According to the Large-Scale Scrum (LeSS) framework, one of the principles for scaling agile development is to descale the organization, which means simplifying the structure and reducing dependencies and handoffs. A well-structured Product Backlog can help achieve this by enabling feature teams, which are cross-functional and cross-component teams that can deliver a complete customer-centric feature. Feature teams minimize and often eliminate Developers working on multiple Scrum Teams during a Sprint, as they can focus on one Product Backlog item at a time. This also improves productivity, quality, and learning, as Developers can avoid context switching and multitasking, which are known to reduce efficiency and effectiveness. A person working on multiple Scrum Teams at the same time is often less productive than when that person can focus on the Sprint Backlog of a single Scrum Team.

The Large-Scale Scrum (LeSS) framework also states that Scrum does not change when scaling up to multiple teams. The core Scrum framework remains intact, with one Product Owner, one Product Backlog, and potentially releasable Increments every Sprint. The only changes are adding a few coordination practices to cope with the increased complexity and interdependencies. Therefore, changes to the core Scrum framework are not needed to be successful with Scrum at large scale.

Scrum Team members do not have to be working full time on a team, as long as they are committed to the Sprint Goal and deliver a Done Increment every Sprint. However, it is recommended that they spend as much time as possible with their team, as this fosters collaboration, communication, and alignment.

References:

The Large-Scale Scrum (LeSS) framework | Atlassian, accessed on September 30, 2023

Overview - Large Scale Scrum (LeSS), accessed on September 30, 2023

Practices for Scaling Lean & Agile Development: Large, Multisite, and Offshore Product Development with Large-Scale Scrum, Craig Larman and Bas Vodde, 2010

Leading Large Scale Product Development with Large-Scale Scrum (LeSS), Kamlesh Ravlani, 2015