Free Resources
We're happy to offer several resources for self-study learning. These also qualify for Scrum Alliance® Scrum Education Units (SEUs).
Which parts of the Scrum Master role still need a person?
Some of the Scrum Master job is getting more valuable, and some of it is quietly being absorbed by tools. Answer eight questions about how you actually spent your last couple of Sprints, and you’ll get a map of which is which, plus the one change I’d make first.
Eight questions, about three minutes. No score, no archetype.
Scrum and Agile articles
Notes from a Tool User, Mark Levison’s long-running blog, explores current Agile topics and mixes in insightful advice with practical application tips to help Scrum teams and individuals.
Agile Glossary and Reference Library
Jokingly called the “World’s Largest Opinionated Agile Reference Library”. The content is created and the links are curated through the lens of Agile Pain Relief Consulting’s view of what is effective in the practice of Scrum and Agile.
New to Scrum?
A whole page of free resources specifically for those who are trying to make sense of Scrum basics and terminology.
Scrum and Agile Games
Learning doesn’t have to be boring or tedious. Our brains retain more information when it’s fun!
- Online Agile Teams Game
- High-Performance Team Game
- Building High-Performance Organizations Game
Free with newsletter subscription
The following Scrum and Agile resources are available free to our newsletter subscribers.
Newsletters are sent out roughly every two weeks. You can opt out of anything at any time by simply unsubscribing, or letting us know and we’ll customize your subscription to only what you need.
eBooks
- The Guide to Effective Agile Retrospectives
- A Jargon-Free Introduction to Scrum
- Agile Engineering Practices and Their Effects PDF Cheat Sheet
Community Coaching
Free Virtual Scrum Meetup. Kind of office hours/virtual coffee chat, where you can join in a Zoom conference and talk about whatever confuses and confounds you in Scrum. (Bonus: if you haven’t done a workshop with me yet, this is your chance to try before you buy.)
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.
You'll spend two great days with amazing people around and learn a lot while laughing. Take this course!
Stephane LMontreal
Whether you have 0 days or 10 years of product owner experience you're guaranted to learn a lot from this course.
Luke NOttawa
I enjoyed the hands-on nature of the course and Mark's presentation style. My mind was blown several times in the two days which was unexpected and completely awesome.
Heather OEdmonton
I cannot say anything but good things about the course, and have been telling many people in my org about it.
Hatem NVirtual
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
Mark's session was a great combination of theory, practical exercises and real life stories that kept this learner engaged and involved. Time spent was definitely worthwhile. Thanks!
Justin LVirtual
Great instructor, very satisfied, will recomment! I brought my whole team with me, happy I did.
Joshua COttawa
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 good, very detailed.
John LMontreal
Mark is very knowledgeable and did a great job. I like the frequency of the breaks. With the frequency of breakout rooms, jumping around documents, it was clear he was prepared.
Matthew RVirtual
Excellent course! Was able to relate to everything covered. Scrum should be used every day.
Mark MEdmonton
Excellent course, great depth of knowledge from the instructor, well paced and well run.
Kurt OEdmonton
Really dynamic! Use scrum tools to control the flow of the course which is a good example.
Marc LMontreal
The course is great and Mark is amazing. I really impressed with his high level of knoweledge, his personal skills. I enjoyed the level how he conducted the training. The level structured and time-planned sessions. I enjoyed the way how and what Mark answered unpredictable questions. He is great facilitator.
Thanks a lot for opportunity to expand my knoweledge.
Anna MVirtual
Mark has a great style of delivery even over zoom. He kept my attention and that of the class by using humor and explaining things very matter of factly. Therefore no confusion and the information actually stuck. He understands what it takes to deliver an engaging session by having a number of break out activities that were fun and comfortable. Thank you Mark!
Deborah RVirtual
Excellent. Loved the real world experience brought to the course.
Jason MOttawa
Well structured training. Excellent communication skills.
Khaled MToronto
Great course - certainly lived up to its reputation.
Ryann MKitchener-Waterloo
Mark is very knowledgeable and he was very patient in explaining the topics to us.
Mary Angeli MKitchener-Waterloo
Mark has been a great facilitator, instructor, and extremely knowledgeable on teaching Scrum. Great analogies and references cited.
Wilfred MPrivate Client
Brilliant approach to coaching.
Serguei LToronto
Great flow and preparation. Really knows his stuff and transfer of knowledge is good.
Sonia MMontreal
Excellent! Engaged all of the time. My head is exploding with new knowledge.
Harlie DMontreal
Extremely knowledgeable. Engaged the entire team. Clear communication.
Ahalya AToronto
Mark was great at teaching the class. He really knows the course and it is obvious Scrum is second nature to him. Real life experience (in class exercises) are key to learning Scrum.
Cara CToronto
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's facilitation style was extremly engaging and his knowledge deep. I like the way he builds the scrum framework into the training workshop agenda. No power point, lots of discussion and releveant examples. I appreciate very much the time Mark took to address my question for which he had no existing reference.
Renee OKitchener-Waterloo
Great energy. Interesting course material.
Julie CToronto
I really liked the course and the way it's presented. It was one of the best courses I've took.
Afshin ROttawa
Passionate and enthusiastic instructor, excellent course and materials.
Don CVancouver
After 24+ years of traditional thinking, this was refreshing and new. Can't wait to begin implementing at work. Thanks, Mark!
Kristine NEdmonton
He explained extremely well and gave great concrete examples. Helped to see how to apply to work place.
Genevieve CMontreal
Really appreciated how he addressed our questions and gave feedback. Mark was very knowledgable on the subject matter.
Kyle AOttawa
Mark did a great job of keeping the class engaged and deployed many useful techniques to get the course material across.
Tharaneesan NPrivate Client
Very knowledgeable instructor. His experience is obvious.
Mark LMontreal
Excellent overview of Scrum/Kanban/Agile. The technical material/theoretical material was well balanced/augments with the personal expeirences of the instructor. Highly recommend.
Dino CPrivate Client
Mark Levison was an excellent instructor: knowledgeable, personable, and very approachable. The course material was clear and I felt like the coverage was appropriate.
Ken MMontreal
Thank you Mark, I have lots of ideas to bring back to the team. I appreciated your energy and sense of humor.
David COttawa
It is very well organized and timed. The teacher has a really deep, hands-on knowledge about the subject.
Alberto MPrivate Client
The instructor is clearly knowledgeable about scrum and other approaches. The course demonstrates the basics of scrum very well.
Matthew BToronto
Great training with an engaging trainer and hands on practice. The content made you think about the best solutions and how to prioritize workflow. The instructor provided tangible guidance on best practices.
Sneha NVirtual
Fantastic course. I am excited about implementing more of what I learned.
Andrew BToronto
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
Mark is awesome! I really enjoyed both courses I took with him. I much prefer in-person interaction to virtual, but his approach worked well.
Nicole BVirtual
Excellent, material and discussion was perfect.
Jacques CVirtual
Mark was very personable, easy going an know what he was teaching. This makes the class environment more interactive and fun.
Asif BVirtual
Mark was fantastic. Possibly the best, most prepared instructor I've seen. He was awesome.
Colin MToronto
Excellent, very knowledgeable, good real world examples.
Steve OMontreal
Great instructor, learned a lot and enjoyed.
David POttawa
This course was an essential intro for me, a noob in Scrum. I was guided through material I need to know, while at the same time allowed to explore concepts on my own.
Vanessa MToronto
Very good, very detailed.
John LMontreal
Mark is very knowledgeable and did a great job. I like the frequency of the breaks. With the frequency of breakout rooms, jumping around documents, it was clear he was prepared.
Matthew RVirtual
Excellent course! Was able to relate to everything covered. Scrum should be used every day.
Mark MEdmonton
Excellent course, great depth of knowledge from the instructor, well paced and well run.
Kurt OEdmonton
Really dynamic! Use scrum tools to control the flow of the course which is a good example.
Marc LMontreal
The course is great and Mark is amazing. I really impressed with his high level of knoweledge, his personal skills. I enjoyed the level how he conducted the training. The level structured and time-planned sessions. I enjoyed the way how and what Mark answered unpredictable questions. He is great facilitator.
Thanks a lot for opportunity to expand my knoweledge.
Anna MVirtual
Mark has a great style of delivery even over zoom. He kept my attention and that of the class by using humor and explaining things very matter of factly. Therefore no confusion and the information actually stuck. He understands what it takes to deliver an engaging session by having a number of break out activities that were fun and comfortable. Thank you Mark!
Deborah RVirtual
You'll spend two great days with amazing people around and learn a lot while laughing. Take this course!
Stephane LMontreal
Excellent. Loved the real world experience brought to the course.
Jason MOttawa
Whether you have 0 days or 10 years of product owner experience you're guaranted to learn a lot from this course.
Luke NOttawa
Well structured training. Excellent communication skills.
Khaled MToronto
Great course - certainly lived up to its reputation.
Ryann MKitchener-Waterloo
Mark is very knowledgeable and he was very patient in explaining the topics to us.
Mary Angeli MKitchener-Waterloo
I enjoyed the hands-on nature of the course and Mark's presentation style. My mind was blown several times in the two days which was unexpected and completely awesome.
Heather OEdmonton
I cannot say anything but good things about the course, and have been telling many people in my org about it.
Hatem NVirtual
Mark has been a great facilitator, instructor, and extremely knowledgeable on teaching Scrum. Great analogies and references cited.
Wilfred MPrivate Client
Brilliant approach to coaching.
Serguei LToronto
Great flow and preparation. Really knows his stuff and transfer of knowledge is good.
Sonia MMontreal
Excellent! Engaged all of the time. My head is exploding with new knowledge.
Harlie DMontreal
Extremely knowledgeable. Engaged the entire team. Clear communication.
Ahalya AToronto
Mark was great at teaching the class. He really knows the course and it is obvious Scrum is second nature to him. Real life experience (in class exercises) are key to learning Scrum.
Cara CToronto
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's facilitation style was extremly engaging and his knowledge deep. I like the way he builds the scrum framework into the training workshop agenda. No power point, lots of discussion and releveant examples. I appreciate very much the time Mark took to address my question for which he had no existing reference.
Renee OKitchener-Waterloo
Great energy. Interesting course material.
Julie CToronto
I really liked the course and the way it's presented. It was one of the best courses I've took.
Afshin ROttawa
Passionate and enthusiastic instructor, excellent course and materials.
Don CVancouver
After 24+ years of traditional thinking, this was refreshing and new. Can't wait to begin implementing at work. Thanks, Mark!
Kristine NEdmonton
He explained extremely well and gave great concrete examples. Helped to see how to apply to work place.
Genevieve CMontreal
Really appreciated how he addressed our questions and gave feedback. Mark was very knowledgable on the subject matter.
Kyle AOttawa
Mark did a great job of keeping the class engaged and deployed many useful techniques to get the course material across.
Tharaneesan NPrivate Client
Very knowledgeable instructor. His experience is obvious.
Mark LMontreal
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
Excellent overview of Scrum/Kanban/Agile. The technical material/theoretical material was well balanced/augments with the personal expeirences of the instructor. Highly recommend.
Dino CPrivate Client
Mark Levison was an excellent instructor: knowledgeable, personable, and very approachable. The course material was clear and I felt like the coverage was appropriate.
Ken MMontreal
Mark's session was a great combination of theory, practical exercises and real life stories that kept this learner engaged and involved. Time spent was definitely worthwhile. Thanks!
Justin LVirtual
Thank you Mark, I have lots of ideas to bring back to the team. I appreciated your energy and sense of humor.
David COttawa
It is very well organized and timed. The teacher has a really deep, hands-on knowledge about the subject.
Alberto MPrivate Client
The instructor is clearly knowledgeable about scrum and other approaches. The course demonstrates the basics of scrum very well.
Matthew BToronto
Great instructor, very satisfied, will recomment! I brought my whole team with me, happy I did.
Joshua COttawa
Great training with an engaging trainer and hands on practice. The content made you think about the best solutions and how to prioritize workflow. The instructor provided tangible guidance on best practices.
Sneha NVirtual
Fantastic course. I am excited about implementing more of what I learned.
Andrew BToronto
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
Mark is awesome! I really enjoyed both courses I took with him. I much prefer in-person interaction to virtual, but his approach worked well.
Nicole BVirtual
Excellent, material and discussion was perfect.
Jacques CVirtual
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
Mark was very personable, easy going an know what he was teaching. This makes the class environment more interactive and fun.
Asif BVirtual
Mark was fantastic. Possibly the best, most prepared instructor I've seen. He was awesome.
Colin MToronto
Excellent, very knowledgeable, good real world examples.
Steve OMontreal
Great instructor, learned a lot and enjoyed.
David POttawa
This course was an essential intro for me, a noob in Scrum. I was guided through material I need to know, while at the same time allowed to explore concepts on my own.
Vanessa MToronto
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.
GenAI for Systems Thinking
Learn the basics of using Generative AI as a tool to support Systems Thinking in your ScrumMaster role. Explore how to leverage GenAI to help uncover patterns, and think more deeply about the systems your team operates in.
Ongoing Support
Your learning doesn’t stop when the workshop ends. You get lifetime access to all course materials, plus a followup email series designed to reinforce your learning objectives and help you apply what you’ve learned on the job.