Senior Scrum Master

Senior Scrum Master, Data Platform

Chennai, India

The Opportunity:

Anthology offers the largest EdTech ecosystem on a global scale, supporting over 150 million users in 80 countries. Our mission is to provide dynamic, data-informed experiences to the global education community so that learners and educators can achieve their goals.   

We believe in the power of a truly diverse and inclusive workforce. As we expand globally, we are committed to making diversity, inclusion, and belonging a foundational part of not only our hiring practices but who we are as a company.  

For more information about Anthology and our career opportunities, please visit www.anthology.com. 

As Senior Scrum Master, you will serve as the servant leader for your team(s) by ensuring clear communication and helping the team reach its goal. You will coach the team on the appropriate Agile methodology (Scrum/Kanban/SAFe/etc.) focused on predictable, quality delivery, and driving continuous improvement of the team. You’ll facilitate team productivity by removing impediments that may obstruct the pursuit of the team’s goals and by preserving flexibility and ability to rapidly respond to changes on the team.

Specific responsibilities will include:

• Serving as Senior Scrum Master for Scrum teams of varying levels of complexity, including highly complex teams
• Assessing Agile maturity within immediate Scrum teams and organization as a whole
• Facilitating Scrum ceremonies and providing coaching to further improve Agile maturity of teams via daily Scrum, retrospectives, sprint planning, and demonstrations
• Ensuring team maintains focus on quality and continuous delivery of business value
• Helping team proactively identify impediments, consistently recommending solutions, and, in some cases, removing impediments yourself
• Coaching your team through SAFe ceremonies like Program Increment (PI) planning and Inspect and Adapt workshops
• Representing the team(s) in regular Scrum of Scrums meetings and clearly communicating team accomplishments, impediments, and dependencies, as part of an Agile Release Train (ART)
• Assisting management with creating structural and cultural changes within teams to become more Agile
• Acting as an influencer by implementing Agile processes, practices, principles, and values; helping team and organization to improve collaboration and self-organization
• Demonstrating the ability to balance data with other factors when making decisions
• Utilizing team feedback, analyzing data, and reporting on team factors such as quality, delivery rate, throughput, productivity, and velocity
• Identifying areas of opportunity, points of success, and failure within team and organization, and communicating these findings to improve team efficiency/delivery
• Demonstrating ability to identify process inefficiencies, recommend solutions, and influence teams cross-functionally
• Reviewing the processes, practices, and outcomes of junior-level Scrum Masters and acting as a coach
• Being a go-to person for Agile and SAFe knowledge and coaching in the Chennai offices

The Candidate:

Required skills/qualifications:

• Bachelor’s degree or related work experience
• 5-8+ years of Agile or other related experience
• A strong understanding of and enthusiasm for Agile
• Experience with scaling Agile particularly using the Scaled Agile Framework (SAFe)
• Excellent communication skills
• Ability to pay accurate and precise attention to detail
• Ability to build strong interpersonal relationships with the Scrum team and stakeholders
• Comfortable working with multiple teams, both in-house and remote

Preferred skills/qualifications:

• Scrum Alliance CSM or PMI’s Agile Certified Professional
• Strong experience with SAFe
• SAFe 5 Agilist or SAFe 5 Practitioner or other SAFe certifications

The Office:

Blackboard has an office in one of the biggest cultural, economic, and educational centers in South India: Chennai.

·          Located on OMR, the IT corridor of South Chennai

·          Easy access to Velachery, Thiruvanmiyur Railway station and bus stop

·          Very close to Tidel Park, Ascendas, and SRP Tools – Holiday Inn 

·          Office provides lunch Tuesday – Thursday and evening snacks Monday – Friday 

·          Office is situated behind Hotel Turyaa on the 5th floor of Rayala Techno Park

·          Fun Committee, Happy Fete Team, Food Committee, and Sports Committee ensures fun at work

·          ISR Team actively engages employees in contributing to various local charities 

This job description is not designed to contain a comprehensive listing of activities, duties, or responsibilities that are required. Nothing in this job description restricts management's right to assign or reassign duties and responsibilities at any time.

Blackboard is an equal employment opportunity/affirmative action employer and considers qualified applicants for employment without regard to race, gender, age, color, religion, national origin, marital status, disability, sexual orientation, gender identity/expression, protected military/veteran status, or any other legally protected factor.