When should scrum events be held?

The rhythm of scrum consists of various events.

• Sprint planning
• Daily standup 
• Backlog refinement
• Sprint review
• Sprint retrospective
• The sprint

The last on the list is sometimes debated as to whether or not it’s actually a scrum event. I include it because it's critical to creating a cadence of work for the team. 

Learn more about the rhythm of scrum. Then browse the most common terms in a Scrum glossary and learn what is Scrum.

Most scrum events are timeboxed relative to the length of the sprint:

• Sprint planning: 2 hours / sprint week.
• Daily standup: 15 minutes.
• Backlog refinement: 2 hours / sprint week.
• Sprint review: 1 hour / sprint week.
• Retrospective: 45 minutes / sprint week.

Just because an event has a timebox doesn’t mean it needs to be that long. The timebox is the maximum time allowed for the event.

Learn more about the different scrum events. Then browse the most common terms in a Scrum glossary and learn what is Scrum.

Scrum events are generally held in the following order

• Sprint planning: Held at the very beginning of a sprint.‍
• Daily standup: Every day at the same time and place.‍
• Backlog refinement: Flexible. Held at whatever time and frequency best serves the team.‍
• Sprint review: Held on the last day of the sprint.
• ‍Retrospective: Very last event of the sprint. 

The backlog refinement session is unique in that it can be held anytime. 

Explore further the events of scrum. Then browse the most common terms in a Scrum glossary and learn what is Scrum.

I included this because it is frequently asked, but the question misunderstands the importance of the scrum events. It’s like asking which of your limbs is most important. You may be able to answer, but they are really all critical. 

If pressed for an answer, the daily scrum probably has the greatest impact on the team's effectiveness. 

Learn more about the events in scrum. Then browse the most common terms in a Scrum glossary and learn what is Scrum.