Books
- 5 min read
Recommended Books for Scrum Masters
A good ScrumMaster knows that learning doesn’t begin and end with a workshop.
Read full articlePut an End to Ineffective Scrum
Deliver the right value with high quality, without feeling micromanaged or wasting time in pointless meetings.
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Students certified
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20+
Years of Agile experience
We've helped 8000+ people find success using Scrum
Proud to be the trusted training provider for many of the largest financial, insurance, software, and education organizations, as well as all levels of Canadian government.
Mark was entertaining and kept the course moving. When we delved into detail the information was usually useful. We covered the basics and more, and it makes going back to work with reinforced skills and ideas on how to change our practices appealing instead of scary.
Samantha CMontreal
Well versed in knowledge and provided great "philosophical" thinking towards solutions to problems at work. Fun and approachable. Encourages solution formulation yourself.
Kang CKitchener-Waterloo
Great to get this training from the subject matter expert.
Nisha AToronto
The course does an excellent job in this covid world. Lots was learned even though I have been working in an agile environment for years. Would certainly return to Agile Pain Relief if I decide to pursue future training.
Robert AVirtual
Wanted to say thanks again for the great insights at the CSM course last month. I've had a fair amount of success thus far introducing and implementing the concepts at the agency I work for. We completed our first full Scrum project yesterday. Scrum really is a magnifying glass for issues. We identified quite a few with our systems within the first couple of days and are now radically overhauling how we assign budgets to projects.
Paul AOttawa
Was an extremely focused and well organized two days, I have taken other courses in similar timelines but found this significantly easier to consume and digest the information. Mark was funny, and left me with an impression of “this guy is legit, and extremely intelligent, I need to soak up his knowledge”.
Jack BVirtual
Mark was a great instructor! Very enthusiastic about the course and assisting its participants in becoming successful product owners. Incredibly knowledgeable and entertaining.
Elizabeth CToronto
I learned a lot and the content was far more enganging than I expected it to be. I come away with many improvements I can make to my organization. Thanks and well done.
Dan CKitchener-Waterloo
Using Scrum to teach Scrum. Perfect.
Andrew COttawa
Mark is very well read, with lots of breadth. Mark helped to challenge participants' ways of thinking that could impede scrum implementation.
Louise BOttawa
Great facilitator. Kept interest with activities and exercises.
Lynn MOttawa
Mark was very personable and knowledgeable about the subject. Nothing threw him.
Sharon GPrivate Client
The instructor was very good and demonstrated a clear knowledge of scrum and its principles. Hope to bring this knowledge with me into my company.
Kevin AToronto
Very knowledgeable teacher with tons of examples and real life stories.
Alex BMontreal
Mark was an excellent instructor, with a sense of humour that helped keep my focus (which is particularly challenging with the course being online over 3 days). Being able to run through simulated sprints to help reinforce the material was very helpful.
Micheal CVirtual
Great course to get started. Mark is greatly knowledgeable and shares well the information.
Christine AMontreal
Very good introduction to my new role. Mark leads lively and thought-provoking discussions.
Bob COttawa
Fantastic. Very engaging and helpful blend of both Scrum and general business advice.
Dace DOttawa
Very knowledgeable and pleasant to work with.
Kristian BEdmonton
Excellent instructor!!! Expert in Agile/Scrum.
Marc BOttawa
Mark is a great presenter. I appreciate that he is to the point and succinct in his points, but can expand when prompted. I appreciate that there was room for "derailment" and that the training was made more custom tailored to the individual experiences of the scrum masters at our org. The subject matter was good. I think it contained a lot of the info that new scrum masters don't think about, and covered a lot of traps that they fall into.
Adel AVirtual
Mark was very knowledgeable; I really appreciated the examples that he shared with the group. Thank you!
Suzanne AVirtual
I really enjoyed Mark, despite not being my sector I was able to make connections and take away information.
Catherine BOttawa
Mark did a fantastic job incorporating SCRUM through the training while not giving answers, but forcing us to think on our own.
Kellen BKitchener-Waterloo
Excellent. Learn a lot about Scrum. Very knowledgeable and experienced in the area. Able to relate different examples on questions asked during class.
Robert CToronto
The course included everything I hoped to cover and Mark very well demonstrated its content.
Jerome CToronto
Strong instructor, great knowledge of the material. A very good pace.
Ken AKitchener-Waterloo
Instructor was amazing, easy to listen to and follow. Did not read from book and provided concrete examples.
Tricia AOttawa
Excellent, material and discussion was perfect.
Jacques CVirtual
Mark is very knowledgeable and really challenges the class to engage, speak, think about the core concepts, even when it’s messy/unclear in “real world” situations. I talked to a couple of my colleagues afterward and even the ones who were having difficulty with the usefulness of Scrum in their professional lives really enjoyed the course and the instructor, myself included.
Louis BVirtual
Great agenda, engaging instructor, relevant examples and exercises. 10/10 rating
Ed AVancouver
Interaction was great, content is very useful and can be applied to improve our way right way. Nice control of the group by the instructor.
Ana BMontreal
Mark made the class enjoyable. I was initially dreading a 3 day course. After the first day I knew that I could live through the course.
Dickie BPrivate Client
Great course! I will recommend this to others.
Darryl EVancouver
Mark is very well prepared and understands his material in depth. He has a very logical way of looking at questions which can shift people’s understanding in a useful way. If you need to understand “pure” Scrum, this is a good course.
Paul AVirtual
Mark is a very knowledgeable and respectful instructor. He kept the information interesting and engaging, and was great at adapting the focus of the content to align with the needs of the participants. The course overall accomplished its goal of providing me with a good feel for the role of a Scrum Master.
Lisa CVirtual
Amazing instructor, very clear and breaks our pre-conceived understandings.
Jean-Francois BMontreal
As a junior developer you helped me learn more about software development and the right way to do things.
Joe HPrivate Client
This is the first course that I have taken virtually, and I enjoyed it very much. Thanks to Mark!
Jennifer HVirtual
Course: great content! Instructor: excellent and very knowledgeable on the subject.
Nadeem FEdmonton
Provided excellent understanding of scrum, more difficult concepts with a very hands on approach.
Carmen CToronto
Very much appreciated the training material as it has direct implication in our project methodologies.
Mizan CMontreal
Thank you Mark, I have lots of ideas to bring back to the team. I appreciated your energy and sense of humor.
David COttawa
Mark is very easy to listen to. He is knowledgeable and keeps the class engaged. He has a lot of experience.
Lori CToronto
Great energy. Interesting course material.
Julie CToronto
The course was well laid out, a good mix of discussions, examples, and practice.
Chris FToronto
Very helpful for our specific problems. Excellent responding to questions with good examples. Sense of humour. Fun but thorough course.
Tina SPrivate Client
Extremely enlightening. Put a lot of elements into proper context. Great foundation.
Yvan NMontreal
Mark is very knowledgeable and open/fair when answering questions or comments from the class. The course did a great job of covering scrum.
Darryl COttawa
Excellent, expert, engaging, humourous, I would strongly recommend any course offered by Mark!
Tod MVancouver
Mark is very well read, with lots of breadth. Mark helped to challenge participants' ways of thinking that could impede scrum implementation.
Louise BOttawa
Great facilitator. Kept interest with activities and exercises.
Lynn MOttawa
Mark was very personable and knowledgeable about the subject. Nothing threw him.
Sharon GPrivate Client
The instructor was very good and demonstrated a clear knowledge of scrum and its principles. Hope to bring this knowledge with me into my company.
Kevin AToronto
Very knowledgeable teacher with tons of examples and real life stories.
Alex BMontreal
Mark was an excellent instructor, with a sense of humour that helped keep my focus (which is particularly challenging with the course being online over 3 days). Being able to run through simulated sprints to help reinforce the material was very helpful.
Micheal CVirtual
Mark was entertaining and kept the course moving. When we delved into detail the information was usually useful. We covered the basics and more, and it makes going back to work with reinforced skills and ideas on how to change our practices appealing instead of scary.
Samantha CMontreal
Great course to get started. Mark is greatly knowledgeable and shares well the information.
Christine AMontreal
Very good introduction to my new role. Mark leads lively and thought-provoking discussions.
Bob COttawa
Fantastic. Very engaging and helpful blend of both Scrum and general business advice.
Dace DOttawa
Very knowledgeable and pleasant to work with.
Kristian BEdmonton
Excellent instructor!!! Expert in Agile/Scrum.
Marc BOttawa
Well versed in knowledge and provided great "philosophical" thinking towards solutions to problems at work. Fun and approachable. Encourages solution formulation yourself.
Kang CKitchener-Waterloo
Mark is a great presenter. I appreciate that he is to the point and succinct in his points, but can expand when prompted. I appreciate that there was room for "derailment" and that the training was made more custom tailored to the individual experiences of the scrum masters at our org. The subject matter was good. I think it contained a lot of the info that new scrum masters don't think about, and covered a lot of traps that they fall into.
Adel AVirtual
Great to get this training from the subject matter expert.
Nisha AToronto
Mark was very knowledgeable; I really appreciated the examples that he shared with the group. Thank you!
Suzanne AVirtual
I really enjoyed Mark, despite not being my sector I was able to make connections and take away information.
Catherine BOttawa
Mark did a fantastic job incorporating SCRUM through the training while not giving answers, but forcing us to think on our own.
Kellen BKitchener-Waterloo
The course does an excellent job in this covid world. Lots was learned even though I have been working in an agile environment for years. Would certainly return to Agile Pain Relief if I decide to pursue future training.
Robert AVirtual
Excellent. Learn a lot about Scrum. Very knowledgeable and experienced in the area. Able to relate different examples on questions asked during class.
Robert CToronto
The course included everything I hoped to cover and Mark very well demonstrated its content.
Jerome CToronto
Wanted to say thanks again for the great insights at the CSM course last month. I've had a fair amount of success thus far introducing and implementing the concepts at the agency I work for. We completed our first full Scrum project yesterday. Scrum really is a magnifying glass for issues. We identified quite a few with our systems within the first couple of days and are now radically overhauling how we assign budgets to projects.
Paul AOttawa
Strong instructor, great knowledge of the material. A very good pace.
Ken AKitchener-Waterloo
Was an extremely focused and well organized two days, I have taken other courses in similar timelines but found this significantly easier to consume and digest the information. Mark was funny, and left me with an impression of “this guy is legit, and extremely intelligent, I need to soak up his knowledge”.
Jack BVirtual
Mark was a great instructor! Very enthusiastic about the course and assisting its participants in becoming successful product owners. Incredibly knowledgeable and entertaining.
Elizabeth CToronto
I learned a lot and the content was far more enganging than I expected it to be. I come away with many improvements I can make to my organization. Thanks and well done.
Dan CKitchener-Waterloo
Instructor was amazing, easy to listen to and follow. Did not read from book and provided concrete examples.
Tricia AOttawa
Excellent, material and discussion was perfect.
Jacques CVirtual
Mark is very knowledgeable and really challenges the class to engage, speak, think about the core concepts, even when it’s messy/unclear in “real world” situations. I talked to a couple of my colleagues afterward and even the ones who were having difficulty with the usefulness of Scrum in their professional lives really enjoyed the course and the instructor, myself included.
Louis BVirtual
Great agenda, engaging instructor, relevant examples and exercises. 10/10 rating
Ed AVancouver
Interaction was great, content is very useful and can be applied to improve our way right way. Nice control of the group by the instructor.
Ana BMontreal
Mark made the class enjoyable. I was initially dreading a 3 day course. After the first day I knew that I could live through the course.
Dickie BPrivate Client
Great course! I will recommend this to others.
Darryl EVancouver
Mark is very well prepared and understands his material in depth. He has a very logical way of looking at questions which can shift people’s understanding in a useful way. If you need to understand “pure” Scrum, this is a good course.
Paul AVirtual
Mark is a very knowledgeable and respectful instructor. He kept the information interesting and engaging, and was great at adapting the focus of the content to align with the needs of the participants. The course overall accomplished its goal of providing me with a good feel for the role of a Scrum Master.
Lisa CVirtual
Amazing instructor, very clear and breaks our pre-conceived understandings.
Jean-Francois BMontreal
As a junior developer you helped me learn more about software development and the right way to do things.
Joe HPrivate Client
This is the first course that I have taken virtually, and I enjoyed it very much. Thanks to Mark!
Jennifer HVirtual
Course: great content! Instructor: excellent and very knowledgeable on the subject.
Nadeem FEdmonton
Provided excellent understanding of scrum, more difficult concepts with a very hands on approach.
Carmen CToronto
Very much appreciated the training material as it has direct implication in our project methodologies.
Mizan CMontreal
Using Scrum to teach Scrum. Perfect.
Andrew COttawa
Thank you Mark, I have lots of ideas to bring back to the team. I appreciated your energy and sense of humor.
David COttawa
Mark is very easy to listen to. He is knowledgeable and keeps the class engaged. He has a lot of experience.
Lori CToronto
Great energy. Interesting course material.
Julie CToronto
The course was well laid out, a good mix of discussions, examples, and practice.
Chris FToronto
Very helpful for our specific problems. Excellent responding to questions with good examples. Sense of humour. Fun but thorough course.
Tina SPrivate Client
Extremely enlightening. Put a lot of elements into proper context. Great foundation.
Yvan NMontreal
Mark is very knowledgeable and open/fair when answering questions or comments from the class. The course did a great job of covering scrum.
Darryl COttawa
Excellent, expert, engaging, humourous, I would strongly recommend any course offered by Mark!
Tod MVancouver
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Product Owner
- 4 min read
The Jenga Effect: Why Clients Don't Make Good Product Owners
How having the client as Product Owner is a bit like playing Jenga with a blind fold. Entertaining to watch, painful to play.
Read full article
Product Owner
- 7 min read
Product Owners and the Art of Saying NO
As a Product Owner, saying yes is easy, but can lead to incoherent products. Use Stakeholder Akido to say no and protect your backlog.
Read full article Why choose us
Get exclusive bonuses with our Scrum Alliance Certified Scrum training
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A practical plan for Scrum team success, to guide you through your first few months after class and help you be effective long-term.
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Get professional input on the unique issues you’re facing at your organization in a coaching session with Mark after training.
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When you’re confused about Scrum or Agile, you can access reputable information, including a Glossary and Resource Library.
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A safe online space to ask questions and get experienced answers when you run into challenges with Scrum and Agile.
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Fun and friendly virtual meet-ups to discuss Scrum and Agile. Hear from Mark and others what has and hasn’t worked for them.
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You’ll gain valuable skills and learning from our certification workshops, or we’ll refund your registration price.
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Explore what Scrum is and how to make it work for you in our Scrum Certification training. Hands-on learning will guide you to improve teamwork, deliver quick feedback, and achieve better products and results.
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Focuses on the role of the team and the ScrumMaster. Get the skills and practical experience necessary to improve teamwork, take the exam, and advance your career with a certification that is in high demand today. Often the best fit for anyone new to Scrum.
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Relatable Scenarios
Learn on-the-job applications of key Scrum concepts, skills, principles, along with practical solutions that you can apply the next day for difficult, real-life situations.
Respected Certification
Everything you need to earn your Scrum Alliance® ScrumMaster certification, including exam fee and membership, and so much more.
Practical Exercises
With focus on the challenges that real teams face, and tools to dig deeper. You don’t need more boring Scrum theory. You need something you can sink your teeth into to see immediate results.
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This workshop is not just for software development or people with a computer science degree. We’ve helped many non-software teams with Scrum.
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Use Scrum knowledge to standout at work, get paid more, and impress your customer, all without burning out.
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Our active Scrum community forum is a safe place to ask questions. Long after you earn the Certified Scrum Master certification, you will have access to the forum, course materials, and additional valuable resources.