Scrum Master

At American Equity Investment Life Holding Companywe offer leading annuity products that help empower our clients to fulfill their needs and wants in retirement. Our success comes from hiring high-energy individuals who embody the beliefs that drive our unique culture. We currently fund over half a million retirements nationwide, and have been headquartered in West Des Moines, Iowa, for over twenty-five years with satellite offices in Charlotte, NC and New York, NY.

GENERAL PURPOSE OF THE JOB:

The Scrum Master coaches scrum teams for project delivery in Information Systems, including responsibility for maintaining and documenting sprints, eliminating barriers and facilitating team delivery of sprint goals. The incumbent assists in the review and analysis of defined systems specifications, partnering with Product Owners, Business Analysts, Stakeholders, and Management. Leads daily scrum meetings and sprint retrospectives.

ESSENTIAL DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES:

• This position is located onsite in our Des Moines, Iowa office 3-4 days/week*

• Lead and facilitate Scrum ceremonies including daily stand-ups, sprint planning, reviews, and retrospectives.

• Coach and mentor multiple Scrum teams on Agile and Scrum practices.

• Foster a collaborative and high-performing environment for teams.

• Facilitate resolution of impediments and ensure timely delivery of sprint goals.

• Work closely with product owners and stakeholders to ensure alignment on product vision and goals.

• Continuously improve Agile processes within the organization.

• Act as a change agent, promoting Agile values and principles throughout the organization.

• Coaches and guides the organization on how to use Agile/Scrum values, practices and procedures to get the most out of self-organization and filling in the intentional gaps left in the Agile/Scrum frameworks.

• Assesses the Scrum maturity of the team and organization and coaches the team to higher levels of maturity, at a sustainable pace.

• Removes impediments or guides the team to remove impediments.

• Builds a trusting and safe environment focused on execution, problem-solving and mediation.

• Facilitates collaborative work and team assignments, resource allocation, discussion, decision making and conflict resolution.

• Leads estimation, planning, and backlog grooming/refinement in Agile sprints.

• Assists with internal and external communications, improving transparency, and radiating information.

• Supports and educates the Product Owner, especially on grooming and maintaining the product backlog.

• Provides support to the team using a servant leadership style, whenever possible, and leading by example.

• Provides bi-weekly status reports on all completed, on-going and future projects in order to keep management updated on progress.

• Interfaces with users to develop procedures.

• Performs other related work as assigned.

SUPERVISORY RESPONSIBILITIES:

Direct Reports: 0

General Description of Indirect Reports (2 and 3-downs): 0

EDUCATION AND/OR EXPERIENCE:

Bachelor's degree in Information Systems Management, Business Administration or related field of study; plus a minimum of 3 years' of scrum master experience in an Agile software development environment; or equivalent combination of education and/or experience; experience applying Scrum principles, practices and theory; experience using a variety of successful Agile techniques; insurance industry experience.

CERTIFICATES, LICENSES, PROFESSIONAL DESIGNATIONS:

Certified Scrum Master

KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS AND ABILITIES:

• Proven experience as a Scrum Master or in a similar role.

• Deep understanding of Agile methodologies and frameworks.

• Excellent communication and interpersonal skills.

• Strong leadership and facilitation skills.

• Ability to adapt to change, delays, and unexpected events.

• Exceptional customer service orientation.

• Proficient in reading, analyzing, and interpreting documents and instructions.

• Skilled in mathematical calculations and application of mathematical concepts in practical scenarios.

• Effective presentation skills and ability to interact in group settings.

• Proficient problem-solving abilities with the capacity to handle diverse variables.

• Capability to interpret various forms of instructions, whether written, oral, diagrammatic, or schedule-based.

• Proven ability to define problems, gather data, establish facts, and derive valid conclusions.

• Capacity to handle practical challenges in situations with limited standardization.

• Good skills and knowledge of servant leadership, facilitation, situational awareness, conflict resolution, continual improvement, empowerment, and increasing transparency.

• Strong attention to detail.

• Able to identify and resolve problems in a timely manner.

• Effective verbal and written communication skills.

• Ability to take initiative and apply innovation in improving work processes.

• Ability to work cooperatively and successfully with employees, customers, and other outside third parties.

• Professionalism and follow-through.

• Adaptable to change, delays and unexpected events.

• Strong customer service orientation.

• Ability to read, analyze, and interpret documents, manuals, and instructions.

• Ability to perform accurate mathematical calculations and apply mathematical concepts to practical situations.

• Ability to effectively present information and interact in group situations.

• Ability to solve practical problems and deal with a variety of variables.

• Ability to interpret a variety of instructions given in written, oral, diagram, or schedule form.

• Ability to define problems, collect data, establish facts, and draw valid conclusions.

• Ability to solve practical problems and deal with a variety of variables in situations where only limited standardization exists.

• Ability to work weekends and evenings.

• Ability to travel 10% of the time.