Losing a Scrum Team member

 

It is a natural part of the business environment that people move on from our projects for various reasons. Perhaps they have a better job offer, are needed on another project, or pursue other life choices. When a top team member leaves, it can not only impact the project, but the team itself. People form relationships, collaborate, produce and share knowledge, and add to the lifeblood of the team. When they depart, in some ways it can feel similar to the grief process. Some teams pick up where they left off and quickly get another member up to speed, so that their team is performing at optimal levels sooner rather than later. Other teams fall back into the Storming stage of the Tuckman model.

The Scrum Team is unique in that it has a few clearly defined roles, is empowered, self-organized, cross-functional, small, collaborative, team rather than individual focused and decides how it will produce the project's product or service. While there is a lot of information on how to make a team successful by focusing on team members' skills and attitude, there is less information on how to cope when a key team member leaves the team.

So what can we do when one of our star performers leaves the Scrum Team?

1. Talk about it
It sounds like common sense, but often overlooked. The first thing a Scrum Master should do is get the team to sit down and talk about how everyone feels about the team member leaving, and then the implications for the team and project. This session is a good opportunity for people to express their feelings, as some may have had a long working relationship with the former team member. Further, the team is in the best position to make recommendation on how to fill the gap with the next team member.

2. Fill the gap
Before a replacement team member is found, the Scrum Team need to figure out how the previous work performed by the former team member will be handled. Can some of the team chip in to make up some of the work? Does the team wait until the new member arrives? Is there some improvements the team could make to either people, processes or the product that might save some time to make up for the initial lower productivity? This must be a team decision, and not just the previous team member's work dumped onto the team until a replacement is found.

3. Find a suitable replacement
Now the really challenging part is replacing that great team member. The first suggestion I recommend is not to raise expectations too high for the new team member. It is almost impossible for the team to rate a new team member higher than their former colleague, so give them a chance to fit in and perform.

The three key areas the Scrum Team will need to focus on is skills, attitude, and commitment. The new team member will need cross functional skills in order to succeed in a Scrum Team. They will need the right attitude from an Agile mindset, to a collaborative team player. Finally, they will need full commitment, to the team, to the Scrum values and principles, and to the project and organization. Can you think of anything else?

“Individual commitment to a group effort; that’s what makes a team work, a company work, a society work, a civilization work." - Vince Lombardi
 

Thank you for your interest in the Scrumptious blog. If you have any ideas for Scrum topics, please message me here. Until next time, remember, projects can be Scrumptious!