Project Manager, Scrum Master, or are they one in the same? Do you feel they both belong on a project or that a Scrum Master is a specialized Project Manager and having only 1 of these roles on a project eliminates confusion?
Good Answers (6)
Hi Jeff,
I think that the clash of paradigms is embedded in your question. In Scrum, project management (as in project facilitation) is a shared responsibility distributed to all participants, with the ScrumMaster keeping an eye on the process to make sure it is working. The top-down management model for project execution is rejected in favor of self-organization and shared accountability.
There's still a need for project and portfolio management -- budgets, resource management, etc. Project managers can play a role there, but in Scrum, they would step back from project execution and task planning.
Jeroen R.
Java Developer at Elmar Reizen
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A scrum master is not really a project manager. The main tasks of a scrum master are to remove impediments to the ability of the team to deliver the sprint goal and to ensure the team applies SCRUM in the correct manner, while a project manager is mainly concerned with planning, organization and resource management.
Clarification added January 3, 2010:
So, if you feel the need of having a project manager role in addition to the Scrum master and Product Owner (who represents the customers voice) I would say go for it. You have to clearly separate the responsibilities of each role and make sure that every project stakeholder knows to which person he needs to go for what matter (Developers report to Scrummaster, Project manager reports to Management, Product owner reports to Client).
Paul O.
Software Consultant, People and Process Engineer, Lean, Agile and RUP at Capgemini
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You definitely don't want both, but typically a Project Manager has some extra responsibilities that a Scrum master might not; and vice-versa. The more enterprise-level PM activities such as hiring and firing, etc.; will probably be done by somebody not Scrum Master, not on the project. The PM activities of task allocation etc. deveolve to the team, the PM activities of wasting time re-writing useless plans etc. get ditched; the PM activities of improving process and removing impediments get considerably enhanced. There are few hard and ast rules, but you don't need both. Ken Schwaber (one of the 'founding fathers' of Scrum) uses the term "Scrum Master" to replace PM, to emphasise that a lot has changed from the traditional PM approach. So yes, Scrum Master is a specialized PM, if you can divorce yourself from many of the traditional ideas of what a PM is and does.
Susan D.
Project Management & Social Media Expert, Author and Speaker
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From a high level both roles extremely similar. However a project manager has a much more wide ranging role which encompasses managing scope, budget, timeframes and of course expectation.
A Scrum Master meanwhile is only interested in the development aspect of the project and in clearing issues / problems which relates to this. As such it needs to be someone well versed in either the detailed requirements or someone technical.
Regards
Susan
Links:
Lou S.
Freelance, Full Service Internet Marketing and Website Project Management
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Scrum Master is a combination of meeting facilitator, communicator, project support, arbitrator, project tracker, project planning assistant; which has no authority whatsoever.
A Project Manager is a person who has ultimate responsibility for creating the plan (hopefully in conjunction with the rest of the team), executing the plan such that it is complete within time and within budget.
A project manager can be a Scrum Master - but it is not recommended. There are 5+ reasons:
1. It is difficult for a facilitator with authority to get true collaboration - team members will tell what the project manager wants to hear instead of what really happened or is happening. Scrum masters can impact minor problems that could cause delays if not addressed
2. A Project Manager has a short-term and long-term goal and is accountable for both - a Scrum master's goal is usually limited to the 2-week sprint and hitting those marks
3. A Project Manager must manage resources AND most importantly shared resources - A Scrum master is concerned with the resources provided to him/her
4. A Project Manager has a 30,000 foot view of all the projects in the works, even the ones he/she is not managing - A scrum master is concerned with their projects assigned
5. A Scrum master's best skill is project tracking and clearing the way for that project to get complete - A Project Manager's best skill is strategizing the best route to get there.
In a sense, it is similar to the difference between a manager and a leader. The manager clears the forest floor to ensure the tribe can travel to their next destination. He/she takes care to set up camp, ensures there are no sick or wounded members, attends to the needs of the tribe, resolves conflicts within the group.
A Project Manager determines the best route that should be taken, the tools needed and provides estimates of time, equipment and the goal after having arrived. The Project Manager negotiates with whatever tribes occupy territory along the way to ensure safe passage, ensure the financing is adequate to make the trip and budgets accordingly. A Project manager ensures the equipment is satisfactory for contingencies and knows the weather patterns for that area. Both track progress, but only the project manager is accountable for the strategy and execution of the trip.
Although standard Scrum practices do not include the need for a project manager, it is difficult for me (in the web industry) to not have a project manager.
A project manager, in my opinion, is a person that can DRIVE the project to completion - which is often necessary. A scrum master does not have the authority to DRIVE a project. They may help create a project complete faster, but there is an inherent personality difference and authority level that will forever make these two positions different.
Bernard G.
Programme, Project & Change expert
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I'd say you generally need both. As others here have said the scrum master has rather specific responsibilities, and in my experience tend to be highly focussed on these, lacking the interest/expertise in the wider project management areas, especially important when it comes to defining business cases and to actual implementation.
