When a Scrum Master joins a new team how do they check the process?
How to Check if Your Team is Following the Process Right?
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Here’s something that happens with every Scrum Master:
You join a new team, excited to help them improve their productivity. But as you sit in your first few meetings, you notice things are not quite flowing the way they should.
the daily standups feel like status reports
the sprint reviews lack meaningful stakeholder engagement
the retrospectives are quiet, with team members reluctant to speak up
And you're wondering: "Should I jump in and fix everything right away?"
The most effective Scrum Masters I've known don't rush to make changes. They start with careful observation.
When you enter a new team, you think like a Doctor. Before prescribing any treatment, you observe symptoms, check vital signs, and understand the whole picture.
In this post, I'll share a guide for observing your team's Scrum events. You'll learn:
What to observe?
How to turn your observations into action?
When to step in and when to step back?
Let's get started.
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General observation guidelines
Show up early, camera on (if remote).
Set clear expectations up-front: “I’ll just watch and take notes so I learn your current rhythm. No judgment. I'm here to understand." This simple statement does two powerful things:
It puts the team at ease
It gives you permission to be the quiet observer
Keep a low profile: The moment you interfere, you change the natural behaviour you're trying to observe. This means:
No facilitation
No coaching
No jumping into solving problems
No "helpful suggestions"
Just watch. Take notes. Let the team's natural dynamics unfold
Write down plain observations, not conclusions. Quote people verbatim where possible (Note: these quotes are not for everyone to see)
Right after each meeting (and I mean right after, while it's fresh), do this quick exercise:
🟢 Green: Mark the strengths you observed
🟡 Yellow: Note anything that's unclear or needs more observation
🟤 Red: Flag potential impedimentsDon't jump to conclusions. These red flags? They're not problems yet. They're just observations that need validation
Park your hypotheses: Validate them later with the team
Your brain will want to diagnose issues immediately. That's natural. We're problem solvers by nature. But resist that urge.
Resist the urge to think, "They're doing standups wrong."
Think, "Question to explore: What's the team's goal for their daily standup?"
Remember: Observation is similar to building a puzzle. You need all the pieces before you can see the whole picture.
Daily Scrum (observe 2–3 occurrences)
I have written a detailed post on what to “note” during daily standups. You can check it out at the link below:
What do I note during daily stand-ups?
Here’s a summary of what to observe: