Creating a Positive Atmosphere in an Online Development Team as a Beginner Scrum Master Stage 2

This article is the fourth day of the Summer Relay Series 2024.

It's been a while. I'm Kamei, the Scrum Master.
The days of struggling in the depths of Scrum are still ongoing, and I often find myself staring off into the distance.
As a Scrum Master, I started participating in a different project team earlier this year.

The working environment of this team is primarily remote, and we are always connected during working hours.
However, even though we are always connected remotely, the team I joined at first was in the following situation:

• Due to PC specifications, the camera was always OFF, and communication was only through audio.
• The mute was not released except during speaking.
• The conversations mainly consisted of technical Q&A and business communications, with no casual chats or laughter.
• Even in meetings where all members gathered, discussions progressed with only a few fixed members' voices being heard.
• It felt more like a "group" of individual businesses rather than a "team" working together.

I first considered whether we could create a more valuable product with user impact in Scrum while maintaining the atmosphere of this team.
As a result, I thought, "First, we should activate communication among team members and improve teamwork."
But how can we enhance psychological safety among team members and revamp the atmosphere within the team...?

In order to change the team atmosphere, I thought about how to be accepted by the team as a new member before proposing various improvement actions.
Here are some actions I took to foster a sense of camaraderie.
The aim was to build psychological safety between each individual member and myself before anyone else.

1. Open my heart first to open the other person's heart
   Even if I want to know about team members, unless they are particularly active, they won’t share much.
   Since we can't see each other's faces remotely, and there isn't a collaborative task already set up between developers and the Scrum Master, it's difficult to make contact unless I initiate the conversation.
   I started by joining in on pair programming sessions, asking questions like "What is that?" and "What are you working on now?" out of curiosity to spark conversations.
   While it may be hard to convey in writing, raising the intonation at the end of questions makes them sound softer.
   I aimed to broaden the conversation from these openings and grasp the feelings and personalities of the individuals.

2. Always respond with a slightly higher voice tone and accept the other person's opinions
   Even if it's unintentional, my usual voice tends to be low and can sound grumpy.
   By slightly raising my voice tone, I aimed to make the other person feel that it's easier to approach me when I'm in a good mood.
   My basic stance was to be a "Yes Man."
   Whether it was a trivial question in Scrum or small consultations starting with "It's not a big deal, but...", I always responded with a smile, even if we couldn't see each other's faces, saying "Sure! What’s up?"
   I aimed to be recognized as someone easy to talk to by generally accepting the other person's opinions.

3. Vocalize both nods and silence
   When working face-to-face, expressions and movements convey what someone is thinking.
   However, in this project, where cameras are always OFF and faces are not visible, the only way to gauge the other person's state is through "voice."
   When someone is speaking, I would actively respond with "uh-huh, uh-huh," and if I was unsure how to respond, I would vocalize "hmm" instead of remaining silent, actively using my voice to show that I was listening.
   Conversely, being in a position where I’m speaking earnestly with no reactions can be quite tough.
   I actively used "voice" to lower the tension of speaking remotely.

4. Respond quicker than other team members
   Silence in a remote setting can feel pressuring even for just 2 or 3 seconds.
   In those few seconds, the speaker's mind races with worries about whether their statement was off the mark or difficult to convey.
   If the content is enjoyable, I would laugh; if I was unsure or thinking, I would say "hmm"; and if I didn’t quite understand, I would proactively connect by asking, "So, is it XX?"
   Conversely, if I threw the conversational ball and there was a slight pause, I would think to myself, "Are you thinking?" and try not to pressure them to respond quickly.

5. First, create an ally within the team
   Find someone at the center of the team, preferably someone who understands Scrum!
   I consulted with them to see if the actions I wanted to take as a Scrum Master would be effective for this team.
   I also made it a point to learn about the history behind the current team situation.
   From there, I sought their advice on what actions might yield good results based on the team's background and the characteristics of its members.

Since we can't see each other, I utilized my voice significantly, but in remote environments, there are also features that allow for reactions through stamps.
In situations where using voice was difficult, I actively used such features to react.
By taking these actions, I significantly blended into the team, and it also sparked various influences among other members.
For instance, while there was a lot of muting, more members began to speak up when necessary, and before I knew it, I noticed casual conversations and laughter occurring among members other than myself.
I learned that there are ways to improve the team atmosphere without conducting inception decks or team-building workshops.

It is indeed challenging to quickly enhance psychological safety, just like building trust.
However, through steady efforts, we have gradually improved to the point where stakeholders now say, "This team looks like fun."
But just being fun does not make a good team.
A good team is one that can openly express their thoughts, tackle challenges, and engage in active discussions for the product while moving forward positively together.
I believe that ensuring psychological safety is a crucial element when collaborating with others, regardless of Scrum or online settings.
This article introduced actions I actually tried online, and I hope it serves as a reference for everyone.