflow (Kanban)

practices, if applicable.

After the assessment, each team and the company as a whole will be given an

overall ScrumScoreTM and a prioritized backlog of actionable steps to drive the

greatest improvement. Companies or teams demonstrating mature and well-

functioning Scrum processes will be awarded a bronze, silver or gold Scrum

Capability Rating that celebrates your achievement to the outside world.

The Assessment consists of: 1) Pre-visit information collection; 2) A pre-visit

coordination call; 3) An on-site visit to each location where Scrum teams are

working; and 4) A post-visit report and awarding of any applicable Scrum Capability

Ratings.

Pre-Visit Information Collection - Several weeks prior to the on-site assessment,

the organization being assessed (the host company) sends the Scrum Inc.

assessment team a focused set of data and metrics that helps the assessment team

understand the key processes that the Scrum teams execute. It also helps to prepare

for the on-site visit to be as efficient as possible.

Pre-Visit Coordination Call - After reviewing the supplied materials, the

Assessment team will have a call with the host company’s key contact to finalize

plans for the on-site assessment. This will include:

• Agreeing on dates, locations, and local contacts for the on-site visits

 

 

 

 

 

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• Scheduling meetings and one-on-one discussions with key team members,

including: Leadership, Product Owners, Scrum Masters (more detail below)

• Arranging on-site logistics (internet access, security, temporary space)

• Clarifying any questions from the pre-visit data

The Scrum Inc. Assessment team can provide an introductory email to send to the

host company’s Scrum teams in advance of the visit to explain the visit and the

assessment process.

On-Site Visit - The on-site visit is the core element of the assessment. It is a

minimum of two days, with an additional day expected for every 4 teams beyond the

first 4, and one additional day for each location beyond the first. The on-site visit will

conducted by two-four members of our assessment team, and has 5 key elements:

• Leadership Meeting – This is a chance at the beginning of the assessment to

explain the Assessment and its deliverables. It is also an opportunity to

discuss the leadership team’s understanding of and goals for using Scrum.

• Introductory Meeting with Teams – This is an opportunity to Introduce Scrum

Inc. and the assessment, answer any questions, break the ice, etc. In

keeping with the Scrum principle of transparency, it is designed to show that

there is no hidden agenda and reduce potential anxiety that the teams may

feel. This can be one meeting with all teams, or separate meetings with

individual teams depending on host company schedule and preference.

• Interview POs and Agile Coaches – Over the course of the multi-day visit, the

assessment team will have one-on-one discussions with all Product Owners

and Coaches to talk about their particular Scrum, how they execute the key

Scrum practices and meetings and their interpretation of how Scrum supports

the organization’s goals and objectives.

• Team Observation – Between the meetings, the assessment team will observe

the teams working and interacting in their actual team environment. At a

minimum, this will include observing all of the key Scrum meetings: Daily

Standup, Sprint Planning, Sprint Review, and Sprint Retrospective.

• Wrap-Up – At the end of the on-site visit, the assessment team will meet with

the assessment sponsors and relevant leadership about initial findings. The

assessment team will already be able to share a preliminary report of findings

that can outline the overall results, key strengths and opportunities for

improvement, and an estimate of the incremental business value from

addressing the top opportunities.

Post-Visit Follow-Up - In the week following the on-site visit, the assessment team

will further distill the themes from the findings of the assessment and prepare a

more detailed final report for company distribution. The report will highlight key

strengths, top opportunities for improvement, and provide detailed recommendations

on the next steps to improvement. The final report will also include how teams in the

host company compare to teams at other assessed companies, and an estimated

velocity improvement and potential business value increase if the proposed

recommendations are implemented.

 

 

 

 

 

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These findings can be shared and discussed in a live meeting between the host

company and the Assessment team. The report will also indicate whether the

company or any team has qualified for a Scrum Capability Rating.

At that time, any companies or teams qualifying for a Scrum Capability Rating will

also receive a marketing package including:

• A personalized .jpeg of the award icons that can be used on the host

company’s website and marketing materials. The icon indicates the company,

date of assessment, and level of recognition achieved

• A rating description that can be shared with teams, customers and others

• The link to view the host company’s rating as officially listed on the Scrum Inc.

website

ScrumScore™:

Companies that demonstrate mature Scrum practices will be awarded one of three

different Scrum Capability Rating Awards in recognition of their accomplishment:

Bronze, Silver, or Gold. All ratings will be dated with the month and year they were

awarded, recognizing that any assessment is a snap shot in time. Bronze level

ratings will also indicate the specific teams included in the rating.

Bronze - A “Scrum Inc. Bronze” rated company is consistently executing essential

elements of Scrum well in core segments of their business. All roles, artifacts and

ceremonies are carried out effectively. Teams know their velocity and deliver a

working increment of product at the end of each Sprint. They are aware of and

consistently removing impediments, and have demonstrated and sustained

improvement in velocity over time. Any variations from core Scrum are deliberate,

done only in response to specific business needs, and grounded in Agile principles.

Silver - A “Scrum Inc. Silver” rated company is a step above. Not only do they meet

all requirements of the Bronze level, but they demonstrate effective use of advanced

patterns outside of core Scrum (e.g. using Scrum dashboards to report progress to

leadership, best practice engineering standards, demonstrating effective release

planning). They must be executing Scrum effectively across all value-generating

business units, including Agile leadership; and have successfully delivered on Agile

projects in the past.

Gold - A “Scrum Inc. Gold” rated company has achieved something truly

extraordinary. In addition to all traits of a Bronze and Silver company, several teams

at a Gold rated company have reached hyper-productivity. (i.e. a velocity increase of

4-8x). Gold companies have embraced Scrum at an enterprise level…delivering

repeatedly on Agile projects, using Agile contracting and performance evaluation,

and institutionalizing continuous improvement at a fundamental level. Gold

companies clearly demonstrate a focus on delivering to customers and explicitly

recruit each business unit to support that effort. A Gold rating represents the

pinnacle of Scrum/Agile proficiency, so at first we expect very few firms to reach this

level.

 

 

 

 

 

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General Pricing

For a list of our pricing please contact us directly.

General Terms and Conditions

The services and pricing outlined in this proposal are offered subject to the following

terms and conditions

Intellectual Property

Scrum Inc. and its subcontractors reserve exclusive rights to any pre-existing

methods, approaches, frameworks, documents, or other intellectual property used by

its staff in the course of completing this engagement. Our clients are granted a

limited license to use these methods, approaches, frameworks, documents or other

intellectual property for the exclusive purpose of implementing the actions or

recommendations derived from our work together.

Scrum Inc. also reserves the rights to any new intellectual property generated or

refined through the course of its work with clients. Rights to co-developed materials

may be jointly owned by Scrum Inc., its subcontractors, and clients with an active

role in their development. In this case, co-ownership must be explicitly granted in

writing by Scrum Inc.

In addition, Scrum Inc. is actively engaged in advancing the frontiers of Agile

thinking, and may seek to develop teaching materials, case studies and/or write-ups

derived from its work on this engagement. We always seek to do this in partnership

with our clients, and will request permission before publishing. Any data provided by

the client to Scrum Inc. for the purposes of completing our engagement remains the

client’s property.

Confidentiality

From time to time, our client work requires us to see and use non-public information

(written or otherwise), including employee data, financial data and internal strategic

documents. Disclosure of this “Confidential Information” could cause harm to our

client. In light of this, Scrum Inc. agrees to maintain the confidentiality of our

client’s Confidential Information. This information must be marked “Confidential” at

the time it is shared with Scrum Inc.

Information will not be considered “Confidential” if:

a. It is generally known to the public, or available in the public domain

b. It was independently developed by Scrum without access or reference to

other Confidential Information

c. It was lawfully obtained from a third party without any obligation of

confidentiality

d. It was known to Scrum Inc. prior to the start of the engagement

e. It was later published or generally disclosed by client

 

 

 

 

 

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Scrum Inc. may disclose confidential information as required by law. In this case,

we will notify our client of an impending disclosure before it is made.

Scrum Inc. also reserves the right to list past clients in our marketing, proposal, and

class materials.

Non-Competition

We recognize that well-executed Scrum implementation can drive significant

competitive advantage, and that Scrum Inc.’s work will occasionally expose us to

proprietary information that, if shared, could harm our client’s competitive position.

In light of this, Scrum Inc. is willing to enter a non-compete agreement with our

clients, if explicitly requested and justified by the work being performed. However,

any non-compete agreement will be limited to work with direct competitors to our

client (defined as operating in the same industry and geographic market as the client

business unit that Scrum Inc. is supporting) and the exclusion period of the non-

compete will not exceed one year following the last day of a paid engagement.

Staff Availability

Scrum Inc. will make every attempt to have the identified team available at the time

support is requested, or to make alternative staff available. To maintain our agile

operation, we require notice of an impending request for ad hoc consulting support

no later than the week before support is requested. Requests with more lead time

allow significantly more flexibility in support.

We continually seek to improve our service and results, and welcome any feedback

on our team, its members, or the service provided.

Payment Terms

Payment is due to Scrum Inc. within 30 days after receipt of each invoice. Scrum

Inc. reserves the right to apply interest, starting from the invoice date, calculated

using the US Prime Rate as listed in the Wall Street Journal on the invoice date and

compounded daily, on any payments not received within the 30-day window.

Limits of Liability

In no event will Scrum Inc. be liable for special, indirect, incidental or consequential

damages, including lost profits. This holds even if we have been advised of the

possibility of such damages. Scrum Inc.’s liability from any cause will be limited to

the total amount paid by the client to Scrum Inc. for its services.

Local Tax Obligation

The client is responsible for any local tax obligations created by our work during this

engagement. Any taxes imposed by local jurisdictions other than those where Scrum

 

 

 

 

 

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Inc. maintains an office will be paid by the client in addition to the fees included in

this proposal.