scrum master certification

2026 Update: While the core Agile principles discussed here remain highly relevant, Scrum practices and certification tracks have evolved. To master the latest frameworks and get certified, view our fully updated Scrum Master Certification Course in Malaysia for the latest class schedules and HRD Corp claimable options.

As we emerge from the COVID pandemic, complex problems are bound to emerge. Such complex problems require adoption of agile practices for innovative solutions to emerge. It requires a different way to manage a business. There are many ways to apply agile principles in practice. One common way is to use a methodology called Scrum.

Scrum solves complex problems faced and enables development of innovative ideas for improvement. These ideas come about through collaborative interaction among key stakeholders that is facilitated by a Scrum Master. A Scrum Master provides an enjoyable and a streamlined atmosphere for the development team, which in turn improves the product and fosters innovation. Such a role is fast replacing the role of a traditional Project Manager.

Scrum Masters are in high demand due to the limited number of people working in the field. For instance, in 2017, the role of a Scrum Master was ranked 10th among the most promising jobs in the world

Let’s explore why you should consider playing the role of a Scrum Master.

1. Become more valuable to the Company

Scrum decreases time to market, which means there are high returns on every investment the company makes. Since you are guiding the development process, your services become even more indispensable to the organization. For example, regular feedback through sprint reviews directly from stakeholders, including customers, enables project correction earlier which is less costly and time-consuming than later in the process.

2. Contribute towards developing “cool” products

The joy of developing products which simplify complex problems for the end users is unparalleled, and so is the recognition that comes with it.

As a Scrum Master you can contribute to delivering customer centric products and have the satisfaction of knowing that your team was pivotal to the success of the project. Moreover, it makes everyone, the company, the team, and the customers happy.

3. Be in a position of higher visibility

As a Scrum Master, you oversee every aspect of a project. This kind of visibility makes it easier to identify issues during the development phase and resolve them quickly. A complete control of the project comes with the responsibility for its failings.

Thus, encouraging you to take full accountability to reduce the risks of developing a project, which in turn makes you—as a Scrum Master—more visible to the company.

4. Drive exciting innovation

A scrum team delivers high value products to clients. To do this, they need to provide an enjoyable and conducive work environment for the members. This helps the team to focus on being self-organized, encouraging others to come up with innovative and creative ideas and increase efficiency.

As a Scrum Master, you are involved in time scaling and providing accurate details of the project requirements—deciding the flexibility of the development and guiding innovative measures to achieve the target. You are essentially driving innovation for the team to do better every time, all the time

5. Build a Promising Career Path for your future

A Scrum Masters career path is never ending. They can proceed to become Scrum mentors/coach, project managers and product owners. In addition, companies pay the Scrum Master handsomely to keep them in the company. In 2019, it is stated that 15% of responders as a Scrum Master are earning over USD100K a year without a formal certification. 50% of respondents who are Scrum Master who make over USD 75,000 annually have formal Scrum training while only 6% of those in that same range do not have formal Scrum Training.

Conclusion

It is clear that Scrum Master is valuable in any organization. You will pick up lots of skill as a once you learn and practically apply your knowledge as a Scrum Master. Being a Scrum Master is easy and you can do it at home. Sharma Management International provides certification for you to be a Scrum Master. Join us online for a 2-day Scrum Master Certification preparatory session and get certified after passing the exam while being at home.

2026 Update: While the core Agile principles discussed here remain highly relevant, Scrum practices and certification tracks have evolved. To master the latest frameworks and get certified, view our fully updated Scrum Master Certification Course in Malaysia for the latest class schedules and HRD Corp claimable options.

What you need and how you do it?

Whenever the need to convince someone arises, the need for justification always arises as well. Justification means providing a reason for proposing something new or different. It could be a new approach you want to adopt or when seeking funding for projects that involve considerable need for adaptation to changing requirements.

This is when it becomes imperative for the Product Owner to justify the deployment of a project undertaken based on a scrum-based framework. All stakeholders involved, including clients have to understand that scrum adopts a “Value Driven Delivery” concept unlike traditional projects. Scrum, unlike traditional projects is designed to drive value throughout the project, not only achieve value at the end of the project.

In this regard, for scrum-based projects, business justification occurs on a continuous basis; at the beginning, at established intervals throughout the project lifecycle and whenever a risk or issue presents itself. This justification process takes place prior to the initiation of a project and is consistently validated throughout the lifecycle.

Here at Sharma Management International, we believe that this business justification should entail three steps:

1. Presentation and Evaluation of a Business Case – Usually a project is generally evaluated and approved by the Product Owner in a Scrum friendly company. After approval, the project is documented and presented as a business case. Subsequently, the Product Owner creates a Project Vision Statement and obtains approval from executives and/or the project or program management board.
2. Justification of Continuous Value - After decision makers have approved the Project Vision Statement, it is baselined and delineates the business justification. The business rationalization is continuously validated during the entire project execution stage and at predefined milestones
3. Benefits Realization Confirmation – The Product Owner confirm the realization of customer benefits throughout the project and when the User Stories in the Prioritized Product Backlog have been developed and accepted.

By ensuring that these steps are undertaken without fail, business justification for scrum projects increases confidence levels of the ability for scrum projects to provide value driven delivery.

Business Justification can be learnt at a deeper level by joining our online Scrum Master Certification course on 14 – 15 July 2020. Click here to find out more.

Dr Rumesh Kumar,

PMP, SMC, CST

2026 Update: While the core Agile principles discussed here remain highly relevant, Scrum practices and certification tracks have evolved. To master the latest frameworks and get certified, view our fully updated Scrum Master Certification Course in Malaysia for the latest class schedules and HRD Corp claimable options.

The emergence of scrum as an alternative approach to managing projects has been bewildering. It started off as a methodology suited primarily for the IT industry but has now been touted as the mainstay of project management in an increasingly turbulent business environment. So what is “scrum” and why is it gaining such rapid popularity? This article aims to shed some light towards answering this question.