S3E8 Through the Lens of a Scrum Master - Speak Up and Advocate for Yourself with Jennifer Savage

Inside Tech Comm with Zohra Mutabanna

I have been out of pocket for the summer visiting family in India and taking some time off. I hope you are having a safe and fun summer. I am happy to be back in the saddle...
In this latest episode, I chat with Jennifer Savage, a Scrum Master at FinThrive. Since Jennifer was a technical writer back in the day, she has some great nuggets to share on the parallels between the two roles, and how she continues to find value and advocate for us. Isn't that awesome?
Well, here are some questions we delve into:

• What are the similarities between the two roles - tech writer and scrum master?
• What does the partnership between a tech writer and scrum master look like?
• How are writers embedded in the scrum process given they are a shared resource at your company?
• What are some ways for technical writers to find visibility on a scrum team when they are sidelined in the process?
• Why is the content that technical writers create important for you and the business?
• What are some pointers for writers to represent and advocate for themselves from a scrum master perspective?

Guest Bio

In Jennifer's own words...
I graduated from the University of Texas at Austin with a Bachelor of Journalism. About the time I was entering the workforce, journalism jobs were few and far between as the print media was transitioning into the online space.
My first position out of college was as a newsletter editor/writer for a small publishing company. From there I transitioned into other writing roles over years, from business writing to medical writing to entertainment writing, and ended up in a technical writer role at my current company. I was brought into the company in its early days to create and publish all of the end-user documentation for their software offerings. As a tech writer, I worked on a number of delivery teams using Agile methodologies, and after about 7 years, I moved into a Scrum Master role.
I am currently a Senior Scrum Master for several delivery teams at FinThrive, based in Plano. While I enjoy my role as a Scrum Master, I have a soft spot for documentation and have always made sure they get a fair shake in our planning activities when completing product increments for our software updates.
I live in Frisco with my husband, my teenage son, and four cats. In my spare time, I volunteer with local animal welfare organizations and enjoy traveling with my family. graduated from the University of Texas at Austin with a Bachelor of Journalism. About the time I was entering the workforce, journalism jobs were few and far between as the print media was transitioning into the online space.
You can connect with Jennifer on LinkedIn.

Audio Engineer - RJ Basilio