Vish's Journey in Computer Science

The recent learnings related to Scrum and Agile process under the aegis of Professor Al-Faris has been very enlightening. I have also been trying to look up for new learnings online.  While reading through several Agile blogs, I came across an article by Mike Cohn titled “How to Coach Your Team to Run a Daily Scrum Meeting When You Cannot Attend” on Mountain Goat Software. It immediately caught my attention because it deals with a real-world challenge that I have actually seen in group projects — what happens when the person who usually runs the meeting cannot make it. The post discusses how a Scrum Master or team lead can help their team stay organized and independent enough to run daily Scrum meetings even without them being there.

Cohn’s main point is that the Scrum Master’s goal should not be to control every meeting, but to coach the team until they can manage those sessions on their own. He explains that when a team always relies on one person to start and run the daily Scrum, they become dependent. The healthier approach is to let the team take turns facilitating, learn to keep time, and handle updates themselves. He suggests that leaders should model good habits at first — like staying on topic, focusing on progress, and keeping it short — but gradually step back so that team members feel responsible for running the meeting.

I chose this article because I can relate to it from my experience in software engineering classes where teamwork can be uneven. Sometimes one or two people end up organizing everything, while others stay quiet. This article showed me that real professional teams face the same issues, and that strong teams are the ones where everyone learns to self-organize. I also liked how Cohn keeps his advice practical — he doesn’t overcomplicate the process, but focuses on people learning through consistent, small improvements.

Reading this blog reminded me why learning about Scrum in class is not just about memorizing roles or ceremonies. It’s about building habits of communication and accountability. As a computer science student, I used to think Agile was mainly for project managers, but this article helped me see how every developer plays a part in maintaining the team’s rhythm. Even if I’m just a developer, I can help keep meetings focused or volunteer to run one. That kind of initiative builds confidence and makes the team stronger.

Resource: Mike Cohn, How to Coach Your Team to Run a Daily Scrum Meeting When You Cannot Attend