Free Resources
We're happy to offer several resources for self-study learning. These also qualify for Scrum Alliance® Scrum Education Units (SEUs).
You can’t predict the next year. Yet you still have to work.
When plans keep changing, it is hard to know why. Sometimes the world moved. Sometimes the original plan didn’t do its job. The newsletter helps you see which, and decide what to do next. It arrives when there is something worth saying, not on a calendar.
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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.
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
Awesome course. I will be able to apply a number of concepts immediately to help our effectiveness at work.
Daryl PEdmonton
Mark is a very engaging instructor. He combines his scrum master knowledge with humour and demontrates both in real situations. He has inspired me through this course to be a great scrum master!
Lisa MToronto
It was fantastic. I wasn't sure what to expect given my non-technical background but Mark was an amazing facilitor.
Kristin MKitchener-Waterloo
Mark is an awesome instructor. A very patient instructor that welcomes all questions. He is definitely the Yoda of the Scrum universe.
Ting-Yu LToronto
The instructor was well prepared, and extremely knowledgeable. The course was structured in a way that it was easy to follow, well structured, and easy to be engaged. All the team activities were extremely useful to put in practice the theory. I enjoyed every single one! Virtual learning is a really difficult environment, and the instructor made it look like a piece of cake, kept us engaged throughout the days. Kuddos!
Jenny CVirtual
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
Effective, making him do things with powerpoint would be fun to watch.
Gary SEdmonton
Love Mark's sense of humour and enthusiasm of the topic. He shows empathy in his feedback and offers alternative ways to understand the scrum concepts, instead of just regurgitating the theories that are prevalent on the internet. Thank you Mark!
Janet TVirtual
Great job, Mark. Great overall devliery. Kept the content interesting.
Parv SToronto
Very knowledgeable of the subject matter. Kept the pace of the course quick, which is good.
Tarek ROttawa
This course was great at examining how our team currently uses elements of scrum and refreshing that knowledge in order to improve our scrum practices.
Aaron SVirtual
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
The course was informative and engaging. It was delivered in a way that help me achieve better understanding of the material, Mark rocks!!
Akhmad SPrivate Client
Mark you are a rockstar and I truly enjoyed and hopefully benefit.
Kerry OPrivate Client
The teach went further to clarify question and add valuable information from other Agile methodology.
Marco SMontreal
Mark is incredibly knowledgeable. He has learned through pratice and epierences and knows how to leverage SCRUM effectively.
Travis RPrivate Client
Was very fun and good flow, not by the book provided but with sharing real-life examples and his previous experience. Very appreciated!
Kevin LToronto
Instructor was informative and handled the challenges he faced well.
Ruth JPrivate Client
(Instructor was) very pragmatic and opened your mind and steer conversation, so you can figure it out, instead of reading through material.
Priya PPrivate Client
Thank you. It has been one of the most interesting courses I have attended.
Hemant KToronto
Mark Levinson is very knowledgeable in Scrum and has the ability to start you on the right track given your specific workplace problems. He is also able to generalize issues and show how they can be solved with the tools provided in the course.
Hatem NVirtual
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 instructor was very enthusiastic and knowledgeable on Agile. His teaching methods were very clever and humble, I feel that all the course attendees found him experienced and clever.
Jamin IToronto
Instructor Mark is great and very knowledgeable, with experience that can answer questions from many industries/environments. The use of examples, games, activities are great!
Anthony KToronto
Very passionate and knowledgeableinstructor, and very able to answer any question.
Zain JEdmonton
Mark was an excellent teacher; explained all concepts very well.
Jackie COttawa
5 Stars
Yui HEdmonton
Mark was very well prepared with the material and handled questions well. You gave us enough information to address our own issues without giving us the solution.
Ramiz IPrivate Client
Interesting, engaging, practical exercises.
Olga HMontreal
Very knowledgeable, enjoy the practical examples that were shared.
Tina MEdmonton
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
He is funny. And smart. And a good storyteller. All together = great combo.
Melanie HEdmonton
Mark is very entertaining and knowledgable, the combination of which made for a great two days of training, well done!
Daniel JKitchener-Waterloo
I found Mark very engaging and thought he helped make the material very interesting.
Jason DToronto
A wealth of useful and interesting knowledge.
Sarah HEdmonton
Excellent materials delivered nicely.
Zin RKitchener-Waterloo
Mark was awesome, very enthusiastic about the subject and more importantly was very knowledgeableabout Scrum Master role and Scrum.
David OPrivate Client
Calm, able to provide examples demonstrating his points.
Martin DMontreal
Great content, stories, anecdotes. Enjoyed instructor's enthusiasm and knowledge on the subject.
Paul JMontreal
Mark is a very entertaining instructor. I feel I learned a great deal more than I could through reading/self study.
Michael HToronto
Great instructor, knowledgeable, kept team engaged for two full days.
Nermin JToronto
The course and instructor were dynamic and engaging and open to a variety of participants.
Daniel RMontreal
Very good experience, learned a lot, will be able to apply what I have learned, good job.
David KEdmonton
Excellent! Useful training techniques. Useful anecdotes, exercies, and reference material.
Joel SMontreal
Very much appreciated the training material as it has direct implication in our project methodologies.
Mizan CMontreal
Very knowledgeable and great communication skills to explain complex concepts in simple ways.
Ricard MToronto
Mark was a great instructor who did a great job keeping us focused and teaching us about scrum and its benefits.
Frank DToronto
Fun and focused. Mark knows Scrum inside and out.
Ryan JEdmonton
Objective when needed and directs us to the conclusions. Interesting course.
Andre MMontreal
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
Effective, making him do things with powerpoint would be fun to watch.
Gary SEdmonton
Love Mark's sense of humour and enthusiasm of the topic. He shows empathy in his feedback and offers alternative ways to understand the scrum concepts, instead of just regurgitating the theories that are prevalent on the internet. Thank you Mark!
Janet TVirtual
Great job, Mark. Great overall devliery. Kept the content interesting.
Parv SToronto
Very knowledgeable of the subject matter. Kept the pace of the course quick, which is good.
Tarek ROttawa
This course was great at examining how our team currently uses elements of scrum and refreshing that knowledge in order to improve our scrum practices.
Aaron SVirtual
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
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
The course was informative and engaging. It was delivered in a way that help me achieve better understanding of the material, Mark rocks!!
Akhmad SPrivate Client
Mark you are a rockstar and I truly enjoyed and hopefully benefit.
Kerry OPrivate Client
The teach went further to clarify question and add valuable information from other Agile methodology.
Marco SMontreal
Mark is incredibly knowledgeable. He has learned through pratice and epierences and knows how to leverage SCRUM effectively.
Travis RPrivate Client
Was very fun and good flow, not by the book provided but with sharing real-life examples and his previous experience. Very appreciated!
Kevin LToronto
Instructor was informative and handled the challenges he faced well.
Ruth JPrivate Client
(Instructor was) very pragmatic and opened your mind and steer conversation, so you can figure it out, instead of reading through material.
Priya PPrivate Client
Thank you. It has been one of the most interesting courses I have attended.
Hemant KToronto
Awesome course. I will be able to apply a number of concepts immediately to help our effectiveness at work.
Daryl PEdmonton
Mark Levinson is very knowledgeable in Scrum and has the ability to start you on the right track given your specific workplace problems. He is also able to generalize issues and show how they can be solved with the tools provided in the course.
Hatem NVirtual
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 instructor was very enthusiastic and knowledgeable on Agile. His teaching methods were very clever and humble, I feel that all the course attendees found him experienced and clever.
Jamin IToronto
Instructor Mark is great and very knowledgeable, with experience that can answer questions from many industries/environments. The use of examples, games, activities are great!
Anthony KToronto
Very passionate and knowledgeableinstructor, and very able to answer any question.
Zain JEdmonton
Mark was an excellent teacher; explained all concepts very well.
Jackie COttawa
Mark is a very engaging instructor. He combines his scrum master knowledge with humour and demontrates both in real situations. He has inspired me through this course to be a great scrum master!
Lisa MToronto
5 Stars
Yui HEdmonton
It was fantastic. I wasn't sure what to expect given my non-technical background but Mark was an amazing facilitor.
Kristin MKitchener-Waterloo
Mark was very well prepared with the material and handled questions well. You gave us enough information to address our own issues without giving us the solution.
Ramiz IPrivate Client
Mark is an awesome instructor. A very patient instructor that welcomes all questions. He is definitely the Yoda of the Scrum universe.
Ting-Yu LToronto
Interesting, engaging, practical exercises.
Olga HMontreal
Very knowledgeable, enjoy the practical examples that were shared.
Tina MEdmonton
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
He is funny. And smart. And a good storyteller. All together = great combo.
Melanie HEdmonton
Mark is very entertaining and knowledgable, the combination of which made for a great two days of training, well done!
Daniel JKitchener-Waterloo
I found Mark very engaging and thought he helped make the material very interesting.
Jason DToronto
A wealth of useful and interesting knowledge.
Sarah HEdmonton
The instructor was well prepared, and extremely knowledgeable. The course was structured in a way that it was easy to follow, well structured, and easy to be engaged. All the team activities were extremely useful to put in practice the theory. I enjoyed every single one! Virtual learning is a really difficult environment, and the instructor made it look like a piece of cake, kept us engaged throughout the days. Kuddos!
Jenny CVirtual
Excellent materials delivered nicely.
Zin RKitchener-Waterloo
Mark was awesome, very enthusiastic about the subject and more importantly was very knowledgeableabout Scrum Master role and Scrum.
David OPrivate Client
Calm, able to provide examples demonstrating his points.
Martin DMontreal
Great content, stories, anecdotes. Enjoyed instructor's enthusiasm and knowledge on the subject.
Paul JMontreal
Mark is a very entertaining instructor. I feel I learned a great deal more than I could through reading/self study.
Michael HToronto
Great instructor, knowledgeable, kept team engaged for two full days.
Nermin JToronto
The course and instructor were dynamic and engaging and open to a variety of participants.
Daniel RMontreal
Very good experience, learned a lot, will be able to apply what I have learned, good job.
David KEdmonton
Excellent! Useful training techniques. Useful anecdotes, exercies, and reference material.
Joel SMontreal
Very much appreciated the training material as it has direct implication in our project methodologies.
Mizan CMontreal
Very knowledgeable and great communication skills to explain complex concepts in simple ways.
Ricard MToronto
Mark was a great instructor who did a great job keeping us focused and teaching us about scrum and its benefits.
Frank DToronto
Fun and focused. Mark knows Scrum inside and out.
Ryan JEdmonton
Objective when needed and directs us to the conclusions. Interesting course.
Andre MMontreal
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.