What does a Scrum Master do? Michal will tell you
Scrum master Michal joined msg life Slovakia as a software developer. Find out what his role is. Michal has been working as a developer at msg life Slovakia for several years. As a graduate teacher in mathematics and computer science, he feels confident in his role as Scrum Master, as it reminds him a bit of the role of a teacher. His role is to take care of the Austrian-Slovak Danubius Scrum team, helping them to understand the principles of agile development in Scrum and creating the conditions for improvement.
In the article you will learn:
- How long have you been with msg life Slovakia?
- What job were you recruited for?
- What is your current job position?
- How did you get into programming?
- What attracted you to working at msg life Slovakia? Why did you choose us?
- How is working for us different from previous work experience?
- What does your normal working day look like?
- What is your job? What are you currently working on?
- Who do you communicate with at work and solve problems?
- What project are you working on right now?
- Do you have experience with other projects within msg life Slovakia?
- What apps and programs do you use at work?
- What skills or knowledge are important for your job?
- What do you like most about your job? And what don't you like very much?
- Who are your colleagues?
- What qualities should your new colleague have to fit in?
- 3 words that come to mind when you hear msg life Slovakia?
How long have you been with msg life Slovakia?
“I can never answer that question off the top of my head. It’s been 9 years, I think.”
What job were you recruited for?
“I was recruited as a software developer.”
What is your current job position?
“I’m currently working as a Scrum master/developer.”
How did you get into programming?
“I’ve been into programming since I was in secondary school. I graduated as a teacher in the field of mathematics-informatics. I had been teaching for a while, but I wanted to try my hand at being a programmer. Later I took out a mortgage, so I won’t go back to teaching again for another 20 years, I think.”
What attracted you to working at msg life Slovakia? Why did you choose us?
“Before msg life I worked in Vienna for 4 years. I was fed up with travelling every day and moreover I had the feeling that I wasn’t moving any further. Work was becoming a boring routine. That’s when msg life contacted me and provided me with everything I was missing in my old job. I didn’t have to travel so much and I got the space to learn new things. Actuarial science won me over right away. Plus, they paid me what I needed.”
How is working for us different from previous work experience?
“I’ll be honest. My current job is not my dream job. I think there are only a select few in the world for whom work is actually a hobby. It is much more important for me that I feel good at work. I really like coming here, I look forward to my colleagues and the good atmosphere that we have.”
What does your normal working day look like?
“I get to work quite early to avoid rush hour traffic. I have a quiet breakfast, have morning tea with my colleagues and usually start working around eight o’clock. For lunch, we either go down to the canteen or head out for something good. Then I work until five o’clock most days and rush to see my family after work. I literally run away 
. I try to bike, skate or run to and from work. I think sport is very necessary in our profession.”
What is your job? What are you currently working on?
“As a developer, I implement new customer requirements, often enforced by new legislation, and fix bugs that are discovered. Probably like a developer in any other company. I also specialize in actuarial calculations. As a Scrum Master I take care of an Austrian-Slovak Scrum team (called Danubius). My role is to help the team understand the principles of agile development in Scrum and to create the right conditions for it to improve. For example, in efficiency, quality of development, communication within the team but also outside it, responsiveness to change, etc. My goal is to create a self-organized Scrum team that doesn’t need a Scrum Master .”
Who do you communicate with at work and solve problems?
“I communicate mainly with members of the Danubius team. In addition, with everyone who is in any way involved in the work of our team. For example, I organise meetings where we meet the people for whom the outcome of our work is intended and get feedback from them, on the basis of which we adapt our further development. One of the important roles of a Scrum master is to help the team remove obstacles in their work.”
What project are you working on right now?
“I’m working on a product called msg.Life Factory Standard. It’s a foundation that individual customer projects adapt to their own needs.”
Do you have experience with other projects within msg life Slovakia?
“I’ve been through several projects and roles at msg life. That’s one of the things I like about our company. Occasionally they’ll offer me a change and I usually don’t say no. I like to learn new things.”
What apps and programs do you use at work?
“I probably use MS Office, Eclipse and Visual Studio the most.”
What skills or knowledge are important for your job?
“This is a very difficult question for me. There are different types of developers and each of them may be suitable for different types of tasks. Personally, I would like to be deliberate, purposeful, consistent, creative and efficient.”
What do you like most about your job? And what don’t you like very much?
“I am a trained teacher and one day I would like to teach again. However, the role of a Scrum Master reminds me a bit of the role of a teacher and I like that. In addition, as a developer, I occasionally manage to get to some interesting algorithmic or mathematical problem. I like that too. And what I don’t like? The fact that I spend most of the day behind a computer.”
Who are your colleagues?
“My colleagues are very nice, friendly, helpful, funny. If I didn’t have such a wonderful family, I would definitely spend more time with them in private.”
What qualities should your new colleague have to fit in?
“I think the most important thing is that they are interested in the job and have the desire to be part of our team. Fitting in is not a problem, we are a good bunch.”
3 words that come to mind when you hear msg life Slovakia?
“Part of my life.”
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