Scrum: The Basics Course

Lesson 1 • The Origins of Agile Thinking

Traces the historical shift from waterfall to iterative development and the Agile Manifesto's core values. Sets the philosophical context that makes Scrum's design choices meaningful.

Lesson 2 • The Scrum Guide as a Reference

Introduces the official Scrum Guide as the authoritative source and explains how to read it critically. Learners understand which rules are mandatory versus optional.

Lesson 3 • What Scrum Is and Is Not

Defines Scrum as a lightweight empirical framework, not a methodology. Clarifies common misconceptions that cause teams to misapply it.

Lesson 1 • Empiricism vs. Defined Process Control

Contrasts empirical and defined process control to explain why Scrum suits complex work. Grounds the theoretical distinction in real product development scenarios.

Lesson 2 • The Five Scrum Values Explained

Defines commitment, courage, focus, openness, and respect with workplace examples. Connects each value to observable team behaviors that support empiricism.

Lesson 3 • Transparency in Scrum

Explains transparency as the first pillar of empiricism and how artifacts make work visible. Learners see how hidden work undermines inspection and adaptation.

Lesson 1 • The Self-Managing Scrum Team

Introduces the concept of a small, cross-functional, self-managing team as Scrum's core unit. Establishes why team size and composition directly affect agility.

Lesson 2 • The Scrum Master Accountability

Explains the Scrum Master as a servant-leader who coaches the team and organization on Scrum. Learners identify the difference between facilitation and management.

Lesson 3 • The Developers Accountability

Defines Developers as the professionals who create the Increment each Sprint. Learners understand their self-management over the Sprint Backlog and quality commitments.

Lesson 4 • The Product Owner Accountability

Details the Product Owner's responsibility for maximizing product value and managing the Product Backlog. Learners distinguish effective PO behaviors from common anti-patterns.

Lesson 1 • The Sprint Backlog and Sprint Goal

Defines the Sprint Backlog as the Developers' plan for the Sprint and the Sprint Goal as its commitment. Learners distinguish the Sprint Goal from a task list.

Lesson 2 • Artifact Transparency and Trust

Connects artifact quality to stakeholder trust and sound decision-making. Learners identify signs of low-transparency artifacts and how to improve them.

Lesson 3 • The Product Backlog and Product Goal

Covers the Product Backlog as an ordered, emergent list of work and the Product Goal as its commitment. Learners practice writing and ordering backlog items effectively.

Lesson 1 • The Daily Scrum Mechanics

Explains the Daily Scrum as a 15-minute planning event for Developers, not a status report. Learners design effective Daily Scrum formats that drive adaptation.

Lesson 2 • The Sprint Retrospective

Defines the Retrospective as the team's opportunity to improve its process, relationships, and tools. Learners apply structured retrospective formats to produce actionable improvements.

Lesson 3 • Sprint Review and Stakeholder Feedback

Covers the Sprint Review as an inspection of the Increment and adaptation of the Product Backlog. Learners facilitate a review that generates actionable stakeholder input.

Lesson 4 • The Sprint as a Container

Establishes the Sprint as a fixed-length container for all other events and the heartbeat of Scrum. Learners understand why Sprint length affects risk and feedback frequency.

Lesson 1 • Writing Effective User Stories

Teaches the user story format and INVEST criteria for writing high-quality backlog items. Learners practice rewriting weak stories into actionable, testable items.

Lesson 2 • Relative Estimation Techniques

Introduces story points and relative sizing as tools for forecasting without false precision. Learners compare Planning Poker, T-shirt sizing, and affinity estimation.

Lesson 3 • Velocity and Forecasting

Explains velocity as a planning tool and its limitations as a performance metric. Learners use historical velocity to create realistic Sprint and release forecasts.

Lesson 1 • Achieving a Done Increment Every Sprint

Focuses on practices that ensure the team delivers a usable Increment by Sprint end. Learners identify technical and process habits that prevent undone work.

Lesson 2 • Handling Mid-Sprint Changes

Addresses how to respond when new information or stakeholder requests arrive during a Sprint. Learners apply the Sprint Goal as a decision filter for change requests.

Lesson 3 • Managing Flow During the Sprint

Teaches Developers to self-manage daily work, track progress, and surface blockers quickly. Learners use burndown charts and flow metrics to stay on track.

Lesson 1 • Measuring Agile Health and Maturity

Introduces team health checks and agile maturity models as diagnostic tools, not scorecards. Learners select appropriate metrics that reflect genuine agility rather than compliance.

Lesson 2 • Scaling Frameworks Overview

Surveys Nexus, LeSS, and SAFe as common approaches to coordinating multiple Scrum teams. Learners compare frameworks on complexity, overhead, and fit for different organizations.

Lesson 3 • Cross-Team Coordination Practices

Covers practical techniques for aligning multiple teams on a shared Product Backlog and integrated Increment. Learners design coordination touchpoints that minimize dependencies.

Lesson 4 • When and Why to Scale Scrum

Identifies the conditions that require multiple Scrum teams and the coordination challenges that arise. Learners evaluate whether scaling is necessary before choosing an approach.