Is it Time to Revisit Scrum Values?

Although most of us have heard that Scrum Teams need to be co-located, Google’s 2008 Project Aristotle article stated:

“The researchers also discovered which variables were not significantly connected with team effectiveness at Google: Colocation of teammates (sitting together in the same office).”

If we look at the Scrum Guide 2020, it doesn’t mention Teams needing to be co-located. And as further proof, this McKinsey article states:

“…if the necessary technology is in place, a talented remote team can deliver just as much value as co-located teams.”

I think one of the key things for a Scrum Master to do is revisit our core Scrum Team values (respect, openness, courage, focus, commitment) and inspect and adapt them to our Organizations. 

• Respect everyone’s environment and expect the unexpected, like kids and pets coming onto the screen and everyone being OK with it.
• Openness as a Scrum Master by encouraging psychological safety within your Team, doing frequent retrospectives, and then inspecting and adapting.
• Courage to try new tools to facilitate as much collaboration as possible (whether it’s MURAL, MIRO, Slack or something else!). 
• Focus—Daily Scrum allows the team to focus on the plan for the next 24 hours. Remember Scrum Guide 2020 did away with the “3 Questions” and reminds us that Daily Scrum is about improving communications, identifying impediments, promoting quick decision-making, and consequently eliminating the need for other meetings.
• Commitment to stick to updating working agreements and definition of done on a regular cadence.  

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