Scrum Master

Job Title: Scrum Master

Location: Chicago, IL

Duration: 6+ months (long term)


Job Description: An exploratory call will not be part of this process. Please submit your top two candidates for consideration, as additional submissions may not be reviewed.



Job Summary:
We are seeking experienced Scrum Master to lead and manage Community Investment and ERP (HR & Finance) software engineering delivery teams. This role requires expertise in Agile methodologies, Azure DevOps, and the ability to foster collaboration between cross-functional teams to ensure the successful delivery of secure, high-quality solutions.



What you'll do:
We are seeking a certified and highly skilled Senior Scrum Master to join our dynamic team to lead IT delivery teams focused on the development and delivery of digital solutions within IT Software Engineering and Delivery department. This role requires a strong understanding of Agile methodologies, particularly Scrum, and a solid background in traditional project management practices.
This role needs to adhere to bank's blended work model with 3 days in office.



What you can expect:
Manage the IT delivery team efforts to ensure digital solutions are safe, secure, right sized, and of high quality.
Scrum Master for Community Investment and ERP (HR & Finance) teams, leading all Agile ceremonies, including sprint planning, daily stand-ups, backlog refinement, retrospectives, and reviews, cross team plannings.
Collaborate with developers, administrators, and stakeholders to prioritize and deliver enhancements, customizations, and integrations.
Promote and implement best practices within the software development lifecycle.
Manage and optimize workflows using Azure DevOps, including work item tracking, backlog management, and release pipelines.
Identify and resolve impediments to team progress, ensuring continuous delivery of value.
Act as a servant leader, fostering a culture of accountability, continuous improvement, and collaboration.
Monitor sprint metrics (e.g., velocity, burndown) to track progress and identify opportunities for optimization.
Work with the Product Owner and Business System analyst to ensure the product backlog is well-defined, prioritized, and aligned with business goals.
Champion secure development practices, advocating for automated security testing and compliance checks within CI/CD pipelines.
Communicate project status, risks, and dependencies to stakeholders and leadership in a clear and timely manner.
Lead and facilitate all Agile scrum ceremonies for the IT Delivery Team(s).
Conduct cross-functional planning efforts to identify and plan project work efforts.
Ensure key Agile scrum artifacts are properly documented and of high quality.
Track delivery team work efforts, ensuring alignment with commitments.
Proactively identify, track and mitigate key risks that could hamper work delivery.
Identify, monitor and resolve Agile team impediments to ensure successful delivery.
Lead teams in documenting and understanding data, and their related flows, across systems to support the Bank
Cultivate, disseminate, and enforce functional policies, procedures, and best practices.
Leverage metrics to measure progress and promote a culture of continuous improvement.
Assist in incident and problem resolution for the delivery team's supported applications.
Prepare and establish estimates while also adhering to project and department budgets.
Guide, direct, and coach less experienced IT staff as needed.



What you'll bring:
Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Information Technology, or related field
Certified Scrum Master (CSM) or similar Agile certification required
Project Management Professional (PMP) certification a plus
Minimum of 5-7 years of experience leading Agile teams developing custom software, preferably within the financial services industry
Strong understanding of Agile principles and traditional project management practices coupled with an excellent understanding of all facets of the software development life-cycle (SDLC)
Excellent planning, communication, interpersonal, and leadership skills
Ability to thrive in a fast-paced environment and adapt quickly to changing priorities
Experience working in a formal, well structured, regulated environment
Experience with application life-cycle management (ALM) tools such as Microsoft Azure DevOps
Experience leading IT delivery teams developing web based, digital solutions leveraging DevSecOps, microservices, API's on the Amazon Web Services (AWS) platform
Experience managing the delivery of test automation solutions, on both web and mobile platforms, to ensure the delivery a high quality work product
High degree of personal accountability and integrity
Proven experience as a Scrum Master in Agile/Scrum environments.
Hands-on experience with Azure DevOps for Agile project management and CI/CD pipeline management.
Solid understanding of Agile frameworks (Scrum, Kanban and Scaled Agile) and the ability to adapt them to team needs.
Understanding of CI/CD tools and integrations, including automated testing and security scanning tools.
Strong leadership and mentoring skills to guide teams in Agile best practices.
Effective communication, facilitation, and conflict-resolution skills.