Agile Scrum Master

Credence; Illinois; Hybrid; USD 110,000 - 135,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Health Care Plan (Medical, Dental &amp

Job summary

Credence is hiring an experienced Agile Scrum Master to support high-performing, cross-functional teams delivering value through Agile practices, including AI/ML projects. You will serve as a servant leader with strong Jira expertise, guiding teams on workflows, backlog hygiene, estimation, and transparency.

The role requires 3+ years as a Scrum Master, strong facilitation, and the ability to coach teams in a hybrid work environment. U.S. citizenship and DoD clearance eligibility are preferred.

Qualifications

• Bachelor3s degree with 3+ years of experience as a Scrum Master or Agile practitioner.
• Advanced proficiency with Jira, including workflows, boards, dashboards, and reporting.
• Strong understanding of Scrum and Agile principles.
• Understanding of how AI is changing the software development lifecycle.
• Excellent facilitation, communication, and problem-solving skills.
• Experience operating within a hybrid environment (in-office and virtual).
• U.S. Citizenship with eligibility for DoD Secret clearance.

Responsibilities

• 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.

Skills

Jira

Agile coaching

Facilitation

Team leadership

Education

Bachelor’s degree

Tools

Jira

Job description

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 Agile Scrum Master 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. You should 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 supportPI Planning, we do not fully implement allSAFeceremonies or roles. This role requires sound judgment, flexibility, and the ability to apply Agile practices pragmatically rather than prescriptively.

Responsibilities include, but are not limited to the duties listed below

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 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
• Advanced proficiency with Jira, including workflows, boards, dashboards, and reporting
• Strong understanding of Scrum and Agile principles
• 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

• 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

• Practical Agile over rigid framework adherence
• Continuous improvement driven by data and team feedback
• Collaboration and shared ownership of outcomes

Salary Range:

$110,000–$135,000 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