Certified ScrumMaster® (CSM) Course

The most recognized Agile/Scrum learning immersion & certification.

CSM Seal CSM Seal

Why Choose This Course & Instructor


More Insights & Options

This course directly addresses the required learning objectives from the Scrum Alliance. Plus, it then adds multiple perspectives, principles, & practices per topic, to empower you with more insight & options for impact.


"Scrum is supposed to be fast, easy, and fun. If it's slow, hard, and painful, you're doing it wrong."-- Jeff Sutherland, Co-Creator of Scrum


Video Preview of Training (1:14)

Knowledgeable, Patient, & Caring

Michael Kelley Harris

Agile Software Engineer + Coach + Trainer

20+ Agile years of humbling wins and hard-won lessons from startups to the world's largest organizations, plus venture capital and private equity. I'm here to help you grow your Agile influence, impact, & opportunities, and your organization's culture for ongoing innovation. I emphasize key principles because they are the most widely applicable and last the longest. I'm pragmatic vs dogmatic. I have extra experience in Agile engineering practices (XP), plus Lean Startup, & Design Thinking. HW/SW systems. More ... 650-485-1203

Testimonials

"...joyful...", "... engaged, valuable, and actionable...", "...wonderful experience...", "...awesome course...", "...expert and deep caring...", ".. one of the best trainers I've encountered...", "...interactive & inclusive...", "...I got the job!..."

Full Testimonials


Class Calendar



Class in SF

Prerequisites

None officially. For preperation, we recommend that you read The Scrum Guide, by the creators of Scrum. It's a brief 13 pages and will serve you well in the class, the exam, and beyond. Scrum Foundations learning objectives are corequisites. We'll study them in the CSM class.

Outline - Learning Objectives

Scrum Foundations

  • Scrum Theory
  • The Scrum Team
  • Scrum Events and Activities
  • Scrum Artifacts and Commitments
  • (details)

Additions for CSM

  • Lean, Agile, & Scrum
  • Scrum Master Core Competencies
  • Service to the Development Team
  • Service to the Product Owner
  • Service to the Organization
  • Changes to the Scrum Guide

Who Should Attend

Since the CSM is the oldest and most known Agile/Scrum certification, people from a wide range of roles attend the CSM, from team members to CEOs. Team members may want to consider the Certified Scrum Developer (CSD) or the CSM and CSD. Product people could consider the Certified Scrum Product Owner (CSPO),or both. Scrum Masters would benefit from taking the CSM, CSPO, & CSD, to support their role as the Scrum expert on the team.

The Scrum Alliance summarizes it as follows, "SCRUM MASTERS | SOFTWARE ENGINEERS | BUSINESS ANALYSTS | PROJECT MANAGERS | NEW SCRUM TEAM MEMBERS Anyone new to the agile way of work will find value from the concepts covered in the CSM course. Scrum is applicable across industries and potentially cross-functional teams, so marketers, data scientists, HR representatives, and other professionals looking for a better way to solve complex problems are encouraged to attend."

Benefits

  • Expand your Agile insights, influence, & opportunities.
  • Learn & practice in an emotionally safe environment.
  • Get the vocabulary down.
  • Dispel common myths.
  • Increase your insights, both strategic and tactical.
  • Leadership topics (Coaching style)
  • Increase your influence, and options
  • Save time & frustration by getting it clear.
  • Stay current as the industry becomes increasingly Agile. (Scrum is the most commonly used Agile framework by far, so it's good to know it.)
  • Certified ScrumMaster® title & certification, after passing a short exam provided by the Scrum Alliance. (Exam fees included.)
  • 2-year membership in the Scrum Alliance, a $100 value
  • Students with a Scrum Alliance certification already can claim one (1) SEU for each hour of class time. (e.g. 14-16)
  • 14 PDUs that can be used toward PMI certifications
  • Useful references
  • Network with peers


  • Class Logistics

    • The class is two full days of engagement, whether in-person or online.
    • Approximately a week before the class, I'll email specific details on the class.
    • For online courses, we typically use video and online collaboration tools. e.g. Zoom video and Google Docs or similar.

    CSM Seal

    Exam for Certification

    • After class, I'll upload your name & email to the Scrum Alliance, + pays fees. Scrum Alliance sends you an email w/ exam link, usually available the evening of the 2nd day.
    • If not received within 24 hrs, check spam, or email kelley@sourcecell.com a different email address
    • Exam online, open-book, any time. (Suggest < 1 wk)
    • Allowed 1 hour for 50 multiple-choice questions
    • Results right away. If score >= 37, -> CSM!
    • Your cert as pdf is on your Scrum Alliance profile.
    • If issues, email kelley@sourcecell.com or support@scrumalliance.org

    Simple Refund & Cancelation Policy

    If you decide not to attend/finish the class for any reason, let me know and I'll help you find an alternative class, or give you a full refund. You have up to the end of the 2nd day to tell me. If we need to cancel a class, we'll give you the choice of a full refund or another class.


    Class Calendar


    Extra Optional Reading

    In case you want to read more about the course, instructor, optional topics


    How Is This Class Different?

    First off, all CSM courses must meet the same learning objectives required by the Scrum Alliance. The learning objectives are based largely on the latest Scrum Guide. The instructors have lots of latitude about how the learning objectives are met. I add multiple perspectives, principles, & practices per topic. This reinforces the deeper principles & patterns, giving you more options in more situations.

    Many courses present Scrum as a very different, and new way, to do things, as if "waterfall" had previously been used for everything. I help you connect to examples in your life and work where you may be already using the Agile ideas naturally. This revelation may help you tell a compelling history of your Agile thinking. We'll also discuss some examples of Agile thinking and building long before and before Scrum went public in 1995 and the Agile Manifesto went public in 2001

    While many courses give you one main example way to apply a principle or practice. I strive to give you multiple ways so that you can see the deeper pattern and adapt to more diverse situations and constraints. We directly hit each topic from multiple angles, the official word, what we've seen in the wild, the deeper "why" it matters, alternative views, trade-offs, balance, and how you can recognize if something is off, and ways to solve it.

    It is not a lecture class. While we will do some simulations/games and watch some relevant videos, the class is mainly a collaborative discussion. (somewhat Socratic style or coaching style) The format of this class is best for people who want to engage in an exploration & discussion of these topics, both for discovery and as practice for the discussions you'll later have in your real teams & organizations, and interviews. (& the CSM exam)


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    How Is This Instructor Different?

    First off, all the instructors I've met are good. The CSM instructors need to be Scrum Alliance approved Certified Scrum Trainers (CSTs). There are only approx 250 in the world. Most are from a project management background. I have done lots of project management, and lots of engineering, R&D, and entrepreneurial adventures. I've helped people from the C code to the C suite, plus helping venture capital and private equity firms.

    After being certified to teach the CSM & CSPO, I gradually attended 12+ more CSM, CSPO, & CSD courses from top Scrum teachers including four from the creator of Scrum Jeff Sutherland, plus Jeff McKenna, Roger Brown, Bryan Stallings, Rob Myers, Paul Moore, and more. You get the benefit of my diverse portfolio of perspectives, practices, & solutions.

    As your instructor, I focus on your Journey, from where you are to where you want to go. I look forward to meeting you and helping you move forward in the direction of your choice.

    My personal passions include running, growing food, writing songs, and using Agile ideas for environmental sustainability innovation.

    Other Topics

    As time permits, and the class chooses, we can discuss: Agile Leadership, Scaling, Distributed teams, Engineering/Technical practices, Testing Pyramid, ...

    The first Scrum teams, and the best Scrum software teams, typically make full use of Agile engineering practices from Extreme Programming. I'll point out the practices, and explain why & how they matter. While this topic is not on the CSM test, it matters to your success with Scrum for real products.

    This course often includes some Lean Startup principles, how they complement Scrum, and how the full Scrum team can participate in product experiments and validation, in organizations of all sizes.


    What is Scrum?

    Scrum is a lightweight framework for developing products, in the context of change and uncertainty. It is very popular in innovative software organizations. But it can be applied to any industry. See the Scrum Guide and the Scrum Alliance's site for summary info on Scrum Master certification. Return here to take the course.

    Why Get Certified

    While some people take the course just for learning and don't take the exam for the certification. But many people do want the certification. Here are some reasons why:

    Why Get Certified?