Agile Scrum Master

Overview Join a team where innovation meets mission. Our AI, cloud, cyber, and modernization solutions save agencies thousands of hours, safeguard national security, and strengthen health and humanitarian missions worldwide. With 1,700+ team members, 1,500+ AI/data experts, and 100+ prime contracts, we deliver at scale and with purpose. We've been recognized as a Top Workplace by the Washington Post for six straight years and named to the Inc. 5000 Fastest Growing Private Companies 13 of the past 14 years. Credence is a welcoming home for those looking to grow and contribute to positive change. We encourage all employees to expand beyond their boundaries, dive into important world-changing Federal challenges. Position Summary Credence has an immediate need for an experienced and adaptable Scrum Master with strong Business Analyst experience to support high-performing, cross-functional teams delivering value through Agile practices - including teams building and integrating AI/ML capabilities. The ideal candidate is a servant leader with strong Jira expertise who can guide teams in adhering to established workflows while continuously improving how work flows through the system. This role is not a pure ceremony-and-board facilitator. We are specifically looking for someone who can bring business analysis rigor to our intake and requirements process - turning vague or shifting requests into clear, testable, well-groomed backlog items before they ever reach a sprint. Our intake process today is inconsistent, and requirements frequently arrive unclear or incomplete; a core part of this role is fixing that at the source, not just managing the fallout in sprint planning. You should also be conversant in how AI is reshaping software delivery - from AI-assisted development tools to the unique backlog and sprint dynamics of ML-focused teams. Our organization practices core Scrum principles and selectively incorporates Agile scaling concepts. While we support PI Planning, we do not fully implement all SAFe ceremonies or roles. This role requires sound judgment, flexibility, and the ability to apply Agile and BA practices pragmatically rather than prescriptively. Responsibilities include, but are not limited to the duties listed below Requirements & Intake (Business Analysis) Own and improve the intake process for new work, defining a consistent, repeatable path from initial request to ready-for-sprint backlog item Elicit, clarify, and document requirements directly with stakeholders and product owners, closing gaps before items enter the backlog Translate ambiguous or high-level asks into well-formed user stories with clear, testable acceptance criteria Facilitate requirements workshops, backlog refinement, and stakeholder interviews to surface hidden assumptions and dependencies Create and maintain lightweight process documentation (intake templates, definition of ready, requirements checklists) that the team and stakeholders can consistently follow Identify recurring sources of unclear requirements and drive root-cause fixes to the intake process, not just one-off clarifications Agile & Team Facilitation Facilitate Scrum ceremonies including sprint planning, daily stand-ups, sprint reviews, and retrospectives Coach teams on Agile and Scrum principles, encouraging accountability, transparency, and continuous improvement Remove impediments and help teams navigate dependencies, risks, and blockers Foster a culture of collaboration, psychological safety, and sustainable delivery Jira & Workflow Leadership Serve as a Jira subject-matter expert for Scrum teams Ensure teams consistently adhere to established Jira workflows, issue types, and standards Guide teams on proper backlog hygiene, story writing, estimation, and ticket lifecycle management in Jira Use Jira dashboards and reports to promote transparency and support data-informed decision-making Identify workflow inefficiencies and recommend improvements aligned with Agile and BA best practices Scaled & Cross-Team Collaboration Support and facilitate PI Planning activities, including preparation, coordination, and follow-up Help teams manage cross-team dependencies and commitments identified during PI Planning Apply select SAFe concepts when helpful, without rigid framework enforcement AI-Aware Delivery Support teams that use AI-assisted development tools (code generation, automated testing, AI pair programming) and help integrate these into sprint workflows and team norms Understand how AI tooling changes team velocity patterns, code review practices, and estimation - and adapt Agile ceremonies accordingly Facilitate conversations around responsible AI-assisted development, including quality gates, human review expectations, and when AI-generated output requires additional scrutiny Help teams manage the backlog implications of AI feature work, where tasks may involve prompt engineering, integration testing against non-deterministic outputs, or rapid prototyping cycles Overview Join a team where innovation meets mission. Our AI, cloud, cyber, and modernization solutions save agencies thousands of hours, safeguard national security, and strengthen health and humanitarian missions worldwide. With 1,700+ team members, 1,500+ AI/data experts, and 100+ prime contracts, we deliver at scale and with purpose. We've been recognized as a Top Workplace by the Washington Post for six straight years and named to the Inc. 5000 Fastest Growing Private Companies 13 of the past 14 years. Credence is a welcoming home for those looking to grow and contribute to positive change. We encourage all employees to expand beyond their boundaries, dive into important world-changing Federal challenges. Position Summary Credence has an immediate need for an experienced and adaptable Scrum Master with strong Business Analyst experience to support high-performing, cross-functional teams delivering value through Agile practices - including teams building and integrating AI/ML capabilities. The ideal candidate is a servant leader with strong Jira expertise who can guide teams in adhering to established workflows while continuously improving how work flows through the system. This role is not a pure ceremony-and-board facilitator. We are specifically looking for someone who can bring business analysis rigor to our intake and requirements process - turning vague or shifting requests into clear, testable, well-groomed backlog items before they ever reach a sprint. Our intake process today is inconsistent, and requirements frequently arrive unclear or incomplete; a core part of this role is fixing that at the source, not just managing the fallout in sprint planning. You should also be conversant in how AI is reshaping software delivery - from AI-assisted development tools to the unique backlog and sprint dynamics of ML-focused teams. Our organization practices core Scrum principles and selectively incorporates Agile scaling concepts. While we support PI Planning, we do not fully implement all SAFe ceremonies or roles. This role requires sound judgment, flexibility, and the ability to apply Agile and BA practices pragmatically rather than prescriptively. Responsibilities include, but are not limited to the duties listed below Requirements & Intake (Business Analysis) Own and improve the intake process for new work, defining a consistent, repeatable path from initial request to ready-for-sprint backlog item Elicit, clarify, and document requirements directly with stakeholders and product owners, closing gaps before items enter the backlog Translate ambiguous or high-level asks into well-formed user stories with clear, testable acceptance criteria Facilitate requirements workshops, backlog refinement, and stakeholder interviews to surface hidden assumptions and dependencies Create and maintain lightweight process documentation (intake templates, definition of ready, requirements checklists) that the team and stakeholders can consistently follow Identify recurring sources of unclear requirements and drive root-cause fixes to the intake process, not just one-off clarifications Agile & Team Facilitation Facilitate Scrum ceremonies including sprint planning, daily stand-ups, sprint reviews, and retrospectives Coach teams on Agile and Scrum principles, encouraging accountability, transparency, and continuous improvement Remove impediments and help teams navigate dependencies, risks, and blockers Foster a culture of collaboration, psychological safety, and sustainable delivery Jira & Workflow Leadership Serve as a Jira subject-matter expert for Scrum teams Ensure teams consistently adhere to established Jira workflows, issue types, and standards Guide teams on proper backlog hygiene, story writing, estimation, and ticket lifecycle management in Jira Use Jira dashboards and reports to promote transparency and support data-informed decision-making Identify workflow inefficiencies and recommend improvements aligned with Agile and BA best practices Scaled & Cross-Team Collaboration Support and facilitate PI Planning activities, including preparation, coordination, and follow-up Help teams manage cross-team dependencies and commitments identified during PI Planning Apply select SAFe concepts when helpful, without rigid framework enforcement AI-Aware Delivery Support teams that use AI-assisted development tools (code generation, automated testing, AI pair programming) and help integrate these into sprint workflows and team norms Understand how AI tooling changes team velocity patterns, code review practices, and estimation - and adapt Agile ceremonies accordingly Facilitate conversations around responsible AI-assisted development, including quality gates, human review expectations, and when AI-generated output requires additional scrutiny Help teams manage the backlog implications of AI feature work, where tasks may involve prompt engineering, integration testing against non-deterministic outputs, or rapid prototyping cycles Bachelor's degree with 3+ years of experience as a Scrum Master or Agile practitioner, and demonstrated experience performing business analysis (requirements gathering, elicitation, and documentation) Advanced proficiency with Jira, including workflows, boards, dashboards, and reporting Strong understanding of Scrum and Agile principles Proven ability to gather and clarify requirements from stakeholders and translate them into clear, actionable user stories and acceptance criteria Experience designing or improving an intake process for incoming work requests Understanding of how AI is changing the software development lifecycle - not just as a product feature, but as a development accelerant Demonstrated ability to coach teams and guide behavior change Excellent facilitation, communication, and problem-solving skills Experience working within defined processes while continuously improving them Ability to operate in a hybrid environment (in-office and virtual) U.S. Citizenship with eligibility for DoD Secret clearance Preferred / Nice-to-Have Qualifications CBAP, CCBA, or other Business Analysis certification (e.g., IIBA-aligned) Experience building or reengineering an intake/triage workflow for a delivery team Experience supporting PI Planning in a scaled or multi-team environment Familiarity with SAFe methodologies (certification a plus, not required) Experience operating in hybrid or customized Agile frameworks Awareness of emerging AI software development practices: prompt engineering as a discipline, AI-generated code quality management, and evolving definitions of "done" when AI is in the loop Familiarity with agentic development patterns and how autonomous AI tooling affects sprint planning and task decomposition Exposure to enterprise Agile tooling and governance What We Value Clear, well-defined requirements before work enters a sprint Practical Agile over rigid framework adherence Continuous improvement driven by data and team feedback Collaboration and shared ownership of outcomes Salary Range: $95,000-$125,000 annually. Actual compensation will be determined based on the selected candidate's experience, education, certifications, skills, and overall qualifications. Health Care Plan (Medical, Dental & Vision) Retirement Plan (401k, IRA) Life Insurance (Basic, Voluntary & AD&D) Paid Time Off (Vacation, Sick & Public Holidays) Family Leave (Maternity, Paternity) Short Term & Long Term Disability Training & Development Wellness Resources Credence company