Scrum Master (Freelancer)

At Nelson, we've been supporting teaching and learning across Canada for more than a century. As Canada's leading K–12 educational publisher and digital learning provider, we work alongside educators to develop trusted, curriculum-aligned resources, digital learning solutions, and assessment tools that meet the evolving needs of classrooms.

From our longstanding publishing heritage to innovative platforms like Edwin, we bring together quality content, technology, and practical support to help educators create equitable, inclusive, and engaging learning experiences for every student.

Behind this work is a team of passionate, collaborative, and forward-thinking people who care about making a difference in Canadian education. We're always looking for curious, creative individuals who bring fresh perspectives, embrace new ideas, and want to make a meaningful impact.

If that sounds like you, we'd love to hear from you! Apply to join our team today. 

Let's Create Possible, one learner at a time.

About the role

The Scrum Master (SM) is a project manager with experience running projects using the Scrum framework. The SM is responsible for day-to-day leadership and project management of digital products. The SM will participate in the planning of projects and oversee the development and production stages, providing overall workflow/scheduling expertise with the goal of ensuring projects are delivered on time, on budget, and to Nelson’s quality standards.

The SM will leverage the contributions of internal staff including Program Specialists, Content Editors, Content Coordinators, Digital Content Developers, and Rights Acquisitions Project Managers, as well as external vendors including editors, proofreaders, designers, and full-service vendors in the completion of the work. In addition, the SM will work with the Product Manager (PM) to set project scope and priorities. A key aspect of this role is to ensure that the content quality and product vision is maintained throughout the project’s life cycle.

The position requires hands-on project management skills, high attention to detail, excellent verbal and written communication skills, and the ability to work with technical and non-technical staff and vendors. Key to the success of this position is the ability to be agile, work well under pressure, manage competing priorities, and thrive in a technical and quick-changing environment.

Requirements

Duties and Responsibilities

Project Planning

• Provide support to the Product Manager (PM) as needed through R&D for product vision and conceptualization, including participating in market research activities such as meetings, workshops, and focus groups
• Participate in project planning meetings to plan for content development and production of product (e.g., author/advisor meetings)
• Work with Senior Manager, Content Management and PM to estimate timelines and costs (e.g., writing, editing, production, reviewing, proofreading, alt text) for both prototypes and full products

Project Management

• Collaborate with PM to identify project scope, requirements, and acceptance criteria
• Apply Scrum project management methodologies to plan, execute, and manage process and workflow for digital content, from conception to go-live/publication, including markup, writing, editing, production (HTML editing, composition), integration of partner content, and creation of metadata and interactive content
• Guide internal team members through the workflow, monitoring for quality and completeness set by acceptance criteria (e.g. reviews, instructional design), monitoring for alignment with design templates and brand identity, and ensuring that project milestones are met and that work is progressing within project scope
• Source, engage, and liaise with external reviewers and vendors including designers, editors, illustrators, copyeditors, proofreaders, and indexers
• Identify blockers and potential project pitfalls, evaluate risk/benefits, and work with project team, other Scrum Masters, and Senior Managers to find solutions
• Ensure that content-preparation requirements (e.g., manuscript, metadata, etc.) are understood and followed by the project team
• Understand and follow guidelines for accessibility, web compatibility, and permissions
• Advise on ongoing updates and revisions to assigned projects based on market feedback
• Contribute to process improvement initiatives
• Participate in team meetings and update Senior Manager, Content Management and Product Manager regularly on project status, alerting them to any issues that might require their assistance

Experience and Education

• Post-secondary education required
• 3+ years of experience in project management, preferably in an educational publishing or e-learning environment or in digital projects
• Thorough understanding of project management best practices and familiarity with Scrum; PMP and/or CSM certification an asset
• Knowledge of publishing processes and workflow for digital products
• Certificate/degree from college or university publishing program an asset
• Knowledge of pedagogy and instructional design for K-12
• Experience working in digital content creation and ability to quickly learn new processes, systems, and software

Skills

• Demonstrated ability to coordinate people in a project environment where there is no direct reporting relationship
• Superior communication skills, both written and spoken
• Problem solving orientation with the ability to manage multiple projects and deadlines
• Strong time-management skills, flexibility to shift between tasks easily, and demonstrated ability to effectively prioritize workload
• Ability to conceptualize, workshop, document, and socialize rapidly evolving workflow processes
• Highly organized and motivated with keen attention-to-detail
• Understanding of editorial standards and processes
• Understanding of web development and print production and processes
• Strong customer service orientation
• Ability to work both independently and within a team environment
• Collaborative strength – should embrace, support, and practice a collaborative style
• Comfortable dealing with change and risk in a fast-paced working environment
• Computer proficiency: Adobe Acrobat, MS Office, Smartsheet, Confluence, Jira
• Broad understanding of copyright and accessibility standards
• Teaching experience is an asset

Nelson is committed to Inclusion, Equity and diversity. As part of this commitment, we do not discriminate on the basis of age, race, sex, gender, gender identity, colour, religion, national origin, sexual orientation, marital status, citizenship, veteran status, or disability status. Should you require any accommodation during our selection process, please reach out to peopleandengagement@nelson.com.

Benefits

All freelance work at Nelson is carried out on a work-for-hire basis, with freelancers submitting invoices for work on agreed-upon tasks and projects. The rate of pay ranges depending on experience and skill level, or sometimes according to predetermined task-based flat rates.