Agile Project Management and Free Scrum Training: No-Cost and Low-Cost Options

Agile Project Management and Free Scrum Training: No-Cost and Low-Cost Options
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Looking for Low-Cost Options

If you’ve been looking to boost your career in Project Management, it’s wise that you have been looking at the available Scrum training options. However, if you’re looking to implement Scrum methodologies into your workplace (or brush up on your skills), you may have found the cost of Scrum Master certification to be rather steep at a cost of about a thousand bucks. While becoming certified does come with a price, there are some options that can be good ways to test whether or not the Scrum methodologies will work for you and your company without spending any money.

Your Local Library

While most people first turn to the Internet to find free training options, there are many books available at your local library for the same, very reasonable price (provided you return your books on time) - free. When looking into free options for Scrum training, try your local library to see if the following books are available for you to borrow:

You may find that by doing a quick search in your library’s card catalog you will find even more books that are available to you for learning Scrum techniques. Also, don’t overlook your library’s online resources. If your library subscribes to Safari Tech Books Online, you may be able to find a plethora of free Scrum resources without even leaving your home. If your local library doesn’t have a book you’re looking for, ask the librarian if it’s available via interlibrary loan.

Training Online

There are many venues for receiving free Scrum training online. Before performing a keyword search, it is important to be clear about what your goals are in your Scrum education. Do you want a general overview of Scrum methodologies and how to implement them? Bright Hub PM has many different articles on the various aspects of Scrum available.

If, instead, your goal is to learn more about a specific Scrum practice, you may want to do a search on Google. You might find that “Scrum Roles” pulls up just what you need.

Alternatively, you can find some free classes online like the ones offered by OnTime University. Learn more about Scrum practices in a classroom environment. If you don’t want to leave your house, you can even find Webinars like those at CollabNet, Inc. to help you learn Scrum practices.

Find a Mentor

Finally, one of the best ways to learn a new skill is to find someone who already has that skill and have them mentor you. If you have a friend or colleague who has experience with Scrum methodologies, perhaps you can work out a barter where they will teach you Scrum and you can teach them a trait or skill that you possess. By having a mentor, you can also ensure that you have a sense of accountability when it comes to your free Scrum training.

One note on all of the free Scrum training methodologies discussed in this article: In order to become a certified Scrum Master, you must go through the official Scrum certification course, but you can learn about Scrum without obtaining the certification if certification is not important to you.