Nashua Scrum Club

At every Nashua Scrum Club meeting there is an opportunity for non-profits to present their project opportunities.  Specifically, the hour between 6 and 7 is set aside for networking and informal discussion groups.  Any non-profit that wants to make people aware of their project is welcome to use that time-slot. 

If you  This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it a description of your project to us one week before the meeting (i.e. the preceding Thursday at 6:00 pm), we'll make sure the information gets distributed to club members, both through direct email and by posting it on our web site.  You're more likely to attract people to your information session if they've had a chance to learn about it in advance.

The sessions are first-come-first-served, and we're limiting it to two non-profit information session.

When you get to the meeting, you'll see a sheet of flip-chart paper in the back of the room listing the sessions scheduled from 6:00 - 7:00 that will look something like this.

You'll also find plastic picture frames with letters A - D.  Take the frame with the letter corresponding to your session to the place in the room where you'd like to meet with prospective volunteers.

Pitching Your Project

Potential volunteers will come to your information session to decide if they want to join the project team.  In both written and verbal presentations about your project, you are working to enroll people in volunteering.  It is critical to paint a compelling and specific picture of the opportunity.  

• What is the project?
• Who will it benefit?
• What successes have you had that suggest that this project will be a success? Have you been able to lead a team of volunteers to a successful outcome in the past?
• What's the big picture - how does this fit into a larger organization, vision or plan?
• What are you expecting from volunteers in terms of skill set, time commitment and hours of work?
• What will you be providing volunteers (e.g. place to work, ready-access to subject matter experts, computers, hosting services)?
• Who will be providing day-to-day contact from the organization to the team?
• How many people total are you looking for?

We don't have LCD projectors available, so please bring copies of any presentation material.

Critical Mass for a Successful Project

For a project to be successful we think it is beneficial to have the following elements in place.

• A ScrumMaster with strong facilitative leadership skills.
• A representative from the non-profit who has the time and background to act as the Product Owner for the project.
• Clear team agreements for how the team is going to work together.
• A dedicated team of volunteers who commit to and honor the mutually-determined team agreements.
• A volunteer Agile Coach who can help train the team in the use of Agile practices. It may not be necessary to fill this role if the ScrumMaster and other team members already have significant agile experience.

If you have most of what you need for a project, but are missing one of the key elements, feel free to use our LinkedIn group to make a request of the club members.

Please This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it if you would like help with any aspect of presenting your project or forming a team.  Best wishes for a successful project!