Product Owner
- 5 min read
Is the Scrum Guide Wrong About the Product Owner?
The Scrum Guide says POs aren't required at Daily Scrum, but should they be? Explore why Product Owners should attend to increase team value.
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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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 did a great job. I learned way more than I thought. Scrum is way more than sprints and stand ups. It's a system for effective teams.
Joshua BVirtual
The CSM course rocks! If you want to immediately jump into the action and improve as you go, this is it. You'll start off as a group of strangers, and find out how quickly you can build a high-performance team. And, if you separately want to read every comprehensive detail there is to know about scrum, Mark will share that with you too.
Nicole BVirtual
There is so much about Scrum that I didn't know I didn't know! Thanks Mark for an informative and engaging 2 days.
Dan LKitchener-Waterloo
Mark is a gifted teacher who really takes the time to ensure those who take his ScrumMaster course understand the topics and know how to apply scrum to their particular company and role. His use of group activities help turn concepts that can intially seem very unspecific into concrete examples and true understanding, which is especially helpful to those of us who are not software engineers or in a technical field. I would highly recommend Mark and Agile Pain Relief to those looking for a ScrumMaster course.
Rhiannon BVirtual
Mark was a great instructor with the curse of knowledge (in a good way). Detailed examples, solid application advice, and adaptable during the course. Thanks!
Nick GToronto
Mark was a good speaker and resourceful instructor. Exercises were practical and useful.
Ronald MPrivate Client
Mark you are a rockstar and I truly enjoyed and hopefully benefit.
Kerry OPrivate Client
Mark was exteremly knowledgeable and enganging facilitor and I would not hesitate to recommend him to anyone looking to bbuild their agile. Thanks for the excellent course!
Mike WPrivate Client
I found Mark very knowledgeable for the course material and good at getting his point across.
Shawn PMontreal
Mark is excellent. He instructs and communicates in simple and visual ways that are memorable. He is adaptable, and does a great job balancing needs of individuals and the group.
Ryan MToronto
Awesome and objective! Careful not to influence how we work by answering other students.
Shawn MMontreal
Instructor was engaging, kept the interest of the class. Nice material, I really like how we got into Scrum framework right away by using the backlog analogy for the course topics.
Cecilia OOttawa
Amazing instructor, very clear and breaks our pre-conceived understandings.
Jean-Francois BMontreal
Mark was really engaging and very knowledgeable.
Samantha BPrivate Client
Great energy. Made the day pass with a mix of humour and data.
Matthew COttawa
Mark knows his stuff and delivers a highly interactive and animated training.
Ted MPrivate Client
Mark was fantastic! Great examples!
Scott MKitchener-Waterloo
To the point and with passion!
Colin MToronto
Knows course material well. Quick to answer all questions.
Michael BEdmonton
Great use of time. Very clear examples of work life situations.
Duane BToronto
Mark is super knowledgeable and engaging. 10/10. Would recommend.
Steve BPrivate Client
Overall excellent instruction to Agile, practical exercises worked well, foundation to applications of principles and desire to learn more established.
Stuart BVancouver
Mark was a great instructor. His quirky ways and sense of humour make for a great course. I was entertained and interested each step of the way.
Philippe BPrivate Client
He is a great listener, well spoken and gives great examples and explanations. Speaks slowly, makes sure everyone understands.
Maxime MMontreal
Very good. Great at illustrating his point.
Manny BOttawa
Mark Levison was very effective in delivering the material for the class. He kept it interesting and interactive even though this was an online course.
Marie LVirtual
Very helpful and clear. Mark is good at pushing the boundary with good illustration.
Terry NToronto
Much more than expected. Great experience! I appreciate it very much!
Alfredo FOttawa
Mark knows the subject very well. He was never boring. He has offered good references for us to continue studying on our own.
Melanie LPrivate Client
Fantastic instructor. Great real story examples.
Allan CEdmonton
Lively, hands on, enlightening. Would recommend.
Allen NEdmonton
Very well done. Good introduction of the concepts, good use of technology, good practical incorporation of the methods being taught into the course itself, 10/10
Adam GVirtual
The course material is great and the way Mark presents it is very clear. Mark augments the material with real-world scrum experience across many components/orgs.
Scott NOttawa
Mark is very entertaining and knowledgable, the combination of which made for a great two days of training, well done!
Daniel JKitchener-Waterloo
Mark is very engaging and keeps things interesting during the course.
Adam MToronto
Very knowledgeable instructor about scrum and software development in general.
Elizabeth GOttawa
Great facilitator, very knowledgeable.
Jay TEdmonton
Mark was passionate and knowledgeable about this topic. He had the energy to keep it all interesting and was really animated. He showed great respect for all class members.
Peggy OPrivate Client
Great course! Very down to earth and humourous instructor. Would recommend to others!
Steve BKitchener-Waterloo
Really liked the approach by Mark to apply Scrum methodology to this training. Also Mark was available to answer questions and patient.
Damien JOttawa
The teaching methodologies used by the instructor complemented the material very well. The information packed session was delievered very well. It was a great course!
Swati TPrivate Client
I greatly enjoyed Mark's class. He is obviously a subject matter expert and has great insights.
Mandana BVirtual
Excellent instructor providing clear explanations. The course structure is flawless.
Benoit NMontreal
Great course. Covers the essentials and deals with a lot of potential situations and ways to handle them. Mark had great room presence and was a great communicator.
Michael VEdmonton
Really great! Fun, lots of examples & ways to keep people engaged.
Dave VPrivate Client
Calm, knowledgeable, and open to questions. Great.
Brandon GVirtual
Very good two days with excellent discussions. Mark was very adept at provoking these discussions.
Richard MOttawa
Awesome. Enlightment for pain points like overtime, too many WIP, motivation, etc.
Susie LVancouver
I like the way the course was taught through examples and games. I found personal anecdotes helpful in understanding concepts.
Randy EOttawa
Mark was a great instructor with the curse of knowledge (in a good way). Detailed examples, solid application advice, and adaptable during the course. Thanks!
Nick GToronto
Mark was a good speaker and resourceful instructor. Exercises were practical and useful.
Ronald MPrivate Client
Mark you are a rockstar and I truly enjoyed and hopefully benefit.
Kerry OPrivate Client
Mark was exteremly knowledgeable and enganging facilitor and I would not hesitate to recommend him to anyone looking to bbuild their agile. Thanks for the excellent course!
Mike WPrivate Client
I found Mark very knowledgeable for the course material and good at getting his point across.
Shawn PMontreal
Mark is excellent. He instructs and communicates in simple and visual ways that are memorable. He is adaptable, and does a great job balancing needs of individuals and the group.
Ryan MToronto
Awesome and objective! Careful not to influence how we work by answering other students.
Shawn MMontreal
Instructor was engaging, kept the interest of the class. Nice material, I really like how we got into Scrum framework right away by using the backlog analogy for the course topics.
Cecilia OOttawa
Amazing instructor, very clear and breaks our pre-conceived understandings.
Jean-Francois BMontreal
Mark was really engaging and very knowledgeable.
Samantha BPrivate Client
Great energy. Made the day pass with a mix of humour and data.
Matthew COttawa
Mark knows his stuff and delivers a highly interactive and animated training.
Ted MPrivate Client
Mark was fantastic! Great examples!
Scott MKitchener-Waterloo
To the point and with passion!
Colin MToronto
Knows course material well. Quick to answer all questions.
Michael BEdmonton
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
Great use of time. Very clear examples of work life situations.
Duane BToronto
Mark is super knowledgeable and engaging. 10/10. Would recommend.
Steve BPrivate Client
Overall excellent instruction to Agile, practical exercises worked well, foundation to applications of principles and desire to learn more established.
Stuart BVancouver
Mark was a great instructor. His quirky ways and sense of humour make for a great course. I was entertained and interested each step of the way.
Philippe BPrivate Client
He is a great listener, well spoken and gives great examples and explanations. Speaks slowly, makes sure everyone understands.
Maxime MMontreal
Very good. Great at illustrating his point.
Manny BOttawa
Mark Levison was very effective in delivering the material for the class. He kept it interesting and interactive even though this was an online course.
Marie LVirtual
Mark did a great job. I learned way more than I thought. Scrum is way more than sprints and stand ups. It's a system for effective teams.
Joshua BVirtual
Very helpful and clear. Mark is good at pushing the boundary with good illustration.
Terry NToronto
Much more than expected. Great experience! I appreciate it very much!
Alfredo FOttawa
Mark knows the subject very well. He was never boring. He has offered good references for us to continue studying on our own.
Melanie LPrivate Client
Fantastic instructor. Great real story examples.
Allan CEdmonton
Lively, hands on, enlightening. Would recommend.
Allen NEdmonton
Very well done. Good introduction of the concepts, good use of technology, good practical incorporation of the methods being taught into the course itself, 10/10
Adam GVirtual
The course material is great and the way Mark presents it is very clear. Mark augments the material with real-world scrum experience across many components/orgs.
Scott NOttawa
Mark is very entertaining and knowledgable, the combination of which made for a great two days of training, well done!
Daniel JKitchener-Waterloo
Mark is very engaging and keeps things interesting during the course.
Adam MToronto
Very knowledgeable instructor about scrum and software development in general.
Elizabeth GOttawa
Great facilitator, very knowledgeable.
Jay TEdmonton
The CSM course rocks! If you want to immediately jump into the action and improve as you go, this is it. You'll start off as a group of strangers, and find out how quickly you can build a high-performance team. And, if you separately want to read every comprehensive detail there is to know about scrum, Mark will share that with you too.
Nicole BVirtual
Mark was passionate and knowledgeable about this topic. He had the energy to keep it all interesting and was really animated. He showed great respect for all class members.
Peggy OPrivate Client
There is so much about Scrum that I didn't know I didn't know! Thanks Mark for an informative and engaging 2 days.
Dan LKitchener-Waterloo
Great course! Very down to earth and humourous instructor. Would recommend to others!
Steve BKitchener-Waterloo
Really liked the approach by Mark to apply Scrum methodology to this training. Also Mark was available to answer questions and patient.
Damien JOttawa
The teaching methodologies used by the instructor complemented the material very well. The information packed session was delievered very well. It was a great course!
Swati TPrivate Client
I greatly enjoyed Mark's class. He is obviously a subject matter expert and has great insights.
Mandana BVirtual
Excellent instructor providing clear explanations. The course structure is flawless.
Benoit NMontreal
Great course. Covers the essentials and deals with a lot of potential situations and ways to handle them. Mark had great room presence and was a great communicator.
Michael VEdmonton
Really great! Fun, lots of examples & ways to keep people engaged.
Dave VPrivate Client
Calm, knowledgeable, and open to questions. Great.
Brandon GVirtual
Very good two days with excellent discussions. Mark was very adept at provoking these discussions.
Richard MOttawa
Awesome. Enlightment for pain points like overtime, too many WIP, motivation, etc.
Susie LVancouver
I like the way the course was taught through examples and games. I found personal anecdotes helpful in understanding concepts.
Randy EOttawa
Mark is a gifted teacher who really takes the time to ensure those who take his ScrumMaster course understand the topics and know how to apply scrum to their particular company and role. His use of group activities help turn concepts that can intially seem very unspecific into concrete examples and true understanding, which is especially helpful to those of us who are not software engineers or in a technical field. I would highly recommend Mark and Agile Pain Relief to those looking for a ScrumMaster course.
Rhiannon BVirtual
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- 4 min read
Mismeasurement Mess - IRCC Leads the Way
Is IRCC's focus on speed creating unfair visa denials? Explore how mis-measurement clogs the system and hurts applicants.
Read full article
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- 4 min read
Human-Powered AI - A Fun Way to Understand How GenAI Really Works
Demystify GenAI with a hands-on simulation! See how it works mimicry, not magic
Read full article Why choose us
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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.