A-CSM Certification Requirements: Requirements for Advanced Certified Scrum Masters

Advanced Certified Scrum Masters (A-CSMs) get the ball rolling when they have stakeholders breathing down their necks and staff dragging their feet with the standard Scrum steps. Certification is more than checking a box or framing an achievement for your office–it’s making dynamic impacts within your company.

One of the key differences between an Advanced Certified Scrum Master versus a Certified Scrum Master is that becoming an A-CSM prepares you to address roadblocks, scale your Scrum, and make meaningful change in your organization.

The Advanced Scrum Master certification process is more extensive than previous Scrum certifications. You will need to complete and hold a current Certified Scrum Master (CSM) certification, complete necessary pre- and post-course work, and validate a minimum of twelve months of work experience specific to the role of Scrum Master within the past five years.In this article, we’ll explore the A-CSM certification requirements, how your certification can make waves in your work culture, and the benefits of becoming an A-CSM.

What Do You Need to Become an Advanced Certified Scrum Master?

The A-CSM certification requirements include a number of prerequisites. It is not possible to earn your A-CSM certification before earning your CSM or Certified Scrum Product Owner (CSPO) certification. 

Other prerequisites include:

• Attend a minimum fourteen to sixteen hour A-CSM course, either online, in-person, or via mentoring courses

• Accept the A-CSM Licensure Agreement

• Complete your Scrum Alliance membership profile

• Demonstrate a thorough understanding of the skills and techniques taught through Scrum

• Complete all necessary pre- and post-course work

• Validate at least one year of work experience specific to the role of Scrum Master within the past five years

The course you take is the most important requirement of all. Your course must be certified by the Scrum Alliance–otherwise, it is not an authentic certification. The Scrum Alliance standardizes the knowledge required to become an A-CSM and ensures you are accurately trained.

Who Should Attend an A-CSM Course?

A-CSM courses are best for:

• Scrum Masters

• Agile coaches

• Project managers

• Team leaders

• Agile Team facilitators

• Development Managers

• Delivery Managers

If you already have certifications for these roles, you are likely eligible for the A-CSM course and certification.

What You’ll Achieve

The A-CSM course focuses on six main objectives:

• Coaching

• Agile facilitation

• Services to development team

• Services to product owner

• Services to organization

• Personal development

These objectives are met by building your skills in areas that propel you into your career as an Advanced Certified Scrum Master. These skills include:

• Facilitation skills

• Coaching

• Leading and facilitating change

• Visual management

• Scaling and descaling Scrum principles

• Enabling high performance in teams

• Lean and Kanban

• Understanding team dynamics

• Resolving impediments and roadblocks

With an A-CSM certification, you will have the ability to facilitate dialogue between the Scrum Team members, product owner, customers, stakeholders, and more. In these interactions, your A-CSM certification allows you to respond confidently when encountering certain obstacles, such as low motivation or resistance to change.

A-CSM certification gives you the skills to scale Scrum and Agile beyond a singular team in your organization. You will have the ability to increase engagement from all team members, executives, and other key players. With everyone on board, you can encourage commitment, accountability, and more!

Benefits of Earning Your A-CSM Certification

Your education doesn’t need to stop when you become a Certified Scrum Master. There are several benefits to earning your role as an A-CSM, including its ability to make you stand out in the global marketplace, distinguish yourself within your industry, and show value to your current and future employers as an Agile professional. 

Real-Life Ready

A-CSMs walk away with a robust toolkit that prepares them for Scrum and Agile implementation, including coaching games, exercises, and other tools. You’ll learn how to facilitate dialogue between members in all levels of your organization and will be prepared and confident in the case of pushback.

Expanding Scrum Impact

With your A-CSM certification, you will have the tools necessary to expand the impact of Scrum in your company and will be able to identify new avenues for scaling Scrum and Agile.

Let Agile Pain Relief Lead the Way

Agile Pain Relief offers A-CSM courses that offer perks other courses fall short on. Rather than sitting on a conference call with your microphone muted for the duration of two business days, our experts create engaging and stimulating courses that immerse you in Scrum and Agile practices over the course of several weeks. 

We believe in thoughtful integration, building learning around experience, and curating a community of collective expertise. Our team has more than twenty years of experience in implementing, teaching, and coaching Scrum. When you complete your A-CSM course training through Agile Pain Relief, you aren’t walking away with just a certification–you’re stepping into a new mindset with the tools and support you need to generate a much-needed shift in your organization!