Encouraging people to listen to each other is just as valuable as encouraging them to talk to each other.
A good Scrum Master is essential when you want a high-functioning team. Someone who can help guide the team as they work to continuously improve themselves. Not only should they understand and encourage standard Scrum practice, they also have the ability to build positive relationships with team members to help resolve conflicts, encourage team communication and clear any impediments that get in the way.
How can a Scrum Master benefit your team?
If you are familiar with Scrum then you are probably aware of the standard responsibilities of a scrum master: facilitating scrum events, removing impediments, teaching agile principles, etc.
But what else do you need a scrum master to be able to do? Your team is made of people, not theories, so you need someone who can offer something more than standard:
The ability to build trust among team members and across the organization.
An advocate for the team.
Someone who listens to team members in order to understand how they can help them.
The desire to empower the team rather than micromanage them.