About Us
We focus on giving you the best possible return on investment, with many services and resources to help you become Agile.
Collaboration that reaps rewards takes more than having a group of people in the same office. Learning doesn't gain anything unless you can apply it and get results. We show you how to implement best practices in the context of your own organization with your unique goals and constraints in mind.
Approach
While Agile is the primary focus of our services, we have many years of experience running all sizes of software projects from the very small to the very large. We understand what it takes for teams to collaborate to create to best possible solution. We also have very deep understanding of the full software development lifecycle and of how to implement best practices.
While we are passionate about the work we do, we are also pragmatic about ensuring that the services that we deliver fit with your organization and your goals. The relationship that we build with you is of utmost importance.
Mark Levison
Mark Levison is the Certified Scrum Trainer and Agile Coach behind Agile Pain Relief Consulting. With over 30 years of experience in the IT industry, he has been learning and teaching Agile since 2001. Introducing Scrum, Lean, and Agile methodology to a large variety of organizations —government departments, banks, insurance, healthcare, education, software, logistics and non-profits, to name only a few— Mark has brought Scrum to thousands of professionals and helped launch the practice throughout Canada.
Participants benefit from Mark’s voracious study and writing on the neuroscience of learning. A respected international speaker at Agile Alliance conferences and Scrum Gatherings, Mark is also a published author on the subject, including The Guide to Effective Agile Retrospectives, Five Steps Towards Creating High-Performance Teams, blog “Notes from a Tool User”, “Beyond Scrum”, various guides and handbooks, and multiple articles for InfoQ and the Scrum Alliance.
Heather Uhl
Heather Uhl joined Agile Pain Relief Consulting in 2003 as Operations Manager, and supports Mark with his writing, teaching, and general business, as well as provides resource information for public Scrum enquiries and Agile Pain Relief’s thousands of alumni.
Decades of experience working with artists and non-traditional businesses underpins Heather’s interest in Agile methodology and her passion for empowering others to succeed. In addition to her work with Mark, she is the owner of More Time in a Day and longtime Operations Manager of Canadian Music Hall of Fame band Trooper.
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.
In addition to very quickly establishing the healthy learning culture, Mark was very candid and human in answer questions from his own experience and also drawing from his experiences of successes, failures, strengths, and weaknesses in his teaching. It allowed me to understand that while the theory is important and what I came to learn, it also served to, in a way, enrich me with his experiences, such that I felt I shared in his experiences as well. That's valuable experience that I didn't earn myself, but was given to me.
Bernard WVirtual
I've taken many courses over the years and this was the most educational, enjoyable experience with valuable activities and worthwhile, well-researched content.
Ron WEdmonton
I enjoyed the course and learned a lot. In addition to what I learned about the processes and methods I also appreciated learning the human aspect as well.
Matthew SPrivate Client
This is my second set of training with Mark. I must say he knows how to keep everyone engaged and participating in the hands-on workshops. He has an open-mind, is respectful of our opinions and knowledge space. He is extremely knowledgeable and knows how to instruct in a manner people understand and are able retain the learning. I have yet to see an Agile coach as enthusiastic and as good as Mark !
Tasneem SVirtual
I thoroughly enjoyed the course. While the two days were intensive and tiring, I learned a lot about scrum and becoming scrum master. Mark was a great instructor in that he was very knowledgeable and experienced in the subject. He set up a great environment where everyone can be engaged and have their questions answered. I'm really glad I took the course and I hope to continue learning more about Scrum, which now has become even more fascinating to me.
Maria SVirtual
Solid course, instructor was knowledgeable and friendly. I liked how it felt like a conversation and not a presentation, so I had pretty high engagement.This subject feels like an applied art, not a list of facts for memorization.
Michael RVirtual
Mark inspires you to make yourself better in the roles which makes your workplace better. I wish he could come to my place of employ to get us setup to succeed. Might have to look into that.
Jackie MEdmonton
Second course with Mark went great. I have to figure out how to afford more?
David HMontreal
Amazing instructor, was able to clearly explain complex concepts, made the course relevant and engaging! This will alow us to build strong agile teams.
Dylan HPrivate Client
Mark is a very clear and engaging instructor. He is able to use examples and exercises to ground our learning.
Ayesha KOttawa
Very informative course on the use of Scrum for software development. It covers all the areas of scrum, including all the key players and demonstrates how the roles, responsibilities and process work together to create effective, self organizing teams.
Amera PEdmonton
The course provided an excellent deep dive into scrum and the role of the scrum master. The instructor was very knowledgeable and well versed on the research of scrum.
Robyne LOttawa
Excellent instructor. Left lots of room for us to think by ourselves. Great!
Kathleen LVancouver
Great background experience, a lot of passion in his speech, was able to answer even challenging questions.
Alex NPrivate Client
Mark's knowledge and real world examples have cleared up my knowledge of scrum, the roles and responsibilities of the scrum team, and what I need to implement in my organization.
Greg MEdmonton
Amazing! Given the time a lot was covered about Scrum.
Hanumanth Reddy POttawa
Mark is an amazing communicator and is able to clearly deliver information. He uses good examples to illustrate how something should be done and shouldn't be done. He clearly has an expert level grasp of the SCRUM process. The course was fantastic, this was the best and most captivating training I've ever attended. Most times when participating in training there is a sense toward the end that you would like it to be over. At the end of this training I felt like I wanted it to continue.
Marc VVirtual
I got a lot of tricky questions answered. Real life issues we face at work.
Aleksandar YPrivate Client
Loved the pace and interactions. Also loved that all questions are not answered, leaves room to think and apply to your particuler workspace.
Alain WMontreal
Knowledgable, empethatic, and passionate about the topic.
Ghazi WOttawa
The instructor is very knowledgeable in the subject and kept us motivated and alert during the course. The course itself covers lots of material which is necessary for someone who wants to become a successful scrum master.
Elena RVirtual
Mark was full of energy. There was never a moment where what we were discussing wasn't interesting.
Swetha RKitchener-Waterloo
Mark is insightful, a pleasure to listen to, and inspires me toward making the changes needed so that I can work out a high-performance team.
Mike SVancouver
Mark is an amazing and experienced Agile Coach. He is detail oriented and helps to answer any questions very well.
Rishi VMontreal
Mark is very knowledgable. He provided interesting background on errors/mistakes committed by Scrum teams.
Prabh SToronto
Patient and helpful in answering questions throughout the course. Appreciate the resources shared i.e. book recommendations to further learning outside of the course. I liked how Mark encouraged small gains instead of trying to implement an overnight solution
Katherine SVirtual
One of the best training classes I've had.
Keith WPrivate Client
Really liked it, will recommend to others.
Alexey SToronto
Engaging. Very well explained concept. Very knowledgeable and good teaching technique in going over materials with ideas/concepts and letting us reinforce and discover in exercises.
Angela WOttawa
Thank you Mark for his thorough preparation of the course and well-thought set up to keep the group engaged and get to know each other with personal touch.
Danielle WVirtual
Very Charming, approachable, easy to ask questions to.
Carly SToronto
Mark was very informative and very patient. Had a great communication style for managing and gently pushing 11 professionals through a very full 2-days of Zoom.
His practical experience on how and when to use tools and methods was extremely valuable and not simply an academic lecture.
Dan TVirtual
Mark was knowledgable, engaging, and able to adapt to the needs of the group.
Julian WOttawa
Very knowledgeable, very friendly, very easy for the rest of us to learn from.
Doru TToronto
Very helpful for our specific problems. Excellent responding to questions with good examples. Sense of humour. Fun but thorough course.
Tina SPrivate Client
Mark was absolutely good. He has a confidence that helps me know what is and is not part of scrum. He has a clarity about the concept of scrum. He allows session participants to see where they can be creative.
Kelly SVirtual
Mark was informative, fluid, and presented material in a lively and interactive manner. This allowed free flow of dynamic ideas to emerge.
Jennifer TPrivate Client
Mark is very knowledgeable and the course provides a very solid understanding of scrum and the scrum master role.
Mona SOttawa
Lots of good information and exercises for a two day course. Instructor was clear and engaging in presenting concepts.
Marvin EPrivate Client
Mark was able to translate his obvious expertise and experience in lay terms, putting the team at ease through humour, anecdotes and a good level of engagement.
Brendan GVirtual
Mark is very knowledgable and an excellent communicator. So far my favourite Agile coach.
Fabricio MOttawa
Great. Very detailed. Class very interesting, very good relating questions with good examples.
Yong FToronto
Mark's use and incorporation of the Agile process as part of the training course was an outstanding working demostration in practice real-time. His energy, knowledge, examples, were excellent.
Paul RPrivate Client
Mark was fantastic! He explained the concepts very clearly and kept the class very engaging for the 2 days. He has a wealth of experience and was able to convey that to the class (plus the fun soap box moments).
Anthony GVirtual
Mark was a great instructor with real-world knowledge and experience. He made the course fun and interesting. He was very patient and answered all questions; offered follow up reading material and books.
Tania DVirtual
I like the way the course was taught through examples and games. I found personal anecdotes helpful in understanding concepts.
Randy EOttawa
Rocks! I would really recomment this instructor to others.
Raghda FToronto
The course and exercise were well designed to add value compared to reading about Scrum. Mark is an effective presenter, keeping things interesting and (often) entertaining.
Gordon EPrivate Client
Great course material and energetic instructor.
Chris HPrivate Client
Instructor was very prepared, good course materials, very well spoken. I felt he was an expert in the field. Encouraged participation, but kept the group focused.
Scott VEdmonton
Mark is a very clear and engaging instructor. He is able to use examples and exercises to ground our learning.
Ayesha KOttawa
Very informative course on the use of Scrum for software development. It covers all the areas of scrum, including all the key players and demonstrates how the roles, responsibilities and process work together to create effective, self organizing teams.
Amera PEdmonton
The course provided an excellent deep dive into scrum and the role of the scrum master. The instructor was very knowledgeable and well versed on the research of scrum.
Robyne LOttawa
Excellent instructor. Left lots of room for us to think by ourselves. Great!
Kathleen LVancouver
Great background experience, a lot of passion in his speech, was able to answer even challenging questions.
Alex NPrivate Client
Mark's knowledge and real world examples have cleared up my knowledge of scrum, the roles and responsibilities of the scrum team, and what I need to implement in my organization.
Greg MEdmonton
Amazing! Given the time a lot was covered about Scrum.
Hanumanth Reddy POttawa
Mark is an amazing communicator and is able to clearly deliver information. He uses good examples to illustrate how something should be done and shouldn't be done. He clearly has an expert level grasp of the SCRUM process. The course was fantastic, this was the best and most captivating training I've ever attended. Most times when participating in training there is a sense toward the end that you would like it to be over. At the end of this training I felt like I wanted it to continue.
Marc VVirtual
I got a lot of tricky questions answered. Real life issues we face at work.
Aleksandar YPrivate Client
Loved the pace and interactions. Also loved that all questions are not answered, leaves room to think and apply to your particuler workspace.
Alain WMontreal
In addition to very quickly establishing the healthy learning culture, Mark was very candid and human in answer questions from his own experience and also drawing from his experiences of successes, failures, strengths, and weaknesses in his teaching. It allowed me to understand that while the theory is important and what I came to learn, it also served to, in a way, enrich me with his experiences, such that I felt I shared in his experiences as well. That's valuable experience that I didn't earn myself, but was given to me.
Bernard WVirtual
Knowledgable, empethatic, and passionate about the topic.
Ghazi WOttawa
The instructor is very knowledgeable in the subject and kept us motivated and alert during the course. The course itself covers lots of material which is necessary for someone who wants to become a successful scrum master.
Elena RVirtual
Mark was full of energy. There was never a moment where what we were discussing wasn't interesting.
Swetha RKitchener-Waterloo
Mark is insightful, a pleasure to listen to, and inspires me toward making the changes needed so that I can work out a high-performance team.
Mike SVancouver
Mark is an amazing and experienced Agile Coach. He is detail oriented and helps to answer any questions very well.
Rishi VMontreal
Mark is very knowledgable. He provided interesting background on errors/mistakes committed by Scrum teams.
Prabh SToronto
Patient and helpful in answering questions throughout the course. Appreciate the resources shared i.e. book recommendations to further learning outside of the course. I liked how Mark encouraged small gains instead of trying to implement an overnight solution
Katherine SVirtual
I've taken many courses over the years and this was the most educational, enjoyable experience with valuable activities and worthwhile, well-researched content.
Ron WEdmonton
One of the best training classes I've had.
Keith WPrivate Client
Really liked it, will recommend to others.
Alexey SToronto
I enjoyed the course and learned a lot. In addition to what I learned about the processes and methods I also appreciated learning the human aspect as well.
Matthew SPrivate Client
Engaging. Very well explained concept. Very knowledgeable and good teaching technique in going over materials with ideas/concepts and letting us reinforce and discover in exercises.
Angela WOttawa
Thank you Mark for his thorough preparation of the course and well-thought set up to keep the group engaged and get to know each other with personal touch.
Danielle WVirtual
Very Charming, approachable, easy to ask questions to.
Carly SToronto
This is my second set of training with Mark. I must say he knows how to keep everyone engaged and participating in the hands-on workshops. He has an open-mind, is respectful of our opinions and knowledge space. He is extremely knowledgeable and knows how to instruct in a manner people understand and are able retain the learning. I have yet to see an Agile coach as enthusiastic and as good as Mark !
Tasneem SVirtual
Mark was very informative and very patient. Had a great communication style for managing and gently pushing 11 professionals through a very full 2-days of Zoom.
His practical experience on how and when to use tools and methods was extremely valuable and not simply an academic lecture.
Dan TVirtual
Mark was knowledgable, engaging, and able to adapt to the needs of the group.
Julian WOttawa
Very knowledgeable, very friendly, very easy for the rest of us to learn from.
Doru TToronto
I thoroughly enjoyed the course. While the two days were intensive and tiring, I learned a lot about scrum and becoming scrum master. Mark was a great instructor in that he was very knowledgeable and experienced in the subject. He set up a great environment where everyone can be engaged and have their questions answered. I'm really glad I took the course and I hope to continue learning more about Scrum, which now has become even more fascinating to me.
Maria SVirtual
Very helpful for our specific problems. Excellent responding to questions with good examples. Sense of humour. Fun but thorough course.
Tina SPrivate Client
Solid course, instructor was knowledgeable and friendly. I liked how it felt like a conversation and not a presentation, so I had pretty high engagement.This subject feels like an applied art, not a list of facts for memorization.
Michael RVirtual
Mark was absolutely good. He has a confidence that helps me know what is and is not part of scrum. He has a clarity about the concept of scrum. He allows session participants to see where they can be creative.
Kelly SVirtual
Mark was informative, fluid, and presented material in a lively and interactive manner. This allowed free flow of dynamic ideas to emerge.
Jennifer TPrivate Client
Mark inspires you to make yourself better in the roles which makes your workplace better. I wish he could come to my place of employ to get us setup to succeed. Might have to look into that.
Jackie MEdmonton
Mark is very knowledgeable and the course provides a very solid understanding of scrum and the scrum master role.
Mona SOttawa
Second course with Mark went great. I have to figure out how to afford more?
David HMontreal
Lots of good information and exercises for a two day course. Instructor was clear and engaging in presenting concepts.
Marvin EPrivate Client
Mark was able to translate his obvious expertise and experience in lay terms, putting the team at ease through humour, anecdotes and a good level of engagement.
Brendan GVirtual
Mark is very knowledgable and an excellent communicator. So far my favourite Agile coach.
Fabricio MOttawa
Great. Very detailed. Class very interesting, very good relating questions with good examples.
Yong FToronto
Mark's use and incorporation of the Agile process as part of the training course was an outstanding working demostration in practice real-time. His energy, knowledge, examples, were excellent.
Paul RPrivate Client
Mark was fantastic! He explained the concepts very clearly and kept the class very engaging for the 2 days. He has a wealth of experience and was able to convey that to the class (plus the fun soap box moments).
Anthony GVirtual
Mark was a great instructor with real-world knowledge and experience. He made the course fun and interesting. He was very patient and answered all questions; offered follow up reading material and books.
Tania DVirtual
I like the way the course was taught through examples and games. I found personal anecdotes helpful in understanding concepts.
Randy EOttawa
Rocks! I would really recomment this instructor to others.
Raghda FToronto
The course and exercise were well designed to add value compared to reading about Scrum. Mark is an effective presenter, keeping things interesting and (often) entertaining.
Gordon EPrivate Client
Great course material and energetic instructor.
Chris HPrivate Client
Instructor was very prepared, good course materials, very well spoken. I felt he was an expert in the field. Encouraged participation, but kept the group focused.
Scott VEdmonton
Amazing instructor, was able to clearly explain complex concepts, made the course relevant and engaging! This will alow us to build strong agile teams.
Dylan HPrivate Client
Get Certified
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.
Registration is now open for workshops:
About this course
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.
Learning and Benefits
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.
Jargon-Free Learning
This workshop is not just for software development or people with a computer science degree. We’ve helped many non-software teams with Scrum.
Career Advancement
Use Scrum knowledge to standout at work, get paid more, and impress your customer, all without burning out.
Ongoing Support
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.