In 30 seconds
- Work happens in fixed sprints of one month or less.
- Three accountabilities: Product Owner, Scrum Master, Developers.
- Each sprint ends with an inspected, usable Increment.
How Scrum works in one picture
A small team pulls the most valuable work from the Product Backlog, plans a Sprint around a single Sprint Goal, builds a usable Increment, shows it to stakeholders, reflects on how it worked, and repeats.
The building blocks
| Type | What |
|---|---|
| Roles (accountabilities) | Product Owner, Scrum Master, Developers |
| Events | Sprint, Sprint Planning, Daily Scrum, Sprint Review, Sprint Retrospective |
| Artifacts | Product Backlog, Sprint Backlog, Increment |
| Commitments | Product Goal, Sprint Goal, Definition of Done |
Where it came from
Ken Schwaber and Jeff Sutherland presented Scrum in 1995, borrowing the rugby term for a team moving the ball forward together. They maintain the official Scrum Guide, last revised in 2020, which is deliberately short.
When Scrum fits, and when it doesn't
Scrum fits product work where requirements evolve and a team can deliver something usable every few weeks. It fits less well for interrupt-driven work like support or operations, where Kanban is often a better match. See Scrum vs Kanban.
Myth vs reality
FAQ
How long is a sprint?
One month or less. Two weeks is the most common choice.
How big is a Scrum team?
Typically 10 people or fewer, including the Product Owner and Scrum Master.
Is Scrum a methodology?
Scrum calls itself a lightweight framework: it gives structure but leaves the how to the team.