The Developers: Cross-Functional & Self-Managing

Overview

• What you’ll learn: Who Developers are in Scrum, why the term is broader than “programmers,” cross-functionality, self-management, and how Developers interact with the other accountabilities.
• Prerequisites: Lesson 11 — The Scrum Master.
• Estimated reading time: 13 minutes

Introduction

When most people hear “Developers,” they picture programmers hunched over keyboards, writing code. In Scrum, the term is much broader. Developers are all the people in the Scrum Team who are committed to creating any aspect of a usable Increment each Sprint. This includes programmers, testers, designers, technical writers, database administrators, UX researchers — anyone who contributes to building the product.

What Makes Developers Unique in Scrum

Cross-Functional

The Developers collectively have all the skills necessary to create an Increment each Sprint. They do not depend on external teams or people to do their work. If the Increment requires coding, testing, and design, then the Developers include people who can code, test, and design.

Self-Managing

The Developers internally decide who does what, when, and how. No one outside the Scrum Team — not a manager, not the Product Owner, not the Scrum Master — tells the Developers how to turn Product Backlog items into Increments of value. The team knows the work best; they decide how to execute it.

Accountable for the Increment

The Developers are accountable for:

• Creating a plan for the Sprint — the Sprint Backlog.
• Instilling quality by adhering to the Definition of Done.
• Adapting their plan each day toward the Sprint Goal.
• Holding each other accountable as professionals.

The Developer Mindset

Common Misconceptions

• “Developers = coders” — No. Anyone who creates the Increment is a Developer in Scrum terms.
• “Developers just follow orders” — No. Developers self-manage. They decide how to do the work.
• “Developers don’t talk to stakeholders” — They may participate in Sprint Reviews and interact with stakeholders. The PO manages the backlog, not all communication.
• “Each Developer has a specialization silo” — While team members have specialties, the team is cross-functional. Individuals are encouraged to grow T-shaped skills.

Key Takeaways

• Developers in Scrum include anyone who creates the Increment — testers, designers, writers, not just coders.
• The team is cross-functional: it has all skills needed to deliver value each Sprint.
• The team is self-managing: they decide who does what, when, and how.
• Developers are accountable for quality (Definition of Done), the Sprint plan, and daily adaptation.
• Nobody outside the team tells Developers how to do their work.

What’s Next

In Lesson 13, you will explore the key differences between a Product Owner and a traditional Project Manager — and why confusing the two undermines Scrum.