Scrum is a methodology based on sprints, very agile and flexible. Therefore, it has been gaining adherents among technology professionals in all areas of the market to team motivation.

However, adopting the productivity model is not enough to guarantee your success. The manager of a team needs to be ready to become a leader if he wants to motivate software developers in an organized and objective way.

In this article, you will learn how you can motivate using Scrum and some of the best GitScrum’s features to increase productivity.

What makes Scrum different from other methodologies?

First, it is important to understand that a Scrum team acts a little differently from other known development methodologies.

Mainly, this is a more suitable operating model for senior professionals, who have the ability to self-manage, work in several different disciplines, and with proactive and creative profiles.

Therefore, look for these characteristics within your team even before starting a Scrum project.

In a short-shot methodology (15 to 30 days maximum), there is little room for procrastination or communication problems between members. Thinking about it now will make your leadership much easier in the future.

How does a Scrum project influence the motivation of a team?

As we’ve said, Scrum requires team dynamism and delivers back a sense of accomplishment faster and more often — but only when it’s managed and executed well.

The great strength, in this case, is being able to organize productivity in cycles and smaller modules. With simpler and more achievable goals, it’s easy to feel the pleasure of achievement and feel that sense of progress every day.

Scrum is responsible for making developers pay attention to every step, without worrying all the time about the bottom of the ladder. Using a tool like GitScrum’s Task Effort is essential for assigning any point of tasks and helping you give the right directions to your team.

On the other hand, the speed with which this methodology is developed in a project is also capable of negatively influencing productivity, especially when there are leadership and communication problems.

Delays and lack of focus during cycles can accumulate in ever-larger backlogs, a monster ready to snap up the project being fed by the team itself.

The 5th Agile Manifesto Principle: Motivation

Build projects around motivated individuals. Give them the environment and support they need, and trust them to get the job done.

This principle deals with another concept for which there is no silver bullet: team motivation. The only certainty we have about this topic is that each individual is different and motivated differently.

The first of these is precisely the superiors’ trust in the work performed by their team. You must empower your employees to decide how a particular task will be performed and trust that this decision will bring the best possible result.

This attitude brings self-confidence to the team, encourages them to always do their best, and, in some cases, faster solutions for the customer.

The second is the relationship between the team and between it and its superiors. Feelings of team and collaboration must be guaranteed between everyone and in a uniform way

The resources needed to perform the work must be available and at a level adequate to the needs of the team. It is also worth emphasizing that the workspace should make working time more comfortable and pleasant and not the other way around.

Last but not least, learning. People are currently looking for jobs that can also bring them intellectual return, that is, they want to learn new things. So, whenever possible, invest in your employees. Promote training, debates, lectures, etc. Show that you care about their development.

How can a manager act motivate software developers?

Of course, you want the team to be as motivated as possible to have a successful Scrum project. As much as applications and platforms help make your team’s work easier, much of this success is always in the hands of the leader, a manager who is also competent in managing people.

Define leadership roles well

There are two leaders in Scrum: the Scrum Master and the Product Manager. The first is responsible for supporting the team, such as coordinating the meetings, keeping the team focused on the work, and making it complete each cycle.

The Product Manager is the one who defines what you must do. He must detail explanations of what is the development so that there is no misunderstanding.  According to the priorities he, as Product Manager, defines together with the client.

You can combine the two functions or count on help with one of them, as long as your decision is the best one to guarantee well-done planning. It is on these two positions that the proper functioning of Scrum will depend, essential for the team motivation.

Don’t neglect feedback

Feedback is so important in Scrum projects that it is ideal to hold daily team alignment meetings. With so many tasks, the lack of an opinion on a minor issue can make a snowball later in development. Or, the simple lack of feedback can be a demotivator for the professionals involved.

So take the time to review and evaluate every day. Give productive, objective, and clear feedback. Ask for opinions about your work too, as they will be important in improving your leadership. Scrum is about communication, so the more the team communicates well, the better the result.

Prepare the team before and during the project

Since Scrum is an extremely dynamic methodology, much of its success comes from preparing the team before the project begins. This means that planning must be a priority.

For example, you cannot start development without defining what kind of skills, capabilities, and technologies. Relying on training and learning during the process is a direct formula for the delays and demotivation of the professionals involved.

Another problem resulting from a lack of preparation is a leader unable to detail tasks and processes when handing them over to the team. When it comes to development, you need to have a sense of the ultimate goal.

Often, the Product Manager is not aware of this and starts a sprint with several tasks without enough detail. When one of the members starts to develop, he ends up bumping into these impediments.

Take care of the team’s focus

Focus is critical for a team following this type of methodology. That’s why it’s the Scrum Master’s role to also shield the team from any outside influence. Whether it’s a problem with another project, administrative issues, or even an air conditioner that isn’t working.

With a well-prepared leader and a motivated team, no problem will get between you and the next sprint, especially using GitScrum’s Sprints.

How important is motivation in development projects?

In today’s market, a digital business depends on the goal, dynamic projects, and that everyone involved has development agility as their focus. A concept calls Rapid Application Development (RAD).

This is guaranteed, firstly, by a capable and sophisticated development platform, which uses the RAD concept as one of its pillars.

But as complete as a platform is in features, motivating software developers on a Scrum team still depends on organization and leadership. Qualities that need to come from you as a manager.

GitScrum supports your team to better results and effective deliveries!

Set your workflow and board to guide your Agile team, assign Tasks, Subtasks and keep in charge of the whole process evolvements. Allow your Agile team to collaborate.

Reach higher levels of efficiency, productivity, and deliverability with GitScrum. Work focused on prioritizing what’s valuable and tracking your flow to overcome results.

Sign up now and make your team grow together!