Calling all Scrum Masters: What Matters to You?
I’m new here at ITHAKA, so my impressions are of the first kind. As an experienced Scrum Master, I found myself in demand as I started to look for a new professional home. I chose ITHAKA for a number of reasons that were important to me, and that I suspect will resonate with other people seeking new work places. Perhaps these reasons might even attract you to our family.
Family — this was the first thing I noticed when I came to an open house at ITHAKA. The atmosphere felt very natural, and I sensed a level of community not found in most organizations. My first impression continues to hold true as I get to know a growing number of my co-workers.
Environment — as a Scrum Master, a significant part of my role is change agent. There can be nothing more frustrating for a change agent than being in an organization that resists change and is afraid to try new things. Such is clearly not the case here at ITHAKA. While we may not be throwing ourselves against the bleeding edge with reckless abandon, I see signs that we are continually watching those adventurous souls who are doing so. This measured approach to change strikes the right balance between risk and reward.
Architecture — ITHAKA is blessed with some really smart and knowledgeable people who have built a state-of-the-art application framework on which to expand. Since joining, I have learned of the difficult journey to get where we are — a place where we deploy hundreds of times each week. I almost feel like I’ve cheated having inherited the fruits of the early uphill climb of that journey. For an Agile practitioner, there is nothing finer than working in a continuously deployed, micro-services environment. The scalability, flexibility, and responsiveness this environment provides is just plain cool.
Mission — we hear a lot about “big data” these days. Google, Facebook and Amazon hold the supreme positions they enjoy because of the vast amounts of data they control. We may not be as big as them, but make no mistake, we are in the big data business. We operate one of the most important large-scale platforms for research and learning in the world, JSTOR, as well as the leading digital preservation services for scholarly and academic content, Portico. I am excited to be part of a team pushing forward the evolution of how academic information is collected, distributed, preserved, and utilized (there’s another blog post in that last item).
I’ve held more than a few positions in my day. I’ve gotten good at spotting signs of dysfunction pretty quickly. As a matter of fact, I did just that for three years as a strategy consultant working with companies throughout Michigan. While ITHAKA is not without opportunities for improvement, we do not face the cultural impediments found in so many organizations. These are the most difficult to overcome.
I am really happy with my decision. Thanks go to all those who believed in me enough to give me this opportunity!
What makes an ideal work environment for you as a Scrum Master? Share your ideas and while you’re at it, why not check out our open positions.
