Scrum Master

VDart Inc; Chicago (IL); On-site; USD 90,000 - 130,000; Full time

Job summary

VDart Inc. in Chicago seeks an experienced Scrum Master to facilitate Scrum ceremonies, coach the team and Product Owner on Agile best practices, and track sprint progress in Azure DevOps.

The ideal candidate will identify and help remove impediments, keep the backlog and sprint boards current, and collaborate daily with the Project Manager to ensure delivery stays aligned with priorities and release timelines. This is a fast ramp-up engagement with potential to extend.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree preferred.
• Minimum five (5) years as a Scrum Master or Agile facilitator.
• Experience facilitating Scrum ceremonies for a delivery team.
• Hands-on Azure DevOps (ADO) for sprint/backlog management and reporting.
• Experience in Agile/Scrum delivery with cross-functional teams.

Responsibilities

• Ceremony Facilitation: daily standups, sprint planning, backlog refinement, sprint review, retrospective.
• Agile Coaching: coach team and Product Owner on Agile/Scrum best practices.
• Impediment Removal: identify and remove blockers; escalate as needed.
• Backlog & Board Management: track progress using Azure DevOps; keep backlog and boards current.
• Collaboration: work with Project Manager and Product Owner to align priorities and ensure on-track releases.
• Engagement Wrap-Up: provide end-of-engagement summary with recommendations.

Skills

Facilitation

Agile Coaching

Azure DevOps

Communication

Team Collaboration

Education

Bachelor's Degree

Tools

Azure DevOps (ADO)

Jira

Job description

Job Title: Scrum Master

Location: Chicago, IL

Duration: Long Term

Job Summary

The Scrum Master will report to the assigned Project Manager within the Enterprise Solution Delivery PMO in
the Business Partnerships and Innovation Department within ITS. This is a short-term engagement intended to
provide focused Agile facilitation and coaching support for an active project, with the opportunity to extend or
expand into a longer-term engagement based on performance and continued project need.
This role is facilitation-focused: the Scrum Master will run core Scrum ceremonies, coach the team and Product
Owner on Agile best practices, and track sprint progress in Azure DevOps (ADO). The Scrum Master will identify
and help remove impediments, keep the team's backlog and sprint boards current, and work in close, daily
collaboration with the Project Manager to ensure delivery stays aligned with sprint priorities and release
timelines. Given the short duration of the engagement, the ideal candidate is able to ramp up quickly on a new
team's context without requiring deep institutional knowledge upfront.

Principal Accountabilities

• Ceremony Facilitation: Facilitate core Scrum ceremonies - daily standups, sprint planning, backlog refinement, sprint review, and retrospective - for an assigned project team.
• Agile Coaching: Coach the team and Product Owner on Agile/Scrum best practices, adapting to CPS's existing tools and workflows.
• Impediment Removal: Identify and help remove impediments that are blocking the team, escalating where needed to keep delivery moving.
• Backlog & Board Management: Track and report sprint progress and team health using Azure DevOps (ADO), keeping the backlog and sprint boards current and accurate.
• Collaboration: Work daily with the Project Manager and Product Owner to align sprint priorities, flag blockers early, and confirm the team is on track for release timelines.
• Engagement Wrap-Up: Provide a brief end-of-engagement summary of outcomes and recommendations to the Project Manager and PMO leadership to inform any decision to extend.

Education Required

• Bachelor's Degree from an accredited college or university is preferred;

Experience and Number of Years

• A minimum of five (5) years of professional experience as a Scrum Master or Agile facilitator.
• Experience facilitating Scrum ceremonies (standups, sprint planning, backlog refinement, sprint review, retrospective) for a delivery team is required.
• Hands-on experience using Azure DevOps (ADO) for sprint/backlog management and reporting is required.
• Experience working within an Agile/Scrum delivery environment on cross-functional teams, including developers, QA, and business stakeholders.
• Ability to quickly ramp up on a new team's context and process without needing deep institutional knowledge upfront.

Preferred Certifications

• Certified ScrumMaster (CSM)
• Professional Scrum Master (PSM I or higher)
• Microsoft Certified: Azure DevOps Engineer Expert

Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities

• Facilitation: Strong facilitation skills, able to keep ceremonies focused, time-boxed, and productive.
• Servant Leadership: Sound judgment in coaching the team and Product Owner while protecting the team from unnecessary disruption.
• Tool Proficiency: Working proficiency in Azure DevOps (ADO), including backlogs, sprint boards, and burndown/velocity reporting.
• Communication: Ability to clearly communicate sprint status, risks, and impediments to both technical teams and business stakeholders.

Keywords

Scrum Master, Azure, DevOps, ADO, Agile, Jira