#160: The Real Work of a Scrum Master with Brian Campbell

What separates a solid Scrum Master from a great one? In this episode, Brian Milner sits down with veteran Scrum Master Brian Campbell to talk about the balance between being empathetic, staying grounded, and knowing when it’s time to move on.

Overview

In this episode of the Agile Mentors Podcast, Brian Milner is joined by longtime Agile Mentors Community member and enterprise-level Scrum Master Brian Campbell to explore the core skills every Scrum Master needs, beyond the textbook answers.

Drawing from 13+ years of experience, Brian Campbell shares how flexibility, empathy, and situational awareness help Scrum Masters navigate real-world team dynamics, conflicting priorities, and tough leadership environments. Together, the Brians discuss how to support product owners without overstepping, when to gently push back with leadership, and how to foster effective teamwork even under pressure. They also dive into what it means to advocate for your team—especially during crunch time—and how to know when it’s time to walk away from an unhealthy engagement.

Whether you’re just starting out or deep into your Scrum career, this episode is packed with practical insight from someone who's been there.

References and resources mentioned in the show:

Brian Campbell
Rescue Your Daily Scrum videos
#113: Influence Without Authority with Christopher DiBella
#126: Mastering the Scrum Master Role with Gary K. Evans
The Daily Scrum Meeting - a detailed breakdown
Subscribe to the Agile Mentors Podcast

Want to get involved?

This show is designed for you, and we’d love your input.

Enjoyed what you heard today? Please leave a rating and a review. It really helps, and we read every single one.
Got an Agile subject you’d like us to discuss or a question that needs an answer? Share your thoughts with us at podcast@mountaingoatsoftware.com

This episode’s presenters are:

Brian Milner is a Certified Scrum Trainer®, Certified Scrum Professional®, Certified ScrumMaster®, and Certified Scrum Product Owner®, and host of the Agile Mentors Podcast training at Mountain Goat Software. He's passionate about making a difference in people's day-to-day work, influenced by his own experience of transitioning to Scrum and seeing improvements in work/life balance, honesty, respect, and the quality of work.

Brian Campbell is a seasoned Senior Scrum Master with over 13 years of experience helping enterprise teams in healthcare, insurance, and tech deliver real results with agile. He’s known for his calm leadership, strong facilitation skills, and a flexible, coaching-first approach that meets teams where they are.

Auto-generated Transcript:

Brian Milner (00:00)
Welcome back Agile Mentors. We are here for the Agile Mentors podcast. I'm here, Brian Milner, and I also have with me another Brian. I have Mr. Brian Campbell with me. Welcome in, Brian.

Brian Campbell (00:12)
Hi. Nice to be on the podcast.

Brian Milner (00:13)
⁓ I was, yeah, we're really happy to have you here. I always kind of joke with, with other Brian's and, and, Brian is one of the other ones I can joke