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 an awesome instructor. A very patient instructor that welcomes all questions. He is definitely the Yoda of the Scrum universe.
Ting-Yu LToronto
You'll spend two great days with amazing people around and learn a lot while laughing. Take this course!
Stephane LMontreal
This course taught me about Scrum and, in particular, provided depth around the roles and responsibilities of a Scrum team. Despite Covid-19, the material was well-prepared for online consumption and Mark, the instructor, was engaging and informative. Mark has a huge library of Scrum-related resources, as well as many non-Scrum but still applicable resources, and I would highly recommend Mark and his team for anyone seeking ScrumMaster training.
Karen MVirtual
Awesome course. I will be able to apply a number of concepts immediately to help our effectiveness at work.
Daryl PEdmonton
This course was exactly what I was looking for! Mark was a very knowledgeable and engaging instructor. I appreciated the hands-on exercises that allowed me to put the methodology into practice with my course mates and learn from the experience. The course material is also top notch. I feel ready to take the exam and put what I've learnt into practice in my workplace.
Anu PVirtual
Mark is a great instructor, very educated and helpful about Scrum and Agile. The course is very thorough and way better than typical Scrum training I have attended in the past.
Rishi PToronto
Very patient. Really liked the group activity where we had to work in Sprints on user stories.
Anita AVirtual
Mark was engaging, knowledgeable, well-read and provided great examples.
Warren CVancouver
Mark did an excellent job facilitating the course and the content was very helpful. We covered a lot of ground in
three sessions and the pre-learning was helpful too! Mark was patient and respectful and very supportive
throughout the sessions. It was a pleasure to spend the time with Mark and to learn from someone who obviously
knows his subject.
Debbie BVirtual
Mark did an excellent job running the course. Explanations were clear and he was open to all questions.
Michael DToronto
The course included everything I hoped to cover and Mark very well demonstrated its content.
Jerome CToronto
Mark was full of energy. There was never a moment where what we were discussing wasn't interesting.
Swetha RKitchener-Waterloo
Very good at keeping interest. Very dynamic, engages easily with students.
Paul PMontreal
Very informative, with humour. Easy to understand for non-technical folks.
Tetyana OOttawa
Knowledgeable, prepared, interactive.
Anca MMontreal
There was not a single bit of content that wasn't helpful.
Bruno PMontreal
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
Great instructor, great technique using Scrum to learn.
Jen MToronto
Good course, lots of excellent content, examples and materials. Would recommend. Mark is a good facilitator who is honest and understanding about the technical and organizational challenges.
Charles MVirtual
Great flow and preparation. Really knows his stuff and transfer of knowledge is good.
Sonia MMontreal
Very knowledgeable instructor. His experience is obvious.
Mark LMontreal
Very knowledgeable, informative, flexible in fitting situations into ideas.
Katie MOttawa
Mark was excellent and lots of knowledge and passion about Scrum. His anecdotal stories were entertaining and informational.
Kevin MPrivate Client
Excellent. Taught and gave a great understanding of Scrum.
Cameron MEdmonton
Course material provided was excellent for references and follow up. Instructor was energetic, dynamic, and full engaging.
Dinah MPrivate Client
Mark was a good speaker and resourceful instructor. Exercises were practical and useful.
Ronald MPrivate Client
Excellent instructor. Left lots of room for us to think by ourselves. Great!
Kathleen LVancouver
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
Covered a little of everything. Was always interesting.
Regis LMontreal
Course was excellent, wealth of information. Mark is very knowledgable, pace was good, clear and concise, appreciated his sense of humour.
Kevin PEdmonton
Came into the course with basic practice and limited knowledge of theory. Mark has deep knowledge and experience of the material that is easily shared, conveyed, and put into practical settings /analogies. I appreciated the effort of setting a team working agreement during the course, how we communicated /voted throughout the course, and the respected timeframe granted to teach us the material. Many thanks Mark for sharing your time, knowledge, and humour with us. It was very interesting, albeit an intense 2 days of information. Not an easy feat in a virtual setting. Also, many thanks for the many links provided to learn further on our own time. The course material is large and wide. This was perfect to learn basic theory in practice. Further knowledge, training and experience is required to fully capture and understand the depth of SCRUM and Agile.
Chantal MVirtual
Nothing but positive things to say. Mark was very clear in the material he presented and was able to easily pivot to a new topic or give additional context as required. I enjoyed the exercises and open discussions.
Angela MOttawa
Great workshop by Mark. Level of engagement to collaboration were awesome!
Jason QEdmonton
Great course, awesome instructor!
Paul-Andre PPrivate Client
Well presented - effective - open to discussion - provides information that shows us better methods and resources for self learning.
Bedros NMontreal
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
Instructor was very well connected with the teams. Immense knowledge on Agile and Scrum.
Deepa MOttawa
Mark is an excellent instructor who is passionate about the subject and the people involved.
Lou MOttawa
Great course Mark! I really enjoyed learning more about the framwork and listening to others point of view.
Sarah MToronto
Mark is a great teacher and is very good at engaging people. Really gets the spark going!
Julien LMontreal
I enjoyed taking this course with Mark. Examples given in class were relatable to the majority of the group. He was engaging, leaving nobody left out (ensuring everybody participated).
Jennifer MPrivate Client
Very helpful and clear. Mark is good at pushing the boundary with good illustration.
Terry NToronto
Knows his material very well. Is pleasant. Proper course material was provided.
Jean PMontreal
Mark is very engaging and keeps things interesting during the course.
Adam MToronto
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
Really enjoyed Mark's presonal anecdotes and humour. Very clear that Mark is knowledgeable and I look forward to diving into the numerous references for "extra reading".
Naomi MOttawa
Mark did a great job and was impressed how well it worked virtually and not in person!
Jennifer PVirtual
Mark is super knowledgable on the topic and presents it in a fun and educational atmosphere. Really enjoyed the team work and Mark's perspective on a lot of the information.
Shelly MToronto
Very engaging instructor. Used many real-life examples.
Laura OPrivate Client
Excellent, very knowledgeable, good real world examples.
Steve OMontreal
Very patient. Really liked the group activity where we had to work in Sprints on user stories.
Anita AVirtual
Mark was engaging, knowledgeable, well-read and provided great examples.
Warren CVancouver
Mark did an excellent job facilitating the course and the content was very helpful. We covered a lot of ground in
three sessions and the pre-learning was helpful too! Mark was patient and respectful and very supportive
throughout the sessions. It was a pleasure to spend the time with Mark and to learn from someone who obviously
knows his subject.
Debbie BVirtual
Mark did an excellent job running the course. Explanations were clear and he was open to all questions.
Michael DToronto
The course included everything I hoped to cover and Mark very well demonstrated its content.
Jerome CToronto
Mark was full of energy. There was never a moment where what we were discussing wasn't interesting.
Swetha RKitchener-Waterloo
Very good at keeping interest. Very dynamic, engages easily with students.
Paul PMontreal
Very informative, with humour. Easy to understand for non-technical folks.
Tetyana OOttawa
Knowledgeable, prepared, interactive.
Anca MMontreal
There was not a single bit of content that wasn't helpful.
Bruno PMontreal
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
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
Great instructor, great technique using Scrum to learn.
Jen MToronto
Good course, lots of excellent content, examples and materials. Would recommend. Mark is a good facilitator who is honest and understanding about the technical and organizational challenges.
Charles MVirtual
Great flow and preparation. Really knows his stuff and transfer of knowledge is good.
Sonia MMontreal
You'll spend two great days with amazing people around and learn a lot while laughing. Take this course!
Stephane LMontreal
Very knowledgeable instructor. His experience is obvious.
Mark LMontreal
Very knowledgeable, informative, flexible in fitting situations into ideas.
Katie MOttawa
Mark was excellent and lots of knowledge and passion about Scrum. His anecdotal stories were entertaining and informational.
Kevin MPrivate Client
Excellent. Taught and gave a great understanding of Scrum.
Cameron MEdmonton
Course material provided was excellent for references and follow up. Instructor was energetic, dynamic, and full engaging.
Dinah MPrivate Client
This course taught me about Scrum and, in particular, provided depth around the roles and responsibilities of a Scrum team. Despite Covid-19, the material was well-prepared for online consumption and Mark, the instructor, was engaging and informative. Mark has a huge library of Scrum-related resources, as well as many non-Scrum but still applicable resources, and I would highly recommend Mark and his team for anyone seeking ScrumMaster training.
Karen MVirtual
Awesome course. I will be able to apply a number of concepts immediately to help our effectiveness at work.
Daryl PEdmonton
Mark was a good speaker and resourceful instructor. Exercises were practical and useful.
Ronald MPrivate Client
Excellent instructor. Left lots of room for us to think by ourselves. Great!
Kathleen LVancouver
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
Covered a little of everything. Was always interesting.
Regis LMontreal
Course was excellent, wealth of information. Mark is very knowledgable, pace was good, clear and concise, appreciated his sense of humour.
Kevin PEdmonton
Came into the course with basic practice and limited knowledge of theory. Mark has deep knowledge and experience of the material that is easily shared, conveyed, and put into practical settings /analogies. I appreciated the effort of setting a team working agreement during the course, how we communicated /voted throughout the course, and the respected timeframe granted to teach us the material. Many thanks Mark for sharing your time, knowledge, and humour with us. It was very interesting, albeit an intense 2 days of information. Not an easy feat in a virtual setting. Also, many thanks for the many links provided to learn further on our own time. The course material is large and wide. This was perfect to learn basic theory in practice. Further knowledge, training and experience is required to fully capture and understand the depth of SCRUM and Agile.
Chantal MVirtual
Nothing but positive things to say. Mark was very clear in the material he presented and was able to easily pivot to a new topic or give additional context as required. I enjoyed the exercises and open discussions.
Angela MOttawa
Great workshop by Mark. Level of engagement to collaboration were awesome!
Jason QEdmonton
Great course, awesome instructor!
Paul-Andre PPrivate Client
This course was exactly what I was looking for! Mark was a very knowledgeable and engaging instructor. I appreciated the hands-on exercises that allowed me to put the methodology into practice with my course mates and learn from the experience. The course material is also top notch. I feel ready to take the exam and put what I've learnt into practice in my workplace.
Anu PVirtual
Well presented - effective - open to discussion - provides information that shows us better methods and resources for self learning.
Bedros NMontreal
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
Instructor was very well connected with the teams. Immense knowledge on Agile and Scrum.
Deepa MOttawa
Mark is an excellent instructor who is passionate about the subject and the people involved.
Lou MOttawa
Great course Mark! I really enjoyed learning more about the framwork and listening to others point of view.
Sarah MToronto
Mark is a great teacher and is very good at engaging people. Really gets the spark going!
Julien LMontreal
I enjoyed taking this course with Mark. Examples given in class were relatable to the majority of the group. He was engaging, leaving nobody left out (ensuring everybody participated).
Jennifer MPrivate Client
Very helpful and clear. Mark is good at pushing the boundary with good illustration.
Terry NToronto
Knows his material very well. Is pleasant. Proper course material was provided.
Jean PMontreal
Mark is very engaging and keeps things interesting during the course.
Adam MToronto
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
Mark is a great instructor, very educated and helpful about Scrum and Agile. The course is very thorough and way better than typical Scrum training I have attended in the past.
Rishi PToronto
Really enjoyed Mark's presonal anecdotes and humour. Very clear that Mark is knowledgeable and I look forward to diving into the numerous references for "extra reading".
Naomi MOttawa
Mark did a great job and was impressed how well it worked virtually and not in person!
Jennifer PVirtual
Mark is super knowledgable on the topic and presents it in a fun and educational atmosphere. Really enjoyed the team work and Mark's perspective on a lot of the information.
Shelly MToronto
Very engaging instructor. Used many real-life examples.
Laura OPrivate Client
Excellent, very knowledgeable, good real world examples.
Steve OMontreal
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.