Senior Consultant (Scrum Master/Release Train Engineer)

Apex is seeking a seasoned Senior Consultant with strong consultative skills to act as a Senior Scrum Master and Release Train Engineer Internal Practice Consultant for Apex clients and within our Consulting Practice as part of our Apex Systems Solutions Delivery Organization.

This role is key in supporting Agile Development Teams and Agile Release Trains (ARTs), providing guidance in cross-team coordination, dependency resolution, and delivery, they also influence people leaders and management that directly interface with and oversee delivery teams. This role will provide an understanding of typical organizational operating models, various Agile frameworks and promote best practices in organizational agility to support elements of transformation and development, including tools, process, and people perspectives.

An ideal candidate shows a passion for mentoring, communicates clearly, and leverages tact in dealing with multiple levels of personnel while supporting the vision of the future state. Being empathetic and understanding to their ever-changing audience is crucial. This role will be responsible for client deliverables as well as internal consulting practice contributions.

RESPONSIBLITIES

• Develop and maintain strong internal and external customer relationships.
• Perform detailed assessment of the current processes, tools, roles, and responsibilities within the designated team(s) to understand gaps with the desired future state
• Develop and deliver Agile-related training materials to produce high-performing teams.
• Train and mentor, all roles within a team, working continuously on their team dynamics, communication, and process to overcome Agile maturity gaps.
• Conduct sessions with the client leadership team to align overall direction and address specific challenges, including reviewing end-to-end processes, identifying improvement opportunities, and translating roadmaps to tactical plans.
• Make recommendations specific to teams, defining roles and responsibilities within those teams, as well as any working agreements (i.e. Definition of Done, Definition of Ready, etc.) and support their direct implementation.
• Outline necessary team and ART ceremonies and practices, ensuring the processes from the program/portfolio level are working and features are available to create backlogs
• Facilitate PI Planning and Support PI Execution
• Assess current team and release train processes and provide recommendations to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of the teams.
• Provide direct support to Product Owners with Product Management life cycle (i.e. Backlog Creation and Refinement), as well as team input to address technical debt and proof of concepts, research, etc. to support delivery.
• Suggest key team and sprint/iteration health metrics showing how the teams are working, as well as what they are working on.
• Ensure the release trains work well together and follow SAFe processes, focusing on optimizing the flow of value with various mechanisms such as Program Kanban, Inspect & Adapt workshops and PI planning
• Employ various techniques to increase collaboration, transparency, predictability, and delivery of value.
• Easily step into key roles, such as Scrum Master and Product Owner to execute and showcase how the role should be performed, which can be used as a teaching tool for new personnel.
• Participate and oversee various Communities of Practice to sharpen critical thinking, problem-solving skills, and continuous improvement in agility.
• Conduct and manage Agile maturity assessments to help teams develop, grow, and continuously improve in their Agile journey.
• Identify and act on opportunities for continuous improvement with coaching plans.
• Partner with higher-level coaches to optimize coaching efforts, share feedback, and identify gaps to be designed for in the overarching Agile framework.
• Coach related stakeholders/business teams to educate and set expectations on how teams will work collaboratively with them.
• Coach teams on how to remove complex roadblocks and impediments to change and deliver, escalate as needed
• Demonstrate professional level consulting skills, leadership skills, and presentation skills while being adaptable and flexible to acquire skills to meet business needs.
• Continually innovate, seek creative solutions, and find new ways of adding value. Listen and seek to understand the client and meet their needs, providing consultative guidance.
• Stay attuned to the future needs of the client and work with internal resources to identify opportunities.
• Proactively provide solutions and approach adversity with a solution-focused mindset.

Job Requirements

• 8+ years of overall Agile experience working within large organizations
• 3+ years of experience coaching teams in a scaled environment
• Bachelor Degree, preferably in Information Technology, Organizational Design, Business Administration, Systems Engineering, Management Information Systems or related field
• SAFe and RTE experience required, certifications preferred
• Experience with launching Waterfall teams into an Agile methodology (Scrum or Kanban)
• Deep practical experience of Scrum and Kanban
• Experience working in scaled frameworks is preferred (i.e. SAFe, LeSS, S@S, Spotify, etc.)
• Understanding of typical Project and Program Management methodologies
• Experience developing and delivering custom Agile training materials
• Experience in more than one Agile tracking tools, such as JIRA, Azure, ServiceNow etc.
• Well-versed in virtual coaching techniques and collaboration tools
• Deep knowledge of the software development life cycle and ability to work around various technologies
• Scrum and/or Kanban Certification preferred
• Coaching and/or scaled framework certifications a plus

OUR AWESOME BENEFITS:

• Competitive salary
• Health, Dental and Vision Insurance
• Long and Short-Term Disability
• Life Insurance
• Vacation and Holiday Pay
• 401k Retirement Plan
• Training and Advancement opportunities
• Tuition Reimbursement
• Birthdays Off
• Philanthropic Opportunities
• Referral Program
• Partial Gym Membership Paid
• Team Building Events