SMAC® - Scrum Master Accredited Certification

There are a lot of scrum certifications available for professionals to choose from today. The popularity of these certifications is increasing with each passing day. More and more professionals all around the world have begun to take up these certifications. The main reason for the popularity of these certifications is the kind of success that a professional enjoy once he has completed this certification. Scrum Master Accredited Certification is one of the many scrum certifications that are highly popular among the professionals of the time and also very beneficial for them.

Despite the huge popularity of these certifications, all that many people know about these certifications is that they are the keys to success in this very competitive world and nothing about what they are actually about. Therefore, before we begin with the certification, let’s try and understand what is scrum and the other concepts that are associated with it.

In the simplest of words, scrum can be termed as a framework that has been specially designed for the professionals of this age to effectively tackle and complete complex tasks and especially projects. The best part of this framework is that it is very simply designed and can be efficiently utilised to complete the most complex of tasks easily and in an innovative manner. The scrum framework was initially formalized in the field of software development, but it is very useful for other projects as well, no matter how complex or difficult they are. This framework helps the professionals and their teams in improving communication among each other, the speed with which they work and their teamwork abilities. All of this results in the best possible outcome of the project or the task.

The scrum process or framework was created by Jeff Sutherland in 1993. At the time of the formation of this framework, the term scrum was taken by Jeff from an analogy that came forward in some study in 1986 and was published in the Harvard Business review. Also, this is not the first time the term scrum came into use. As a matter of fact, the term “scrum” is the name of a formation that the players of a rugby team use. It is an ordered formation that is used by the players to restart the play. Therefore, when Takeuchi and Nonaka (the two persons who had given the analogy that was published in the Harvard Business) gave the analogy, they compared the highly functional and cross efficient teams to the formation used by Rugby teams.

Most of the major companies in the world today use scrum. It is one of the best agile methodologies in the world that has been developed to tackle complex projects. It has simply transformed the way different project management teams tackle a difficult task. In other words, if the members of your team are well efficient in the agile methodology of scrum… then no project or task can prove to be difficult for you. You will have all the skills that will be required.

Scrum Master Accredited Certification is another one of the certifications that are based on the scrum framework. It is provided by the International Scrum Institute. It is highly regarded throughout the world. When you get this certification, it is a proof of the efficiency of the skills that you have in applying scrum methodology for solving difficult and complex projects.

Who should do the Scrum Master Accredited Certification?

Agile Project Management has become the way of the project management world. Over the years, project management has become a huge market and different organizations remain under an intense and constant pressure of managing their project resources for almost real-time changes. Therefore, the organizations throughout the world look out for professionals who are highly trained and have a precious certification in their resume. So, anybody who wishes to build a beautiful career in the field of project management, he should do this certification. This type of a certification gives the professionals the chance to enjoy such a demand that every professional wish to enjoy some day. This certification also improves the employment prospects for a professional. Therefore, this certification is made for all those who wish to improve their employment prospects drastically in the field of project management.

How is this certification useful?

Like all the other scrum certifications, this certification too is very beneficial for the professionals. A long list can be prepared with the benefits that this certification provides to the professionals holding it. Some of these benefits are as follows:

1. Huge demand

One of the most important benefits that the professionals enjoy after completing this certification is a huge demand. Since the popularity of the agile methodology in project management is increasing with each passing day, the organizations have started to prefer the certified professionals over all those who are not certified. So, once you complete this certification, you are bound to enjoy a huge demand in the market. Moreover, being preferred over his peers is something that all the professionals want and crave for… so this increases the value of this benefit to an even greater extent.

2. Drastic improvement in the employment prospects

Another benefit that the professional enjoys after completing this certification is that the employment prospects improve by a great margin. The reason for this is that this certification is highly popular and it is widely regarded as one of the best in agile project management methodologies. Not only does this certification teaches you the precious agile methodology, but it serves as a proof for all the employers for the same. The employers today look out for the certified professionals and therefore, it is very beneficial to have this certification in your bag. When you put this certification in your CV, you validate all the skills that you have acquired. It serves as a valid proof of all the skills for the employers and thus it improves the chances of the professional getting hired.

3. Applicability across industries

Over the years, project management has expanded very much as an industry and also as a market. Project managers are required in almost every industry today. What is more required are professionals who have great abilities and skills in agile project management methodologies and are certified for the same? The Scrum Master Accredited Certification serves the exact same purpose for the professionals. With such a certification, the professionals are bound to enjoy a great applicability in a huge number of industries. The professionals get to choose from all these industries. In other words, if you have such a certification, you have a huge range for jobs to choose from.

4. A better salary

In today’s competitive world, a certification always helps in surviving and enjoying benefits that the professionals without a certification do not get. Getting a better salary than all the peers who are not certified is one of these benefits. Since the world is as competitive as anything, it is only logical for the organizations and companies to pay the certified professionals more than all those who are not. Getting a huge salary is something that all the professionals want. It is the first and foremost wish and expectation of every professional from his job. Therefore, this certification becomes even more valuable because of the high salary that it helps the professionals earn.

How to prepare for this exam?

Preparing for an exam is always difficult. It is really important that the candidates prepare in the right way and with the right methods. Preparing for an exam can be a really daunting task. There is no particular way or method or preparation that can be considered an ideal way for preparing for an exam. Every candidate prepares according to his own abilities and calibre and every exam requires a few particular things to be done by the candidates to do well in the exam.

As already mentioned above, there is no ideal way for the preparation of an exam, but there are certain things that the candidates can do to score well in any exam. In the case of the Scrum Master Accredited Certification exam, it is imperative for the candidates to understand the way this Assignment works. The SMAC Assignment teaches the candidates about all the important concepts of the scrum framework. To prepare well for this exam, the candidates should try and understand all these concepts as well as he can. Moreover, this Assignment might also expose the candidates to real life situations where the candidates might learn how the use of scrum framework changes the way projects are managed for the better. The candidates should learn all these utilities of the scrum framework so that they get to understand all that can be understood about this framework and the exam.

What is the exam format?

The Scrum Master accredited certification exam’s format is quite simple and is very well-known to the professionals. SMAC is an online exam. There are a hundred questions per exam for this certification. The duration of this exam is one hundred and twenty minutes. The exam is conducted in two parts of fifty questions each. These questions are multiple choice questions. The candidates are supposed to answer all the questions. There is no negative marking for the wrong answers marked by the candidates. The exam can be said to be an easy one. The passing percentage of the exam is 95%. The candidates need to answer at least 60 percent of the questions to pass the exam. As soon as the candidate finishes the exam, he obtains the Scrum Master Accredited Certification which is valid throughout the world. Moreover, the exam can be taken by the candidates anywhere. There is no centre allotted for it.

What are the eligibility requirements?

There is no definite set of the eligibility requirements for this exam. There is no pre-requisite education or experience required for the candidates to take this exam. However, it is preferable for a professional willing to take this exam to complete the Scrum Developer Certified Certification before he applies for the Scrum Master Accredited Certification.

Moreover, it is also highly recommended for the candidates to attend a 2-day Scrum Master Certified classroom training provided by a scrum study approved authorized training partner.

How to score well?

There is no particular way that can be called the ideal way for a candidate to pass an exam with flying colours. Every candidate has to prepare according to his very own calibre and then only can he even hope for some good marks. As already mentioned about the preparation, there are only some things that one can do and then expect to score well in the exam. Some of these things are:

1. Take mock tests

Well, this is something that proves to be helpful in an examination of every sort. Before taking up an exam, the candidates should take up as many mock tests as he can. Mock tests are one of the best possible ways to prepare for an exam. These mock tests help the candidates in getting to know the rules and regulations of the exam. No matter how much you know about an exam, there are always some things that the candidates tend to miss out on. These mock tests help the candidates in becoming aware of all these things. Also, when you take a mock test, it helps you in getting to feel the atmosphere of the exam hall. This feel helps you in becoming mentally prepared and used to the pressure of taking the real exam.

2. Do not let the pressure get the better of you in the exam hall

All the preparation of the candidate can go waste if he doesn’t keep his composure in the exam hall. One must remember that it is when it matters the most. No matter how many hours you have put in your preparation and no matter how many mock tests you have taken… if you panic in the exam hall, all of that is a waste and nothing more. So, it is almost imperative for all the candidates to keep their calm and stay focuses during the precious hours of the exam.