Scrum Master

Senior Scrum Master

Location: Remote, EST/CST

Duration: 9 Month Contract

Pay: $70-80/hr W2 ONLY, NO C2C

Description:

We are seeking an experienced Scrum Master / Agilist to join a team that has been practicing agile for several years using a hybrid approach combining Scrum and Kanban. The team is delivery oriented and mature, but not strictly “by the book. This role is not about enforcing a framework, but about improving flow, clarity, and team effectiveness. A key objective of this position is to relieve the Product Owner from Scrum Master responsibilities, allowing them to focus fully on product strategy and stakeholder value. The Scrum Master will act as a coach, facilitator, and system thinker, helping the team improve story definition and self organization, while respecting what already works.

Key Responsibilities: Team Enablement

• Coach the team on agile principles and practices, adapting Scrum, Kanban, and flow based practices to fit the team’s reality.
• Help the team move from “agile habits” to intentional, transparent, and disciplined ways of working.
• Foster a culture of continuous improvement, accountability, and psychological safety.
• Guide the team toward stronger self organization and ownership of outcomes.

Product Owner Support & Role Clarity

Take full ownership of Agilist/Scrum Master responsibilities, freeing the Product Owner to focus on:

• Product vision and roadmap
• Stakeholder engagement
• Value prioritization

Partner closely with the Product Owner to:

• Improve backlog health and readiness
• Clarify roles and decision boundaries
• Reduce operational and facilitation load on the PO Backlog & Stories

Coach the team and Product Owner on effective story writing:

• Clear user value
• Well defined acceptance criteria
• Right sized stories aligned with flow

Facilitate backlog refinement to improve:

• Priority clarity
• Dependency awareness
• Shared understanding across the team

Flow, Metrics & Delivery Effectiveness

• Improve delivery flow using flow based metrics where appropriate (e.g., WIP, cycle time, throughput).
• Facilitate ceremonies in a way that adds value.
• Identify systemic impediments and work with leadership and stakeholders to remove them.
• Support the team in balancing predictability, speed, and quality.

Facilitation & Communication

• Facilitate productive discussions, decision making, and conflict resolution.
• Act as a bridge between the team, Product Owner, and stakeholders when needed.
• Encourage clear communication, alignment on priorities, and shared accountability.

What Success Looks Like

• The Product Owner is no longer acting as a Scrum Master and can focus on product outcomes.
• The team demonstrates stronger self organization and shared ownership.
• User stories are clearer, better prioritized, and easier to execute.
• The team has fewer priority conflicts, better flow, and more predictable delivery.
• Agile practices are intentional and effective, not dogmatic.

Required Qualifications

• Proven experience as a Scrum Master, Agile Coach, or Agilist with mature teams.
• Strong understanding of Scrum, Kanban, and hybrid agile models.
• Hands on experience improving story writing, backlog refinement, and prioritization.
• Ability to coach without authority and influence through facilitation and trust.
• Comfortable working in environments that are not “by the book” and don’t want to be.