Separating the genuinely useful from the fairy dust
Where research supports a practice, I say so. Where it doesn't, I say that too, including about practices I teach and sell. Generative AI gets the same treatment: real value in places, badly oversold in most.
The free resources
Subscribing gets you the three eBooks and an invitation to the Virtual Lean Coffee. It also gets you the newsletter, which is the part I’d rather you stayed for.
- The Guide to Effective Agile Retrospectives
- A Jargon-Free Introduction to Scrum
- Agile Engineering Practices and Their Effects PDF Cheat Sheet
- An invitation to the Virtual Lean Coffee, a semi-monthly Zoom meetup
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 is a wonderful, energetic instructer who helps you to evaluate how you are working in your own environment. Then he helps you to figure out how to improve it.
Shelley COttawa
Came in with a cynical view and attitude and left with nuggets of insight. That is quite an accomplishment for any instructor!
Mojtaba HOttawa
Great course. I was unfamiliar with the role of scrum master apart from what I had read. This course gave me a great introduction and appreciation of what a good scrummaster can accomplish. The challenge now would be to implement it in my organization. Many tips were provided for this too so I am very optimistic.
Shabira JEdmonton
Mark is engaging and energetic. He made what could have been a dry topic quite enjoyable.
Paul BToronto
Best. Training. Ever.
Martin DMontreal
Where to start ........ Mark you have a mind filled with knowledge not sure how you can keep it all straight!!! I took scrum training last year at [Private Client] and I really enjoyed taking it again with you. Scrum is scrum but the flavor you brought to it kept me engaged and it made the workshop fun. I was always looking forward in coming back and hearing more. I enjoyed the experiences and all the references you provided. I have to admit after the first day I went to bed at night and was thinking about Scrum. How am I going to do this at work, what experiments can I run, how can I change up my retro’s so they aren’t boring and everyone wants to join. The course is well structured and the material we covered was just the right amount. We went into enough detail where needed and at a higher level for others. The course allowed us to ask for more content and we always had an opportunity to ask questions before moving on. Thank you for this fantastic workshop.
Josee CVirtual
Mark Levison's CSM workshop was one of the best on-line courses I have taken. Using a variety of on-line tools, we explored Scrum both on a broad surface level, then with deep dives into particular areas as voted for by the class. Mark made sure that everyone was satisfied with their own personal understanding before closing a particular topic. I had several areas that I wanted to focus on, and in each case they were answered to my satisfaction. Thank you Mark! I am very excited to take Scrum to my organization and create a high performance team!
Ross HVirtual
This was an excellent training. I really valued how engaging Mark was as a facilitator, everyone had the space to contribute and ask questions, and I loved how interactive and applicable it was, especially for myself outside of the software industry. It was incredibly fun and I learned a lot - I feel ready to step into a Scrum Master role and am excited at how it can improve the value we offer to clients at my organization.
Sarah HVirtual
Love it. I'm a repeat offender and have recommended you multiple times.
Alex GMontreal
Mark is an excellent instructor with lots of experience-based knowledge. He goes beyond teaching the basics by applying, and letting us apply, the knowledge to real world example.
Ettore CMontreal
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
Excellent. Would recommend any time.
Cindy IEdmonton
Mark is an awesome instructor! The course was very valuable and useful.
Chandni LToronto
Very unique training style, really appreciate that I don’t have to look at power point screen. Appreciate the Q&As and the end of class recap round.
Vicky CPrivate Client
Well presented material, excellent real world examples of applying scrum framework.
Brian BOttawa
I really enjoyed this course and that is saying a lot. Despite the fact that the course was virtual, it was still engaging and allowed me to get to know many new people. Mark has a way of making points stick through stories and conversation that is both fun and engaging.
Robert YVirtual
Mark is a lively and engaging instructor. Information was presented effectively and at a reasonable pace.
Joel DOttawa
Very engaging instructor and scenarios.
Christine APrivate Client
This is an excellent course to take after the CSM. The instructor was excellent, the course was wonderful, the students awesome.
Marc HMontreal
He is funny. And smart. And a good storyteller. All together = great combo.
Melanie HEdmonton
Instructor was amazing, easy to listen to and follow. Did not read from book and provided concrete examples.
Tricia AOttawa
Fantastic overview of Scrum and the need to create High Performing Teams.
Greg LEdmonton
I appreciate the opportunity to attend the workshop. I enjoyed the time spent with my fellow co-workers to learn together. Mark is passionate about Scrum and willing to dig into our problem and seek for the remedies to resolve.
Heather JVancouver
Mark is an awesome instructor and he is very knowledgeable.
Samina CVirtual
Knows his stuff. Has a lot of industries "real life" examples that help us understand those Agile methodologies.
Isabelle LMontreal
Instructor is very informative. Voice calming and clear with good balance of up/down/tone.
Hanh LToronto
This course gave me a new insight into delivering better software for the customer more effectively.
Len CVancouver
Mark was an awesome instructor, engaging, and very informative and knowledgable.
Tanya BToronto
Mark is a very clear and engaging instructor. He is able to use examples and exercises to ground our learning.
Ayesha KOttawa
True value demonstrated outside of the software development world.
Theresa BToronto
The instructor is clearly knowledgeable about scrum and other approaches. The course demonstrates the basics of scrum very well.
Matthew BToronto
Instructor was very knowledgeable and expressed his thoughts honestly and concisely. Course was very informative.
Lorne APrivate Client
I really enjoyed Mark, despite not being my sector I was able to make connections and take away information.
Catherine 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
Instructor very excellent and the course is very good to introduce perople to the Agile Methodology.
Sonia JPrivate Client
Mark was very entertaining, which made what I expected to be a boring two days very enjoyable, while still learning.
Zach BKitchener-Waterloo
Fun and focused. Mark knows Scrum inside and out.
Ryan JEdmonton
The instructor demonstrates solid knowledge on Agile and scrum fundamentals. The course is interesting and easy to follow.
Don LEdmonton
Mark is extremely knowledgeable and passionate about the subject matter and topics adjacent to it. His attitude encourages engagement in the material.
Jamie CVirtual
It was a very good experience for me, I appreciate how much knowledge the instructor transferred to us in just 2 days.
Elena KOttawa
I feel like the structure of the course is good in how it is treated as a backlog with all the participants prioritizing topics.
Aaron GOttawa
Very knowledgeable in what he is teaching. Passion for scrum.
Mandi AEdmonton
I felt that Mark is an incredible teacher. He's extemely knowledgeable on the subject and shares his experience with the entire class. Very structured.
Anthony PToronto
Excellent course, gained a lot of context on SCRUM best practices beyond the context of how [Private Client] currently operates.
Hamza EPrivate Client
Very well done course. Very experienced, knowledgeable instructor, well structured course, clear explanation, keeps nice spirit during the course, encourages collaboration.
Dina DMontreal
Excellent work, I have a lot of ideas and appreciate the way they were introduced.
John MEdmonton
A wealth of useful and interesting knowledge.
Sarah HEdmonton
Very interesting course, useful information, good class structure and handouts.
Jialin MPrivate Client
Mark is fantastic at keeping the material interested. You can tell he is passionate on the topic and knows his stuff.
Jackie MEdmonton
Mark is amazing at asking thought-povoking questions to think on issues at a 2nd degree level. (i.e. reasons behind the challenge)
Connie LToronto
Excellent. Would recommend any time.
Cindy IEdmonton
Mark is an awesome instructor! The course was very valuable and useful.
Chandni LToronto
Very unique training style, really appreciate that I don’t have to look at power point screen. Appreciate the Q&As and the end of class recap round.
Vicky CPrivate Client
Mark is a wonderful, energetic instructer who helps you to evaluate how you are working in your own environment. Then he helps you to figure out how to improve it.
Shelley COttawa
Well presented material, excellent real world examples of applying scrum framework.
Brian BOttawa
I really enjoyed this course and that is saying a lot. Despite the fact that the course was virtual, it was still engaging and allowed me to get to know many new people. Mark has a way of making points stick through stories and conversation that is both fun and engaging.
Robert YVirtual
Mark is a lively and engaging instructor. Information was presented effectively and at a reasonable pace.
Joel DOttawa
Very engaging instructor and scenarios.
Christine APrivate Client
Came in with a cynical view and attitude and left with nuggets of insight. That is quite an accomplishment for any instructor!
Mojtaba HOttawa
This is an excellent course to take after the CSM. The instructor was excellent, the course was wonderful, the students awesome.
Marc HMontreal
He is funny. And smart. And a good storyteller. All together = great combo.
Melanie HEdmonton
Instructor was amazing, easy to listen to and follow. Did not read from book and provided concrete examples.
Tricia AOttawa
Great course. I was unfamiliar with the role of scrum master apart from what I had read. This course gave me a great introduction and appreciation of what a good scrummaster can accomplish. The challenge now would be to implement it in my organization. Many tips were provided for this too so I am very optimistic.
Shabira JEdmonton
Fantastic overview of Scrum and the need to create High Performing Teams.
Greg LEdmonton
Mark is engaging and energetic. He made what could have been a dry topic quite enjoyable.
Paul BToronto
I appreciate the opportunity to attend the workshop. I enjoyed the time spent with my fellow co-workers to learn together. Mark is passionate about Scrum and willing to dig into our problem and seek for the remedies to resolve.
Heather JVancouver
Mark is an awesome instructor and he is very knowledgeable.
Samina CVirtual
Knows his stuff. Has a lot of industries "real life" examples that help us understand those Agile methodologies.
Isabelle LMontreal
Instructor is very informative. Voice calming and clear with good balance of up/down/tone.
Hanh LToronto
Best. Training. Ever.
Martin DMontreal
This course gave me a new insight into delivering better software for the customer more effectively.
Len CVancouver
Where to start ........ Mark you have a mind filled with knowledge not sure how you can keep it all straight!!! I took scrum training last year at [Private Client] and I really enjoyed taking it again with you. Scrum is scrum but the flavor you brought to it kept me engaged and it made the workshop fun. I was always looking forward in coming back and hearing more. I enjoyed the experiences and all the references you provided. I have to admit after the first day I went to bed at night and was thinking about Scrum. How am I going to do this at work, what experiments can I run, how can I change up my retro’s so they aren’t boring and everyone wants to join. The course is well structured and the material we covered was just the right amount. We went into enough detail where needed and at a higher level for others. The course allowed us to ask for more content and we always had an opportunity to ask questions before moving on. Thank you for this fantastic workshop.
Josee CVirtual
Mark was an awesome instructor, engaging, and very informative and knowledgable.
Tanya BToronto
Mark is a very clear and engaging instructor. He is able to use examples and exercises to ground our learning.
Ayesha KOttawa
Mark Levison's CSM workshop was one of the best on-line courses I have taken. Using a variety of on-line tools, we explored Scrum both on a broad surface level, then with deep dives into particular areas as voted for by the class. Mark made sure that everyone was satisfied with their own personal understanding before closing a particular topic. I had several areas that I wanted to focus on, and in each case they were answered to my satisfaction. Thank you Mark! I am very excited to take Scrum to my organization and create a high performance team!
Ross HVirtual
True value demonstrated outside of the software development world.
Theresa BToronto
The instructor is clearly knowledgeable about scrum and other approaches. The course demonstrates the basics of scrum very well.
Matthew BToronto
Instructor was very knowledgeable and expressed his thoughts honestly and concisely. Course was very informative.
Lorne APrivate Client
I really enjoyed Mark, despite not being my sector I was able to make connections and take away information.
Catherine 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
Instructor very excellent and the course is very good to introduce perople to the Agile Methodology.
Sonia JPrivate Client
Mark was very entertaining, which made what I expected to be a boring two days very enjoyable, while still learning.
Zach BKitchener-Waterloo
Fun and focused. Mark knows Scrum inside and out.
Ryan JEdmonton
The instructor demonstrates solid knowledge on Agile and scrum fundamentals. The course is interesting and easy to follow.
Don LEdmonton
Mark is extremely knowledgeable and passionate about the subject matter and topics adjacent to it. His attitude encourages engagement in the material.
Jamie CVirtual
It was a very good experience for me, I appreciate how much knowledge the instructor transferred to us in just 2 days.
Elena KOttawa
This was an excellent training. I really valued how engaging Mark was as a facilitator, everyone had the space to contribute and ask questions, and I loved how interactive and applicable it was, especially for myself outside of the software industry. It was incredibly fun and I learned a lot - I feel ready to step into a Scrum Master role and am excited at how it can improve the value we offer to clients at my organization.
Sarah HVirtual
Love it. I'm a repeat offender and have recommended you multiple times.
Alex GMontreal
I feel like the structure of the course is good in how it is treated as a backlog with all the participants prioritizing topics.
Aaron GOttawa
Very knowledgeable in what he is teaching. Passion for scrum.
Mandi AEdmonton
Mark is an excellent instructor with lots of experience-based knowledge. He goes beyond teaching the basics by applying, and letting us apply, the knowledge to real world example.
Ettore CMontreal
I felt that Mark is an incredible teacher. He's extemely knowledgeable on the subject and shares his experience with the entire class. Very structured.
Anthony PToronto
Excellent course, gained a lot of context on SCRUM best practices beyond the context of how [Private Client] currently operates.
Hamza EPrivate Client
Very well done course. Very experienced, knowledgeable instructor, well structured course, clear explanation, keeps nice spirit during the course, encourages collaboration.
Dina DMontreal
Excellent work, I have a lot of ideas and appreciate the way they were introduced.
John MEdmonton
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
A wealth of useful and interesting knowledge.
Sarah HEdmonton
Very interesting course, useful information, good class structure and handouts.
Jialin MPrivate Client
Mark is fantastic at keeping the material interested. You can tell he is passionate on the topic and knows his stuff.
Jackie MEdmonton
Mark is amazing at asking thought-povoking questions to think on issues at a 2nd degree level. (i.e. reasons behind the challenge)
Connie LToronto
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.