Certified Scrum Trainers (CSTs) are the only people who can teach Certified Scrum Master (CSM) and Certified Scrum Product Owner (CSPO) courses. Anyone can teach a Scrum course, but only CSTs can teach certification courses.
Heart Healthy Scrum has relationships with several CSTs. One charges $6,000 plus expenses, a second charges $10,000 plus expenses, and a third charges $12,000 plus expenses. A fourth charges a small fixed rate plus 50% to 80% of the profits.
These fees help to explain why typical certification courses cost $1000 to $1400 per person. The good news is that several CSTs are holding special certification courses for people who are between jobs.
One of the best known efforts is WelfareCSM, a program started by Tobias Mayer. Here is how Tobias describes his motivations for starting this program:
We are in the midst of an economic downturn. People are losing jobs, losing money and having to rethink their priorities. In addition, the whole world of business is undergoing a profound change which is likely to affect the way we work for the remainder of this century, and beyond: mechanical systems are out, human systems are in. In this time of economic uncertainty and shifting paradigms some people will react with fear and panic, clinging on to old ideas and closing their hearts and minds. Others will respond with laughter and ingenuity, seeking and embracing the new opportunities that will arise from the current chaos.
It is this latter group that I wish to address. New ways of working require new thinking. Scrum -a simple software development framework- can offer a creative leap for people in any industry – or people in no industry at all: loners, thinkers, inventors, street corner philosophers, maybe you. Scrum is simple and effective. It can be taught in two days, and its essence will act as a springboard for your own ideas and ways of being in the world of work. Try it.