HI LEIGH, CAN YOU TELL OUR READERS A BIT ABOUT YOURSELF?

Hello, my name is Leigh Fish, and I am a Scrum Master at Essent IT. I work in I Empower, which is essentially an enablement ART. We help enable the rest of the ARTS and engineers to focus on the developer experience journey.

WHAT SPARKED YOUR INTEREST IN THE IT FIELD?

My path into IT wasn’t exactly traditional. I come from an entrepreneurial background and actually started out in sales. Growing up in apartheid-era South Africa as someone who is half-Chinese, I became very aware early on that not everyone had access to the same opportunities or privileges. I didn’t have a formal educational background in tech, so a lot of my journey was about trying to find my groove and figure out how to progress in different ways.

I started my own business when I was 24, and years later, after moving to the Netherlands, I discovered a very different professional landscape. Here, qualifications on paper are incredibly important. But even before entering tech formally, I was already using project management frameworks and translating labour legislation into agile practices without fully realising it.

I’ve always loved technology. Not necessarily from a programming perspective, but because of what it enables. When the Dutch tech industry really started booming, I began consulting from home for companies outside the Netherlands. That eventually led to my first role at a startup in Amsterdam. And then I found Essent… and never looked back.

HAVE ANY PEOPLE OR INFLUENCES SIGNIFICANTLY SHAPED YOUR CAREER?

Being the youngest and often the only female around the table definitely shaped me. In many ways, it built resilience very quickly. But resilience can also become stubbornness if you’re not careful. One of the biggest lessons I’ve learned is understanding when to keep pushing and when it’s time to pivot.

Those experiences also made me very aware of my surroundings and how I was perceived, and that naturally influenced the way I learned to navigate spaces and conversations.

I’ve been fortunate to have some incredible female mentors and colleagues along the way, and both good and difficult experiences taught me something valuable. And people like Evelien and Djimmy really took a chance on me. They gave me the opportunity and confidence to speak up and contribute.

HOW DID YOU COME TO WORK AT ESSENT?

Before joining Essent, I was commuting between Amsterdam and Sittard, and honestly, it became exhausting. Around that time, I had offers from a few larger companies, but Essent immediately felt right. I got a really good vibe from the people and the culture.

Coming from a startup environment, I loved moving quickly and getting things done fast, but I also wanted to deepen my knowledge and learn in a more structured way. Essent gave me that opportunity.

WHAT EXCITED YOU MOST ABOUT JOINING ESSENT?

As an entrepreneur, your instinct is often: time is money, move fast and deliver. But real learning takes time.

One of the biggest mindset shifts for me at Essent was discovering that it was okay to fail, learn and improve without needing to be perfect all the time. That was both scary and exciting because I wasn’t used to such a learning-focused environment.

What I really appreciated was the balance between learning and implementation. You don’t just learn theory here...you actually get the space to apply it in practice.

COULD YOU DESCRIBE YOUR CURRENT ROLE AND YOUR PRIMARY RESPONSIBILITIES?

I wear many hats. Essent has recently formalised its Scrum Master framework, but to me, the role isn’t about checking boxes or following a list mechanically.

I focus mainly on the team, while staying closely connected to the ART. I strive to live and breathe the team’s context so I can effectively relay feedback and signals in both directions. For me, it’s about outcomes rather than outputs, and about enabling change at team level or ART level wherever it makes the most impact.

A large part of my role is looking at systems, processes, and ways of working to improve flow and remove friction. But the human aspect is equally important to me. A lot of my strength lies in understanding people, spotting patterns, identifying gaps, and figuring out how to support teams better.

WHAT HAS SURPRISED YOU MOST ABOUT YOUR ROLE?

To be honest, the expectations weren’t too far from reality. What surprised me most was the amount of space there is to innovate and improve things without constantly being asked for permission.

I also really appreciate that the organisation looks beyond just team-level improvements. There’s recognition that some gaps need to be solved at ART or department level as well, and that creates room for growth.

CAN YOU HIGHLIGHT A SPECIFIC ACCOMPLISHMPENT THAT YOU FEEL HAS BEEN PIVOTAL IN YOUR CAREER HERE?

One thing I’m especially proud of is being involved in the re-stimulation of the Scrum community within the organisation.

The company has invested heavily in upskilling people, and that means a lot to me personally. Coming from a non-traditional educational background, most of my learning happened through life experiences rather than formal education. So having access to workshops, courses and support while also building a career has been incredibly inspirational.

For me, it feels like a personal win — being able to continue learning while working at the same time.

HOW WOULD YOU DESCRIBE THE CULTURE WITHIN YOUR TEAM OR DEPARTMENT?

Amazing! There’s a real openness to growth and development. People are genuinely willing to embrace change and try new ways of working.
It’s a very safe and supportive culture, which gives me a lot of energy because I genuinely enjoy solving problems. I’m happy when there are challenges to tackle.

WHAT SKILLS OR ATTRIBUTES DO YOU THINK ARE CRUCIAL FOR ANYONE IN YOUR ROLE?

Soft skills are a huge part of the role. You wear many hats as a Scrum Master, so being able to spot patterns, understand people and know when to push or pull back is incredibly important.

Sometimes you need bravery to speak up, and sometimes wisdom to stay quiet. It’s a bit of a dance.

Resilience is important too, but ultimately it’s about understanding gaps and figuring out the best way to approach them.

WHAT ASPECT OF YOUR JOB DO YOU FIND THE MOST REWARDING?

Working with people, without a doubt.

Especially when there’s a difficult situation involving people or collaboration, and you’re able to help guide it towards a genuine win-win outcome. That’s incredibly rewarding to me.

ARE THERE ANY HABITS OR ROUTINES YOU'VE ESTABLISHED THAT CONTRIBUTE TO YOUR EFFECTIVENESS?

I recently started using a small AI gadget during meetings to help me stay more structured. It reduces a lot of the administrative work because it can summarise conversations, organise notes, and even translate discussions into simpler English.

What I value most is how AI functions as a sounding board, my own agile team to spar with, challenging and refining identified gaps and helping me strengthen how I enable my teams, all at a pace that significantly accelerates learning and reflection.I’m also secretly working on an app idea that could help non-technical people understand technology and engineering conversations more easily. One thing I sometimes see in agile environments is that people jump straight into solutions without fully understanding the context.

If you understand the content better, you can guide teams more effectively, remove blockers faster, and better understand urgency. AI really helps bridge that gap.

CAN YOU SHARE A FUN FACT ABOUT YOURSELF THAT NOT MANY PEOPLE KNOW?

I’m completely addicted to golf! I also spend my winters escaping back to South Africa whenever possible. And outside work, life revolves around my Dutch boyfriend, my two sausage dogs, and my 15-year-old son.

WHAT COMMON MISCONCEPTIONS ABOUT YOUR FIELD WOULD YOU LIEK TO DISPEL?

Scrum Masters are still too often perceived as little more than team secretaries, yet the reality of the role is far broader and more impactful. In practice, Scrum Masters can deliver significantly more value than is commonly recognised.

The real value lies in enabling teams to improve sustainably, removing impediments that hinder progress, and fostering an environment where teams can consistently deliver meaningful outcomes. By doing so, Scrum Masters create impact not only at the team level, but across the wider organisation, strengthening alignment, accelerating learning, and helping the organisation realise value faster and more effectively.

WHAT ADVICE WOULD YOU GIVE TO YOUR YOUNGER SELF JUST STARTING OUT IN YOUR CAREER?

I probably would’ve learned to listen more, earlier in my career.

Only now that I’m older do I really appreciate the value of slowing down, listening deeply, and going further into things instead of constantly jumping from one thing to another.

But at the same time, I don’t really have regrets. Every experience taught me something valuable.

A huge thank you to Leigh for taking the time to chat with us!